Answer:
Conquistadors were representatives of the Spanish crown, mostly, who went in the name of the monarchs in order to claim and conquer the lands that had been discovered by Christopher Columbus, and other discoverers, later on.
These men, had the purpose, literally, of laying claim to the land, with all that it brought with it, including its native peoples. And since these natives were not considered at the same level as Europeans, then there was not much thought given to how Conquistadors might carry out their purpose.
Conquistadors were not all bad, and some did not simply try to eradicate the native tribes; however, a lot of them did. The ways in which these Conquistadors did harm Native American people were:
1. They killed thousands by the use of weaponry.
2. They also brought with them European diseases that decimated the populations.
3. They tried to force Natives to conform to the way of thinking of Europeans, including their language, traditions and faith. In this way, conflict arose and many Natives died, or left their heritage for European customs.
4. Slavery. Native Americans were forced into slavery for a very long time, until the Spanish realized that they were dying due to forced labor. When access to African slaves was possible, the Natives were left free, but still, they had already suffered the consequences.
These are only a few of the ways in which the Spanish Conquistadors harmed Native Americans.
