German colonization of the Americas
German attempts at the colonization of the Americas consisted of German Venezuela, St. Thomas and Crab Island in the 16th and 17th centuries.
History
Klein-Venedig
Klein-Venedig was the most significant part of the German colonization of the Americas between 1528 and 1546. The Augsburg-based Welser banking family was given the colonial rights to the land by Emperor Charles V, who owed them debts for his imperial election as Holy Roman Emperor. In 1528, Charles V issued a charter by which the Welsers possessed the rights to explore, rule and colonize the area with the primary motivation of searching for the legendary golden city of El Dorado. The venture was initially led by Ambrosius Ehinger, who founded Maracaibo in 1529. After the deaths of first Ehinger, Nikolaus Federmann, Georg von Speyer, Philipp von Hutten continued exploration in the interior. In the absence of Hutten from the capital of the province, the crown of Spain claimed the right to appoint the governor. The Spanish Juan de Carvajal was nominated governor by the Emperor Charles V and tried to take control of the province. In 1545 he founded El Tocuyo with German colonists of Coro. On Hutten's return to the capital, Santa Ana de Coro, in 1546, governor Carvajal had Hutten and Bartholomeus VI. Welser executed over the duo's refusal to relinquish control of the colony. The act was deemed an illegal execution, and Spanish crown forces tried and executed Carvajal for the crime. Subsequently, Charles V revoked Welser's charter.The Welsers transported German miners to the colony, as well as 4,000 African slaves as labour to work sugar cane plantations. Many of the German colonists died from tropical diseases, to which they had no immunity, or during frequent wars with Native Americans.