MINING IN NEW SPAIN: CHARACTERISTICS, INFLUENCE, TECHNOLOGY - HISTORY - 2025

The mining in New Spain represented an important activity that defined much of the commercial activities of the time. Among the metals that were extracted, silver and gold stood out; Regarding minerals, the exploitation of tin, lead and copper stood out.

For this work, whose purpose was to conquer fortune and increase the economy, producers and monarchs did not skimp on efforts. The development and exploitation of the mines began after the discovery of America, which took place in 1492.

The image represents the flow of minerals in New Spain. Mining exploitation allowed the development of fundamental commercial activities for this region. Source: National Library of Congress

For this reason, Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) on his second trip to Hispaniola - an island that was between the current Dominican Republic and Haiti - carried tools for the extraction of metals.

Thus arose the legend of "El Dorado": a mineral kingdom or a city impregnated with gold mines, where the king (or the indigenous leader) covered his body with this element and performed some kind of ritual. This ceremony motivated numerous expeditions that lasted until the 19th century.

However, in the territories that were being colonized, deposits of gold did not predominate, but silver, which were melted and exported throughout the European continent. The extraction of these minerals represented a financial boom in ancient Europe except in Spain, where inflation increased.

Mining went from decorative tools to production excavations. That is to say, in South America the farms did not have any benefit but on the contrary, they destabilized the villages. In Spain, at the end of the 16th century the result was the bankruptcy of the State and of the projects to restore the administration.

Origin

The territories that the Hispanic empire was subjugating through arms and political-religious dominance were called New Spain. The name was given in honor of ancient Spain: the idea was to express that the usurped regions also belonged to this country.

However, the customs of the colonizers took at least five decades to consolidate in American spaces. During that time, the Spanish used the resources of New Spain as means of exchange and trade, which is why mining was a fundamental source for the expansion of the market.

For this reason, the conquest focused on the search for places with mineral deposits and the establishment of a system of presidios.As the evangelization of the Indians, this system had the purpose of procuring the necessary labor for the stable operation from the mining areas and their supply fields.

Then, the interest of the Spanish crown was similar to that of the merchants and owners who participated in the refinement and export of metals, which was political and social recognition through mercantile growth.

First mines

As of 1522, the extraction of gold that was found in rivers and streams began -albeit superficially-, especially in the lands of the central valley of Oaxaca and the Mixtec region. Time later, the Motines, Zacatula, Zumpango and Tehuantepec deposits emerged; all were owned by Hernán Cortés (1485-1547).

In 1536, the mines on the banks of Espíritu Santo and those that were located in the province of Chiametla, south of Sinaloa, were found. The first mining centers suffered endless damages due to continuous exploitation; for that reason, in 1540 they stopped being fruitful.

At that time, gold was no longer the metal desired by Asians and Europeans, but silver. This change in perspective led to the development of the most important mining headquarters of the viceroyalty, among which Zacatecas, Pachuca, Ixmiquilpan, Guanajuato, Comanja, Xichú, Morcillo, Potosí, Pachuca, Real del Monte, Castrovirreyna and Oruro stood out.

On the one hand, these deposits generated the main income for the Spanish nation, since the owners of the mines had to pay a fifth of the mineral extraction as taxes. Likewise, the monarchy reserved the distribution of mercury with which silver production was streamlined.

On the other hand, for the native population the effects of the exploitation were harmful, since the constant transfer produced a rupture in the organization of the communities, altering their hierarchies and ending the lives of their inhabitants.

Mining: a secret revealed

The economic growth generated by the deposits was the beginning of a period of prosperity, so much so that men traveled from one continent to another with the intention of inquiring about the origin of the treasure (as mining was also called). A treasure that the Spanish nation tried to keep secret.

Due to the benefits obtained, the Spanish State tried to hide the location of the mines from the rest of the European countries in order not to share resources. However, this event caused several conflicts because they were eventually discovered.

In the mid-16th century, Francisco Drake (1540-1596), a slave trader and explorer, ventured into the regions of South America. This English corsair made it known that the American communities were defenseless, since there were no formal armies to protect them.

Also, in 1579 the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands was formed. The purpose of this union was that the Dutch, a people of sailors, traveled and reached the so-called New World.

