Jacinto Canek
Encyclopedia
Jacinto Canek, or Jacinto Uc de los Santos (ca. 1731, barrio de San Román, City of Campeche
, New Spain
—December 14, 1761, Mérida
, New Spain
) was an 18th-century Maya
revolutionary who fought against the Spanish in the Yucatán Peninsula
of New Spain
.
ended in the late 17th century, with the fall of the Itza
people, the last group of Mayas able to resist the conquistador
s. However, the Mayas continued armed revolt against the Spanish into the 18th century, and after an interruption, into the early 20th century.
Lands owned in common by the Mayans were taken and given as land grants in the form of hacienda
s to either the Catholic Church or to Spanish noblemen
, interfering with the means of subsistence of the Maya. The Maya population was forced to work as slave labor for the conquering Spanish, while all traces of their cultural world, particularly temples and writings, were systematically destroyed by the Spanish. The Itza
kingdom was the last independent Maya state, submitting to the Spanish in Guatemala only in 1697.
Jacinto Canek was born in the middle of the 18th century, just over thirty years after the Yucatán Peninsula fell to complete Spanish political control, with the conquest of the Itzas. Canek was born Jacinto Uc, but apparently adopted Canek
to show a relation to past kings of the Itza
s with that name. He studied Latin
and history in the Franciscan
monastery Convento Grande in Mérida
, but was expelled for his rebellious spirit. For a number of years he worked as a banker.
By November 12, Canek had been accepted as a leader by almost the entire population of Cisteil. According to a subsequent declaration of Luís Cauich, one resident of the town who did not accept Canek, and who later aided the Spanish authorities, the population kissed Canek's hands and feet as a sign of obedience.
On November 19 or November 20, 1761, after a religious ceremony in the church, Canek spoke to the assembly in Maya:
On November 19, Diego Pacheco, a Spanish merchant, arrived in Cisteil intending to collect some debts. He knew nothing about the changed situation there. When Canek learned of Pacheco's arrival, he brought together the chief men of the village, and they went to the tavern where Pacheco was staying. They were armed with three rifles and some spear
s. After a short dialog between Canek and Pacheco, the merchant was killed.
On that same day Canek was crowned king by his followers. His followers went to the church and removed the statues of the Virgin of Guadalupe, along with other sacred objects. These items were brought to Canek, and he was crowned with the Virgin's crown
and given a mantle and scepter. To inspire loyalty among his followers, Canek told them that he had been given magical powers and the aid of five brujos (medicine men). This ceremony accomplished its aims of endowing the newly crowned king with both royal and supernatural status among his people, attracting even more followers.
manuscripts.
The governor of Yucatán sent dispatches calling up militias, and ordering Indians throughout the province to be disarmed.
A major force under the command of Estanislao del Puerto and Cristóbal Calderón was sent out to surround the village to prevent reinforcements for Canek and his followers. The rebels were meanwhile preparing their defenses and attempting to expand the rebellion to nearby villages.
The Spanish force of 500 soldiers met Canek and his cohorts on November 26, 1761 in the plaza of Cisteil, where 1500 Maya were arrayed in two entrenched lines. In hand-to-hand fighting, the better-armed Spanish triumphed. The village was burned, and 500 Indians were said to have perished in the blaze, including eight priests or leaders of the rebellion.
Canek himself escaped with a small guard, fleeing to Huntulchac. There he assembled a force of about 300 men who had also escaped from Cisteil. But Canek and about 125 followers were then apprehended at Sibac
. Canek was condemned to death, to be "tortured, his body broken, and thereafter burned and the ashes scattered to the wind."
José Crespo y Honorato, governor of Yucatán at the time, attributed the rebellion primarily to the Spanish allowing the Maya Indians of the region to own firearms for hunting. This was considered necessary because the Maya lands were agriculturally poor, and huge areas had been confiscated by the Spanish, leaving the Maya on the verge of starvation. In addition, arming the population of the Yucatán was not considered as risky as allowing firearms to Indians elsewhere in New Spain because of the recent peaceful history of the Maya. The governor also considered that failed conversion of the Mayas to Roman Catholicism along with leniency towards Maya culture contributed to the rebellion. Crespo thought cultural celebrations were a danger to future peace in the region because they preserved the memory of ancient rites of the Maya religion. He also believed that the rebellion against "God and king" was not spontaneous, but had been plotted for more than a year.
