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irst Pu-lished in .reat /ritain in 1000 -( oundr( /oos
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Cop(ri8ht 9 1000 -( Ian Heath
The ri8ht of Ian Heath to -e identified as the author
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:ith sections 77 and 7% of theCop(ri8ht 4esi8ns and Patents Act 10%%*
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Other -oos -( the same author<
Armies and Enemies of the Crusades 1096–1291 =>5. 107%?
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Armies of the Dark Aes 600–1066 +nd edition =>5. 10%"?
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INTRODUCTION
One of the principal pro-lems encountered in :ritin8 this -oo has -een the difficult( of stoppin8 it from
-ecomin8 either an anthropolo8ical surve(, or a histor( of 1$th centur( e'ploration* Preventin8 it from doin8
either has not -een alto8ether possi-le, nor, perhaps, entirel( desira-le, since in contrast to the relative
uniformit( of much of >estern Europe -( this time, it :as their cultural diversit( :hich ena-led the American
peoples to -e told apart, -oth amon8 themselves and -( the earl( European e'plorers :hose :ritin8s are ourmain source of information* Nevertheless, I have tried to concentrate principall( on those aspects of their dress
and customs :hich are most relevant to their militar( rather than their social or8anisation @ thou8h the t:o
:ere often insepara-le @ and to their st(le of fi8htin8, -oth a8ainst each other and, :ith var(in8 de8rees of
success, a8ainst the European invaders*
It is not an alto8ether prett( stor(* All the earl( European vo(a8es of e'ploration :ere distin8uished -( the
pride, i8norance, 8reed, and casual -rutalit( of the maorit( of their participants* None of the earl( colonial
po:ers @ &pain, Portu8al, rance, and En8land @ :ere entirel( innocent in this conte't, -ut of them all it
:as the &panish 4on5uistadores :ho proved to -e the -ravest, the most determined, and (et at the same time
the ver( :orst am-assadors that an alien civilisation could ever hope to foist upon an unsuspectin8 Ne:
>orld* The( had their critics even :ithin &pain, nota-l( in the person of /artolomB de 3as Casas, :ho :rote
that &paniards operatin8 in the Americas acted lie ravenin8 -easts, illin8, terrorisin8, afflictin8, torturin8,
and destro(in8 the native peoples, :ith the stran8est and most varied ne: methods of cruelt(*2 It :as this sort
of oppro-rium that led to the so#called /lac 3e8end2 of &panish malevolence, :hich En8land in particular
e'ploited to considera-le political advanta8e at the time, and :hich to a 8reater or lesser de8ree has coloured
forei8n attitudes to:ards &pain and &panish#speain8 countries ever since*
Althou8h the vaunted mi8ht of the fa-ulous Aztec and Inca empires2 collapsed lie a prover-ial house of
cards in the face of European militar( e'pertise, success proved pro8ressivel( less eas( to come -( for the
conquerors as the centur( ran its course* 4espite -ein8 decimated -( the ne: diseases :hich accompanied
each European e'pedition, numerous unsophisticated American peoples proved resilient enou8h to :ithstand
and sometimes even to turn -ac the invaders* &ome :ere not conquered for centuries, :hile others chose to
-e decimated to the point of e'tinction rather than su-mit* As Doseph de Acosta o-served in the 1!%"s< 3et noman thin that the Indians are of no consequence and if the( do thin so, then let them 8o and put it to the
test*2
>herever possi-le the line dra:in8s :hich illustrate this volume are taen directl( from, or at the ver(
least -ased on, pictures -( 1$th centur( artists or pu-lished in 1$th centur( -oos* An( reconstructions that
have -een necessitated -( the a-sence of survivin8 contemporar( illustrations are -ased instead on
archaeolo8ical finds, 1!th or 17th centur( representations, and the detailed descriptions of e(e#:itnesses*
Needless to sa(, I have not attempted to deal :ith ever( Amerindian people, ust those :ith :hom the
4on5uistadores and other European adventurers came into more than fleetin8 contact durin8 the course of the
period under revie:* Nor are individual European conquests or Indian re-ellions covered in an( detail, that not
-ein8 the specific purpose of this series* I have concentrated instead on the or8anisation, fi8htin8 st(le, and
appearance of the opposin8 forces, and am hopeful that the end product :ill surprise a 8reat man( readers :hohad previousl( thou8ht that the conquest of the Aztec and Inca empires2 constituted the sum total of &panish
militar( activit( in the Ne: >orld in 5enaissance times*
Ian Heath
4ecem-er 100%
CONTENTS
The Caribbean 1492–1603 …...................... 7
Mesa!eri"a ".14#0–1600 ….................... 26
S$%h &!eri"a 1#00–1600 ….................... '#Nr%h &!eri"a 1497–160' ...................... 121
S(anish &!eri"a 1492–1600 …............... 14#
)ib*i+ra(h, …......................................... 170
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The Cari--ean 10+F1$";
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T-E EST INDIES
The islands that 8o to mae up the >est Indies
consist of the 3esser Antilles, the .reater Antilles,
and the /ahamas* It is 8enerall( a8reed that :henthe &paniards arrived the four main islands of the
.reater Antilles @ Cu-a, Hispaniola, Damaica, and
Puerto 5ico @ :ere no:n respectivel( to their
native populations as Cu-a, A(ti =:hence modern
Haiti?, 6ama(e or Ga(maca =spelt Damai8ua2 -(
1!"+?, and /oriquBn or /orichi* Ho:ever, Pietro
artire d2An8hiera =more usuall( referred to in
En8lish -oos as Peter art(r? :rote that the
native name for Hispaniola :as actuall(
Juizquella, and it seems that A(ti =:hich meant
rou8h hi8hlands2? actuall( referred onl( to amountainous re8ion in the east of the island* The
.reater and 3esser Antilles :ere peopled
principall( -( Ara:as1 and Cari-s respectivel(,
:hile an earlier Ara:a people, the 3uca(os,
inha-ited the /ahamas =the &paniards consequentl(
referrin8 to these islands as the Islas 3uca(as?*
T-E &R&&/S
i8ratin8 north:ards from the coasts of)enezuela and .uiana either side of the Orinoco
delta, the Ara:as had occupied the entire >est
Indian archipela8o durin8 the course of the first
millennium A4* >hen the &paniards arrived in
10+, ho:ever, the( :ere themselves in the throes
of -ein8 pushed steadil( north -( the Cari-s* The(
lived in lar8e a8ricultural communities consistin8
of loose, unfortified clusters of houses, each villa8e
8enerall( havin8 a population of 1F+,"""* The(
:ere 8overned -( hereditar( chieftains called
4a4i5ues, a term :hich the &paniards su-sequentl(
utilised indiscriminatel( to refer to the native rulers
found in ever( corner of the Americas* Amon8 the
Ara:as the office of cacique seems to have
8enerall( descended from father to eldest son, -ut if
a cacique left no sons of his o:n then his sister2s
son inherited instead* If a cacique inherited in this
:a( @ i*e* via his mother @ then at his death it
:as her nearest relative :ho succeeded, not his* In
Puerto 5ico and Hispaniola at least this method of
succession occasionall( resulted in the e'istence offemale caciques, nota-le amon8st :hom :ere
Hi8uanama, cacique of Hi8Ke(, and Anacaona, :ho
succeeded to the chieftainship of Gara8ua at the
death of her -rother /ehBchio*
In the four main islands of the .reater Antilles
some caciques :ielded considera-le po:er over a
domain :hich mi8ht encompass man( villa8es
e'tendin8 over a considera-le tract of territor(*
E'cept in Puerto 5ico, :here a sin8le cacique
=A8ue(-anL? seems to have held s:a(, each island
appears to have consisted of several principal and
numerous smaller chiefdoms, or 4a4i4azos, as the
&paniards called them* Those of the principalcaciques :ere su-divided into -et:een ten and t:o
dozen smaller districts under lesser caciques*
Damaica, for instance, had -et:een ei8ht and ten
main 4a4i4azos, :hile Cu-a had perhaps si'*
Hispaniola had five, comprisin8 those of the
chieftains .uacana8ari of arien, Colum-us2 lo(al
all( .uarione' of a8ua Caona-M of a8uana
a(o-ane' and Cotu-anama of Hi8Ke( and
/ehBchio of Gara8ua* Thou8h lea8ues :ere
occasionall( formed, individual caciques acted
lar8el( independentl( of one another =on oneoccasion, durin8 the Puerto 5ican re-ellion a8ainst
the &paniards in 1!11, an alliance :as even formed
:ith the chiefs of the nei8h-ourin8 island of &t*
Croi'?*2 /elo: the caciques came their -lood#in,
adopted or other:ise, called nitanos* The
&paniards considered these to -e no-les, and
recorded that in :artime the( provided the caciques
:ith their -od(8uards, :hile in peacetime the(
assisted in the 8overnment of individual villa8es*
4espite the estimates of earl( &panish e'plorers
that there :ere a million or more Ara:as inHispaniola alone =a census of 10!$ 8ives 1*1;
million, at a time :hen num-ers in &panish#
controlled areas of the island had alread( declined
-( perhaps t:o#thirds?, and that there :ere a further
$"",""" on Puerto 5ico and Damaica, it seems
liel( that their true num-ers :ere pro-a-l(
smaller* odern estimates of the population at first
contact var( dramaticall(, from +"",""" up:ards,
-ut it is certainl( possi-le that there :ere as man(
as a million in all* Ho:ever, in a pattern that :as to
recur repeatedl( throu8hout the Ne: >orld
thereafter, these num-ers dropped dramaticall(
follo:in8 the arrival of the 4on5uistadores, as :ar,
disease, starvation, and enslavement too their toll*
The Ara:a population of Hispaniola, :hich ma(
have stood at +!"F;"",""" in 10+, had dropped to
$",""" -( as earl( as 1!"%, and to 11,""" -( 1!1%*
/( the 1!;"s there :ere said to -e less than !""*
The stor( :as the same else:here* /( 1!!" ust
1,""" free Ara:as :ere left of Cu-a2s estimated
pre#Conquest population of 1"",""", and onl( $"could -e found on Puerto 5ico in 1!+, :hile the
/ahamas had -een entirel( depopulated -( &panish
slave#raids as earl( as 1!1;*3 Thou8h a fe: isolated
pocets ma( have survived lon8 enou8h to mer8e
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:ith the incomin8 &panish population, the Ara:as
of Hispaniola, Damaica, and Puerto 5ico :ere all
effectivel( e'tinct -( the middle of the centur(*
In addition to the Ara:as proper, there :as a
su-#8roup called the Ci8ua(o livin8 in the
mountains and alon8 the north#east coast of
Hispaniola, :ho spoe a different lan8ua8e*
Colum-us descri-es those of Ca(a-o, :ho he calls
