T, Feb 01

Tuesday, February 01, 2011 Important Dates:

3:06 PM 

Today's Topics: Important People:

 Spanish colonial settlement 
 Spanish systems of labor

Lecture Topic:
During the lecture, take notes here.
-once central Latin America had been overrun / occupied by the Spanish, the outlaying, semi-
sedentary areas slowly came under Spanish control also
-expeditions spread south from Mexico and the Amazon
-many of them, as compared to the Mexica and Inca expeditions, were financially
unsuccessful (much of which was due to the vast number of conquistadors)
-gold mining, while a huge draw for the Spanish, was hardly an economic drop in the
bucket as compared to the silver mines
-they did, however, reveal possible areas of settlement
-Spanish influence dominated much of Latin America
-found in architecture, particularly the Plaza Mayor in Antigua, Guatemala (the former
capital)
-casa del gobierno (governor's house), cathedral, el cabildo (town hall) and
commerce framed the four sides of the plaza
-there WAS a very important role of the church in Latin America
-however, above all the conquest was an ECONOMIC enterprise

-labor systems, and their change over time, is determined largely by the DEMOGRAPHY of the
native population (this is what determines what labor systems will and will not work at certain
times during the colonial period)
-following the conquest, most regions experience a catastrophic downfall in population
due to European diseases (smallpox, measles, etc.)
-central Mexico doesn't level off in population decline until 1630, at c. 750,000
-in Peru, the population is in decline until around 1720

1. Slavery
-outright enslavement of the native populations
-largely directed towards the Caribbean and central Mexican territories
-a Dominican priest suggested that those who mistreated their intentions
would be dommen
-Bartolomeo de las Casas was storng critic of Spanish using slaes from native
popilations, but did not think that substing them for Africans would be nearly
as problematic as it were
-argued that all Indians were humans
-New Laws stating such were established in 1542
-wanted to reign in the conquistadors (didn't want a new feudal
system growing up in the Americas)

2. Ecomienda
-does not come along after slavery, coexists in time with slavery
-became an expectation of the conquistadors
-comes from the Spanish word for "trust"
-the understanding was that the lord has certain responsibilities to the

HIST 3135I Page 1

 -the understanding was that the lord has certain responsibilities to the
workers, and vice versa
*tribute, both from the heads of the encomienda and the Spanish crown
-set up for the native populations to produce staple goods (grain,
etc) originally, and becomes more about the money (cash crops)
-land was not originally part of the encomienda grant (just the labor to work
it--the natives were supposed to retain their lands and the Spanish had no
claim to them)

Summary
After the lecture, summarize the main points of this lecture topic.



HIST 3135I Page 2