1. In Juan de La Mar’s testimony, what was the purpose of the ritual sacrifice engaged by Queen Leonor and those in the palenque? Was it based on certain African spiritual/cultural practices or was it more so used as a form of rebellion against colonialism/Catholicism?
2. In Restall’s work, is it more historically accurate to consider the defeat of the Mexica Empire as the Spanish Conquest or Native Civil War? How does this play into Restall’s emphasis towards the “incomplete” nature of the victory?
Did Illescas ever care about the welfare of the other Africans that were still in slavery? As a former slave, why didn’t he use his position to try to free the other slaves under Spanish rule?
What was the point of Queen Leonor’s sacrifices? Was it based on revenge or on an African spiritual belief, or possibly both? Also, if a good number of Maroons under Queen Leonor’s leadership found her to be crazy and fearful of her, why didn’t they try to replace her with a different leader?
1. Mediation by Spanish scribes and interrogators were common in the interrogations and testimonies of palenque resident voices. What are strategies readers can use to help interpret a speaker’s narrative and decipher their worldviews from those which have been molded?
2. In his letter of negotiation, Don Alonso de Illesca tries to influence the court’s policies through a number of linguistic strategies. What are these strategies and what insight do they provide into the socio-political context of the time and influence Afro-Latino voices had in navigating colonial Latin America?
1. How big of an impact did black conquistadors have during their conquests? How can readers ensure the European scribes aren’t downplaying their contributions?
2. What would historians be able to learn from the black conquistadors who were ignored and not interviewed for the documentation?
1. From Illesca’s letter, I noticed that religion was a big factor to why he wanted no further expansion of government in the lands he desired to settle, so did religion have a huge effect on morals and the structures of society for these territories?
2. building on that, the punishment involving human sacrifice, was the consumption of blood (rather the sacrifice as a whole) really necessary? considering how heavily religion was pushed in the earlier texts those actions feel very contradictory, and far more gruesome than punishments in America.
1. How did Don Alonso de Illesca’s identity of himself influence his writing and work? Did his identity as a Maroon leader or more as a speaker of the Spanish culture through his eyes influence the way he wrote? Negatively or positively?
2. How could the interrogations against the Rebel Maroon community differ if there wasn’t a “bureaucratic language over the speaker’s expression”? In what ways would the truth be told differently and how was this control done?
1. Based on the Restall reading, how did the dynamics of racial solidarity or lack thereof among Mesoamerican native groups influence their interactions with the Spaniards during the conquest, and in what ways did native peoples contribute to the Spanish conquest?
2. How do the Limon testimonies provide valuable insights into the worldviews and experiences of the palenque residents?
1. We are aware that Don Alonso de Illesca was an African slave with little formal education. It mentions that Illescas was termed as “muy ladino”, meaning to be well versed in the Spanish culture. Does Illesca label stem from his appeal to religion and proficency in Spanish seen throughout his letter?
2. In relation to the first question, should the answer be no. Was the Spanish crown aware of his upbringing rooted in Spanish culture during his time as a slave? Did their knowledge of such information weigh into their continuous contention with Illesca?
How did Don Alonso de Illescas appeal to the Crown while denouncing its leadership and asserting his own? What does the letter from Don Alonso de Illescas tell us about the complex strategies and skills employed by maroons, and the way they interacted with Spanish elites and law? What does it demonstrate about how relationships were understood by maroons, and the significance of dynamic relationships in order to sustain communities, navigate their context, and establish themselves in Spanish colonial society?
How does this compare to the way palenques and their leadership and operations are described in the testimonies? Specifically, paying attention to language on the political and military organization and the “human sacrifice” carried out by Queen Leonor on the Spanish male and Indigenous male. Why is it important to consider and compare how these primary sources were produced, how much mediation was involved, and who were their specific audiences at the time of production?
1. What is the significance of the questions asked to the palenque residents for the trial testimonies in relation to the greater narratives being shaped by Spain? Particularly in the sections “The Palenque’s Political and Military Organization” through to the end of the excerpt?
2. How does the participation of “native allies” and black conquistadors affect predominate narratives about the colonization of Latin America? Beyond disproving the “myth of the white conquistador,” what are the wider implications of the active involvement of other oppressed peoples in perpetuating Spanish conquest?
Q1: Why was it necessary for the Quitenos to secure Esmeraldas and San Mateo in order to increase trade with San Mateo and Panama?
