The Spanish Colonies

Born a Native

• Born as a native in 1525 south of the central valley

• Taunted and brutalized by the Spaniards from birth

• My mother tells stories of freedom and opulence

• The Spanish believe we are savage and uncouth

The Encomienda System

• Before my birth my family was relocated to a Spanish town in the central valley

• The Laws of Burgos passed on July 28, 1513 justified these actions of the Spanish

• Under the ecomienda system my parents were forced into labor on large tracts of land

• I was born into this system of slavery

The Requerimiento

• Our people forced to attend Catholic church regularly

• Forced to pray in Latin and worship Christ• Stripped of our traditional clothing and

forbade from bathing• Spanish viewed this system as just and

compassionate • Failure to comply led to enslavement or

death

Disease

• 4 out of 5 natives died: no immunity

• Thousands of our people died from Spanish diseases

• smallpox, chicken pox, diphtheria, influenza, scarlet fever, measles,

• typhoid, mumps, influenza, and cocoliztli

• Spanish became more desperate for labor

African American Enslavement

• Loss of native labor

• Black slaves replaced and worked along side our native people

• King Charles V of Spain had agreed to the shipment of 4,000 Africans a year to the Americas

Bartolomé de las Casas

• “Father of anti-imperialism and anti-racism”• A priest, a scholar, a historian, and a Spanish

Colonist• Believed that my people are “obedient, faithful,

and virtuous”• His word led the Spanish royalty to establish the

New Laws of 1542• Bartolomé de Las Casas wanted to save our

souls

New Laws of 1542

• System of rotational labor• We were required to work only six percent

of each year• Our people were supposed to paid for our

labor• Split up among Spaniards according to

who needed the most economic help• Administrators were supposed to control

the Spaniards treatment of our people

Corruption in the Repartimiento

• We continued to suffer through beatings

• Little money we did receive went to the Spanish Crown and to the Catholic Church

• The Spanish cared nothing of our mistreatment

• They only worried that they would loose their labor force

The Mines

• Silver mines had been discovered to the north of the central valley, especially in Zacatecas, Real del Monte, Pachuca, and Guanajuato

• Silver has accounted for nearly 80 percent of all exports from the Americas

• The labor of the mines was much more grueling, enough to kill our strongest men

Silver Mine, El Chino

Debt Peonage

• Employed by Spanish landowners further from concentrated areas

• Natives paid in the form of loans

• Patróns were benevolent and generous

• More freedom for our people

Acculturation

• Natives acquiesced to Spanish religious instruction for fear of mistreatment

• Close contact with these foreign men

• Difficulty of continuing traditional practices

Conclusion

• Natives of Mexico suffered severe instances of violence at the hands on the Spaniards

• Torn from traditional villages and concentrated in centers

• The Spanish developed the encomienda system which forced natives into slavery

• New Laws of 1542 ended the encomienda system and instituted the repartimiento system

• Decimation of the native population can be attributed to disease

The Slave Owners

Importing Slaves

• Indigenous slaves burdensome: moved towards African American slavery.

• August 18, 1518: Charles V granted Lorenzo de Gorrevod permission to import 4000 African slaves into New Spain.

Imported Slaves

• Estimated 36,500 African slaves were brought to the shores of Mexico.

• Blacks were better slaves than indigenous people

– More willing to work

– More able-bodied

– Less-likely to escape

• Didn’t know the land

Slave Economy

• Seeing the value and demand, many invested in the selling and trading of slaves.

• Prices varied enormously from place to place based on the distances involved. – Quality of slaves determined prices:

• Youth• Strength• Health

• Ability

Life at the Hacienda

• Began at 4am by ringing the work bell

• Meal breaks at noon

• Observed workers– Had overseers to do work

• Entertained guests, spent time with family, watched over hacienda

Responsibilities of Hacendados

• Religious Responsibilities– Had to convert Indians to Catholicism– Other religions were not allowed– Punishable by whipping– Built a church on the land– Indians and Africans go on days off– Missionaries came to teach about religion