the acori', as -ein8 of stran8e speech2, ando-serves that the( and the lon8#haired2 Ci8ua(o of
Huha-o province :ere more :arlie than the
Ara:as* &ince, unlie most Ara:as, the( are
recorded to have used -o:s, it is conceiva-le that
the( :ere of mi'ed Ara:aFCari- descent,
ethnolo8ists havin8 noticed other distinctive Cari-
traits in the mea8re evidence availa-le2* The( are
said to have -een a-le to raise 1!,""" :arriors*
)esti8es of the .reater Antilles2 a-ori8inal
population also survived alon8side the Ara:as in
some areas* /artolomB de 3as Casas sa(s these:ere called .uanahaca-i-es, -ut toda( the( are
8enerall( referred to as Ci-one(s =as a result of an
earl( misreadin8 of 3as Casas?* Another source
sa(s the( :ere referred to as Cenavas, meanin8
fleet as deer2* A considera-l( more primitive
people than the Ara:as, the( follo:ed a nomadic
e'istence, feedin8 themselves -( huntin8 and
fishin8 rather than a8riculture, and livin8 in
temporar( camps :hich :ere often in caves* /( the
time the &paniards arrived the Ci-one( :ere
confined to :estern and isolated parts of centralCu-a, and the south#:est corner of Hispaniola*
The( still constituted perhaps as much as 1" of
Cu-a2s population, and thou8h e'perts differ
re8ardin8 e'actl( ho: much territor( the( held, it is
si8nificant that, despite havin8 Ara:a names, the
five :estern#most Cu-an provinces2 mentioned -(
earl( &panish :riters @ .uanahaca-i-es,
.uani8uanico, arien, Ha-ana, and HanL-ana @
all contain :idespread evidence of Ci-one(
occupation -ut little of Ara:a*
>ith the e'ception of the 3uca(os, Ara:a
Indians :ere 8enerall( shorter than the &paniards*
The( had a copper#coloured comple'ion descri-ed
-( contemporaries as reddish2, clear -ro:n2, or a
chestnut colour2, and deformed their sulls from
-irth so that the( had -road, flat foreheads* This
ma( have -een a factor in the claim made -( some
&paniards that their sulls :ere so thic that the
&paniards often -roe their s:ords in hittin8 them*2
The Ci-one(, ho:ever, didn2t indul8e in cranial
deformation* The Ara:as appear to have :orntheir -lac hair in a variet( of st(les, 3as Casas
descri-in8 it as lon8 and tied in a not either on the
forehead or at the -ac of the sull* Colum-us2
companion 4ie8o Chanca sa(s that the Ara:as of
Hispaniola had their heads shaved in places and in
places have tufts of tan8led hair of such shapes that
it cannot -e descri-ed2, :hile Colum-us himself
:rote in 10+ that the 3uca(os :ore theirs short
do:n to the e(e-ro:s, e'cept a fe: locs -ehind,
:hich the( :ear lon8 and never cut*2 The Ci8ua(o
:ore theirs :aist#len8th, dra:n -ac and fastened
-ehind, and put into a small net of parrots2
feathers2, :hich Colum-us descri-es as plumes offeathers of parrots and other -irds2 :orn -ehind the
head*
All the sources a8ree that the( :ent lar8el(
naed, .onzalo ernLndez de Oviedo =1!+!? -ein8
alone in mentionin8 the :earin8 of a certain leaf as
-road as a man2s hand2 =presuma-l( a penis sheath?
to conceal their private parts* It :as onl( after the
Conquest that 8enital coverin8s :ere :idel(
adopted* The Damaican Ara:as, ho:ever, are
descri-ed -( AndrBs /ernLldez in 10 as havin8
the -reast and stomach covered :ith palm leaves2, pro-a-l( indicatin8 some sort of short plaited palm
8arment*
ost men decorated themselves e'tensivel(
:ith -lac, :hite, red =especiall( for :ar?, and
(ello: paint, at least some such decoration tain8
the form of tattoos* /ernLldez descri-ed the
Damaican Ara:as as painted a thousand colours,
-ut the maorit( -lac2, :hile Colum-us descri-ed
the 3uca(os as paintin8 themselves -lac, :hite,
red, or an( colour that the( find* &ome of them
paint their faces, others the :hole -od(, some onl(round the e(es, others onl( the nose*2 Oviedo tells
us that the Ara:as of Hispaniola and Cu-a
tattooed their -odies :ith the ima8es of their
demons in -lac colour2* The Ci-one( are
specificall( descri-ed as usin8 red and (ello: paint,
:hile the Ci8ua(o are said to have stained
themselves completel( -lac :ith charcoal, some
encountered in -attle -( the &paniards in 10%
-ein8 descri-ed as all painted and spotted, -lac
and red2*
/od( ornaments comprised pendants, ear#plu8s,
and nose#plu8s of 8old or coloured stone, and
neclaces of seeds, seashells, or -eads of a variet(
of materials, includin8 mar-le, cla(, -one, and
:hite, 8reen, and red stones* One -ead neclace
presented to Colum-us comprised %"" stone -eads,
-ut most comprised pro-a-l( no more than a fe:
score* .reen and :hite stones mi8ht also -e
inserted in the chees and forehead* Caciques and
nitanos :ere distin8uished -( their ornaments, 3as
Casas descri-in8 such men as :earin8 in addition -racelets, anlets, earrin8s as lar8e as -racelets,
and, as a s(m-ol of a cacique2s ran, a pectoral
variousl( descri-ed as moon, disc, or fleur#de#lis
shaped and as lar8e as a plate2* All these
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decorations :ere of 8old or a 8old#copper allo(
called uarin or tum-aa* 5adial coronets of
coloured feathers :ere also :orn, /ernLldez
mentionin8 seein8 such coronets of -oth :hite and
8reen feathers set ver( close to8ether2 amon8st the
no-le retinue of a Damaican cacique, others of
:hom :ore :hat he descri-es as a lar8e plume in
the shape of a zelada Qsalade helmetR2* He also
mentions that the principal cacique he sa: in 10:ore a lar8e open cro:n of small stones, 8reen and
red, arran8ed in order, and intermin8led :ith some
lar8er :hite stones And he also :ore a lar8e
ornament hun8 over his forehead, and from his ears
t:o lar8e diss of 8old :ere suspended -( some
little strin8s of ver( small 8reen stones* Althou8h
he :as naed, he :ore a 8irdle, of the same
:ormanship as the cro:n, and all the rest of his
-od( :as e'posed*2 The forehead ornament :as
pro-a-l( one of the small stone fi8ures of men,
representin8 their 8ods, :hich Ara:a :arriors:ore on their foreheads in -attle* These little
fi8urines :ere depicted :ith their nees dra:n up
and a prominent penis*
Numerous earl( e'plorers remared on the
peaceful disposition of the Ara:as, and especiall(
those of Damaica and Cu-a Colum-us, for instance,
repeatedl( descri-es them as un:arlie2* The( are
said to have :arred amon8 themselves onl( rarel(,
thou8h the( often had to defend their villa8es
a8ainst Cari- raids launched from the 3esser
Antilles* The Ara:as of Puerto 5ico :ere themost :arlie, dou-tless as a result of sufferin8 the
8reatest num-er of Cari- attacs*
Characteristic Ara:a :eapons :ere spears,
thro:n stones, darts =hurled -( means of spear#
thro:ers?, and t:o#handed palm:ood s:ords2
called ma4anas* The macana :as actuall( a variet(
of clu-, descri-ed as -ein8 lon8 and heav(, t:o
fin8ers thic narro:in8 to the ed8es, and capa-le of
cleavin8 throu8h even a helmeted &panish head at a
sin8le -lo:* The spear#thro:ers @ :hich for :ant
of a -etter :ord the &paniards initiall( called
tiraderos =slin8s2? @ :ere less sophisticated than
those later found in esoamerica =for :hich see the
te't accompan(in8 i8ure ;!?, and comprised no
more than a 8rooved :ooden stic :ith a fish-one
pe8 at one end and a pair of -raided#cotton loops
for the first t:o fin8ers at the other* 4ie8o Chanca
recorded in 10; that usin8 these, the Hispaniolan
Ara:as could shoot their fire#hardened darts to a
considera-le distance :ith much accurac(2* Oviedo
mentions that the points of such darts @ :hich:ere tipped :ith a sharpened piece of :ood, a
fish2s tooth, or sundr( other natural materials @
:ere desi8ned to -rea off in the :ound* A more
unusual Ara:a :eapon :as a variet( of stinpot,
in :hich no'ious 8as :as 8enerated -( addin8
pepper to -urnin8 coals contained in a cla( pot*
Thou8h -o:s :ere also used in some quarters
their distri-ution :as erratic, and the( seem to have
-een found predominantl( in those areas most
influenced or threatened -( the Cari-s* The -o:
:as not found at all in Cu-a at first contact, 4 for
instance, -ut :as :idel( used in Puerto 5ico and
amon8 the Ci8ua(o of Hispaniola and their Ara:anei8h-ours in the 4a4i4azo of Hi8Ke(, :here it
:as more often found in the hands of no-les than
commoners* Colum-us descri-es Ci8ua(o -o:s
-ein8 as lar8e as those of rance and En8land2,
and their unfletched arro:s as a 7ara and a half or +
7aras lon8 =the 7ara -ein8 the len8th of a man2s
arm, or ;; ins% cm?, tipped :ith the same
materials as the darts descri-ed a-ove after the
arrival of the &paniards iron nails :ere also utilised*
Ci8ua(o and Hi8Ke( arro:s :ere customaril(
poisoned usin8 a local her-, -ut those of the Puerto5ico Ara:as :ere not* Colum-us states that the
Ci8ua(o didn2t shoot as in other parts, -ut in a
certain :a( :hich cannot do much harm*2
3ittle is recorded of Ara:a tactics* Thou8h,
lie other Indians, the( appear to have favoured the
use of am-ushes and surprise attacs, the( are also
recorded to have fielded lar8e phalan'es of men in
the open field :hen fi8htin8 the &paniards, :hich
:ere led -( musicians :ith conch#shell trumpets
=AndrBs /ernLldez mentions the Damaican Ara:as
usin8 -lac :ooden trumpets :ith ela-oratecarvin8s of -irds and other conceits2?* The( ma(
also have had fla8s of some sort, the Damaican
cacique descri-ed -( /ernLldez havin8 a :hite
-anner :ith no desi8n on it2* Ara:a :arriors too
8reat pride in their a-ilit( to dod8e missiles, and
practised this at ever( opportunit(*
Trinia
The Ara:as :ho survived the Cari- mi8ration
in some corners of the 3esser Antilles :ere no:n
as I8neri, a Cari- term* The( :ere said to -e more
:arlie than other Ara:as, :hich dou-tless
e'plains ho: the( survived in the first place* The
-ul of them :ere to -e found in Trinidad and
To-a8o, a &panish report of 1!+" acno:led8in8
that the( also occupied the islands of /ar-ados,
.i8antes, and ar8arita* There :ere, nevertheless,
several attempts -( the &paniards to 8et Trinidad2s
population officiall( redesi8nated as Cari-, in orderthat it could -e le8all( enslaved =the island :as
-ein8 ille8all( raided for slaves from 1!1" on?, and,
ironicall(, Cari-s did indeed -e8in to settle on the
island in the course of the 1$th centur(, havin8
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apparentl( esta-lished themselves on the northern
coast -( c*1!;"* ar8arita2s I8neri population
seems to have -een similarl( displaced -( Cari-s
-( the 1!$"s at the latest*
Colum-us had discovered Trinidad in 10%, and
it theoreticall( -elon8ed to his famil( from that
time until Antonio &edeSo attempted to esta-lish
the first &panish settlements there in the 1!;"s,
