Britain's Thirteen Colonies produced modest direct returns compared with the treasure Spain and Portugal drew from South America. Britain's home economy and wider trade supported its growth, while defending and administering North American settlements remained expensive. Those protection costs are briefly connected to Britain's attempt to tax the colonies and the colonists' objection that they lacked representation. Spanish imperial wealth therefore appeared to British observers as a tempting concentration of money moving by sea. That contrast helps explain attempts to intercept Spanish shipping without confusing captured treasure with the costs of governing its source territories.
Notable Point · 4:53-6:39
Colonial costs and the lure of Spanish treasure
The contrast between costly British colonies and wealthy Spanish America helps explain why Spanish trade attracted British naval attention.