Luján de Vargas’ visita to Catamarca. Land, tribute and personal service (1693)

Abstract

Between 1692 and 1694 Luján de Vargas conducted a visita (inspection) of the Tucumán governorship in order to listen make reparations to the Indians to reinforce the ordenanzas de Alfaro. This study aims to inquire into the jurisdiction’s particular characteristics that distinguish it from the rest of the governorship. It is not a comparative study but a case study. We consider these particularities are related to the singular dynamic of conquest in this jurisdiction, which bestowed a high degree of power on the encomenderos, allowing them to ignore the ordenanzas while leaving little room for the Indians to adapt to the colonial system. This resulted in a particular way of Indian labor, the domestic encomienda, and contributed to the weakness of the Indian towns. In this article we shall analyze the characteristics of the encomenderos as a group, the particularities of personal service in Catamarca, and the forms of Indian access to land.