:hich had to -e a-andoned in the face of fierceopposition from the Indians inha-itin8 the north#
east corner of the island =pro-a-l( Cari-s?* Other
attempts at colonisation in 1!!; and 1!$0F7" :ere
similarl( unsuccessful, and permanent occupation
onl( commenced in 1!0+ :ith the foundation of
&an DosB =saced -( &ir >alter 5alei8h en route to
.uiana in arch 1!0!#?* As else:here in the >est
Indies, the native population :ent into catastrophic
decline after the arrival of the &paniards* Trinidad2s
estimated +"",""" I8neri inha-itants in 1!; had
-een halved -( 1!7", and stood at ust ;!F",""" -( c*1!0!* >hen the /ritish captured Trinidad +""
(ears later there :ere onl( a thousand Indians left*
In 8eneral appearance the I8neri :ere similar to
the Ara:as of the .reater Antilles, 8oin8 naed
e'cept for a -elt* Ho:ever, the( also demonstrated
Cari- and even mainland )enezuelan
characteristics* Their chiefs :ore 8old pectorals,
and 8old cro:ns2 and ea8le#shaped frontlets on
their heads, :hile their :arriors painted themselves
red, :ore their hair lon8 lie the Cari-s, had
coloured cotton head-ands, and :ore featherdecoration* Armament consisted of spears, darts,
spear#thro:ers, macanas, slin8s, and -o:s firin8
feathered arro:s tipped :ith poisoned -one heads*
nlie the Ara:as of the .reater Antilles the(
also used shields, descri-ed as -ein8 round or
rectan8ular*
The S(anish Cn$es%
>hen, in 10+, Christopher Colum-us
discovered the /ahamas, follo:ed -( Cu-a and
Hispaniola =3a Isla EspaSola?, he :as actuall(
looin8 for the ar East, and initiall( -elieved that
Cu-a :as Dapan, or possi-l( a peninsula of
mainland China or some other place in the Indies
=:hence the inha-itants :ere mistaenl( referred to
ever after as Indians2?* 5eturnin8 :ith 17 ships and
some 1,+"" men in Novem-er 10;, he esta-lished
the first permanent &panish settlement in theAmericas at Isa-ela, on Hispaniola, -ut almost
immediatel( met :ith resistance from the lar8er
part of the Ara:a population* Tain8 the field
a8ainst them :ith ust +"" foot, +" horse, and a
contin8ent of pro#&panish Indian au'iliaries @ the
e( to ever( 1$th centur( &panish success in the
Ne: >orld @ Colum-us defeated the main
Ara:a -od( at the /attle of )e8a 5eal in late#
arch 10!* Another re-ellion erupted in 10%,
:hen Ci8ua(os -esie8ed the settlement of
ConcepciMn, -ut Colum-us :as a8ain a-le to
disperse them at the head of a-out a hundred
&paniards -aced up -( ;,""" Ara:a au'iliaries,traditional enemies of the Ci8ua(o* 4espite his
militar( successes, his incompetence as an
administrator nevertheless led to Colum-us -ein8
replaced as 8overnor in 1!"" -( rancisco de
/o-adilla* He :as succeeded in turn -( NicolLs de
Ovando =1!"+F0?, :ho conquered Gara8ua in 1!";
=after -rutall( e'terminatin8 its caciques at a
:elcomin8 feast and han8in8 their queen,
Anacaona? and Hi8Ke( in 1!", eliminatin8
Hispaniola2s last po:erful independent cacique* In
1!+", ho:ever, Enriquillo, the ne: cacique ofGara8ua, re-elled, and onl( su-mitted on
favoura-le terms in 1!;; after the &paniards had
-een una-le to defeat him in the field* &panish
control of the island :as consolidated -( the
foundation of as man( as 1! ne: to:ns durin8
Ovando2s term as 8overnor*
Colum-us2 second vo(a8e of 10;F0 had also
discovered the 3esser Antilles, Puerto 5ico, and
Damaica* The island of Puerto 5ico :as actuall(
named &an Duan /autista -( Colum-us, -ut -ecause
of :hat .irolamo /enzoni terms the a-undance of8old and silver found there2 it soon -ecame &an
Duan de uerto ,i4o =the rich port2?* Its
colonisation -e8an in 1!"%, the Indians puttin8 up
little resistance, perhaps looin8 upon the &paniards
as potential allies a8ainst the Cari-s, :ho had
alread( esta-lished themselves in eastern parts of
the island* /( 1!11, ho:ever, the( had endured as
much as the( could stand of the &paniards2
depredations and cruelt( and re-elled under the
leadership of caciques .ua(-anL and .uarione',
:ho even received support from the local Cari-s*
4espite initial success =/enzoni reports that the(
illed a-out 1!" &paniards :ho :ere dispersed
a-out the island seein8 8old2?, the re-ellion :as
crushed -( Duan Ponce de 3eMn -( Dune*
Colum-us had -een stranded on Damaica for a
(ear in 1!";F, -ut its first formal &panish
settlement :as not esta-lished until 1!"0, :hen his
son 4ie8o ColMn =8overnor of Hispaniola 1!"0F1!
and 1!1%F+$? sent Duan de Esquivel to occup( the
island* His e'pedition appears to have met :ith noresistance, the Damaican Ara:as -ein8 found to -e
of a ver( pacific temperament* Damaica remained a
colonial -ac:ater thereafter until it :as eventuall(
seized from &pain -( the /ritish in 1$!!* Its native
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population :as virtuall( e'tinct -( as earl( as 1!10*
On discoverin8 Cu-a in 10+ Colum-us had
initiall( called it Duana, -ut its native name had
soon prevailed* It :as not until 1!11 that the first
&panish settlement :as esta-lished, and Cu-a
remained less important than Hispaniola for the rest
of this period, despite its capital Havana -ein8 a
vital sta8in8 post for fleets home:ard#-ound to
&pain* The ;""#stron8 e'pedition :hich 4ie8oColMn had sent to occup( Cu-a in 1!11 :as
commanded -( 4ie8o )elLzquez, :ho -( 1!1! had
conquered much of its eastern half* Ho:ever, the
rest of the island, especiall( remote parts of the
:est, remained unsu-dued, and after the maorit( of
4on5uistadores had moved to the mainland durin8
and in the immediate aftermath of CortBs2 conquest
of e'ico, a 8eneral Indian re-ellion erupted in
1!+;* Thou8h this :as rapidl( suppressed,
lin8erin8 pocets of resistance persisted into the
1!!"s, flarin8 up into re-ellion :henever theopportunit( arose, nota-l( in 1!;%F :hen the
&paniards suffered several reverses*
In the first three decades of the centur( the tin(
&panish presence in the >est Indies :as seriousl(
:eaened -( the launchin8 of e'peditions to the
mainland, :hich frequentl( all -ut depopulated
Cu-a, Damaica, and Puerto 5ico* The fact that fe:
of those :ho set out on such enterprises ever
returned meant that the &panish population 8re:
onl( slo:l(* There :ere still onl( a-out 7""
&paniards on Cu-a in 1!!", and onl( 1,!"" onDamaica even at the -e8innin8 of the 17th centur(*
A report of 1!%+ put the entire free population of
Hispaniola at ust +,""", even :hen Indians,
mestizos =people of Euro#Amerindian mi'ed
parenta8e?, and mulattoes =people of Euro#African
mi'ed parenta8e? :ere included*
T-E C&RI)S
The Cari-s2 name @ more properl( rendered
Caliponam, Calina8o, or Calino, meanin8 harmful
nation2 or quarrelsome people2 @ :as 8iven to
them -( the Ara:as on account of their raidin8
propensities* Colum-us rendered their name
Cari-ales, :hich, -ecause the Cari-s :ere eaters of
human flesh =the( ate their enemies2 -odies in order
to inherit their :arlie qualities?, 8ave rise to our
:ord canni-als2*6 The( had alread( driven the
Ara:as out of most of the 3esser Antilles -efore
the &paniards arrived, and -( the late#1!th centur(:ere re8ularl( raidin8 south:ards a8ainst Trinidad
and the coasts of )enezuela and .uiana, especiall(
the Orinoco delta re8ion and north:ards to Puerto
5ico and Hispaniola, possi-l( even fora(in8 as far
as Cu-a and the /ahamas* The( had occupied the
offshore Puerto 5ican island of )ieques, and had
started to esta-lish permanent footholds alon8 the
southern and eastern coasts of Puerto 5ico itself, so
it seems liel( that -ut for the &panish Conquest
the( :ould have eventuall( pushed the Ara:as out
of the .reater Antilles too*
Their inter#island raidin8 continued una-ated
throu8hout the 1$th and 17th centuries, since the&paniards, realisin8 that the 3esser Antilles laced
sufficient mineral :ealth to mae them via-le for
colonial e'ploitation, sa: no 8ood reason to
confront such a patentl( hostile people* The onl(
si8nificant &panish intrusions into Cari- territor(
:ere unsuccessful e'peditions a8ainst .uadeloupe
in 1!11 and 1!1!, -oth repulsed :ith sizea-le
losses, and several equall( unsuccessful attempts to
esta-lish a settlement on 4ominica* Other:ise onl(
slave#raiders ventured here, official authorisation
havin8 -een 8ranted for the :holesale enslavementof the Cari-s in 1!";* This led to the depopulation
of numerous islands durin8 the 1!+"s and 1!;"s as
their Cari- =and I8neri or Ara:a @ the slavers
:ere not particularl( discriminatin8? inha-itants
:ere enslaved, illed, or forced to flee to the
mainland or other islands* Other than the
occupation of islands close to the mainland, such as
CuraUao in 1!+7 and Trinidad on several occasions
-et:een 1!;+ and 1!0+, the first permanent
European settlements in the 3esser Antilles did not
appear until the 17th centur(, startin8 :ith the4utch colon( founded on &t* Eustatius in 1$""*
an( islands nevertheless resisted European
conquest ri8ht up until the 1%th centur(*
Cari- or8anisation :as ver( simple* Each villa8e
:as independent under its o:n chief, :ho :as
treated :ith deference -ut had little real authorit(,
&te:ard =10%? o-servin8 that Cari- men :ere
individualists, and the( looed do:n upon the
Europeans for tain8 orders*2 Chieftainship :as not
hereditar( -ut elective, the holder 8enerall( -ein8
chosen for his martial qualities, his a8e, his
:isdom, or -ecause he had inherited 4ara4oli
=s(m-ols of authorit( @ see -elo:? from his
ancestors* Each villa8e also usuall( had one or t:o
elected :ar#chiefs =u-utu?, e'perienced :arriors
:ho held their posts for life and :ere invaria-l(
accompanied -( a retinue of :arriors :herever the(
:ent* T:o or more u-utu customaril( too part in
ever( Cari- raid, one -ein8 acno:led8ed as
overall commander for the duration of the
e'pedition* To ud8e from later evidence eachcanoe in a raidin8 part( :as commanded -( its
o:ner, :ho -ailed :hile the rest of the cre:
paddled* Their canoes, lie those of the Ara:as,
:ere du8#outs, :hich came in a variet( of sizes,
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some -ein8 onl( -i8 enou8h to carr( one man,
:hile others could hold up to !"* The lar8est :ere
called 'iroues, :hich had their sides -uilt up :ith
plans* These could -e up to " ft =1+*+ m? lon8,
:hile the lar8est of the smaller variet( :ere a-out
half that size* /( the latter part of the 1$th centur(
-oth t(pes could -e found fitted :ith masts =three
and t:o respectivel(?, pro-a-l( adopted in
imitation of &panish practice* 4ie8o Chancarecords that the Cari-s :ere prepared to travel 1!"
