The encomienda system was

The encomienda system was created by the Spanish to control and regulate American Indian labor and behavior during the colonization of the Americas. Under the encomienda system, conquistadors and other leaders (encomenderos) received grants of a number of Indians, from whom they could exact "tribute" in the form of gold or labor. The encomenderos were supposed to protect and Christianize the Indians granted to them, but they most often used the system to effectively enslave the Indians and take their lands.