CREOLES: ORIGIN, CHARACTERISTICS AND WHAT THEY DID - HISTORY - 2025

The Creoles were a social group of the Spanish colonies in America made up of the descendants of Spaniards born in the New Continent. Within the class social organization of the viceroyalties, they were below those born in Spain, although above the rest of the social groups.

Creoles were descended from Spanish settlers who traveled to America seeking their fortune. Among them were some small nobles, but most belonged to lower classes. In the viceroyalties they managed to prosper economically and became the owners of farmland, mines and commercial companies.

An upper class colonial Mexican family of Spanish descent (known as Criollos) in Mexico City, New Spain, 1730 - Source: portalacademico.cch.unam.m

However, the peninsular Spaniards sought to limit the growing importance of the Creoles. The Crown promulgated laws that reserved positions of power to those born in Spain and, in addition, established a series of taxes and fees that were detrimental to the Creoles.

This, together with the influence of the Enlightenment, Americanist sentiment and the revolutions in the US and in France, made the Creoles begin to lead movements that demanded greater political autonomy, first, and independence, later.

Origin

Most historians agree that the word "criollo" comes from the Portuguese term "crioulo." In the Spanish colonies it was used to refer to those born in America to Spanish parents.

Therefore, that denomination separated them politically and socially from the Spanish coming from Europe.

Migrations from Spain

When the conquest was more or less completed, the territories controlled by the Spanish began to receive a large number of settlers from Spain.

According to the most reliable estimates, some 800,000 Spaniards arrived in America between the 16th and 18th centuries. Despite this, their descendants were always a minority within the viceroyalties that were formed.

In the seventeenth century, for example, several censuses were drawn up in which the population was divided depending on its origin. Together both groups, Spaniards and Creoles, only made up 9.5% of the population.

The migrants who traveled to the colonies were, for the most part, peasants, merchants, and artisans. Along with them, a few nobles without property on the peninsula. When they arrived, they found that the conquerors and their descendants had become the social elite of the New Continent.

First Creoles

The first creoles kept their emotional ties with Spain intact. Their prestige, in fact, came from the conquest made by their ancestors, so they were proud of their ancestry.

As the conquerors themselves had done, their descendants began many times to wear titles of nobility. Likewise, they used to boast of coming from important families in Spain and, of course, of being old Christians.

Characteristics of the Creoles

The first Creoles were not different in any way from their ancestors born in Spain. However, over time this was changing and they were acquiring their own characteristics.

Social and political situation

At first, the Spanish Crown did not pay any attention to the new social class that was emerging. However, the number of Creoles was increasing and, in addition, they began to have access to education. They soon became a highly educated group with an ambition to increase their power.

However, as early as the 16th century, some clearly discriminatory laws were issued for the Creoles. One of them prohibited Spanish officials from marrying a Creole.

Despite being considered as a class with fewer rights than the peninsulares, the first Creoles held some local positions in their places of origin. These were positions with limited power, but which served to defend their interests.

The situation changed completely in the middle of the 18th century. The Spanish Crown enacted a series of measures called Bourbon Reforms that deeply affected the Creoles. From that moment on, only Spaniards born in Europe could hold political and religious positions.

Likewise, a series of new taxes and regulations were also established that harmed the Creoles.

"Americanist" identity

Over time, the Creoles acquired a characteristic that totally differentiated them from the peninsular Spaniards: their defense of the interests of the colonial territories against Spain. That interest in the local became a sign of identity.

The feeling of redress towards Spain grew with each decision made by the Spanish Crown. The Creoles considered that their role in the economy and politics of the viceroyalties should be rewarded with political representation in the metropolis, something that was not accepted.

Little by little, the Spanish began to be considered intruders in America. For the Creoles, those born in the peninsula and who were sent to the colonies as rulers did not know life in the New Continent and only sought to take advantage of the work done.

The influence of the ideas of the Enlightenment, along with the American Revolution and the French Revolution were other factors that led to the emergence of independence movements.

Custom

The customs of the Creoles, especially in the first centuries, were practically the same as those of Spain. Only with time they were adding some variants typical of the American continent.

