Encomienda as a Weak Colonial Form That Keeps the Crown Strong: The Labor of the Natives and the Slaughter of the Conquistadors

Year 2025, Volume: 80 Issue: 2, 275 - 303, 17.06.2025

Haktan Kalır

https://doi.org/10.33630/ausbf.1247885

Abstract

What exactly is the encomienda, and how did the colonists and the exploited relate to it? In this article, I aim to examine these two questions in two parts, drawing heavily on literature in English. The first chapter will focus on the meaning, context, and differences of encomienda, seeking answers to the following questions: Why did the Crown create this particular concept and structure rather than outright slavery? What distinguishes it from the slavery of feudalism? Why are these distinctions important? What was the impact of Spain's historical colonialism on colonialism and the encomienda system in the Americas? What roles did the Conquistadors and the Church play in the rise and fall of the encomienda? My goal is to list the differences that distinguish the encomienda from other feudal structures, the overall influence of Spain's position in the 15th and 16th centuries on the entire process, and the vested interests of the dominant subjects in the encomienda system. The primary purpose of this first chapter will be to explore why the Crown of Spain defended this relatively inefficient structure so vigorously. The second part will directly address the dynamics of the destruction and extinction of the encomienda. Three questions will be addressed here: Was the encomienda system responsible for the destruction of the American Natives? Did the encomienda take advantage of the unequal social structures that already existed in the Americas? Is there a connection between the encomienda's civilizing mission and its impact on the mass extinction of the natives? This second chapter will examine how this inherently inefficient system specifically impacted the destructiveness of proto-capitalism and will define the encomienda as a system that, like mercantilist feudalism in Europe, must ultimately destroy itself and its environment. The overall goal of the article is to examine the destructive nature of colonial capitalism through the lens of the encomienda, providing an example to counter the thesis that colonial state practices perpetuate strong state control over the exploited.

Keywords

encomienda , americas , spain , slave labor , mercantilism , colonialism

Kraliyet’i Güçlü Tutan Zayıf Bir Sömürge Biçimi Olarak Encomienda: Yerlilerin Emeği ve Fatihlerin Kıyımı

Abstract

Encomienda tam olarak nedir ve sömürgecilerle sömürülenlerin onunla kurduğu ilişki nasıl olmuştur? Bu yazıda, bu iki soruyu önemli ölçüde İngilizce literatüre dayanarak iki bölümde incelemeyi amaçlıyorum. İlk bölüm, encomienda’nın anlamı, bağlamı ve farklarına odaklanırken, İspanya'nın 15-16. yüzyıldaki tarihi konumu ve encomienda sistemindeki egemen aktörlerin çıkarlarını da ele alınacaktır. Bu ilk bölümün ana maksadı İspanya Kraliyeti’nin neden bu görece verimsiz yapıyı böylesine savunduğuyla ilgilenmek olacaktır. İkinci bölüm ise doğrudan encomienda’nın yok ediş ve yok oluş dinamikleriyle ilgilenecektir. İkinci bölümde, encomienda’nın Amerika’nın ve Amerika yerli halklarının yok edilişindeki rolü, Amerikan yerli halklarının sürece etkisi ve süreçteki uygarlaştırma misyonunun rolü ele alınacaktır. Bu ikinci bölümün temel amacı, bu sistemin kapitalizmin yıkıcılığına olan etkisini incelemek ve encomienda’yı, Avrupa’daki merkantilist feodalizm gibi nihayetinde kendisini ve çevresini yok etmek zorunda olan bir sistem olarak tanımlamaktır. Makalenin genel amacı sömürgeci kapitalizmin yıkıcılığını incelemek ve sömürgeci devlet pratiklerinin sömürülenlere güçlü devlet pratikleri miras bıraktığı tezine karşı çıkmak için encomienda’yı örnek vermektir.

Keywords

encomienda , amerikalar , ispanya , köle emeği , sömürgecilik

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