lea8ues on a raidin8 e'pedition, and, as :e have
alread( seen, the( ma( have travelled a 8reat deal
further if the( did indeed reach as far as the
/ahamas* On lon8 ourne(s the( :ould stop and
rest on uninha-ited islands encountered en route,
actuall( plantin8 patches of edi-le crops on some of
these to cater for such an eventualit(*
As :ith ever( other Indian tri-e, the Cari-s
relied on surprise to 8ive them an advanta8e in their
attacs, preferrin8 to fall on an enem( villa8e :hileit still slept, either at da:n or -( the li8ht of a full
moon* ost Ara:a and Cari- communities posted
sentries near potential landin8 sites to :atch out for
raidin8 parties, and if so much as a -arin8 do8 lost
the raiders their element of surprise the( :ould
usuall( a-andon the e'pedition, re8ardless of ho:
far the( mi8ht have travelled* If the( remained
undiscovered, the raiders :ould attac in three
parties, ho:lin8 and shootin8 fire#arro:s into the
thatched roofs* If their attac failed to over:helm
the enem( :ithin the ne't fe: hours the( :ouldcollect to8ether their dead and :ounded and
:ithdra: at noon* Thou8h a second attac :as
occasionall( attempted, it :as more usual for the
enterprise to -e a-andoned* In a successful raid, the
captured villa8e :ould -e looted and the enem(
dead roasted and eaten* emale prisoners,
especiall( the (oun8 and handsome2, -ecame part
of the captor2s famil( =individual :arriors
sometimes ended up :ith dozens of concu-ines in
this :a(?, :hile an( men taen alive :ere illed
and eaten at the su-sequent victor( feast* Ho:ever,
men :ith :hom the raiders traded durin8 their
peacetime ventures :ere released, a tit#for#tat
arran8ement that :ould 8uarantee the captor2s life
:hen his o:n villa8e :as raided* Chanca records
that captive -o(s :ere castrated and emplo(ed as
servants until the( are full( 8ro:n, and then
the( ill and eat them2*
ost Cari- raidin8 parties involved a couple of
hundred :arriors* In 1!+", for instance, five canoes
:ith 1!" men landed on the eastern end of Puerto5ico, as did 11 canoes :ith !"" men in 1!;"* In
&eptem-er 1!+0 ei8ht 8reat canoes2 attaced &an
Duan har-our, :hile Dohn Ha:ins :itnessed a raid
-( +"" Cari-s on the &panish settlement of
/or-urata, )enezuela, in 1!$* Considera-l( lar8er
forces could -e assem-led on occasion, as is proved
-( the raid launched a8ainst the rench and En8lish
settlement on &t* Vitts in 1$+!, :hich involved an
estimated ,""" Cari-s*
Dohn &pare, :ho accompanied Ha:ins, :rote
that :hen fi8htin8 &panish slave#raiders the(
choose for their refu8e the mountains and :oods
:here the &paniards :ith their horses cannot follo:them* And if the( fortune to -e met in the plain
:here one horseman ma( overrun 1"" of them,
the( have a device of late practised -( them to pitch
staes of :ood in the 8round, and also small iron
QspiesR to mischief their horses2*
Cari-s :ere shorter and stocier than Ara:as,
practised cranial deformation, and -ore facial
tattoos from the time that the( :ere initiated as
:arriors =descri-ed -( Chanca as a hundred
thousand devices, such as crosses and other
marin8s of different inds2?* The( :ore their hairlon8 and most often loose, cuttin8 it short onl(
a-ove the e(es* &ome, ho:ever, tied it in some
undefined :a( on the -ac of the head, decoratin8
the not :ith maca: feathers* en and :omen
alie painted themselves red, in part at least to
eep a:a( the -itin8s of mosquitoes2* Chanca
descri-es some as havin8 their e(es and e(e-ro:s
stained2, pro-a-l( :ith -lac paint* The( :ent
naed lie the Ara:as, -ut differed in coverin8
their penis :ith a sheath, &pare e'plainin8 that the
men covered no part of their -od( -ut their (ard,upon the :hich the( :ear a 8ourd or piece of cane,
made fast :ith a thread a-out his loins, leavin8 the
other parts of their mem-ers uncovered*2
De:eller( comprised the usual mi'ture of
feathers, fish#-ones and stone pendants in their
pierced ears, noses and lips, and neclaces of :ood,
stone, -one and shell -eads* The most hi8hl(#prized
items, ho:ever, called 4ara4oli, :ere crescent#
shaped pieces made of 8old#copper allo( = tum-aa?
ed8ed :ith :ood* These came in various sizes, the
smallest -ein8 used as ear, nose, and lip plu8s,
:hile others :ere :orn as pendants round the nec*
/ecause the metal from :hich the( :ere made
could onl( -e o-tained -( raids onto the mainland
these :ere re8arded as a si8n of hi8h ran,
8enerall( -ein8 :orn onl( on ceremonial occasions
and rarel( durin8 raids* A chief seen on 4ominica
in 1!0$ had the model of a lion in shinin8 -rass
Qi*e* tum-aaR han8in8 upon his -reast2 and carried
a &panish rapier*
The characteristic :eapon of the Cari-s :as a $ft =1*% m? lon8-o: firin8 lon8 poisoned arro:s*
The latter, ept in a cane quiver of the -i8ness of a
man2s arm2, :ere made of reed :ith fish#-one,
tortoise#shell, or fire#hardened :ooden points* The(
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had no fletchin8* &pare recorded that the( are so
8ood archers that the &paniards for fear thereof arm
themselves and their horses :ith quilted canvas of
t:o inches thic, and leave no place of their -od(
open to their enemies, savin8 their e(es, :hich the(
ma( not hide, and (et oftentimes are the( hit in that
so small a scantlin8*2 He adds that the poison :as
fatal :ithin the space of + hours* Other :eapons
consisted of darts, and clu-s called -outou,decorated and painted :ith 8eometric and
anthropomorphic patterns* The len8th of the -outou
apparentl( depended on a :arrior2s ran, those of
chiefs -ein8 up to !F$ ft =1*;F1*% m? lon8*
IURES
1 2. &R&&/ &RRIORS There are fe:
1$th centur( pictures that can -e claimed :ith
certaint( to portra( >est Indian natives* i8ure 1 isa reconstruction -ased in part on dra:in8s made in
1!+0 -( Christopher >eiditz, of Indians taen -ac
to &pain -( CortBs* Thou8h usuall( descri-ed as
Aztecs the( are clearl( not, and it is possi-le that
the( represent Ara:as* Certainl( several aspects
of their appearance conform to earl( :ritten
descriptions of Ara:a adornment, nota-l( the
loose cloa of coloured feathers, and the stones set
into the chees and forehead* /oth of these features
appear to have -een characteristic of Ara:a
caciques, as too, pro-a-l(, :as the featherdecoration of the -elt* It is nevertheless possi-le
that the dra:in8s portra( Indians from else:here in
the Cari--ean, not least -ecause one fi8ure is
sho:n :ith a shield :hen none of the &panish
descriptions mention the Ara:as of the .reater
Antilles usin8 these* i8ure +, ho:ever, is
definitel( an Ara:a, -ein8 -ased on pre#Conquest
fi8urines* &everal sources mention 8irdles2 such as
that :orn here, :hich :ere of :oven cotton* Those
of chiefs :ere sufficientl( hi8hl( prized that the(
:ere considered suita-le 8ifts for presentation to
Colum-us* He is armed :ith a spear#thro:er, darts,
and a clu-* &pear#thro:ers had once -een emplo(ed
throu8hout the Americas, and remained :idespread,
-ut -( the 1$th centur( the( had -een replaced inman( areas -( the -o:* &ee the te't descri-in8
i8ure ;! for further details*
3 4. C&RI) &RRIORS i8ure ; is derived
principall( from dra:in8s e'ecuted -( a mem-er of
4rae2s e'pedition of 1!%!F%$ in :hat is no:n as
the 4rae anuscript2* Note the small red 8ourd
containin8 his arro:#poison, :hich, the te't
e'plains, :as made -( mashin8 to8ether the leaves
of a tree called mensenille, the -lood of a -leatin8
toad, and the flesh of a centipede2* &pare sa(s thatother 8ourds carried :hen on an e'pedition
contained the uice of sorrel QandR flour of their
maize, :hich -ein8 moistQenedR, the( eat2* i8ure
, -ased on 17thF1%th centur( sources :hich
demonstrate that Cari- costume had not chan8ed
si8nificantl( in the interim, :ears a small
-reechclout, has his hair tied up @ apparentl( on
the top of his head @ and has a feather head#dress*
/oth men are armed :ith lon8-o: and -outou*
#. C&RI) OM&N Each Cari- :arrior :asaccompanied on campai8n -( one or more :omen,
:hose o- it :as to prepare his food and to appl(
his -od(#paint each mornin8* Cari- :omen :ere
also prepared to fi8ht, and Colum-us2 first part(
ashore on .uadeloupe in 10$ :as confronted -( a
verita-le arm( of Cari- :omen armed :ith
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lon8-o:s* Their onl( dress consisted of a small
:hite cotton -reechclout pulled throu8h a strin8
front and -ac in the form of an apron, and :hite
cotton -ands -elo: the nees and a-ove the anles,
resultin8 in sli8htl( s:ollen calves* The &paniards
are said to have used these le88in8s as a 8uaranteed
:a( of accuratel( distin8uishin8 Ara:as from
Cari-s*
NOTES
1 These are often erroneousl( referred to as
Taino* an( Ara:a tri-es :ere still to -e found
throu8hout the northern part of &outh America*
2 The Indians of &t* Croi' @ no: part of the &
)ir8in Islands @ :ere pro-a-l( Ara:as rather
than Cari-s, thou8h the( appear to have
demonstrated aspects of -oth cultures* /( 1!1! &t*Croi' had -een entirel( depopulated -( &panish
slavers*
3 The &paniards re8arded the /ahamas as utterl(
:orthless and made no attempt to colonise them,
instead simpl( enslavin8 and removin8 the
population to Hispaniola, Cu-a, and Puerto 5ico*
4 &te:ard =10%? su88ests that the -o:s recorded
in use -( Cu-an Ara:as durin8 a su-sequent sta8e
of the &panish conquest :ere pro-a-l( a later
