Bárbaros: Spaniards and Their Savages in the Age of Enlightenment

by David J. Weber

A majestic exploration of Bourbon Spain’s efforts to come to terms with the native peoples of the Americas, from Argentina to Alaska

Two centuries after Cortés and Pizarro seized the Aztec and Inca empires, Spain’s conquest of America remained unfinished. Indians retained control over most of the lands in Spain’s American empire. Mounted on horseback, savvy about European ways, and often possessing firearms, independent Indians continued to find new ways to resist subjugation by Spanish soldiers and conversion by Spanish missionaries.
In this panoramic study, David J. Weber explains how late eighteenthcentury Spanish administrators tried to fashion a more enlightened policy toward the people they called bárbaros, or “savages.” Even Spain’s most powerful monarchs failed, however, to enforce a consistent, well-reasoned policy toward Indians. At one extreme, powerful independent Indians forced Spaniards to seek peace, acknowledge autonomous tribal governments, and recognize the existence of tribal lands, fulfilling the Crown’s oft-stated wish to use “gentle” means in dealing with Indians. At the other extreme the Crown abandoned its principles, authorizing bloody wars on Indians when Spanish officers believed they could defeat them. Power, says Weber, more than the power of ideas, determined how Spaniards treated “savages” in the Age of Enlightenment.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

466 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

David J. Weber was founding director of the Clements Center for Southwest Studies at Southern Methodist University. His research focused on the history of the Southwestern U.S. and its transition from Spanish and Mexican control to becoming part of the United States.

Reviews

[Zachary Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It was power, then, more than the power of ideas, that had determined how enlightened Spaniards would treat 'savages'-and it is in this sense that the Indian campaigns of the last half of the nineteenth century represented a continuation of Spanish policy rather than a repudiation of it. Ideas may have the power to shape policy, but power also shapes ideas." 278

Weber looks at how the Spanish Empire dealt with non-conquered Indians on their frontiers after the Bourbon Reforms. The Enlightenment opened new possibilities for conceiving empire. The major theme of this book is that Spanish responses to Indians on America's various frontiers were disorganized, and varied on the respective strength of Natives/Spanish and ideology of imperial personnel. Some broad currents, however, were: 1) many, but not all, Spanish realize that the best way to extend their authority is to embrace trade, and woo the consent of the Natives rather than trying to force their submission. This often led to Natives retaining their sovereignty. Many "enlightened" Spaniards favored this approach, including the Bourbons themselves, because of an overriding confidence that Natives would inevitably embrace western civilization. 2) By 1780s Spain's empire gets in rough shape: European wars, refocus military/finances away from Americas. Consequently Spanish officials on the frontier had to be more flexible, and work with less.

Interesting epilogue on the rise of the nation state in 19th century Latin America, and how this imperial system of accommodation gave way (kinda…see quote) to a policy of extirpating/slaughtering Indians, defining them as innately savage instead of potential for civilization. I wondered how population change altered the balance of power here. Overall this book illustrates several themes about the Atlantic World: consent, imperial flexibility, shifting borders.