Abstract
This article is about the leadership of Indian Chief Cecilio and his close relationship with the merchants of the Guajira region, some of which were peninsulares dedicated to contraband. These also joined forces against Lieutenant Governor Jose Javier Pestaña, the highest authority in the region, who, like other governors, wanted to gain control of those practices. This struggle stirred in a revolt against the lieutenant, which resulted in his fatality, and in which local merchants and even local authorities were found to be acting in connivance with Chief Cecilio. In the words of the Norwegian historian Steinar Saether, this outbreak of 1753 is an example of “complexity, flexibility and pragmatism”. In brief, these were symbiotic relationships.
Highlights
This article is about the leadership of Indian Chief Cecilio and his close relationship with the merchants of the Guajira region, some of which were peninsulares dedicated to contraband
These joined forces against Lieutenant Governor Jose Javier Pestaña, the highest authority in the region, who, like other governors, wanted to gain control of those practices. This struggle stirred in a revolt against the lieutenant, which resulted in his fatality, and in which local merchants and even local authorities were found to be acting in connivance with Chief Cecilio
2011 “Los indígenas de la Guajira en la independencia de las provincias caribeñas de la Nueva Granada: una aproximación”
Summary
El control económico y político que la Corona puso en marcha en los territorios hispanoamericanos dio lugar a numerosas tensiones y reacciones, especialmente en la segunda mitad del siglo XVIII. Como respuesta a estas reformas son bastante conocidas, por su trascendencia, las rebeliones de Túpac Amaru (1780), la de los Comuneros del Socorro (1781) 1 y la de los Barrios en Quito (1765). En fechas anteriores estallaron numerosas sublevaciones como resultado de algunas medidas que se fueron implementando de manera gradual 2. Aunque no tuvieron la trascendencia de esas grandes rebeliones, fueron importantes en tanto se puso de manifiesto la resistencia del común de la población al incremento de la presión fiscal efectiva por parte de las autoridades coloniales. Ha prevalecido la tesis que define las relaciones de los Guajiros con las autoridades coloniales como una confrontación violenta. Dicha tesis es justamente la que hemos podido comprobar al estudiar la sublevación que estalló el día 9 de diciembre de 1753 bajo el liderazgo del cacique de los Guajiros, Cecilio López Sierra. De los sucesos que rodearon este episodio y que ponen de manifiesto unas relaciones simbióticas, tratamos en estas páginas
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
