Encomienda to Hacienda and Latifundio in Latin America

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Encomienda to Hacienda and Latifundio in Latin America

The encomienda system developed in the Antilles (the islands of

the West Indies except the Bahamas) when the group of settlers Columbus

brought with him on his second voyage to the New World were, essentially,

unwilling to work (Vigil 218). They solved this problem through forced

Indian labor. Queen Isabella I of Spain considered the native people

"free crown vassals" (Vigil 218) and instructed Governor Nicolas de

Ovando, Comendador Mayor of the military order Alcantara, to inform the

Indians that they had to pay tribute to the crown equal to the other

subjects. But the Indians refused to have anything to do with it,

resulting in a series of royal decrees starting in 1503 that resulted in

the encomienda system.

As legally defined in 1503, an encomienda consisted of a grant by

the crown to a conquistador, soldier, official, or others rewarded for

assisting in the conquest, of a specified number of Indians living in a

particular area. The receiver of the grant, the encomendero, could exact

tribute from the Indians in gold or labor ("Encomienda"). Basically, the

natives were gathered into villages under the supervision of a trustee and

forced to work in the construction of buildings, in mines, and in the

cultivation of the soil. In turn, the trustee (the encomendero) was to

civilize, Christianize, and protect the Indians (Thomas 51). Through this

system, the crown intended to both reward deserving conquerors and

settlers and to incorporate the Indians into Christian civilization by

placing them under the protection of responsible individuals (Vigil 218).

However, the system quickly became corrupted.

Although the enc...

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...on.

As improvements of these economic systems continue to be made, the

situation of the Latin American people also continues to improve,

hopefully ensuring a brighter future for the entire region.

Works Cited

Delpar, Helen. "Hacienda." Encyclopedia of Latin America. New York:

McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1974.

Delpar, Helen. "Latifundium." Encyclopedia of Latin America. New York:

McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1974.

"Encomienda." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/6/0,5716,33166+1,00.html.

"Hacienda." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/4/0/,5716,39504+1,00.html.

Thomas, Alfred Barnaby. Latin America: A History. New York: The MacMillan

Company, 1956.

Vigil, Ralph H. "Encomienda." Encyclopedia of Latin America. New York:

McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1974.

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