The Spanish Missions in
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex
, Offi ...
were a series of
religious outposts in the Province of ''
Santa Fe de Nuevo México
Santa Fe de Nuevo México ( en, Holy Faith of New Mexico; shortened as Nuevo México or Nuevo Méjico, and translated as New Mexico in English) was a Kingdom of the Spanish Empire and New Spain, and later a territory (geographic region), territ ...
'' — present day
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex
, Offi ...
. They were established by
Franciscan
, image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans
, abbreviation = OFM
, predecessor =
, ...
friars under charter from the monarchs of the
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
and the government of the
Viceroyalty of New Spain
New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Amer ...
in a policy called
Reductions
Reductions ( es, reducciones, also called ; , pl. ) were settlements created by Spanish rulers and Roman Catholic missionaries in Spanish America and the Spanish East Indies (the Philippines). In Portuguese-speaking Latin America, such r ...
to facilitate the conversion of
Native Americans into
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
.
History
They attempted to
Hispanicize the indigenous peoples. The affected included the rich cultures and tribes of: many of the 21 distinct
Puebloan groups; the
Tiwa; the
Navajo
The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American people of the Southwestern United States.
With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest fe ...
; and the
Apache
The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño a ...
. The missions also aimed to pacify resistance to the European invasion of the tribes'
Pre-Columbian
In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, ...
homelands and loss of traditions. The missions introduced European
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to ani ...
,
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...
s,
vegetables
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems ...
, and small-scale
industry into the Southwest region. They also introduced European diseases to which native people had little or no acquired
immunity
Immunity may refer to:
Medicine
* Immunity (medical), resistance of an organism to infection or disease
* ''Immunity'' (journal), a scientific journal published by Cell Press
Biology
* Immune system
Engineering
* Radiofrequence immunity de ...
.
Fray
Marcos de Niza, sent by
Coronado, first saw the area now known as New Mexico in 1539. The first permanent settlement was Mission San Gabriel, founded in 1598 by
Juan de Oñate
Juan de Oñate y Salazar (; 1550–1626) was a Spanish conquistador from New Spain, explorer, and colonial governor of the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México in the viceroyalty of New Spain. He led early Spanish expeditions to the Great ...
near what is now known as
Okay Owingeh, formerly known as the San Juan Pueblo.
Missions
Noted churches that were not missions
*
El Santuario de Chimayó
El Santuario de Chimayó is a Roman Catholic church in Chimayó, New Mexico, United States. (''Santuario'' is Spanish for "sanctuary".) This shrine, a National Historic Landmark, is famous for the story of its founding and as a contemporary pi ...
- Site of an
Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samue ...
pilgrimage by foot to this holy spot every year. Not a mission; founded c.1810 as a private chapel.
*
San Francisco de Asís Mission Church
San Francisco de Asís Mission Church is a historic and architecturally significant building on the main plaza of Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico. Originally the center of a small Mexican and Indian 18th Century agricultural community. Built betw ...
- Church built between 1772 and 1816 and is located in the historic district of
Ranchos de Taos.
*
Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe - Founded c. 1777; believed to be nation's oldest shrine dedicated to
Our Lady of Guadalupe. Not a mission.
See also
On Spanish Missions in neighboring regions:
*
Spanish missions in Arizona
*
Spanish missions in Chihuahua and Coahuila
*
Spanish missions in Texas
The Spanish Missions in Texas comprise a series of religious outposts established by Spanish Catholic Dominicans, Jesuits, and Franciscans to spread the Catholic doctrine among area Native Americans, but with
the added benefit of giving Spain ...
*
Spanish missions in the Sonoran Desert
The Spanish missions in the Sonoran Desert ( es, Misiones jesuíticas en el desierto de Sonora) are a series of Jesuit Catholic religious outposts established by the Spanish Catholic Jesuits and other orders for religious conversions of the ...
(including Sonora and southern Arizona)
On general missionary history:
*
Catholic Church and the Age of Discovery
*
List of the oldest churches in Mexico
The following is a list of the oldest extant church in each of the administrative divisions of Mexico. The first place of Christian worship in what would become Mexico was in what is now known as La Antigua, Veracruz, founded by the Spanish in 1519 ...
On colonial Spanish American history:
*
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Spain began colonizing the Americas under the Crown of Castile and was spearheaded by the Spanish . The Americas were invaded and incorporated into the Spanish Empire, with the exception of Brazil, British America, and some small regions ...
*
California mission clash of cultures
*
Genízaro
are detribalized Native Americans who, by war or payment of ransom, were taken into Hispano and Puebloan villages as indentured servants, shepherds, general laborers, etc., in Santa Fe de Nuevo México in New Spain, which is modern New Mexico, ...
s
External links
The Old Missions of New Mexico 1998 article, St. Anthony Messenger
New Mexico Photography Field School
Salinas Pueblo Missions National MonumentSpanish Mission Churches of New Mexico
1915 book by L. Bradford Prince
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spanish Missions In New Mexico
Colonial New Mexico
New Spain
Colonial Mexico
Colonial United States (Spanish)
17th century in New Mexico
18th century in New Mexico
M