Ambivalent Peninsula

          Inga Clendinnen titled her book Ambivalent Conquests.  The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines ambivalent as being “simultaneously attracted toward and repulsed from a person, object, or action.”  In her book Inga Clendinnen discusses how both conquistadors and missionaries found the Yucatan Peninsula to be both attractive and repulsive.

            In 1517 a small Spanish exploring expedition landed on the Yucatan Peninsula.  They were initially greeted by the natives who subsequently ambushed, attacked, and threatened them.  When the conquistadors returned to Cuba, their tales of the expedition gave both a sense of longing to return because of the possibility of riches and hesitancy due to the danger.  However, before the Spanish could overcome the Yucatan Peninsula, they first set out to conquer Mexico, a land of greater promise.  By the time they returned to Yucatan, it was the year 1527, a decade after their initial expedition.  The second expedition explored the interior as well as the coastal areas.  However, they could find no cities of gold.  What they found was a harsh landscape which was flat and featureless, while the ground was rocky and treacherous underfoot.  “The whole peninsula was a great limestone shelf, and permanent water could be found only where the surface crust had broken away to form sinkholes” (page 27).  In addition, they had to deal with insects such as mosquitoes.  This expedition stayed until 1535, when they were lured away by the tales of gold in Peru.  They returned to the Yucatan Peninsula in 1540, this time to stay.  They came not for gold but for modest and useful goods such as cotton garments made by the natives, honey, wax and indigo, that could be traded in Europe.  The most promising trade of all was the sale of Maya slaves to the Caribbean Islands.  By late 1544 the majority of the Yucatan Peninsula was under Spanish control.  The Spanish settlers in Yucatan may have missed out on the great prize of Mexico but they were able to establish decent lives for themselves here.  They were served by natives who built houses, prepared meals and gave tribute to them. 

            As the settlements in Yucatan were coming together, a new wave of Spaniards arrived.  These were the Franciscan missionaries.  They found the land welcoming and the natives willing and eager to become Christians.  On the other hand, the missionaries found the Spanish settlers repulsive in the way they treated the natives.  The missionaries continuously fought legal battles with the settlers, in order to reduce the labor and tribute demanded of the natives.   In 1562 the Franciscans found a cave near one of the Spanish settlements filled with native idols and human skulls.  This discovery lead to a huge inquiry to determine how many Maya had backslidden into their old religion.  During this inquiry the Franciscan friars did not hesitate to use torture techniques to retrieve information from native suspects.  The missionaries felt betrayed by the very people they had protected from the cruelty of the settlers. 

            The Yucatan Peninsula was a land of both promise and dread.  To the conquistadors the treacherous terrain and lack of gold was enough to discourage further exploration until both Mexico and Peru were conquered.  When they returned they soon found an alternative source of wealth in the natives themselves.  To the missionaries the peninsula started as a great evangelistic opportunity as the natives were converted to Christianity.  However, it turned into a nightmare when they found evidence of native backsliding.