In 1847 when rebellion again broke out (the Caste War), Jacinto Canek's name was a rallying cry. This time the Maya were well organized and determined to drive the Spanish and Mestizos, their mixed-blood descendants, into the sea. For two years they pushed toward Mérida, taking town after town, finally laying siege to the capital itself. This last rebellion continued until the early 20th century.
Campeche, Campeche
San Francisco de Campeche is the capital city of the Mexican state of Campeche, located at,...
, New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
—December 14, 1761, Mérida
Mérida, Yucatán
Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...
, New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
) was an 18th-century Maya
Maya peoples
The Maya people constitute a diverse range of the Native American people of southern Mexico and northern Central America. The overarching term "Maya" is a collective designation to include the peoples of the region who share some degree of cultural and linguistic heritage; however, the term...
revolutionary who fought against the Spanish in the Yucatán Peninsula
Yucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula, in southeastern Mexico, separates the Caribbean Sea from the Gulf of Mexico, with the northern coastline on the Yucatán Channel...
of New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
.
The setting
The Spanish conquest of YucatánSpanish conquest of Yucatán
The Spanish conquest of Yucatán was the campaign undertaken by the Spanish conquistadores against the Late Postclassic Maya states and polities, particularly in the northern and central Yucatán Peninsula but also involving the Maya polities of the Guatemalan highlands region...
ended in the late 17th century, with the fall of the Itza
Itza
The Itza are a Guatemalan ethnic group of Maya affiliation speaking the Itza' language. They inhabit the Petén department of Guatemala in and around the city of Flores on the Lake Petén Itzá.- Numbers of ethnic group members and Itza speakers :...
people, the last group of Mayas able to resist the conquistador
Conquistador
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers, explorers, and adventurers who brought much of the Americas under the control of Spain in the 15th to 16th centuries, following Europe's discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus in 1492...
s. However, the Mayas continued armed revolt against the Spanish into the 18th century, and after an interruption, into the early 20th century.
Lands owned in common by the Mayans were taken and given as land grants in the form of hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
s to either the Catholic Church or to Spanish noblemen
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
, interfering with the means of subsistence of the Maya. The Maya population was forced to work as slave labor for the conquering Spanish, while all traces of their cultural world, particularly temples and writings, were systematically destroyed by the Spanish. The Itza
Itza
The Itza are a Guatemalan ethnic group of Maya affiliation speaking the Itza' language. They inhabit the Petén department of Guatemala in and around the city of Flores on the Lake Petén Itzá.- Numbers of ethnic group members and Itza speakers :...
kingdom was the last independent Maya state, submitting to the Spanish in Guatemala only in 1697.
Jacinto Canek was born in the middle of the 18th century, just over thirty years after the Yucatán Peninsula fell to complete Spanish political control, with the conquest of the Itzas. Canek was born Jacinto Uc, but apparently adopted Canek
Canek
Canek is the name of two different historical rulers of the Itza Maya of Petén, Guatemala. The first Canek met Hernán Cortés, who passed by the Itza capital Tayasal on his journey to Honduras in 1524...
to show a relation to past kings of the Itza
Itza
The Itza are a Guatemalan ethnic group of Maya affiliation speaking the Itza' language. They inhabit the Petén department of Guatemala in and around the city of Flores on the Lake Petén Itzá.- Numbers of ethnic group members and Itza speakers :...
s with that name. He studied Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and history in the Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
monastery Convento Grande in Mérida
Mérida, Yucatán
Mérida is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Yucatán and the Yucatán Peninsula. It is located in the northwest part of the state, about from the Gulf of Mexico coast...
, but was expelled for his rebellious spirit. For a number of years he worked as a banker.
The revolt
Canek arrived in Quisteil, a village near Sotuta and 24 leagues from Mérida, on November 3 or 4, 1761. On November 8 he had an argument with the parish priest from Tixcacaltuyub, who was in Cisteil to say mass. Canek threatened to kill the priest, and the priest complained to the authorities. The following day, while the priest was saying mass, Canek raised a false alarm of fire, apparently to empty the church so that he could kill the priest. The priest, however, was not killed.By November 12, Canek had been accepted as a leader by almost the entire population of Cisteil. According to a subsequent declaration of Luís Cauich, one resident of the town who did not accept Canek, and who later aided the Spanish authorities, the population kissed Canek's hands and feet as a sign of obedience.
On November 19 or November 20, 1761, after a religious ceremony in the church, Canek spoke to the assembly in Maya:
My beloved children, I do not know what you await to shake off the heavy yoke and laborious servitude in which the subjugation of the Spanish has placed you. I have traveled through all of the province and have inspected all of the villages and, considering carefully the usefulness the Spanish subjugation has brought to us, I have not found a single thing but painful and inexorable servitude.... The demand for tribute is not appeased by the poverty that locks up our comrades as in a jail, nor is the thirst for our blood satisfied by the continuous whippings that bite and tear our bodies to pieces.
