Dispossession, Resistance and Repression. Indigenous Rebellions in the Real de Minas de Bolaños (Viceroyalty of the New Spain) 1734-1783

Abstract

The economic crisis the Spanish crown was going through during the second half of the 18th century, led to granting of broad prerogatives to individuals interested in the exploitation of mines in New Spain, since it depended on the reactivation of the meager imperial economy. The objective is to analyze the socio-historical factors that motivated a series of indigenous communities settled in the vicinity of Real de minas de Bolaños to revolt against power during the period 1734-1783. The method used in this work is the historical synthesis, which provides elements to reconstruct the events of the past on the basis of the sources -research and testimonies- already criticized. This allows us to conclude that the rebellions were the result of the exploitation of indigenous labor and the dispossession of communal lands that Spanish miners carried out to cover the needs of the mines, under the blessing and support of the colonial administration. Furthermore, it is concluded that with this dispossession, began the process of conformation of the salaried peasant class in the north of New Galicia.