Luis de Rosas

Luis de Rosas (died January 25, 1642) was a soldier who served as the ninth Spanish Governor of New Mexico from 1637 until 1641, when he was then imprisoned and assassinated. During his administration, de Rosas clashed with the Franciscans, mainly because of his handling of the indigenous Americans, whom he forced to work for him or sold them as slaves. The Franciscans promoted a revolt of the citizens of New Mexico against him. De Rosas was imprisoned after an investigation relating to his position as governor. He was killed by soldiers while in prison.

Early years

In his youth, De Rosas joined the Spanish Army, where he excelled and reached higher ranks. He served the Spanish Army in Flanders for fifteen years.

Government in New Mexico

Politics in New Mexico The Viceroy, Díez de Armendáriz, appointed de Rosas as governor of New Mexico in 1636. Initially, De Rosas opposed the appointment due to the unpopularity of the New Mexico government and the impact of the appointment on his reputation. This was because mutinies against governors were frequent in New Mexico, as well as by the "seizure" of the governments of the province. However, his role had been decided in advance and he was forced to accept it.

A De Rosas troop established a fortification around Santo Domingo to protect Santa Fe from the external attacks. and composed of a group of five Franciscans and forty soldiers. The expedition traveled to northern Sonora, southwest of the Zuni lands, In the Plains, he attacked the Apaches during an expedition to Quivira and later, in the north of Santa Fe de Nuevo Mexico, attacked the Utes. In both cases he captured slaves to sell or use in his workshops. In addition, De Rosas sacked ranches of Gira in Zuni lands.

De Rosas employed Native American labor to manufacture products to sell, both prisoners captured from enemy tribes and the inhabitants of several Amerindian villages. The first ones worked in his weaving workshop in Santa Fe, while the second ones were employed in their own villages. He also forced Native Americans to work on plantations. In addition, he traded with the Apache.

Confrontations with the Franciscans After De Rosas took office in New Mexico, many Spanish residents rebelled against him because of the confrontation between De Rosas and the Franciscans. The Franciscans were the main religious group in the Spanish colonies of Americas, aiming to evangelize the natives; they and de Rosas issued complaints and accusations against each other, causing political instability in the colony. Revolts and riots spread across New Mexico.

De Rosas accused the friars of not granting the sacraments and confessions to parishioners, even if they asked for it, and to excommunicate some of them. The Franciscans accused De Rosas of having accepted the capture of Apaches, some of whom were enslaved and traded in other places of New Spain, In addition, De Rosas was upset when he learned that the Indigenous did not have the required hides for exchange them for his knives in the Pecos Pueblo lands. He accused the Franciscans for this fact, and jailed one. De Rosas was excommunicated Several months later, however, eight other soldiers were found guilty of killing de Rosas and were beheaded.