On November 19, Diego Pacheco, a Spanish merchant, arrived in Cisteil intending to collect some debts. He knew nothing about the changed situation there. When Canek learned of Pacheco's arrival, he brought together the chief men of the village, and they went to the tavern where Pacheco was staying. They were armed with three rifles and some spear
Spear
A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head.The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with bamboo spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastened to the shaft, such as flint, obsidian, iron, steel or...
s. After a short dialog between Canek and Pacheco, the merchant was killed.
On that same day Canek was crowned king by his followers. His followers went to the church and removed the statues of the Virgin of Guadalupe, along with other sacred objects. These items were brought to Canek, and he was crowned with the Virgin's crown
Crown (headgear)
A crown is the traditional symbolic form of headgear worn by a monarch or by a deity, for whom the crown traditionally represents power, legitimacy, immortality, righteousness, victory, triumph, resurrection, honour and glory of life after death. In art, the crown may be shown being offered to...
and given a mantle and scepter. To inspire loyalty among his followers, Canek told them that he had been given magical powers and the aid of five brujos (medicine men). This ceremony accomplished its aims of endowing the newly crowned king with both royal and supernatural status among his people, attracting even more followers.
The suppression
On November 20, 1761, Captain Tiburcio Cosgaya arrived at Cisteil intending to put down the rebellion. The Indians were expecting him. In the skirmish that followed, Captain Cosgaya, five of his soldiers and eight Indians were killed. Canek told his followers that the ultimate victory of the Mayas was already written in Chilam BalamChilam Balam
The so-called Books of Chilam Balam are handwritten, chiefly 18th-century Mayan miscellanies, named after the small Yucatec towns where they were originally kept, and preserving important traditional knowledge in which indigenous Mayan and early Spanish traditions have coalesced...
manuscripts.
The governor of Yucatán sent dispatches calling up militias, and ordering Indians throughout the province to be disarmed.
A major force under the command of Estanislao del Puerto and Cristóbal Calderón was sent out to surround the village to prevent reinforcements for Canek and his followers. The rebels were meanwhile preparing their defenses and attempting to expand the rebellion to nearby villages.
The Spanish force of 500 soldiers met Canek and his cohorts on November 26, 1761 in the plaza of Cisteil, where 1500 Maya were arrayed in two entrenched lines. In hand-to-hand fighting, the better-armed Spanish triumphed. The village was burned, and 500 Indians were said to have perished in the blaze, including eight priests or leaders of the rebellion.
Canek himself escaped with a small guard, fleeing to Huntulchac. There he assembled a force of about 300 men who had also escaped from Cisteil. But Canek and about 125 followers were then apprehended at Sibac
Sibac
Sibač is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Pećinci municipality, in the Srem District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 544 people .-See also:*List of places in Serbia...
. Canek was condemned to death, to be "tortured, his body broken, and thereafter burned and the ashes scattered to the wind."
The aftermath
The sentence was carried out in the main plaza of Mérida on December 14, 1761, less than a month after the uprising began. Eight confederates were hanged. On the following days sentences of 200 lashes and mutilation (loss of an ear) were carried out against 200 other participants.José Crespo y Honorato, governor of Yucatán at the time, attributed the rebellion primarily to the Spanish allowing the Maya Indians of the region to own firearms for hunting. This was considered necessary because the Maya lands were agriculturally poor, and huge areas had been confiscated by the Spanish, leaving the Maya on the verge of starvation. In addition, arming the population of the Yucatán was not considered as risky as allowing firearms to Indians elsewhere in New Spain because of the recent peaceful history of the Maya. The governor also considered that failed conversion of the Mayas to Roman Catholicism along with leniency towards Maya culture contributed to the rebellion. Crespo thought cultural celebrations were a danger to future peace in the region because they preserved the memory of ancient rites of the Maya religion. He also believed that the rebellion against "God and king" was not spontaneous, but had been plotted for more than a year.
In 1847 when rebellion again broke out (the Caste War), Jacinto Canek's name was a rallying cry. This time the Maya were well organized and determined to drive the Spanish and Mestizos, their mixed-blood descendants, into the sea. For two years they pushed toward Mérida, taking town after town, finally laying siege to the capital itself. This last rebellion continued until the early 20th century.