addition2*
# He :as driven off :hen he attaced ar8aritaisland and CumanL in Dune* &everal attempts -( the
&paniards to esta-lish themselves in .uiana
-et:een 1!+ and 1!7$ all failed, and European
conquest and settlement of the re8ion did not start
in earnest until the -e8innin8 of the 17th centur(*
There :ere several En8lish e'peditions here, of
:hich the most nota-le :ere those of 5alei8h in
1!0! and 1$17, 3aurence Ve(mis in 1!0$, and
Charles 3ei8h in 1$", the last even attemptin8 to
found a colon(*
6 A report of 1$!% records that the Cari-s deemed
rench people delicious and -( far the -est of the
Europeans, and ne't came the En8lish* The 4utch
:ere dull and rather tasteless, :hile the &paniards
:ere so strin8( and full of 8ristle as to -e
practica-l( uneata-le*2
T-E S5&NIS- M&IN
Thou8h it soon came to include the >est Indiesand the Cari--ean &ea itself, the term &panish
ain2 :as initiall( coined -( 1$th centur(
En8lishmen to descri-e that part of &panish#
occupied Central America :hich -ordered on the
Cari--ean -asin, consistin8 of coastal )enezuela
and Colom-ia, Panama, and the eastern parts of
Costa 5ica, Nicara8ua, and Honduras* &panish
discoveries here had -e8un :ith Colum-us2 vo(a8e
alon8 the coast of )enezuela in 10%* urther
e'peditions -( various adventurers -et:een 100
and 1!"0 resulted in the e'ploration of the entire
coast -et:een )enezuela and Honduras, and led in
1!"0 to the 8rantin8 of ro(al patents to 4ie8o de Nicuesa and Alonso de Hoeda to esta-lish the first
settlements on the mainland, then no:n simpl( as
Tierra &irme* In 1!1" Hoeda founded &an
&e-astiLn de ra-L =:here rancisco Pizarro,
future conqueror of Peru, :as placed in command?
on the northern coast of Colom-ia, -ut this :as
-urnt do:n in an Indian attac and :as a-andoned
as untena-le soon after:ards* &anta arWa la
Anti8ua del 4ariBn :as then esta-lished in its
stead, to -ecome capital of the Isthmus re8ion*
Nicuesa, mean:hile, had founded Nom-re de 4iosin Panama at much the same date* The s(stematic
lootin8 of the re8ion2s mineral :ealth, mean:hile,
had alread( -e8un at the turn of the centur(, and
:as sufficientl( profita-le that after 1!1; the
Isthmus of 4ariBn :as customaril( referred to as
Castilla del ro* Pedro Arias de Avila, or Pedrarias
as he :as no:n, :as appointed captain#8eneral of
the ne: province in Dul( 1!1;, and moved the
capital from 4ariBn to Panama, on the Pacific coast,
at the end of 1!10* The other principal to:ns of the
re8ion :ere the Colom-ian ports of &anta arta,founded -( 5odri8o de /astidas in 1!+!, and
Carta8ena, founded -( Pedro de Heredia in 1!;;*
All of these settlements :ere to su-sequentl( serve
as -ases for the e'ploration, conquest, and
e'ploitation of the interior* At the opposite end of
the &panish ain, Honduras and Nicara8ua :ere
conquered durin8 the 1!+"s, thou8h in some places
Indian resistance sputtered on for another t:o
decades*
ost of the coastal tri-es inha-itin8 this re8ion
:ere soon destro(ed, in the maorit( of cases -( the
mid#1!"s, :hen, for instance, /enzoni states that
the "","""#stron8 pre#Conquest population of
Honduras had d:indled to less than %,"""* Amon8
the more si8nificant tri-es :ere the Nicarao,7
Chorote8a, and &u-tia-a of Nicara8ua the .uetar,
)oto, and &uerre of Costa 5ica the Cuna, .ua(mW,
and ChocM of Panama the Cueva, Calamari =or
Caramairi?, and Tairona of coastal Colom-ia and
the mainland Cari-s and Ara:as of )enezuela*
The Calamari, :ho called themselves the ocana,:ere one of the most po:erful* Their territor( la(
-et:een ra-L and the 5Wo a8dalena, :here the(
lived in villa8es surrounded -( stocades consistin8
of livin8 trees or canes* It has -een surmised that
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the( ma( have -een related to the Cari-s, since the(
:ere especiall( noted for their archer(, their eatin8
of slain enemies, and the fact that the :omen :ent
to :ar as :ell as the men one 1%#(ear#old 8irl
captured -( the &paniards in the vicinit( of
Carta8ena in 1!1 claimed to have illed as man(
as ei8ht 4on5uistadores -efore she :as taen*
&ometimes the :omen @ especiall( the (oun8er
8irls @ merel( served as porters, -ut :hen the(fou8ht the( used the same sort of $ ft =1*% m?
lon8-o: as the men, made of -lac palm:ood*
This :as used to shoot poisoned palm:ood or reed
arro:s :ith stone, fish#scale or fire#hardened
:ooden tips* Other Calamari :eapons comprised
palm:ood clu-s, slin8s, spear#thro:ers, and
-lo:pipes firin8 poisoned darts, :hich the
&paniards are said to have particularl( feared* The(
also used t:o varieties of shield, apparentl( round
or rectan8ular* The( differed from the Cari-s in
:earin8 their hair short* 4ress, such as it :as,consisted under most circumstances of no more that
a sheath for the penis =sometimes coverin8 the
testicles too?, thou8h /enzoni mentions that those
livin8 round Carta8ena :ore a decent -anda8e
round the loins2* The penis sheath :as often made
of 8old decorated :ith pearls prior to the &panish
Conquest, -ut havin8 -een o-li8ed to cede these to
the &paniards2 the( made do :ith a simple cala-ash
thereafter* or decoration the( :ore 8old pendants,
rin8s, neclaces, ear#plu8s, nose#plu8s, and so on,
plus red and -lac -od(#paint =also recorded inCosta 5ica, Panama, and else:here in the re8ion?*
Thou8h virtual or a-solute nudit( also prevailed
in Panama and Costa 5ica, the use of clothin8 in
peacetime =usuall( a coloured cotton -reechclout
and tunic? and cotton armour in :artime :as more
usual in Honduras and Nicara8ua* Honduran
Indians, for instance, :ore thic padded cotton
corselets, :hich 8ave adequate protection a8ainst
Indian arro:s and even :ithstood several -lo:s
from our s:ords*2 )arious chroniclers record the
use of cotton armour and quilted cotton helmets in
Nicara8ua* Indeed, the culture of -oth Honduras
and Nicara8ua :as esoamerican rather than &outh
American, Nicara8ua in particular consistin8 of
several distinct cit(#states rather than clusters of
tri-al villa8es @ :hich is hardl( surprisin8 since
several tri-es here :ere of the same Nahuatl ori8in
as the Aztecs* /enzoni sa(s that the peoples2 ha-its
:ere nearl( all lie those of the e'icans2, :hile
Pascual de Anda8o(a =1!1? sa(s that the( :ere
ver( civilised lie those of e'ico, for the(:ere a people :ho had come from that countr(, and
the( had nearl( the same lan8ua8e2* The Nicarao
:ore sleeveless tunics, -reechclouts, and mantles,
the upper classes :earin8 cotton :hile commoners
su-stituted ma8ue( fi-re* &ome at least :ere
tattooed, nota-l( on their arms* The( had an elite of
no-le :arriors called ta'aliue, :ho Oviedo sa(s
shaved their entire head e'cept for a three#cornered
patch on the cro:n, :here the hair :as allo:ed to
8ro: to a-out + ins =! cm? :ith a sin8le lon8 loc
8ro:in8 from the middle =a description :hich
su88ests that their hair :as :orn in much the same
st(le as that of Aztec :ua4hi45ueh or &horn Ones2,for :hom see i8ures ;+F;?* >eaponr( in -oth
Honduras and Nicara8ua comprised spears, spear#
thro:ers, -o:s, macanas, and shields of tree -ar
or li8ht :ood, covered :ith cotton or feathers the
macanas :ere of the esoamerican variet(
depicted in i8ure +% and full( descri-ed in its
accompan(in8 caption* Those seen in Honduras
:ere descri-ed as lon8 :ooden s:ords, :ith
8rooves on each side, :here the ed8e of -lade
should -e, :ith sharp flints :hich cut lie steel,
lashed into them :ith tarred t:ine2* Aztec#st(le -ac#standards :ere also in use =for :hich see
i8ure +7?* Arms :ere customaril( stored in local
temples and onl( distri-uted in :artime, :hen the
:arriors :ere led -( a :ar#chief appointed -( the
rulin8 council, the tri-al chief not usuall( 8oin8
into -attle* =If present he :ould tae command onl(
if the :ar#chief :as illed, or else :ould appoint
another :ar#chief on the spot*?*
Panama straddled the invisi-le frontier -et:een
the furthest limits of esoamerican and &outh
American cultural influences, so that of its principaltri-es the .ua(mW, livin8 in the direction of :hat is
no: Costa 5ica, :ere related to -oth the a(a and
Nahuatl peoples of e'ico, :hile the ChocM at the
opposite end of the Isthmus @ :ho succeeded in
resistin8 the &paniards until the second half of the
17th centur( @ :ere related to the uisca of
Colom-ia* The middle portion of the countr(
consisted of numerous pett(#states of :hich the
most si8nificant -elon8ed to a tri-e no:n as the
Cuna or Cuna#Cueva, &panish sources reportin8
that these had three principal chiefs and !; lesser
chiefs2* &imilar pett(#states e'isted amon8 the
.ua(mW of the Coi-a re8ion, :here more than a
dozen put up a spirited resistance to earl( &panish
attempts to occup( their territor(* The first
conquistador e'pedition here, under .onzalo de
/adaMz in 1!1!, :as -eaten so -adl( -( the forces
of the most po:erful of these states, Paris, or Parita,
that the &paniards a-andoned their loot and fled in
disorder* Antonio )Lzquez de Espinosa led a
second e'pedition in 1!17, :hich mana8ed todefeat the Paris Indians @ :ho fou8ht in
-attalions2 @ onl( after a da(#lon8 -attle* The most
po:erful chief north of the Azuero peninsula,
rraca, remained unconquered at his death in
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that En8lish pirac( came of a8e* There :ere ten
