Symbol of Conquest, Alliance, and Hegemony
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SYMBOL OF CONQUEST, ALLIANCE, AND HEGEMONY: THE IMAGE OF THE CROSS IN COLONIAL MEXICO by ZACHARY WINGERD Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Arlington in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON August 2008 Copyright © by Zachary Wingerd 2008 All Rights Reserved ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I offer thanks to Dr. Dennis Reinhartz, Dr. Kenneth Philp, Dr. Richard Francaviglia, and Dr. Joseph Bastien who agreed to sit on my dissertation committee and guide my research and writing. Special thanks are given to Dr. Douglas Richmond who encouraged my topic from the very beginning and as the committee chair actively supported my endeavor. May 1, 2008 iii DEDICATED TO MY LOVING WIFE AND SONS Lindsey, Josh, and Jamie iv ABSTRACT SYMBOL OF CONQUEST, ALLIANCE, AND HEGEMONY: THE IMAGE OF THE CROSS IN COLONIAL MEXICO Zachary Wingerd, PhD. The University of Texas at Arlington, 2008 Supervising Professor: Douglas Richmond The universality of the cross image within the transatlantic confrontation meant not only a hegemony of culture, but of symbolism. The symbol of the cross existed in both European and American societies hundreds of years before Columbus. In both cultures, the cross was integral in religious ceremony, priestly decoration, and cosmic maps. As a symbol of life and death, of human and divine suffering, of religious and political acquiescence, no other image in transatlantic history has held such a perennial, powerful message as the cross. For colonial Mexico, which felt the brunt of Spanish initiative, the symbol of the cross penetrated the autochthonous culture out of which the independent nation and indigenous church were born. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………….………………………………………… iii ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………………………………. v LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS…………………………………………………………………….. viii Chapter 1. METHODOLOGY AND HISTORIOGRAPHY.………………………………….. 1 1.1 Theories and Methods …………………………………………….……. 3 1.2 Historiography …………………………………………………………… 12 2. SYMBOL OF POLITICAL ALLIANCE AND TYRANNICAL HEGEMONY…… 18 2.1 Political Symbol ……………………………………….………………….. 19 2.2 Setting up the Cross in Native Villages …………….………………….. 21 2.3 Forcing the Christian Cross ..……………………….………………….. 26 2.4 Anti-Christian Rebels versus Christian Allies …….………………….. 29 2.5 Mayan Prophecy …………………………………….………………….. 33 2.6 Great Maya Revolt of 1546-47.…………………….………………….. 42 2.7 Consequences of the Great Maya Revolt ………….………………….. 46 2.8 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 50 3. THE CROSS AT WAR ………….…………………………………………………. 52 3.1 Crusading Mentality ………………………………….………………….. 52 3.2 Reconquista as Crusade …………………………….………………….. 57 3.3 Battle Preparation …………...……………………….………………….. 62 3.4 Crusading Cross and Spanish Jewry ……….…….………………….. 64 3.5 Crusading in Mexico .……………………………….………………….. 67 3.6 Inquisition ……………………...…………………….………………….. 72 vi 3.7 Drama of the Crusading Cross …………………….………………….. 79 3.8 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 81 4. MAPS, CROSSES, AND PERCEPTIONS OF THE UNIVERSE …………….. 83 4.1 Cosmology …..……………………………………….………………….. 84 4.2 Sanctifying Space …………………….…………….………………….. 92 4.3 Tenochtitlan versus Jerusalem…………………….………………….. 99 4.4 Colonial Maps ……………………………………….………………….. 107 4.5 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 114 5. THE SYNCRETIZED CROSS……………………………………………………. 115 5.1 Tree of Life ….……………………………………….………………….. 116 5.2 Quetzalcoatl …………………………..…………….………………….. 121 5.3 Indoctrination………………..……………………….………………….. 128 5.4 Patio, Roadside, and Church Crosses ……..…….………………….. 132 5.5 Ixiptla and Passion Plays ………………………….………………….. 137 5.6 Edicts Concerning the Cross...…………………….………………….. 141 5.7 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 144 6. THE CROSS MIRACULOUS……..………………………………………………. 146 6.1 Cross in the Sky …………………………………….………………….. 147 6.2 Perceived Power ……………………..…………….………………….. 153 6.3 Healing……………………....……………………….………………….. 161 6.4 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 165 7. LEGACY OF THE CROSS…….…………………………………………………. 167 7.1 The Speaking Cross ……………………………….………………….. 170 7.2 Virgin of Guadalupe …………………..…………….………………….. 172 7.3 Conclusion……………………...…………………….………………….. 174 REFERENCES……………………………………………….…………………………………. 177 BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION………………………..…………………………………… 194 vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1 Pacal’s sarcophagus lid ……………………………………………………….……… 37 2 “The New Fire Ceremony”, Codex Borbonicus …………………………………….. 86 3 The Codex Fejérváry-Mayer ……………………………………………….…..…….. 88 4 “Situs Hierusalem“(map of Jerusalem), Uppsala manuscript …….…………..…… 102 5 Tenochtitlan (detail), Praeclara Ferdinandi Cortesii de nova maris oceani hispania narratio ..