Participants of the Spanish Conquest

By: Matthew Bishop

The “Invisible Warriors”

Much of the history of the Spanish Conquest was written by the Spaniards.

As a result, that history carries a certain bias and, in some cases, embellishes or withholds certain bits of information.

The Spanish Conquest is often depicted with a Thermopylaen grandeur, with a handfuls of Spaniards holding their own against thousands of Natives.

What that history leaves out, is the presence of the “invisible warriors.”

African Roles

African slaves, and recently freed Africans, play an important role in the conquest of Mexico.

African slaves were brought as part of the “companies” and used as labor, servants, or armed men.

In many instances the number of Africans on conquest outnumbered the Spaniards.

The slaves and freed men were able to carry arms and often attempted to earn their freedom through service to the cause.

African Roles (Cont.)

Juan Valiente was one such African conquistador who tried to build a life in the Americas.

He was the slave of a Spaniard who settled in Puebla in the New Spain province of Mexica.

He got bored and made an agreement with his owner that he would go conquering for 4 years and bring back all that he earned to his master.

He became a horseman and a captain in Juan de Valdivia's company and earned an encomienda.

Native Allies

Another under-documented group that made the Spanish Conquest possible was the Natives.

One of the Spanish conquering procedures was to reach out to friendly tribes for support.

This divide-and-conquer tactic set nations of the native people against each other and hastened their demise.

The Natives were often the part of the force when the Spaniards went into combat.

Other Native Usage Another standard procedure for Spanish

conquistadors was to acquire an interpreter. This often came in the form of captured natives

whom the Spaniards taught to speak Spanish. Interpreters were useful for negotiations with

peaceful and hostile nations, were familiar with the area, and could act as spies for the Spaniards.

The native people were also used as slaves to work in the mines or on plantations.

Some were acquired to become servants or to fulfill the Spaniards sexual desires.

The (Central) American Dream

Many depictions of the “companies” of the Spanish Conquest portray the conquistadors as a regimented army.

The truth of it is that most of the participants were civilians, tradesmen, and slaves that had no first hand experience in warfare.

They were volunteers that were not paid a salary, but instead hoped to get a share of the conquest's spoils.

Licenses to conquer and territorial claims were granted and approved by the King of Spain.