OCC CIV NOTES 9/29

Population of the Hispaniola;
1490- ~3,700,000
1508- 92,000
1510- 65,000
1514- 28,000
1518- 15,600
1540- 250 (holy shit)

indians being held in slavery was basically a pretty standard concept
portugal and spain divvied up the americas, portugal scored brazil
spanish would enslave the natives, even send them back to spain

sepulveda is the person las casas will debate against
theorists believed that poor education men at that the natives cannot care for themselves
-as christians, they have to care for the 'childlike imbeciles'
Barbarian- basically anybody outside of their own country
-they considered anyone who didn't form valid civil societies barbaric, inferior
-they believed that even though all were men, there were many ways to lose your privileges of manhood
-acting poorly meant that you were bestial, not truly human
Civil Slavery was accepted as practical, needed to be done, and just
-people were enslaved as punishments, or when captured in war
-natural slavery was different, basically meant that the greeks (or anybody) could enslave an entire other civilization
-natural slaves lack reason, cannot make deliberate choices or moral actions
-it was therefore completely moral and necessary to enslave these 'natural slaves'
People thought everybody else were barbarians-
-english thought the irish were barbarians
-nobles thought the poor were 'brutes'
All of creation was organized in a chain- from God through animals, with man in the middle
Colonists argued that the natives were 'natural slaves' to get over the fact that they had no historical claim to them

SEPULVEDA- another theorist
-mexicans and aztecs were 'most human' of the indians, but still inhuman and slaves
-sepulveda argued that cortes was brave and wonderful and montezuma was a fool
VITORIA- another theorist
-argued that since the indians could not govern themselves in a 'civil republic' they were no better than animals
-they were unworthy of self-rule, even though they had cities, mostly because they sacrificed humans

las casas renounced his rights to all his native slaves
-became a minister/priest
-went back to spain to attempt to convince the king that the treatment of the natives was completely unjust
-attempted to set up colonies that coexist with the indians
-at least one of these ends in slaughter of the settlers by the indians
-he influenced the laws of 1542 for the treatment of indians
-provided for the eventual abolition of native slavery
-restrictions on work hours, etc
-these laws were at least partially revoked because of revolts in the colonies
-became known as the 'friend of the indians' and the 'conscience of their civilization'
-his works allowed the people not friendly to spain to think of spain as tyrants and killers
-spawned 'the black legend'
Note the way las casas shapes his accounts, not just the accounts themselves
-las casas argues that the conquests were not christian acts
-those who were killing were not 'true christians'
-believes that when they killed the natives without baptism, the indians were condemned to hell
-believes that the spanish crown has a right over the lands (as per the pope's donation)
-but believes that they have to treat the natives correctly
-is basically waiting for god's judgement