Abstract

ALVAREZ ICAZA LONGORIA, María Teresa. Scope and Limits of Reformism in Franciscan Mission Zones in the Archdiocese of Mexico (1749-1765). Relac. Estud. hist. soc. [online]. 2020, vol.41, n.164, pp.136-167.  Epub Oct 11, 2021. ISSN 2448-7554.  https://doi.org/10.24901/rehs.v41i164.780.

Protecting its borders was a strategic issue for the Spanish Crown in the eighteenth century due to the threatening presence of foreigners and “Indians of war” and the need to achieve greater economic and geopolitical integration of less-consolidated regions. At the same time, the empire’s commitment to spreading the Gospel among the Indians and effectuating profound changes in their lifestyle remained in full force. The missions played an important role in all these matters. This paper seeks to explain the development of Franciscan missionary zones in the archbishopric of Mexico by analyzing two cases: the custodia of Tampico, founded in the sixteenth century by the Province of the Santo Evangelio, and the Sierra Gorda, where two missionary colleges operated during the the Age of Enlightenment. The study explores the possibility, or impossibility, of applying reformist measures in these two missionary spaces during the years that Manuel Rubio y Salinas ruled the archdiocese.

Keywords : Franciscans Missions; Archdiocese of Mexico; Reformism; Custody of Tampico; Sierra Gorda.