The Jesuits in colonial La Rioja: the mechanisms of land acquisition. Integration and conflict (1624-1767)

Abstract

This paper analyzes the process of property acquisitions made by the jesuits in colonial La Rioja. The social relationship between the Jesuits and local society is examined seeking to understand La Rioja society participation in forming the Jesuits patrimony. The strategies the Company used to succeed in its goals and also the local group´s responses to the Jesuit´s accumulation in the region will be taken into account. It is assumed that La Rioja Jesuits -as was seen in other areas of colonial America- adapted themselves to local conditions being flexible to specific situations in order to achieve their objectives (Christian conversion, education, economic independence). Moreover, it will be shown how much of la Rioja society contributed to the accumulation of Jesuit patrimony through different ways, and at the same time stopped the Order´s economic expansion.