CRB 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Encomienda, Hatuey, Unfree Labour

• School: Ryerson University
• Department: Caribbean Studies
• Course: CRB 100
• Professor: Camille Hernandez- Ramdwar

Document Summary

Columbus first arrives in the caribbean 1492, sails off coasts of hispaniola and cuba. Spanish establish forts and missions; attempt to convert ta no peoples to christianity. Spanish, beside importing christianity and slavery, also import disease. Indigenous populations are rapidly decimated in a few years. Not only physical genocide but cultural genocide (oral histories) Spanish colonizers followed by british, dutch and french (1620s) Spanish imported the encomienda system, whereby the spanish crown granted a (cid:272)e(cid:396)tai(cid:374) (cid:374)u(cid:373)(cid:271)e(cid:396) of (cid:862)i(cid:374)dios(cid:863) to (cid:272)o(cid:374)(cid:395)uistado(cid:396)es, o(cid:448)e(cid:396) (cid:449)ho(cid:373) the(cid:455) (cid:272)ould e(cid:454)t(cid:396)a(cid:272)t la(cid:271)ou(cid:396); i(cid:374) exchange the conquistadores were to convert them to christianity. Indigenous peoples were virtually enslaved through the encomienda system to mine for gold; failure to produce specific quotas could result in mutilation or death. Conquistadores slaughtered indigenous peoples in attempts to conquer, subdue and enslave them. First ta no martyr, cacique, born in quisqueya (hispaniola), fled to cuba to escape.