Cultural and Legal Pyramids of Colonial South America

Cultural and Legal Pyramids of Colonial South America

Why were Blacks superior to Natives in the cultural pyramid? Why were Natives superior to Blacks in the legal pyramid? Did one pyramid become more influential than the other? If so, when did that occur and why did that occur?

In Colonial Latin American society there were two distinct hierarchal structures existing simultaneously: legal and cultural. To visualize these hierarchies we can picture a pyramid, where at the top, a small ruling population dominates over a larger base representing the majority population:

White Spaniards were at the top of the pyramids in both cases, sitting over large Native and Black population. Within this large Black and Native base, there was a definite stratification. In the cultural pyramid, Blacks were above Natives, however, in the legal pyramid, Natives were above Blacks.

Conquistadors and early settlers assigned blacks above Natives in the cultural pyramid. However, at the same time, the Royal Court and the Church placed Natives above Blacks in the legal pyramid by claiming Natives to be naturally free. In the early stages of colonialism the cultural pyramid was the dominant force in society. However, changes in society, stemming largely from the effects of encomiendas, changed the focus to a strengthening legal pyramid.

Traditionally there were four basic categories of “justifiable” slaves; infidels who had rejected the true faith of God and were captured in just wars, people who committed serious crimes, people who sold themselves into slavery, and people who were sold by their fathers with legitimate needs were rightfully considered slaves. [1] Iberians accepted these conditions well into the Eighteenth Century. Before the ending of the crusades and the fall of Constantinople, Iberian slaves were often Islamics captured in “just war.” However, as the Mediterranean slave trade ended, people began to turn toward Africa as a new supplier. Justification of African slavery was a bit vague and relied mostly on a few papal bulls and the feeling that it was better to put these poor bodies though misery in order to grant their souls eternal happiness. [2]

In his article “The Iberian Roots of American Racist Thought,” James Sweet explains that racist sentiments were present on the Iberian Peninsula before the African slave trade. Islamics and Christians had a tradition of regarding blacks as inferior and born for servitude. These feelings existed while most slaves came from the Mediterranean.[3] Thus, the groundwork for racially identified slavery was already laid, and as Father Antonio Vieira would state centuries later that “Gods fire impressed the mark of slavery upon [blacks].” [4]

In 1502 Columbus sent back Indian slaves to the Spanish Royal Court. Racial identity was a large part of Iberian society, yet it was limited to black and white. This new race did not fit entirely into either category, nor were there any traditions dictating how to treat such color. The Crown, most likely through council with the church, decided that the traditional codes of justifiable slavery should apply. With out the traditional racist sentiments that were held for blacks, the same round about philosophy of “misery now, salvation later,” would not hold up either. Another part of this was that Indians had never been exposed to Christianity and therefore they could never have denied it, and thus, were not infidels. Queen Isabella wrote a letter in 1503 stating that Indians were indeed free and should not be subject to slavery. However, she did insist that they should be coerced to work for free.[5] Thus, there was the brewing of the legal pyramid. I stress the word “brewing,” because at this early point Indian freedom was more a rational decision that a passionate stance on some idealism, nor had it been codified. This beginning of the legal pyramid would however, remain dormant and in Spain for sometime.

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the Conquistadors began to explore the continent, and in lack of any traditional feelings toward the Natives, they began to form their own. Reports from early expeditions of the Caribbean depicted natives living exotic lifestyles, running naked, practicing polygamy, and existing in societies without apparent social hierarchy. The woodcuts shown below are a European artisanís interpretation of a letter returning from the Caribbean. The woodcuts are rich with information, but we can briefly see the nakedness of the Indians and their sexual appeal as they distract a European man. We also see a dark side developing. The distracted European is about to be clubbed by another women. In the other woodcut we see a man hacking up body parts. [6] Clearly these Indians are not perceived as entirely peaceful and innocent , but savage, deceptive, and treacherous. Europeans seem to have contradicting views of the Natives, one that was peaceful and innocent, and another as vile and savage. Originally the first view seemed to be dominant. Pero Vaz de Caminha wrote one of the earliest accounts of the Tupian culture in 1500. He perceived them as simple and festive.[7] As years past, the overall perception of these people changed. By the end of the conquest an anonymous author had a far more critical opinion of these same simple and festive Tupi. He was appalled by their practice of polygamy and human sacrifice.[8]

Actually, the initial belief of Natives as peaceful and innocent seemed to fade quickly. Manoel da Nobrega writes that Brazil’s first bishop, Dom Pedro Fernandez Sardinha, believed Indians were “incapable of the entire doctrine because of their brutishness and bestiality, nor did he consider them sheep in his flock, nor did he feel that Christ would see fit to have them as such.”[9] Even when Cortes found a Spaniard living among Natives, he immediately ordered the man to be put into European garb so that he would not resemble that inferior race. [10] This belief in Native inferiority continued to develop into the eighteenth century when Alonso Carrio de la Vandera wrote in his satire that Natives are cowards and can only fight when they are massed, but a single one is scared and will run away. Also, Natives are fragile and “just draw a drop of their blood and they’re said to be dead.”[11] And as for the “Natives” potential as Christians, even the majority of the priesthood did not believe them capable. In following drawing by Felipe Guaman Poma de Ayala the native is tired of being a suspected of paganism. The writing in the picture reads “Confess me, father, of all my sins. Don’t ask me about huacas and idols, and for the love of Jesus Christ and his Holy Mother Mary, absolve me [of my sins] and don’t throw me out the door. Have mercy on my soul.” This shows that priests must have constantly interrogated Natives in regards to their religious practices.[12]