This is how the united provinces, especially Holland, managed to be adversaries of Spain by the territorial dominion of the new discovered areas. This dispute lasted a long time until in 1588 the plan drawn up by Felipe II (1527-1598) - designated the "great and most happy navy" - failed before the English troops.

At that time Spain had to hand over to England the rights to the oceans and, with them, the locations of the mining fields, the secret being revealed.

characteristics

The mining production of New Spain was characterized by the intervention of the Hispanic nation and the local political powers, which provided protection at the time of exploitation of the deposits. That is, European geologists tried to improve extraction techniques in order to protect the land and the inhabitants.

It is worth noting that the extraction of minerals and metals did not present an immediate result, which is why several investors withdrew from the project because they expected quick profits. At first, it was the insecurity of capital losses by individuals that stopped the timely progress of mining.

In turn, the lack of capital caused the forced recruitment of indigenous people to take over the work of the mines. The working conditions were enslaving and went against what was proclaimed by the Spanish government, which stated that the Indians could own and work the mines but should not be forced to render arduous services without being paid.

The enslavement process was not permanent, there were also voluntary employees and, in a relative way, salaried.

However, this labor expression was slow to expand due to the lack of knowledge of the workers about the exploitation of the deposits, due to the lack of knowledge of the currency and due to the burden left by the assigned tasks.

Influence on the economy

In the 16th century, Spain and South America were economically destabilized by bad investments that had been made in the mining, metallurgical and export sectors. For this reason, Felipe II tried to legislatively order the mining exploitation system and announced the Mining Ordinance Law (1563).

In this reform, it was pointed out that the gold, silver and quicksilver deposits were royal patrimonies and could only be manipulated by those who paid the corresponding tax.

This decree brought about monetary development through trade; metals and minerals could be exchanged for items such as silk, spices, porcelain, and ivory.

As for the gold and silver bars, these were sold and part of the money obtained was invested in the formation of food, livestock and tanning industries, as well as in the production of technical products to renew and accelerate the work in the mining companies.

Mining technology

To extract the metals from the first mines, Castilian furnaces or "huayras" (mineral heaters in pre-Hispanic times) were used. By means of these and the monteras of the veins, the gold and silver were melted.

However, the mineralogical change caused the evolution of amalgamation techniques, including the use of gunpowder and the compass in tillage. Technological development manifested itself in various ways and among these the following stood out:

The silver of fire

Metals were diluted through lead.

Quicksilver silver

The elements were dissolved by means of cold mercury.

Silver stand and saucepan

The minerals were melted by the hot mercury.

Main cities

The main mining cities were Guanajuato and Potosí. As a consequence of these mining activities, these cities became important economic centers of New Spain.

Guanajuato

Guanajuato - whose official name was the intendancy of Santa Fe de Guanajuato - was in Mexico.

It is worth noting that Guanajuato currently remains one of the richest Mexican areas in terms of minerals, despite the fact that it is in a process of recovering the quality of its soil.

Potosi

Potosí was located towards the south of Bolivia and the name by which it was best known was Villa Imperial de Potosí. Between the 16th and 17th centuries, Potosí was the largest silver mine in the world.

This is indicative that silver was always its most abundant and most exploited element, and this was reflected in the typical goldsmith art of this region, which had worldwide prestige.

References

1. Hausberger, B. (2005). Novohispanic mining seen through books. Retrieved on April 21, 2019 from Cemca: cemca.org.mx
2. Hillerkuss, T. (2013). The mines of New Spain. A state secret? Retrieved on April 20, 2019 from Notes: javerina.mnem.com
3. Mentz, B. (nd). Mining history and social history. Retrieved on April 21, 2019 from Ciesas: ciesas.edu.mx
4. Puche, RO (2011). Spanish mining in colonial times. Retrieved on April 20, 2019 from Bocamina: archivoscolonial.com
5. (2012). Mining in Spanish-speaking America: colonial period. Retrieved on April 21, 2019 from Documentos América: documentsamericalatina.br
6. Sánchez, SE (2002). New Spanish mining at the end of the colonial period. Retrieved on April 20, 2019 from Instituto Mora: institutomora.edu.mx
7. Treviño, M. (2009). The paths of silver. Retrieved on April 20, 2019 from Proceedings: actashistorias.es