Tomás Vélez Cachupín

Tomás Vélez Cachupín
47th Spanish Governor of New Mexico
In office
1749–1754
Preceded by Joaquín Codallos
Succeeded by Francisco Antonio Marín del Valle
52nd Spanish Governor of New Mexico
In office
1762–1767
Preceded by Manuel Portilla Urrisola
Succeeded by Pedro Fermín de Mendinueta
Personal details
Profession Judge and governor of colonial New Mexico
Signature

Tomás Vélez Cachupín was a colonial judge, and the Spanish colonial governor of Santa Fe de Nuevo México province (present day New Mexico) from 1749 to 1754 and 1762 to 1767, located in the northern Viceroyalty of New Spain (colonial México).

Governor

Cachupín's courage and compassion in the War of San Diego Pond won him great respect among the Comanches, Utes, and Apaches. Because of this, he was able to have peaceful relations with nomadic tribes in the province. He created practical solutions for keeping the peace between the Amerindians and the Spanish. He also protected the right to the possession of lands of the New Mexico population, including the Amerindians, fining and imprisoning those who occupied the lands of other municipalities, under the theory that these lands were property only of their inhabitants.

First Term

Vélez Cachupín was appointed governor of New Mexico in early 1749 and he assumed office in May of that year. After settling in New Mexico as governor, he noticed the frequent attacks that the Comanches ran on the Spanish settlements in the province. These attacks were not only dangerous, because they caused kidnappings and killings of settlers and their descendants in the province, but also impeded economic growth. The number of Indians was higher than the number of white people. To remedy that situation, Vélez Cachupin decided to improve the quality of life of indigenous people, hoping that they would respect him. Additionally, he hoped that peaceful trade with the nomadic tribes would help the economy of New Mexico.

As a result, in July of 1750, a group of approximately 130 Comanche people came to New Mexico and settled there temporarily in tents. Forty of them settled in Taos to trade hides and slaves with white traders. Although the governor agreed to the trade, he threatened to declare the war if, after trading with them, the Comanches attacked Pecos and Galisteo. This mistrust was normal because the Spanish of the province considered the Comanches of the southwestern United States as their main enemy. The chiefs of the Comanches agreed to this, but another group of Comanche, armed with bows, spears and guns, attacked Pecos in November.

After hearing the news, Vélez Cachupin led an army against the Comanches and began a search for them, which lasted six days. After that time, he found a group of 145 Comanches, who unexpectedly attacked him, starting the Battle of San Diego Pond. At dusk, the Comanches retreated to the center of the lake, despite its extremely cold climate. The governor ordered his army to murder any Comanche they saw. However, hearing the screams of women and children, he called off the attack and offered, with the help of an interpreter, to spare the lives of any Comanches who surrendered. At first, all the Comanches were determined to fight, until, at midnight, a boy of sixteen, who was wounded, left the pond and asked Cachupin for mercy, holding a cross made of reeds. Only when his companions saw that he was well treated by Cachupin did most of the Comanches decide to follow his example. After this incident, only the chief and seven other soldiers wanted to keep fighting. The fight lasted until three o'clock, but the Comanches were defeated. At dawn, Velez Cachupin saw that his army had 49 prisoners and 150 horses and mules. The rest of the Comanches were killed. He released most of them (except four persons) giving them snuff and ten arrows for hunting. Cachupin forced them to refrain from attacking the Spanish settlements, warning them that if they did, he would find and destroy their villages. Thus, his courage in battle and his compassion for Native Americans earned him a reputation among the Comanches. They called him the "astounding Captain". This also boosted the peace of the Spanish and Criollos with the Utes and Apaches (who became its principal allies). In 1754, the governor issued a price list for commonly traded goods and set regulations governing the buying and selling at trade fairs, in order to reduce misunderstandings between the Comanches and settlers.

The governor spent a great deal of time studying the best way to interact with the Comanches, Utes and Apaches. In fact, he wrote in a letter to his successor a more detailed explanation of how the new governor should relate to the Indians to help keep the peace. [1]

Also in 1754, because the threat by the Navajo and the Plains Amerindians of the Spanish population in New Mexico (which him know through an inspection in the province), he established a program that promoted the communities that had abandoned. These areas were resettled and established in strategic places, and created Abiquiu, Las Trampas, Ojo Caliente and Truchas. He redacted an inform about the conditions in New Mexico in his inspection of 1754.[2]

Confrontation with the friars

Cachupín, despite a tobacco law, was able to negotiate peace with the nomadic Native Americans who were at war. However, he could not get along with the Franciscan friars. In his first term, he had an important role enmity between him and the Franciscan Friar, Andrés Varo. The two men wrote many letters to the viceroy, complaining about the conduct of the governor. Moreover, while Cachupin was in agreement with the Christianization of the Indians by the Franciscan, he rebelled against certain Priests and practices. The Franciscans tried to have Velez Cachupin leave his office as governor but they did not succeed in this purpose. Consequently, they also opposed his reelection.[1]

Second term

After completing his first term in 1754, Vélez Cachupin returned to Spain. He called for a new term as governor of New Mexico, and King Charles III granted his wish on 14 March 1761. He was then elected for another six years. However, when he returned to New Mexico, he faced many of the problems he had already solved in his previous term, as his successor had not followed his advice in relation to how to peacefully interact to the native peoples.

