we are talking about events 400 years ago not less than 200. If spain and portugal share the spoils of the entire American continent rather then just the south their wealth and power would of been significantly greater and basically unstoppable.The Spanish 'lost' their so-called colonies centuries ago. Had the English not colonised North America, Spain's influence wouldn't be any greater than it what it currently is. Their hold/claim on the American colonies were always somewhat flimsy and gave them up in their early 1800s without much of a fight.