documented En8lish raids durin8 the period 1!7"F7, the
most famous of :hich :ere 4rae2s attacs of 1!7+F7; on
Nom-re de 4ios, Carta8ena, and the Camino ,eal =ro(l
road2? -et:een Panama and Nom-re de 4ios, alon8 :hich
treasure shipments from Peru :ere transported -( mule#
train for shipment -ac to &pain*11 Thou8h Thou8h it
netted little in terms of profit, 4rae2s e'pedition of ust
t:o ships and 7; men succeeded in puttin8 the fear of .od
into the &paniards, not least -( its alliance :ith the dreadedCimaroons =escaped Ne8ro slaves @ see the chapter on
&panish America?* Other allies, :ho participated in
4rae2s attac on a mule#train outside Nom-re de 4ios,
comprised a part( of rench corsairs under the noted
navi8ator .uillaume le Testu, :ho :as mortall( :ounded
durin8 the fi8htin8* The 1!%"s sa: surprisin8l( fe:
e'peditions in the Cari--ean, thou8h En8lish raiders
turned up in some of the Ne: >orld2s more une'pected
quarters* In 1!%$F%%, for instance, Thomas Cavendish had
emulated 4rae -( circumnavi8atin8 the 8lo-e and in 1!%7
had raided PunL island off the coast of Peru and follo:in8
the amal8amation of the Portu8uese and &panish thrones in1!%" there :ere several raids on /razilian ports and
coastal shippin8 durin8 the late#1!%"s and 1!0"s* The most
si8nificant of these e'peditions :as the capture of
Pernam-uco for a month in 1!0! -( the allied squadrons of
Dames 3ancaster and t:o rench corsairs, )enner and Dean
3enoir, musterin8 -et:een the three of them some seven or
11 ships*
Nevertheless, the principal e'pedition of the decade :as
4rae2s re#appearance in force in 1!%!F%$ :ith as man( as
+1 ships, nine pinnaces, +,;"" men, and a plan to esta-lish
a permanent En8lish presence in the Cari--ean* His
intention :as to sac -oth &anto 4omin8o in Hispaniola
and the coastal to:ns of the &panish ain, and to put
ashore landin8#parties :hich, actin8 in concert :ith the
Cimaroons, :ould seize Nom-re de 4ios and Panama to
secure control of the Camino ,eal * .arrisons :ould then
-e left in Carta8ena, Nom-re de 4ios, Panama, and
Havana, :hich, it :as proposed, :ould also -e seized as
the fleet headed -ac to:ards En8land*12 It :as a -old plan
that :as, nevertheless, doomed to failure*
4rae2s fleet descended on &anto 4omin8o on Ne:
6ears2 4a( 1!%$, landin8 a-out 1,""" men =&panish
sources report -et:een !!" and 1,+""? :ho s:iftl(over:helmed the &panish defences*13 After sittin8 amidst
the ru--le of their victor( for a month ne8otiatin8 ransom
terms for the release of the cit(, in e-ruar( the En8lish
moved on to Carta8ena, destro(in8 the minor port of 5Wo
de la Hacha en route* Ho:ever, thin8s had started to 8o
:ron8< alread( onl( 1,+"" of 4rae2s ori8inal +,;"" men
remained fit for dut(, the rest havin8 either succum-ed to
disease or fallen to enem( action* In addition 4rae :as
runnin8 -ehind :hatever schedule he mi8ht have set
himself, :hich had 8iven the &paniards time to reinforce
Carta8ena2s defenders to a stren8th of a-out a thousand
men @ comprisin8 !!"F$"" &paniards =includin8 !horsemen?, "" Indians, and +! Ne8ro freemen @ plus the
&panish element of the cre:s of t:o 8alle(s moored
-eneath the to:n :alls, comprisin8 a-out another +""
men* As man( as !""F$"" men =said -( a &panish e(e#
:itness to have comprised ;"" arque-usiers, 1"" piemen,
and +"" Indian archers? had -een assi8ned to defend a
rampart thro:n up across a nec of land adacent to the
har-our, supported -( -et:een four and si' 8uns*
The En8lish landin8#part( of a-out a thousand men
drove the &paniards from the rampart -( push of pie and
rushed on into the to:n itself, :here the( found ever(
street -loced -( -arricades* Thou8h the &paniards made
little effort to defend these the lo8 of one of 4rae2s ships
records that the En8lish suffered 8reat anno(ance -( the
Indian arro:s comin8 ver( thic out of the houses a-outtheir ears, :ith :hich man( of us :ere hurt, and the arro:s
-ein8 poisoned, some died2* Another contemporar( report
records other men -ein8 mischieved to death :ith certain
prics or small stics sharpl( pointed, of a foot and a half
lon8, the one end put into the 8round, the other
empoisoned, sticin8 fast up2* These too :ere the :or of
the Indians* 4espite their defences and preparations,
ho:ever, the &paniards :ere driven out, and 4rae spent
another si' :ees ne8otiatin8 the cit(2s ransom* /( this
time onl( %"" of his men remained fit* Even thou8h his
losses :ere made 8ood to some e'tent -( the freed slaves
=renchmen, Ne8roes, oors, .rees, &paniards, and +""Turs? from the t:o &panish 8alle(s destro(ed in
Carta8ena har-our, it :as clear that at this rate of attrition
his forces :ere in serious dan8er of -ein8 decimated
-e(ond recover(* Plans to capture Nom-re de 4ios and
Panama, and to leave permanent 8arrisons in the
Cari--ean, :ere therefore a-andoned, and 4rae sailed for
home, destro(in8 the &panish fort at &an A8ustWn in lorida
en route* He had lost a total of 7!" men*
4urin8 the 1!0"s there :ere an avera8e of 1 En8lish
e'peditions to the Cari--ean ever( (ear, :ith as man( as
+! in 1!0%* That led -( 4rae and Dohn Ha:ins in 1!0!F
0$, aimed at &an Duan de Puerto 5ico and Panama, :as the
lar8est, comprisin8 +7 ships, 1,!"" seamen, and +,!""F
;,""" soldiers, -ut it met :ith even less 8ood fortune than
4rae2s solo fora( a decade earlier* Ha:ins died on the
out:ard passa8e, and the &paniards, lon8 since fore:arned
of the impendin8 En8lish attac, had time to reinforce
Puerto 5ico :ith 1,!"" fresh troops from &pain* >hen his
attac :as consequentl( driven off :ith considera-le loss
4rae sailed for Nom-re de 4ios, raidin8 alon8 the coast
of the mainland as he :ent* Nom-re de 4ios :as found
lar8el( deserted, and he seized the fort and -urned the
to:n* He then despatched 0"" men, or8anised into five orseven companies under his lieutenant, Thomas /aserville,
to traverse the Isthmus and tae Panama, -ut after
marchin8 throu8h torrential rain for three da(s these
encountered stiff &panish opposition on the fourth and,
:ith their provisions and po:der ruined -( the do:npour,
the( :ere o-li8ed to :ithdra:* 5e#em-arin8 its landin8#
part(, the fleet then sailed alon8 the coast of Honduras and
Nicara8ua, its cre:s contractin8 d(senter( en route after
landin8 to find :ater* >hen 4rae himself died of the
-lood( flu'2 in Danuar( 1!0$ command devolved on
/aserville, :ho called an end to the disastrous e'pedition
and sailed for home :ith the remainin8 1 or 1! ships=several havin8 either -een lost to the enem( or scuttled in
consequence of havin8 insufficient men left to cre: them?*
It :as left to another cele-rated En8lish corsair, .eor8e
Clifford, Earl of Cum-erland @ author of a dozen raids
-et:een 1!%$ and 1!0% @ to succeed :here 4rae had
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not in capturin8 &an Duan de Puerto 5ico, :hich he did in
1!0% :ith a fleet of 1% ships and 1,""" men* He had
intended to hold the port permanentl(, -ut once a8ain
unsustaina-le losses to tropical disease o-li8ed the En8lish
to :ithdra: :ithout installin8 a 8arrison* The frequenc( of
such semi#official En8lish ventures su-sequentl( declined,
there -ein8 onl( ten alto8ether -et:een 1$"" and 1$";,
:hen the lon8#runnin8 An8loF&panish conflict effectivel(
came to an end*
&R&RE The maorit( of pirate flotillas operatin8 in American
:aters initiall( consisted of no more than a sin8le ship
equipped for -oth fi8htin8 and tradin8, accompanied -( a
smaller vessel of a t(pe called a pinnace or 'ata4he, :hich,
havin8 a shallo: draft and -ein8 provided :ith up to 1%
oars a side as :ell as sails, :as -etter suited to the inshore
:or called for in coastal operations* The pinnace mi8ht
displace as little as +" tons and could have a cre: of as fe:
as +" men or as man( as 7", -ut carried little or no
armament -e(ond a num-er of small 7ersos =1F11+ pdr
-reech#loadin8 s:ivels?* No raidin8 force recorded in the
first half of the centur( ever comprised more than %""F 1,""" men and si' vessels, of :hich t:o at the ver( least
:ere pinnaces* 4urin8 the 1!!"s, ho:ever, the rench
despatched lar8er fleets :hich included ro(al :arships as
:ell as privateers, and carried sizea-le contin8ents of
troops for deplo(ment ashore* The ten ships :hich sailed
under ranUois le Clerc in 1!!;F! constituted the first of
these more su-stantial ventures, and included t:o ro(al
:arships and three or four pinnaces* ost En8lish
e'peditions of the period 1!7+F1$"; :ere of three ships or
less* Onl( those :hich received ro(al -acin8 :ere an(
lar8er, -ein8 sometimes accompanied -( ro(al :arships
=t:o served under 4rae in 1!%!F%$, and five in 1!0!F0$?*
4rae2s e'pedition of 1!7+F7; appears to have -een
unique in carr(in8 three prefa-ricated pinnaces a-oard one
of its t:o ships, :hich :ere unloaded and re#assem-led
:hen he arrived at his destination in the .ulf of 4ariBn*
Pinnaces :ere sufficientl( important to the success of a
privateerin8 enterprise that e'peditions :ere 8enerall(
a-andoned if the lar8er ships lost touch :ith them for an(
reason, :hile the pinnace commander sometimes decided
to utilise the advanta8es of his vessel for his o:n profit,
a-andonin8 the accompan(in8 ship to 8o a#rovin8 on his
o:n* In the a-sence of their o:n navi8ational charts, earl(
rench raiders depended heavil( on the no:led8e and
