Spanish Touch Off Conflict in Acoma

The Journal is publishing a biweekly series of history articles to commemorate the settlement of New Mexico by Juan de Oñate in 1598. This one covers September to December of that year.

By Miguel Encinias
For the Journal
Having failed at trading for provisions at Acoma Pueblo, on the third day, Dec. 4, Juan de Zaldivar, maese de campo and nephew of the governor, went up once more with 18 men to try again.
The leaders of Acoma reiterated that they had nothing to trade, and suggested that the Spaniards go search for themselves. Zaldivar ordered Capt. Diego Nunez to go with six men to see what he could find. They were followed by a crowd of Acoma men carrying clubs.
The maese de campo and those who stayed with him waited between the houses and the edge of the cliff. After a good interval, Zaldivar became apprehensive and sent Capt. Gaspar Lopez to see what was happening. Nunez told Lopez the villagers were not giving anything, and to return to Zaldivar to ask for more men to do the searching. The maese gave Lopez six men and sent him off. This meant he now had only five left.
While Lopez was searching, he heard a commotion coming from the direction of Nunez; suspecting an attack he hurried to join Zaldivar. Later a witness told that one of the soldiers with Nunez, Martin de Viveros, had grabbed two turkeys from one of the houses, and an Acoman watching from a neighboring terrace shot and killed him with an arrow.
With this, the attack by the Acomans was on. Nunez rushed back to join the maese, who had by now received an arrow wound in the leg. Zaldivar's men urged him to fire upon the oncoming Acomans, but he shouted for them to fire into the air to scare them. Soon, eight soldiers, the maese, Capt. Nunez, Felipe de Escalante and two servants were dead.
Capt. Lopez managed to escape by clambering down the cliff. Pedro de Robledo, son of Pedro de Robledo who had died entering New Mexico, jumped, but was dashed against the rocks and killed.
A soldier, Bernabe de las Casas, who had stayed below with the horses, mostly watched, but he did fight back natives coming down to get the horses. He also took the wounded to the campsite.
Now, they needed someone to go apprise the governor of the tragedy that had taken the lives of his nephew, two officers, eight soldiers and two servants. Capt. Lopez was selected, while the others hurried back to San Juan. On Dec. 6, Lopez showed up at San Juan saying he had gotten lost. The soldier, las Casas, was then given the task. He left with six men, and on the 10th met up with the general, who was already on his way back having abandoned his plans to seek the South Sea because of the heavy snows.
NEXT: The investigation, Christmas, and preparation for action.

Miguel Encinias is an Albuquerque historian. His novel, "Two Lives for Oñate," was published this year by the University of New Mexico Press.