…………………………………….……… 104 6 Codex Mendoza …..………………………………….……………………………….. 106 7 “Culhuacán”, Relaciones Geográficas ………………………………………..…….. 110 8 “Cholula”, Relaciones Geográficas ………………………………….…………..…… 113 viii CHAPTER 1 METHODOLOGY AND HISTORIOGRAPHY Conversely that interpretation of the Cross is symbolic which puts it above all imaginable explanations, regarding it as an expression of an unknown and as yet incomprehensible fact of a mystical or transcendent, i.e., psychological, character, which simply finds its most striking and appropriate representation in the Cross. 1 Carl Gustav Jung The image of the cross has not only been a significant symbol throughout world history, but also specifically in colonial Mexico where indigenous religions and Spanish Catholicism blended to create uniquely fused traditions. As an important religious and cosmic image among the Spaniards and Native peoples, the cross played an important role as a syncretic device both politically and culturally from the sixteenth century forward. Although there are numerous references to the cross in both secondary and primary sources, its influence has not been studied sufficiently and analyzed in a specific study. A better understanding of the cross as an image ingrained in Mexican history will not only enlighten the historian’s understanding of colonial thought and practice, but also the power that the symbol wields even to this day among the peoples of Mexico. The cross, a simple structure made to hold the human body with arms outstretched, was a Roman form of torture and punishment leading to death, but with the appearance of Christ and the rise of Christianity, the meaning of this image changed to one of Christian salvation. In the early Church, the cross very quickly became an important Christian symbol 1 Carl Jung, “Psychological Types”, The Basic Writings of C.G. Jung , ed. Violet Staub de Laszlo, (New York: The Modern Library, 1959), 275. 1 and, after Constantine, a symbol of empire. During the medieval crusades to wrest Jerusalem from Muslim control, the cross acted as a religious and political symbol uniting Christians. At home, Europeans used the rhetoric of the cross against Jews who were scattered across Christendom. By the time of Europe’s transatlantic colonization, the cross had become heavily embedded in western culture as a religious and political icon. In medieval Spain the cross represented Christian efforts against the Muslims and Jews, both of whom easily identified this image as a hostile force. However, in coming to the Americas, Spaniards encountered cultures that had already adopted the cross symbol as a powerful image of the universe as well as an icon of the life and death cycle. While the strengthening of Christianity took place in Europe, the Maya were using cross images in religious pictographs at the same time. During the reconquista in Spain, the Aztecs developed a cohesive state with religious ceremonies and images that also utilized the cross image. With the collision of western and indigenous cultures in Mexico, the original meaning of the cross was often lost or developed in denotation. What the cross symbolized to Natives and even Spaniards varied from place to place and time to time. The cross could be a sign of cosmic direction, holy conquest, political alliance, religious acquiescence, tyrannical oppression, physical healing, or supernatural miracles. The range and richness of symbols from the medieval period spilled over into the early modern era, and even today certain images continue to exist and have meaning. The cross undoubtedly is an enduring image in western civilization that inspires hope and reflection as well as fear and outrage. It is a symbol that has been acknowledged by historians of Spain and Mexico to an extent, but only in a limited way has the cultural significance of the cross for the peoples in colonial Mexico been studied. Historians mention the presence of the cross in various events and use it in general terms as a synonym for Christianity; however, no author has attempted to bring together the accounts found in colonial documents and interpret perceptions of the cross and how they affected Mexican society. Structurally the cross has served as a basic symbol amongst various 2 peoples of the world, but the transatlantic appropriation of this image in colonial Mexico is unique. The commonality of the cross symbol on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean portended a confrontation not only of culture, but of symbolism. My concern is to bring to light the cultural, religious, and political implications of this image when Spanish colonizers confronted indigenous groups with new meanings for a symbol deeply rooted in their culture. My approach contends that the symbol of the cross was embedded in Spain and Mexico before their contact. During the blending of these peoples,