e'perience of disaffected &panish pilots, /enzoni
recordin8 in the 1!"s that it :as some &paniards,
practised in that navi8ation, :ho led the enem( so that
the rench also -ecame as familiar :ith those :aters as the
&paniards themselves2* It :as, for instance, a &paniard :ho
8uided five rench ships into Carta8ena har-our in 1!,
:here the( landed 1"" men and saced and -urnt the to:n*
/efore lon8, ho:ever, rench corsairs ne: as much a-out
navi8atin8 in the Cari--ean and the Atlantic sea#lanes as
their &panish counterparts, and had accumulated sufficientintelli8ence of &panish stren8th in the re8ion to ena-le
them to launch their attacs :ith impunit(* /enzoni noted
that althou8h in the -e8innin8 the( restricted themselves
to the vicinit( of Hispaniola and &an Duan de Puerto 5ico,
(et :hen those districts ceased to (ield rich prizes the(
frequented more of the islands, and even some of the
provinces on the mainland2, pilla8in8 to:ns and capturin8
ships :herever the( :ent* The audien4ia of &anto
4omin8o reported in 1!1 that rench corsairs no:in8
the :eaness of these ports landed in man( of them in
full da(li8ht, QandR -urned and ro--ed some :ithout
meetin8 an( resistance2* )er( fe: &panish attempts to
repel pirate landin8#parties :ere ever successful, and at
least some of those that :ere o:ed their success more to
-ri-er( than force of arms* Indeed, /lasco NXSez )ela=1!;0? considered that ;"" corsairs could seize an( coastal
to:n on the &panish ain that the( cared to, re8ardless of
its size or stren8th, and it is readil( apparent from the
sources that the &paniards2 poor leadership and lac of
adequate arms virtuall( 8uaranteed the pirates success on
land* &o lon8 as the( mana8ed to avoid the lar8er and more
heavil(#armed &panish :arships sometimes despatched
a8ainst them there :as also ver( little that the( needed to
fear at sea*
Normal rench raidin8 practice, as recorded -( a
&panish e(e#:itness in 1!71, :as for the cre: of the
pinnace to mae the attac :hile the lar8er ship stoodoffshore, the -oot( -ein8 su-sequentl( transferred to the
ship, :hich :ould periodicall( return to Normand( to sell
it* This is e'actl( ho: &ores :ent a-out attacin8 Havana
in 1!!!, :hen he landed the -ul of his men -( means of
his pinnaces and ships2 -oats to outflan the to:n2s
defences and launch an overland attac from the rear* On
this particular occasion the rench set fire to the fort2s
8ates to smoe out its 8arrison after several hours of
fi8htin8* The &panish 8overnor had mean:hile rallied the
population =:hich, as :as customar( under such
circumstances, had fled inland :ith the 8reater part of its
porta-le valua-les at first site of the corsairs? and returned
:ith such armed men as he could muster, -ut :as -eaten
off* 4rae emplo(ed much the same tactics in his attac on
&anto 4omin8o in 1!%$, puttin8 his landin8#part( ashore
several miles a:a( to launch a surprise attac from the rear
:hile his main fleet ept the to:n2s defences occupied
from the sea:ard side* This -ecame the characteristic
modus o'erandi of En8lish privateers thereafter*
The S(anish res(nse
5eco8nisin8 the increasin8 pro-lems presented -(
pirac( as earl( as Dul( 1!++, the &panish Cro:n stipulated
that ships main8 the transatlantic vo(a8e should -e of atleast %" tons =increased to 1"" tons in 1!;?, and issued
re8ulations 8overnin8 the minimum armament that each
vessel :as required to carr(, consistin8 of at least t:o
-rass 8uns, si' iron ones, and several smaller pieces*
Ho:ever, it seems that these :ere rarel( complied :ith,
since /enzoni states that the principal cause of &panish
ship losses :as the avarice of the o:ners for on quittin8
&pain, such :as their avidit( to fill up :ith merchandise
and passen8ers that the( did not put the due num-er of
8uns on -oard nor even the num-er ordered -( the
Council of the Indies2* Commissioners sent to e'amine that
ships :ere armed in accordance :ith these re8ulations:ere simpl( -ri-ed to loo the other :a(* Consequentl(,
continues /enzoni, if a :ell#armed little rench
alleonette happened to meet a ship of even 1,!""
or +,""" salme Qc*;""F"" tonsR the( attaced her
:ithout the least fear, no:in8 ho: ill &panish ships
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esoamerica c*1!"F1$""
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T-E &TECS
Thou8h modern -oos tend to treat the so#called
Aztec Empire2 as if all of its people Y especiall( those
of the )alle( of e'ico Y shared the same ori8ins, the
Aztecs1# :ere, in fact, ust one of up to " Nahuatl#
speain8 Chichimec tri-es :hich had mi8rated into
Central e'ico in the 1;th centur(, pro-a-l( from thenorth#:est, and su-sequentl( overran the Toltec Empire*
Other tri-es involved in this mi8ration included the
follo:in8<
Acolhua Hue'otzinca Otomi
Chalca alinalca Tepaneca
Cholulteca atlatzinca Tlahuica
Coui'ca ichoaca Tla'calteca
Cuitlahuaca i'tec Totonaca
Culhua Nonoalca Gochimilca
ost settled in the re8ion :here the principal to:n
su-sequentl( -ore their name =the Cholulteca in Cholula,
the Culhua in Culhuacan, the Gochimilca in Gochimilco,
and so on?* The most important of them Y i*e* those
:hich mana8ed to retain their independence until the
1$th centur( Y are dealt :ith individuall( further on in
this chapter*
Earl( in the 1th centur( the Aztecs esta-lished the
cities of Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco on islands in 3ae
Te'coco in the )alle( of e'ico, Tenochtitlan achievin8
ascendanc( in 1+% -( formin8 an alliance :ith the
nei8h-ourin8 cit(#state of Te'coco to overthro: the
rulin8 Tepaneca people* &oon after:ards =1;1? the cit(
of Tlacopan =Tacu-a? oined :ith Tenochtitlan and
Te'coco to create the Triple Alliance2, round :hich theso#called Aztec Empire 8re:* E'pansion proceeded
rapidl( from the 1"s, :ith to:n after to:n -ein8
coerced or -eaten into su-mission* Each su-u8ated
communit( :as permitted to retain its o:n ruler and
8ods, -ut :as thereafter o-li8ed to mae re8ular
pa(ments of tri-ute to the storehouses of Tenochtitlan in
order to maintain the empire2s administration,
priesthood, and militar( potential failure to do so
-rou8ht s:ift and merciless retri-ution* /( the time the
&paniards arrived in 1!10 the ruler of Tenochtitlan,
al:a(s the pre#eminent leader of the Alliance, had
-ecome undisputed master of its empire, :hile the rulersof Te'coco and Tlacopan had -ecome his o:n carefull(
selected appointees*
3eader of the Aztec nation :as the Tlatoani
=&peaer2?, also called the Tlato5ue, ;ueytlatoani
=5evered &peaer2? or Tla4ate4uhtli =Chief of men2?*
Effectivel( he :as the in8 or paramount chief, -ut his
office :as technicall( elective and theoreticall( he could
-e deposed* In realit(, ho:ever, the in8ship :as
hereditar(, each Tlatoani -ein8 elected from amon8 the
indred of the same rulin8 line -( a council of chief men
and priests the onl( variation from European practice
:as that -rothers and nephe:s :ere usuall( selected in
preference to sons @ for instance, A'a(acatl, Tizoc, and
Ahuitzotl, :ho ruled successivel( in the period 1$0F
1!";, :ere all -rothers, :hile Ahuitzotl2s successors
octezuma II =1!";F+"? and Cuitlahuac =1!+"? :ere his
nephe:s, -ein8 sons of A'a(acatl* Cuitlahuac :as
succeeded in turn -( Ahuitzotl2s son Cuauhtemoc =1!+"F
+!?, the ver( last Tlatoani of Tenochtitlan*
The &peaer :as assisted -( a man called the
Cihua4oatl =&erpent#>oman2? @ :ho :as his chief
minister and deput( in all thin8s @ and -( four other
senior officials :ho :ere pro-a-l( the same as theelected leaders of the four quarters into :hich
Tenochtitlan :as divided, :hose responsi-ilities
com-ined -oth civil and militar( functions* These :ere
the Tla4ate4atl =Cutter of en2?, the Tla4o4h4al4atl
=aster of the House of 4arts2?, the Ezhuahua4atl
=/lood#&hedder2?, and the Tlilan4al5ui =aster of the
House of 4arness2? or :uauhno4htli =Chief of the
Ea8le and Pricl( Pear2, an allusion to the em-lem of
Tenochtitlan that can still -e found on e'ico2s national
fla8 toda(?* One of these officials :as usuall( the heir#
apparent and all :ere commonl( the Tlatoani2s -rothers,
cousins, or insmen of the ro(al -loodline* Provincial8overnors or commanders :ere also no:n as
tla4ate4atl or tla4o4h4al4atl *
The structure of Aztec societ( had -ecome distinctl(
stratified -( the 1$th centur(* /eneath the &peaer of
Tenochtitlan came the rulers of tri-utar( or su-ordinate
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to:ns =some havin8 more than one?, these -ein8
lie:ise called tlatoani, other:ise teu4tlato5ueh =usuall(
translated as ud8es2?* Ne't came the senior no-ilit( or
chieftains =teteu4tin?, :ho :ere heads of the no-le
houses and :ere equivalent in ran to the chieftains of
10th centur( North American tri-es* /eneath them :ere
the no-les -( -irth2, the 'i'iltin, :ho :ere variousl( the
issue or descendants of rulers =tlato4a'i'iltin? or of
chieftains =te4'i'iltin?, called tlazo'i'iltin if -( le8al
:ives or 4al'an'i'iltin if -( concu-ines* These 'i'iltin16or lesser no-ilit( actuall( constituted a sizea-le
proportion of the population of Central e'ico @ 1
in Hue'otzin8o, for instance, and perhaps +" in
Tenochtitlan @ and provided the nucleus of most
armies* Ne't came the upper#classes of the common
people, comprisin8 the ea8le no-les2 =5uauh'i'iltin?