The Conquistadors surely came to the New World believing Indians inferior because of their skin color. This was characteristic of Iberian culture. However, Iberians developed most of their ill feelings toward Natives as a result of cultural differences. Thus, while racism against blacks rested solely on the tradition of skin color, racism toward Natives was merely a byproduct of distaste for the Native culture. This placed blacks in a very good position. Blacks that were present during the conquest came directly from Iberia and therefore were Iberian in culture. Compared with the Natives, they were much more useful and respected. Blacks were considered more capable of Christian practices. They spoke the language and new the religion, thus they were representatives of the Iberian culture. Vieira seems to accept Africans as Christian equals. They are “children of Adam and Eve,” and “souls redeemed by the blood of Christ.” This is proof that even the church seemed to respect blacks more than Natives.[13] Blacks therefore were above Natives on a cultural level.

Blacks no longer occupied the lower positions of social status as they did back on the Peninsula. There was also an absence of a large white working class above them and any legal authority to enforce racial restrictions. This absence permitted blacks to have status and jobs that they would not normally have. For example, Juan Garrido was a black conquistador who came to Mexico with Cortez. Garrido had been made a Christian in Iberia and had somehow won his freedom there. However, he was still subject to many restrictions as a black man. Upon arriving in the Americas, many of these restrictions were lifted. Garrido gained respect during the siege of Tenochtitlan and went on to become the first wheat farmer in New Spain. He also held several posts in Mexico City, serving as portero of the city’s cabildo and town crier, both salary positions.[14] Another and later example was Miguel Hernandez, a free Mulatto who was able to achieve economical and social success as an ambitious muller in the rapidly growing city of Queretaro at the end of the 16th century. He was able to cross many social and racial boundaries. He was a respected mulatto, had friends that were Spanish and Native, he was literate, and held the title senor de recuas (master of mule trains).[15] Although it was rare, the fact that black men could achieve such success demonstrated that these early colonists were more inclined to judge on a cultural basis.

During the Conquest and these early years of colonialism, disdain for Indian culture and the absence of enforced Iberian law placed blacks above Natives in the cultural pyramid and allowed for this pyramid to dominate the social hierarchy. Eventually the prominence of this pyramid would dwindle as Iberian law grew strength in the new world. As laws became more enforced, they also grew to favor Natives and restrict the cultural progress of Blacks. The original catalyst of this transformation was the decision to employ encomiendas as the chief economic institution. Encomiendas allowed for greater Iberian control and indirectly fueled the African slave trade. This made room for the progression of Native rights, but also increased the demand for traditional restrictions on blacks.

The largest asset in early Latin America was native labor. Slavery would have been the best way to maximize profits from the region, however, Spain wanted to adhere to its ideology that Natives were free. Therefore, they developed the encomienda system, where Natives were forced to work and give tribute, yet would maintain free status. In reality, native slavery was widely practiced. However, freedom of Natives was not the only design of the encomiendas. Spain also wanted to secure its landholdings in the New World. Under this system, encomiendas were not inheritable, at least not past a second generation. Spain could also legally confiscate the land at any time. Spain conducted this practice with cunning skill, absorbing large encomiendas first, before they could grow strong enough to resist. In his article “Encomienda or Slavery?” Timothy Yeager proves through ranking encomiendas in value based on gold and silver production and tonnage shipped to Spain, that this was in deed the case. The land taken from encomiendors was then sold as smaller and more controllable plantations. Thus, encomiendas served as the original footholds for Spain to establish its authority in the new world.[16]

Another major affect of the encomiendas was the rapid depletion of the Native population. By forbidding the inheritance of encomiendas, the Crown provoked landholders to drain the area of all its potential wealth as fast as they could, with little consideration for future planning. The natural effect of this was the rapid depletion of Native population through excessive work and tribute. This was a huge loss because Natives required no capital. In order to make up for the loss of labor, landowners turned to Black slaves. As the demand for Black slaves grew, slave traders began importing directly from Africa. Unlike the blacks who came to the Americas from Iberia, African slaves were unassimilated. Their lack of Iberian language and skills made them more difficult to work with and harder to control. An Italian Jesuit, Father Andre Joao Antonil advised plantation owners that an assimilated slave is worth four new slaves because they understand more and there is lest haste in giving them orders. [17] As a result, the dominance of the cultural pyramid that blacks had once enjoyed dwindled.

These two effects of encomiendas, increased Iberian control and a greater reliance on African labor, allowed the Native protection movement to become more of a legal reality. From the start of the colonial period, there was a constant effort, mostly on behalf of clergymen, for better treatment of Indians and the prohibition of Indian slavery. The leader of this movement was Bartolome De Las Casas, but numerous other clergymen took part in this as well. The basic practice of these clergymen was to document atrocities taking place in the New World and report back to Royal Officials across the Atlantic. There efforts did have an impact on the Iberian people, and the Court made laws accordingly. One of the first set of laws developed was Laws of Burgos in 1512, which called for better working and living conditions, restrictions in punishment, and better treatment all around for Natives in the Caribbean.[18] In 1542 Spain issued the New Laws, which outlawed Native slavery, thus putting Isabella’s original claim into legal form. Portugal fallowed suit with a similar law in 1574. However, these laws only existed on the Iberian Peninsula because they were more or less unenforceable at the time in the Americas. However, as Spain and Portugal extended the strength of their viceroys, they were able to slowly give reality to these codes. The greater reliance on African slavery also meant that these laws would be less opposed. Natives had gained status in the legal pyramid, and although it was originally formed in Iberia, it had slowly made its way across the Atlantic.