20185002(en)/13 - Reflection of Clergymen and Friars about Indigenous Deportations in the Conquest of Paraguay between 1542 and 1575

The indigenous deportations in the colonial America, also known as rancheadas in the Province of Paraguay, appeared very soon in the epistolary exchanges between the New World and the mother country. The vehement denunciation of the mistreatment of the natives of the continent by some members of the Church, including Brother Bartolome de las Casas, led to a set of new regulations by the Crown. In the Province of Paraguay, despite the absence of mineral wealth, an uncontrolled practice of indigenous service developed. Among the multiple and very diverse complaints of the priests stands out the practice of rancheadas. This paper discusses this practice highlighting its causes and consequences during the conquest of the Province of Paraguay between 1541 and 1575.