Responsibilities con’t

• Schools– Built schools on land– Used to acclimate the workers to the new

culture– Government involvement

• Sent teachers to school• Provided books

– Children learned reading, geography, and mathematics

– Girls also learned to sew, cook, and nurse

Profits for Haciendas

• All daily products used are produced on hacienda– Clothes weaved in shops– Livestock used for meat– Fruits and vegetables grown in fields

• Traded with nearby hacendados• Indebted peonage

– Pay and clothing advances– Indians spent money frivolously– Constant work force

• Sugar cane

Clothing

• Leather trousers and jacket with silver buttons

• Sarape– Bright colors

• Straw sombrero

• Pearl hand pistol– Shows wealth and status

House

• Large and luxurious - adobe• Porch that surrounds entire house• Beautifully decorated

– Ornate paintings and woven rugs– Tile floors– Glass chandeliers– Elaborate wood carvings

• Outside– Courtyard

• Trees and shrubs• Fountains• Bell tower

Events at Hacienda

• Weddings

• Baptisms

• Holidays– Saints’ days

• Entertain guests

• Hacendado– Judge

Slaves

Life Before Migration to Mexico

• Worked in the fields daily in their homelands where they acquired useful skills

• Slaves came from Ghana, but from Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Gambia, Nigeria, Congo, and Angola

• Journey lasted nine months, unbearable conditions where disease spread rapidly, only a third survived

Why Slavery was Introduced

• In 1517, Bartolome de las Casas proposed to King Charles V of Spain to use African slaves instead of the dying indigenous people

• Spain had been convertingthe natives and did not want to use the newly converted Catholics as slaves.• Africans had already developedskills in mining, agriculture,ranching, forging metal

Life of a Slave Man and Woman• Were allocated two hours of free time a day• Preserved their culture with song and dance• Were given adequate corn and children over the age of ten were given a ration of beef• Worked long days in the fields; it was the main reason they had been brought to Mexico• Working on the fields included many different tasks such as: clearing, planting, and

cultivating cane fields

Life of a Slave Man and Woman con’t

• Sugar production was the most physically demanding and dangerous task performed by the Africans

• The hazardous machinery cost many Africans their limbs and sometimes even their lives

• Women slaves were scare; the ones that were there were most commonly used as servants or domestics

Siete Partidas

• Provided certain rights for slaves• Mandated the caste system• Limited the masters power over a slave• Slaves were not allowed to work before the

age of 17 or after the age of 60• Prohibited to wear extravagant clothing, carry

firearms, or be on the street after dark• Prevented native people from being enslaved• Discussed how a slave could be emancipated• EX: Judge could fix a price for freedom`

Methods of Resistance• In 1609 there was an organized

rebellion in Veracruz • This rebellion was lead by two men

by the name of Gaspar Yanga and Francisco de la Matosa

• After fierce battles, Yanga came to negotiate a peace with the viceroy Luis de Velasco

• A black community, called "San Lorenzo," which was later renamed as Yanga was founded and still exists

• Spanish authorities suspected a new rebellion, in 1612, they imprisoned, tortured and executed 33 slaves (twenty nine males and four women).

• Black slaves would wear Spanish petty coats in rebellion because it was considered blasphemous

• Other forms of rebellion included running away

Spanish Freed Slaves

Castas

• Absolute, exacting social stratification

• Stigmatized by birth and skin color

• Male slave + free woman = free children

• Light-skinned could pass for high castas

Castas con’t

• Main Castas:– Peninsular– Criollo– Mestizo– Mulatto

• Other Castas for heritage combinations, derogatory names (Coyote, Lobo, etc)

Manumission

• Allowed by Siete Partidas

• Favorites freed in wills, sometimes freed with residual terms of service

• Regulatory actions against abusive masters

• Other methods: purchase, escape, military service

Cimarones

• Runaway slaves

• Preyed on travelers, citizens– Often banded w/ natives

• Lived in secluded areas, small bands

• Forced into treaty to return new runaways

Life after Manumission

• “lingering servitude”

• Increased workforce– Prominent artisans– Domestic workers– Merchants and shop owners– Militia

• Forced to pay tribute

Life con’t

• Little difference between free and slaves

• Freed slaves lived generally as did the rest of the population

• Prone to being brought before the inquisition.

• Integrated into society and lost their visibility.