:ho had -een raised to no-le status -( their martial
achievements, and the headmen =4a'oleh5ueh? of each
to:n :ard or 4al'ulli =literall( -i8 house2?* /eneath
these came the commoners =ma4ehualtin?, :ho :ere a
mi'ture of su-ects of the teteu4tin -ondsmen or farm#
hands =mayeh5ueh or tlalmaitin? and slaves=tlatla4ohtin?*
Technicall( militar( service :as required :hen
necessar( from most elements of Aztec societ(, an
o-vious e'ception -ein8 the slaves, -ut in realit( the
onus of responsi-ilit( la( :ith the upper classes @ :ho
:ere e'pected to perform militar( service as an
o-li8ation of their social status and :ere shamed if the(
did not @ and those commoners specificall( trained for
a militar( career*
TR&ININ &ND &D&NCEMENT
Aztec parents decided on their children2s careers,
most sons -ein8 e'pected to follo: in their father2s
footsteps* Those :ho :ere 8oin8 to -e :arriors had their
hair 8ro:n in a distinctive st(le from the a8e of ten, :ith
a lon8 tuft called a 'iltontli at the -ac* Their trainin8too place throu8h t:o t(pes of school, no:n as the
tel'o4h4alli =(ouths2 house2? and the 4alme4a4 =ro: of
houses2?* &ray /ernardino de &aha8Xn, author of the
Code/ &lorentino, records that a tel'o4h4alli :as to -e
found in each cit( :ard =thou8h he sa(s else:here that
each :ard of Tenochtitlan had 1" or 1! such
tel'o4h4alli2, :hich is more liel(? and that it :as
attended mostl( -( commoners, :hile a 4alme4a4 :as to
-e found attached to each of certain important temples
and :as attended onl( -( the no-ilit( and such
commoners as had -een dedicated to the priesthood*
Thou8h &aha8Xn implies entr( at an earlier a8e, thetel'o4h4alli :as attended from the a8e of 1! @ after
the child had -een reared -( his parents2 @ accordin8 to
the Code/ $endoza =c*1!0?, and concentrated on
educatin8 its students in the art of :ar, the teachers -ein8
veteran soldiers =te5uihuah5ueh?, teachers of (ouths2
=tia4h4a4auhtin?, and no-le :arriors = 'i'iltin?* The
4alme4a4, -( contrast, principall( tau8ht reli8ious
su-ects, and its students :ere admitted at a much earlier
a8e, some:here -et:een five and 1; =sources differ?*
>hen the( reached 1! those 4alme4a4 students :ho
needed to learn militar( sills :ere sent for their lessons
to the -arracs of the elite Ea8le and Da8uar :arriors in
the palace precinct, a factor :hich helped to perpetuate
the superior militar( standards Aztec societ( e'pected ofits no-ilit(*
suall( no student :as e'pected to actuall( fi8ht
until he :as +" (ears old, -ut at least some @ once the(
had proved the( :ere stron8 enou8h @ -e8an to -e
taen on campai8n at an earlier a8e, carr(in8 the arms
and equipment of individual te5uihuah5ueh, to :hom
the( effectivel( served as apprentices* In e'ceptional
circumstances the( mi8ht even fi8ht :hile still onl( in
their teens, such as :hen an arm( of 1$F1% (ear olds
:as deli-eratel( fielded as an insult to an enem(2s
fi8htin8 a-ilities* Tlatoani octezuma I =1"F$%? even
sent out -o(s up:ards of 1+ (ears of a8e2 a8ainst theChalca, armin8 them :ith -o:s, shields, and macanas,
:ith orders to follo: close -ehind the main arm( to
mae the Chalca thin that t:o armies had -een raised
a8ainst them*
Once the( reached maturit( at the a8e of +" the
(oun8 men left their schools and :ere considered to -e
novice :arriors, -ut an( further advancement could onl(
-e achieved -( the tain8 of captives in -attle* A :arrior
:ho succeeded in tain8 his first captive, even :ith the
help of up to si' other :arriors,17 :as thencefor:ard
considered a leadin8 (outh2 =tel'o4hyah5ui
? and a
captor =tlamani?, and his tuft of hair :as cut off 1' -ut a
:arrior :ho proved una-le to tae a captive after three
or four campai8ns :as deemed a dis8race* He :as
contemp#tuousl( referred to as a 4ue/'al4hi4a4'o, a
(outh :ith a -a-(2s tuft2, and accordin8 to &aha8Xn
:ould thro: himself into the ne't -attle in a :ild frenz(,
to tae a prisoner at an( cost* If even then he still needed
the help of others to tae his captive his head :as
plastered :ith feathers, -ut if he failed completel( the
top of his head :as shorn, cut lie a rin8#shaped
carr(in8 pad2* Presuma-l( he had to eep this
humiliatin8 hair#st(le until he finall( too a prisoner,died in the attempt, or :as in effect cashiered*
>hen a :arrior had taen three captives he -ecame a
tia4h4auh or teacher of (ouths2 himself* our captives
made him a tel'o4htlatoh =ruler of (ouths2, the 8overnor
of a tel'o4h4alli school? and a te5uihuah or valiant
:arrior2,19 entitlin8 him to a distinctive hair#st(le =see
i8ures F$?* >arriors :ho too five or si' prisoners
-ecame tontin =Otomis2? and qualified for another
distinctive hair#st(le =i8ure ;!?, and if the( too even
more the( -ecame :ua4hi45ueh or &horn Ones2
=i8ures ;+F; the literal translation of their name is
scraped heads2?* Thou8h -oth these rans are sometimesthou8ht to have -een attaina-le onl( -( no-lemen,
&aha8Xn alludes to &horn Ones2 :ho came from the
tel'o4h4alli, :hich :ould impl( that at least some came
from a non#no-le -ac8round* Alvarado Tezozomoc,
:ritin8 -efore 1!$+, sa(s that each tomitl or :ua4hi4
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too command of 1"" men on campai8n, -ut other
sources put them in the front ran or rear8uard, or
intersperse them :ith the ran and file to -olster the
resolve of the latter, :hich is perhaps Tezozomoc2s
meanin8 =he also refers to one tomitl or :ua4hi4
-et:een ever( three or four :arriors2, pro-a-l(
meanin8 rans? 4ie8o 4urLn20 pro-a-l( had this
arran8ement in mind :hen he :rote of a (outh :ho had
never -een to :ar -efore2 -ein8 placed ne't to each
seasoned :arrior2, in order that the latter could taecare of the (oun8er men and 8ive them protection*2
If, in octezuma II2s time, a fifth captive :as taen
from Atli'co, Hue'otzin8o, or Tliliuhquitepec, then his
captor received especiall( 8reat honour and :as called a
5uauhyah4atl =8reat captain2?, :hile a si'th captive
from these places qualified a :arrior for the ran of
tla4o4h4al4atl or tla4ate4atl *
Thou8h unpaid, :arriors received re:ards and
preferments commensurate :ith their -attlefield
performance, includin8 clothes, e:eller(, slaves, land,
and appointment to or promotion in administrative
office* ost Aztec officials :ere chosen from the:arrior class, thou8h &aha8Xn reports that, despite their
-attlefield sill, tontin and &horn Ones2 :ere e'cluded
from holdin8 office -ecause of their :ild nature*
Tezozomoc, ho:ever, contradicts him -( claimin8 that
eminent :ua4hi45ueh sometimes held ver( hi8h posts
indeed, includin8 even those of Tla4ate4atl ,
Tla4o4h4al4atl and :uauhno4htli* Certainl( at the ver(
least &horn Ones2 :ould seem to have sat in the :ar#
councils the &peaer held :ith the Da8uar and Ea8le
societies*
an( of the distinctions of each of these various
classes of :arrior actuall( too the form of rich clothin8
or e:eller(, and from octezuma I2s time on:ards it
:as ordained that -rave men2 :ere no lon8er to -u(
their o:n lip#plu8s, ear#plu8s, 8old neclaces, -racelets,
shields, :eapons, insi8nia2 =standards?, man(#coloured
feathers2, mantles, or -reechclouts, all of these items
henceforth -ein8 amon8 those 8iven out -( the &peaer
as pa(ment for memora-le deeds2* The distri-ution of
such insi8nia, man( elements of :hich :ere associated
:ith civilian attire rather than :ar#dress, too place at a
special ceremon( cele-rated each (ear in the eleventh of
the Aztecs2 1% months, 4h'aniztli* As some indicationof the value of such 8ifts, an ornate feather mantle :as
considered to -e equivalent to the price of 1"" canoes =a
cotton mantle :as :orth one canoe?*
>arriors :ho performed poorl( on campai8n mi8ht
actuall( -e stripped of their re:ards* tontin and
:ua4hi45ueh, for instance, are said in one source to have
fou8ht in pairs on the -attlefield, and if one :as illed
and the other ran a:a( the survivor :as dishonoured and
relieved of his ran until such time as the &peaer mi8ht
decide to restore it, perhaps after the miscreant had
e'perienced a (ear or t:o of dis8race, or had re#
qualified for his status -( the capture of additional prisoners* The punishment for :earin8 items of dress or
e:eller( to :hich one had no ri8ht :as death*
E8ITE &RRIORS
rom &aha8Xn2s Code/ &lorentino it is apparent that
te5uihuah5ueh, tontin, and &horn Ones2 alie :ere
armed, equipped and fed at the e'pense of the state, and
other sources indicate that the( lived in :arrior houses2=te5uihua4a4alli? @ communal lod8in8s equivalent to
-arracs @ in the palace precinct* The same is also true
of the reli8ious :arrior#societies no:n as the Ea8le
>arriors =:ua5uauhtin? and Da8uar >arrior