Abstract

LIRA LARIOS, Regina. Of Good Mexicans, Christians, Soldiers and Braves: The Cora and Huichol Peoples in the Sierra de Nayar, 1840 to 1880. Hist. mex. [online]. 2020, vol.69, n.3, pp.1091-1142.  Epub Sep 09, 2020. ISSN 2448-6531.  https://doi.org/10.24201/hm.v69i3.4019.

This article aims to clarify the mechanisms and political strategies of the Cora and Huichol peoples during the wars of the second half of the 19 th Century, primarily by consulting ecclesiastical sources, but also through published documentation, allowing us to partially reconstruct the relations that these peoples maintained with each other, as well as with priests, soldiers, and bureaucrats, between the 1840s and 1880s. Through the reconstruction of two brief episodes - the second stage of the Franciscan evangelization and their participation in the confederation of the united peoples of Nayarit - we can use the comparative perspective to understand their political behavior over a longer time period, concluding with a reflection on the effects of war on these societies, including that of the verticality of power. The article reveals the internal dynamics of the indigenous peoples of Nayarit, who displayed a diverse array of political positions - including confrontation, negotiation and retreat in the face of government action and the presence of the church - in order to defend their territorial and political/religious autonomy, reconfiguring this region of western Mexico in the process.

Keywords : Political Mechanisms; Inter-Ethnic Relations; Sierra del Nayar; 19 ^th Century; Franciscans.