REFORMING COLONIAL NICARAGUA, 1759-1814 by Cory L
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Frontiers and Fandangos: Reforming Colonial Nicaragua Item Type text; Electronic Dissertation Authors Schott, Cory L. Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 27/09/2021 07:46:52 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/333351 FRONTIERS AND FANDANGOS: REFORMING COLONIAL NICARAGUA, 1759-1814 by Cory L. Schott __________________________ Copyright © Cory L. Schott 2014 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2014 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Dissertation Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Cory L. Schott, titled Frontiers and Fandangos: Reforming Colonial Nicaragua, 1759-1814 and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. _______________________________________________________________________ Date: (04/18/2014) Kevin Gosner _______________________________________________________________________ Date: (04/18/2014) Martha Few _______________________________________________________________________ Date: (04/18/2014) Bert Barickman _______________________________________________________________________ Date: (04/18/2014) Michael Brescia Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate’s submission of the final copies of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. ________________________________________________ Date: (04/18/2014) Dissertation Director: Kevin Gosner Page | 2 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that an accurate acknowledgment of the source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder. SIGNED: Cory L. Schott Page | 3 Acknowledgments Over the course of researching and writing this dissertation I have determined that, at least for me, good ideas or investigative leads really just 'happen' as a result of any of my very modest abilities. Rather, what sticks out in my mind is how productive a conversation with a colleague can be or how help in the archives from a kind researcher can translate into a big idea further down the road. I am deeply indebted to the countless individuals and organizations that have assisted me as I have made my way through this academic and personal odyssey. The cohort of graduate students that I met at the University of Arizona came through in countless ways. Helpful references, sharing meals, and lively discussions all helped to grow and nurture my ability to think and act like a historian. Many also became dear friends. I also wish to thank several kind researchers, friends of friends, and other scholars for providing me with references and introductions, and above all, helping me make sense of how archives are--or are not--arranged. The Program for Cultural Cooperation (Spanish Ministry of Culture) and grants from the History Department at the University of Arizona helped pay for research in Spanish and Central American archives. Members of my dissertation committee, Bert Barickman, Martha Few, and Michael Bresica, have all challenged and encouraged me to take risks, stay focused, and make connections. I am particularly grateful to the advice and guidance provided my adviser, Kevin Gosner. Professor Gosner's thoughtful comments and calm demeanor provided a much-needed perspective when I ventured too far down the dissertation rabbit hole. I owe a tremendous amount of thanks to my family. Their collective support and Page | 4 encouragement has helped me more than they can know. My parents have shown me love and helped to support me during all my academic endeavors. My brother and sister (and their growing families) have kept me grounded and given me perspective on life. Finally, to my wife, Sarah, I want to thank her for her patience and understanding during this process. Through it all, she has been my champion. An amazing traveling partner, helpful academic resource, critical editor, tactful councilor, and an overall caring and positive force—Sarah has assisted me with grace and poise. This dissertation is for them. Oregon Coast, Overlooking the Pacific Ocean Summer 2014 Page | 5 Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 7 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 10 Chapter One: Fiestas, Fandangos, and Shameful Acts: Redefining Church and State Authority in Late Colonial Nicaragua ...................................................................................................................... 38 Chapter Two: Contraband, Smuggling, and Illegal Trade in Bourbon Central America: 1700-1808 ...... 79 Chapter Three: Shifting Pressures: Bourbon Indigenous Policies in Western Nicaragua .......................... 156 Chapter Four: Borderlands of Colonial Identity: Race and Empire along Atlantic Frontiers ................. 184 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 263 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 271 Page | 6 Abstract: Cory L. Schott “Frontiers and Fandangos: Reforming Colonial Nicaragua, 1759-1808” New ideas about trade, society, and the nature of government pulsed throughout the Atlantic World during the eighteenth century. This dissertation explores the relationship between political reforms and life along a colonial frontier. To do so, this project analyzes the effects of new laws imposed by the Spanish monarchy in Central America during the eighteenth century. The policies implemented during this time offered unequal prospects to social groups (e.g., Indians, merchants, soldiers, and farmers), state and non-state institutions (e.g., the Church, town councils, merchant guilds, and regional governments), and individuals to reconfigure traditional local power arrangements. This process, however, produced new conflicts between individuals, communities, and institutions as they attempted to expand and defend their traditional roles in society. I argue Nicaragua's relative isolation from the rest of the Spanish world allowed for the already complex and unwieldy process to become even more difficult. Thus, the majority of the reforms introduced over the eighteenth century remained poorly implemented. Even in areas where royal officials achieved noticeable progress and success, such as the creation of a tobacco monopoly, the new legal regime created new, often unforeseen, problems. In the first part of my dissertation, I examine how vague (and sometimes contradictory) decrees from Spain provided opportunities for new expressions of local power. In the first chapter, I examine the effect that new laws limiting the power of the Church had on local officials and members of the clergy. For example, new ordinances Page | 7 concerning the regulation of private gatherings and dances provoked a major conflict between two pillars of local rule: the bishop and the governor. In the second chapter, I analyze how new laws and decrees contributed to the expansion of an already flourishing black market. New economic ideas, such as ones that established royal monopolies, led to a significant increase in the remittances sent to Spain from Central America; however these same economic policies also eroded local economies and pushed some individuals to participate in illicit trade. The second half of this study analyzes the colonial experiences of indigenous peoples in two very different areas of Central America. In the third chapter, I examine western Nicaragua, where Spanish rule was its strongest and indigenous communities struggled to defend themselves from increasingly onerous demands for labor and tribute. In the fourth chapter, I shift the view to eastern and central Nicaragua and Honduras, where Spain's presence was tenuous or non-existent. There, local indigenous groups capitalized on Spanish fears of a British presence in eastern Central America to extract major concessions and preserve their autonomy while individuals sold their services to the competing empires. This dissertation draws on extensive work with sources, many hitherto untapped, at archives in Spain, Guatemala, the United States, and Nicaragua to demonstrate that residents of Spanish Central America—Spanish, American born Spaniards, natives, mulattos, and mestizos alike—contributed to new understandings