According to the chronicles, it was very common for the Creoles to gather in the courtyard of the houses in the afternoons. There they drank mate or other drinks and talked about any topic.

For leisure, the Creoles frequented the theaters and bullfights. The religious festivals brought from Spain also had a very important role within the Creole society of the time.

Clothing

Creole women, considered ladies at the time, used to wear long dresses that reached down to the feet. These dresses were armed with ruffled petticoats and were made with fabrics brought from Europe. As accessories, the ladies used to carry delicate shawls, umbrellas and fans.

The shortage of tailors, especially in the interior areas, meant that it was the women themselves who made their clothes, as well as that of their husbands and children.

In general, the men wore frock coats, ruffled shirts, leggings, and a cane with a metal handle.

What did the Creoles do?

The Creoles had a presence in numerous economic activities. Their occupations ranged from handicrafts, both low and high quality, to owning large estates, businesses or mines.

This great variety of activities caused the existence of poor, rich and middle-class Creoles. However, as a group they were known to achieve very important economic positions, something that allowed them to increase their political influence.

Over time, the criollos managed to control much of the trade and land ownership. Thanks to this, they got enough power to try to negotiate directly with the Spanish.

Bourbon reforms

In addition to prohibiting the creoles from accessing important political and religious positions, the measures introduced by the Bourbons also affected economic activity.

The new regulations created new taxes and established limitations on free trade, one of the activities in which there was a large presence of Creoles.

The Creoles of New Spain

The situation of the Creoles in the viceroyalty of New Spain was very similar to that of the rest of the colonial territories. The creation of a social system based on castes left them in a secondary position with respect to the Spanish born in Europe.

Fight between peninsulars and criollos

Political power in New Spain was in the hands of a minority of Spanish origin. The Creoles, born in the viceroyalty, had a privileged position, but always below the previous ones.

According to the law, Creoles were considered Spanish, but in practice they did not have the same rights as those born in the peninsula. This caused that, from the beginning of the viceroyalty, there were tensions between both groups.

The peninsular Spaniards even went so far as to affirm that the environmental conditions of America caused brain damage. This, according to them, made the Creoles less gifted.

Novohispana nobility

A vast majority of the nobility in the viceroyalty was Creole and many of them attended highly prestigious educational centers. However, her social advancement was limited.

The viceroy, for example, was always a peninsular Spaniard, as was the case with the high military commanders or with the most important positions within the Church.

Birth of New Spain patriotism

Over time, the Creoles of New Spain began to form their own identity against the Spanish. According to historians, the Jesuits played an important role in the emergence of that identity, since many of the schools were their property.

Thus, the Creoles began to claim the values ​​of New Spain, from its natural wealth to its culture. In addition, they financed and organized several scientific expeditions destined to know every aspect of the viceroyalty.

Illustration

With the aforementioned antecedents, it is not surprising that Creoles were the first to seek greater political autonomy for New Spain. The Spanish authorities had tried to prevent the ideas of the Enlightenment from reaching the viceroyalty by banning books they considered dangerous.

However, some Creoles were able to access them. Those ideas, along with the news about the independence of the United States and the French Revolution, were the germ of the subsequent struggle for independence.

At first, in 1808, the criollos began to demand changes from the municipal councils and town halls. That year, the City Council of the capital asked the viceroy to rule New Spain autonomously for as long as the French maintained the military occupation of the metropolis.

At that time, the Creole leaders maintained loyalty to King Fernando VII, but the reaction of the colonial authorities and the Spanish Crown itself changed the situation. From that moment on, New Hispanics began to seek absolute independence to create their own country.

References

1. Telefónica Foundation. The Criollos. Obtained from educared.fundaciontelefonica.com.pe
2. Encyclopedia of History. Creole. Obtained from encyclopediadehistoria.com
3. Florescano, Enrique. Being a Creole in New Spain. Obtained from nexos.com.mx
4. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. Creole. Retrieved from britannica.com
5. Clark, Michael. The Spanish Colonial Casta System. Obtained from bellavistaranch.net
6. Hogue, Susan Lynette. Criollo identity and the colonial state in New Spain. Recovered from search.proquest.com
7. Minster, Christopher. Causes of the Latin American Revolution. Retrieved from thoughtco.com