Fernando Tovar
History 280 Dr. Hammond
September 21, 2015
The Inflicted Spanish Pressure on the Mestiza/Indigenous Women of Colonial Latin America Colonial times in Latin America were tough for both mestizas/indigenous and Spanish women. Latin America’s status of indigenous women changed in terms of their positions in the hierarchy of society, labor roles, and their marriage responsibilities and their own freedoms. The Spanish women began to impose several changes in order to accustom the indigenous women to their level in order to make the “New Spain” a reality. During early conquest, mestiza women, especially those of noble classes were accustomed to be married off as soon as their fathers had an idea of who they wanted to be allied with and to move up in hierarchy. As Susan Socolow said, “Indeed, chiefs offered their sisters and daughters to Spanish conquistadors, continuing the pre-Columbian pattern of using women to appease the powerful and ally with them.” Reigning Spanish conquistadors or other tribal leaders sought to establish alliances, so women were in other words seen as objects to benefit them. Spanish women at the time of colonization were rare, but for instance, Juan Jaramillo was one of the early conquistadors who married. As said, “Her father, don Leonel de Cervantes was a comendador of the Order of Santiago…” The few rare Spanish women available during the colonization state tended to be noble daughters of comendadors, who were married off quickly to other rising nobles, which is similar to how mestiza women were given off, but different because their availability was minimal and their status as well. During the colonization state in the story of Catalina de Erauso, “The lady was well-off, with a good deal of livestock and cattle, and it seems that, since Spaniards were scare in those parts, she began to fancy me as a husband for her