New Mexico Revolt Research Paper

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Pages: 7

Sienna Stowe Mr. Spagnoletti History 20 May 2024 Motivations: How the Successful Pueblo Revolt against the Spanish Came To Be In 1492, explorer Christopher Columbus, hired by Spanish royalty, landed in the Bahamas. This led to an influx of Spanish in the “New World” i.e. the Americans. The Spanish had varied motives, but all had ideas centered around the superiority they believed they had. Many settled in Mexico, including Juan de Onate, a Spanish man wanting to expand Spanish horizons to land that is now called New Mexico. He wanted to do so through the expansion of a Spanish-made route called El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (the Roythisal Road of the Interior Land). Onate’s approval to explore New Mexican land came in 1598 and in that same …show more content…
The Spanish wanted to change that to achieve their own goals. Although the Spanish tried to control and conquer the Pueblos, the success of the Pueblo revolt was based on the importance Pueblos put on their culture. The Pueblo's success in resisting the Spanish was shaped by their motivation to protect their indigenous religion and the rights that the Spanish tried to take away. Spanish motives behind their settlement in New Mexico led to a mistreatment of the Pueblos that impacted both parties in different ways. When Governor Onate arrived in New Mexico, he wanted to focus on mining, which could create vast amounts of wealth. Although the mines were there, Onate and the Spanish lacked the proper resources to achieve this goal. Upon arrival, the Spanish were aware of the existence of the inhabitants of this land, the Pueblos. The Spanish did not care about that at all and decided to trespass on land to gain resources that didn't even belong to them. In addition to the mining, the Spanish could gain money from cheap labor. The Spanish used a system called encomienda where they exchanged protection and civilization for very inexpensive