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Political Legitimacy and Courtly Government in the Kingdom of New Spain (1535-1568)

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Political Legitimacy and Courtly Government in the Kingdom of New Spain (1535-1568) ‘Another Jerusalem’: Political Legitimacy and Courtly Government in the Kingdom of New Spain (1535-1568) José-Juan López-Portillo García-López Queen Mary, University of London Thesis submitted for the degree of PhD in History at the School of History in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of Queen Mary, University of London Michaelmas Term, 2011 ‘Another Jerusalem’: Political Legitimacy and Courtly Government in the Kingdom of New Spain (1535-1568) José-Juan López-Portillo García-López Queen Mary, University of London PhD Michaelmas Term, 2011 Abstract My research focused on understanding how viceregal authority was accepted in Mesoamerica. Rather than approaching the problems from the perspective of institutional history, I drew on prosopographical techniques and the court-studies tradition to focus on the practice of government and the affinities that bound indigenous and non-indigenous political communities. In Chapters two and three I investigate how particular notions of nobility informed the ‘ideals of life’ of the Spanish and indigenous elites in New Spain and how these evolved up to 1535. The chapters also serve to establish a general context to the political situation that Mendoza faced on his arrival. Chapters four to seven explore how the viceroys sought to increase their authority in New Spain by appropriating means of direct distribution of patronage and how this allowed them personally to satisfy many of the demands of the Spanish and indigenous elites. This helped them impose their supremacy over New Spain’s magnates and serve the crown by ruling more effectively. Viceregal supremacy was justified in a ‘language of legitimacy’ that became increasingly peculiar to New Spain as a community of interests developed between the local elites and the viceroys who guaranteed the local political arrangements on which their status and wealth increasingly depended. I conclude by suggesting that New Spain was governed on the basis of internal arrangements guaranteed by the viceroys. This led to the development of what I define as a ‘parasitic civic-nobility’ which benefitted from the perpetuation of the viceregal system along with the crown. The internal political logic of most decision making and a defined local identity accompanied by increasingly ‘sui generis’ ‘ideals of life’ qualify New Spain to be considered not as a ‘colony’ run by an alien bureaucracy that perpetuated Spanish ‘domination’ but as Mexico City’s sub-empire within the Habsburg ‘composite monarchy’. 1 Acknowledgements Without the love, generosity and example that my parents, brothers and grandparents have always given me so freely I could not have embarked on my research, sustained it, or navigated it to a safe harbour. I owe them everything and thank them for everything. Without the friendship, expert guidance and respect I received from Professor Felipe Fernández-Armesto, my horizons would have been diminished and I would not have known how to correct my course when I was drifting. Without Venetia Thompson I would not have enjoyed the final impetus to end this voyage or the reinvigorated desire to embark on new ones. I would like to thank the School of History at Queen Mary, University of London, for their patience and support. The archivists and staff at the Archivo General de Indias in Seville are crucial for any researcher and they were always kind and professional with me. I must mention the help of Dr. Enriqueta Vila Vilar at the Escuela de Estudios Hispano-Americanos in Seville for her advice and for granting me access to the wonderful library and study there. I would also like to thank Professor John Elliott for his advice when I was starting out and Professors Eric Christiansen and Penry Williams for kindly reviewing my thesis and proffering such wise advice. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the debt I owe to Professors Eric Christiansen, David Parrott, Robin Lane-Fox, and Christopher Tyerman who taught me how to think about the past during my time at New College, Oxford. 2 Terms, names, monetary units, abbreviations and acronyms All translations are my own unless otherwise stated. All names and terms in a language other than English are rendered italicised and can be found in the Glossary. I have rendered the most familiar Spanish terms in their original language because they are relatively uniform and more familiar. The variety of different Mesoamerican linguistic and cultural groups within New Spain, on the other hand, encouraged me to translate many terms into English. This allowed me to simplify the variety of terms and generalise about specific subjects without favouring a particular linguistic or cultural tradition and for the sake of clarity. The most obvious and recurrent example is the various types of basic political units of Mesoamerica, like the Nahua altepetl or Mixtec ñuu, which I have rendered as ‘polities’ composed of ‘districts’ (eg. calpolli in Nahuatl). I refer to the head of a ‘polity’ as a ‘prince’ and the head of a ‘district’ as a ‘lord’ to distinguish them from other ‘noblemen’ that formed the elites of the polities. For ease of comparison I have decided to convert all monetary terms (including cacao) into ducats (d), according to the methodology in my ‘Appendix B’. AGI Archivo General de Indias CDI Colección de documentos inéditos relativos al descubrimiento, conquista y colonización de las posesiones españolas en América y Oceanía, sacados en su mayor parte del Real Archivo de Indias (Nendeln : Kraus reprint, 1964-1966 Reproduccion facsimilar de la edición de Madrid, 1864-1884) CJV Cartas del Licenciado Jerónimo de Valderrama Y Otros Documentos Sobre su Visita al Gobierno de Nueva España. 1563-1565 José Porrúa e Hijos, Sucesores eds., (Mexico, 1961) ENE Epistolario de Nueva España F. del Paso y Troncoso (Mexico, 1939-1942) SP Las Siete Partidas del Sabio Rey don Alfonso el X, G. López ed., Vol.1, (Barcelona, 1843). VEA Los Virreyes Españoles en América Durante El Gobierno de la Casa de Austria Vol.1, L.. Hanke, ed., (Madrid, 1976) d ‘Ducado’: see note on monetary terms, weights and measures 3 Table of Contents Part I: Introduction I. Historiographical background ............................................................................................ 7 II. A New Approach .............................................................................................................. 10 III. Archival sources ................................................................................................................ 25 Part II: ‘Ideals of Life’ I. Chapter 2: Hidalguía in New Spain up to 1535 ................................................................ 33 i. Political modifiers ....................................................................................................... 51 ii. Representation ........................................................................................................... 53 iii. Interests of the Royal court ........................................................................................ 57 iv. Perceptions of the conquistadores ............................................................................. 60 v. Alternatives to conquistador government .................................................................. 67 vi. Uncertain legitimacy ................................................................................................... 73 II. Chapter 3: Tlatocayotl up to 1535 .................................................................................... 76 i. Pre-Conquest polity nobility ....................................................................................... 77 ii. Supra-polity modifiers to traditional tlatocayotl ........................................................ 94 iii. Adaptations to Spanish hegemony ........................................................................... 103 iv. Uncertain legitimacy ................................................................................................. 110 Part III: The viceregal regime in practice III. Chapter 4: ‘Republic of Spaniards’ ................................................................................. 128 i. Administrative reform .............................................................................................. 132 ii. Household government ............................................................................................ 136 iii. Influence over the encomenderos ............................................................................ 151 iv. The cabildo of Mexico City ........................................................................................ 158 v. Public display ............................................................................................................ 160 vi. Competition for access ............................................................................................. 164 vii. Alternatives to viceregal patronage.......................................................................... 166 viii. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 167 IV. Chapter 5: ‘Republic of the Indians’ ............................................................................... 169 4 i. Friars ......................................................................................................................... 173 ii. Personal courtly government ..................................................................................
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