Dissertation

The \door of the seas and key to the universe\: Indian politics and imperial rivalry in the Darien, 1640--1750

Gallup-Diaz, Ignacio Jesus

1999

Overview

This dissertation analyses the early modern history of the Kuna Indians of eastern Panamá, and focuses on Spanish attempts to dominate the region in the face of frequent interference from England, the Netherlands, Scotland, and France. The problems which colonial officials experienced in their attempts to subjugate the indigenous population ultimately forced them to implement a range of innovative policies which shaped the unique history of the Darién. Eastern Panamá was both highly contested and largely devoid of European settlement. While its climate and terrain made it inhospitable to settlers, the Darién's strategic placement at the confluence of vital transportation routes kept it uppermost in the minds of Spanish administrators. These imperial planners believed that Christianized, loyal Indians would serve as surrogates for Spanish settlers, and their attempts to administer the region were grounded upon alliances with Indian leaders. At the same time, intruders attempting to gain a foothold in Panamá also saw the need for alliances with Indian men. Europeans seeking indigenous chieftains with whom to make alliances were often able to find them. Indeed, the need for alliances was so great that when such men could not be found, they were created. The process through which new Kuna leaders were created, which took place throughout the entire early modern period, was complicated. It involved more than the simple imposition, by Europeans, of unwanted leaders upon an unsuspecting, or resistant, indigenous polity. Rather, new Kuna leaders were made through a process of mutual interaction and negotiation which was primarily driven by dynamics operating within the indigenous community. The early modern period saw the creation of such leaders through a process in which Europeans and Indians played an equal part. The chieftains who interacted with outsiders were forced by circumstances to create new ways of ruling on the ground as they navigated through an evolving colonial world in the Darién. This was a world which, though it had been built upon indigenous models, was not exactly indigenous. And though it drew upon European administrative forms and symbols for a good part of its legitimacy, it was not recognizably European either.

• Publisher: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses
• Subject: Latin American history
• ISBN: 0599506563, 9780599506565