When he began his second term as governor, Capuchin proclaimed the liberation of six Comanche women, who were prisoners of the white men, as a sign of good relations with the Comanches. Because of this, nine warriors and six women Comanches traveled to Taos to negotiate with the Spanish governor and verify that he had returned to the province. The governor banned the sale and purchase of Comanche Janissaries, because he knew the importance of trade in captivity when negotiating peace with the Comanches. He also ordered that the Comanche captives, who lived near Santa Fe, were released in exchange that the Comanches freed their prisoners. This led to another era of lasting peace with the Amerindian nomads.

In addition to his military duties, the governor also attended the economic and judicial affairs of the population of the province, both in regard to the Spanish, Creoles, and mestizos as with regard to the indigenous community. The governor had the highest rank of civil and criminal judge of New Mexico and he was also the judge of some municipalities of severe cases.

In November 1750, French traders, Paul and Pierre Mallet, visited New Mexico from New France. They had already visited New Mexico in 1739 and, on his second visit, the Governor received them with a cool reception. This was because the French had made a trade war with New Mexico and they were trying to occupy most of northern Spanish Texas, making of France one of its main rivals. The governor seized the possessions of the French and the auctioned, getting the money to pay four guards that escorted the French in Mexico City.[1]

In 1762, Capuchín sent an expedition formed by Juan María de Rivera, Joaquín Laín, Gregorio Sandoval and Pedro Mora, to Colorado in search precious minerals.[3]

In 1764, he gave land to the Amerindians and, later, he convinced the Suma Amerindians to settle in San Lorenzo, in lands near to the lands that Capuchin gave to the Amerindians in 1764, promising to protect them. He also banned the entry of inhabitants from El Paso (which was in this time a city from New Mexico) to Amerindian lands, even to graze his sheep, or for chopping wood. In addition, any person who cut tree in the Sumas lands would be punished by paying 40 pesos or imprisonment for two years. Additionally, he would confiscated their carts and oxen. These fines were to be used to purchase agricultural tools for the Sumas. In 1766, he banned the inhabitants of Atrisco from occupying the lands of San Fernando, because these lands were to be used only by the inhabitants of San Fernando. Whoever did so would have to pay a fine of thirty pesos for each infraction. He also protected the lands of the Genizaros of Belen and of Santa Clara and San Ildefonso Pueblo.[4]

In November 1765, New Mexico had an expedition due to the implementation of a monopoly of snuff which was banned from being planted in the province. However, the governor tried to prevent enforcement of the law, because it could disrupt the local economy and adversely affect the good relations with nomadic tribes in the province who had gotten his new snuff through their relations with the Mexican farmers. In January 1766, the governor spoke to the Viceroy (through a report he sent him), about the negative effects that would result from that law. However, in the end, he was obliged to enforce the law in the spring. Their predictions proved true.[1] That year, after knowing that an Ute had a silver ingot, Capuchin ordered to Spanish explorer, Rivera, to search the place from where the ingot came from. The expedition traveled through southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah (place of belonged to Spain in this time),[5] establishing there sections of future Old Spanish Trail.[6]

He was replaced by Francisco Antonio Marín del Valle as governor of Santa Fe de Nuevo México province in 1767.

Court cases

While he was in his second term as governor of New Mexico, Cachupin pronounced a sentence for some Genizaro Amerindians of Abiquiú who were accused of witchcraft. The governor was particularly interested in this case, as he had said, as he was personally interested in who settled in the Genizaro land in Abiquiu. The case has a special importance as it has over 100 pages of testimony. Vélez Cachupin sentenced to poverty to the defendants in some Spanish families. In addition, he sent a large group of troops to Abiquiu to destroy relics (among which was a stone with hieroglyphics).[1]

See also

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 New Mexico Archives. Office of the State Historian: Cachupín, Tomás Vélez. Posted by Suzanne Stamatov between 2004–2010 Consulted 4 April 2011, to 23: 36 pm.
  2. ↑ Ebrightm, Malcolm (2014). Page 196.
  3. ↑ SFGateThe Hispanic Role in America: A chronology. Compiled by Dr. Juan Manuel Pérez. Hispanic Division. Library of Congress. Retrieved in Juny 15, 2014, ar 18:25.
  4. ↑ Ebrightm, Malcolm (2014). Pages 219 - 230.
  5. ↑ Aton, James M.; McPherson, Robert S. (2000).
  6. ↑ Historical Buckley, Jay H.; Rensink, Brenden W. (2015). Page 175.

Sources

External links

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