Q2: The night Alonso de Illescas was migrating his people, the Maroons, to resettle near San Mateo, why did warfare break out in the Esmeraldas, and who was the leading aggressor to start this?
1. How was Don Alonso De lllesca influenced by social and political aspects when he was a Maroon leader?
2. What was of Alonso De IIIesca trying to achieve when he wrote his letter and who was the audience?
1. As a black conqueror raised up in European colonial society, to what extent does Illesca’s letter, which suggested the change of strategies that would benefit Maroons but showed his loyalty to the Spanish court at the same time, demonstrate the complexity of African descendants’ identities in Colonial Latin America?
2. To what extent does Spain’s failure in completely take over the maroons show that the Spanish conquest of Latin America was incomplete and supports the argument that the fall of native American empires was the outcome of civil war between tribes?
1. In Juan de La Mar’s testimony, what was the purpose of the ritual sacrifice engaged by Queen Leonor and those in the palenque? Was it based on certain African spiritual/cultural practices or was it more so used as a form of rebellion against colonialism/Catholicism?
2. In Restall’s work, is it more historically accurate to consider the defeat of the Mexica Empire as the Spanish Conquest or Native Civil War? How does this play into Restall’s emphasis towards the “incomplete” nature of the victory?
Did Illescas ever care about the welfare of the other Africans that were still in slavery? As a former slave, why didn’t he use his position to try to free the other slaves under Spanish rule?
What was the point of Queen Leonor’s sacrifices? Was it based on revenge or on an African spiritual belief, or possibly both? Also, if a good number of Maroons under Queen Leonor’s leadership found her to be crazy and fearful of her, why didn’t they try to replace her with a different leader?
1. Mediation by Spanish scribes and interrogators were common in the interrogations and testimonies of palenque resident voices. What are strategies readers can use to help interpret a speaker’s narrative and decipher their worldviews from those which have been molded?
2. In his letter of negotiation, Don Alonso de Illesca tries to influence the court’s policies through a number of linguistic strategies. What are these strategies and what insight do they provide into the socio-political context of the time and influence Afro-Latino voices had in navigating colonial Latin America?
1. How big of an impact did black conquistadors have during their conquests? How can readers ensure the European scribes aren’t downplaying their contributions?
2. What would historians be able to learn from the black conquistadors who were ignored and not interviewed for the documentation?
1. From Illesca’s letter, I noticed that religion was a big factor to why he wanted no further expansion of government in the lands he desired to settle, so did religion have a huge effect on morals and the structures of society for these territories?
2. building on that, the punishment involving human sacrifice, was the consumption of blood (rather the sacrifice as a whole) really necessary? considering how heavily religion was pushed in the earlier texts those actions feel very contradictory, and far more gruesome than punishments in America.
1. How did Don Alonso de Illesca’s identity of himself influence his writing and work? Did his identity as a Maroon leader or more as a speaker of the Spanish culture through his eyes influence the way he wrote? Negatively or positively?
2. How could the interrogations against the Rebel Maroon community differ if there wasn’t a “bureaucratic language over the speaker’s expression”? In what ways would the truth be told differently and how was this control done?
1. Based on the Restall reading, how did the dynamics of racial solidarity or lack thereof among Mesoamerican native groups influence their interactions with the Spaniards during the conquest, and in what ways did native peoples contribute to the Spanish conquest?
2. How do the Limon testimonies provide valuable insights into the worldviews and experiences of the palenque residents?
1. We are aware that Don Alonso de Illesca was an African slave with little formal education. It mentions that Illescas was termed as “muy ladino”, meaning to be well versed in the Spanish culture. Does Illesca label stem from his appeal to religion and proficency in Spanish seen throughout his letter?
2. In relation to the first question, should the answer be no. Was the Spanish crown aware of his upbringing rooted in Spanish culture during his time as a slave? Did their knowledge of such information weigh into their continuous contention with Illesca?
How did the time that Illescas spent in slavery influence his actions as a Maroon leader?
What was Illescas trying to achieve through his letter? What was the reception?
How did Don Alonso de Illescas appeal to the Crown while denouncing its leadership and asserting his own? What does the letter from Don Alonso de Illescas tell us about the complex strategies and skills employed by maroons, and the way they interacted with Spanish elites and law? What does it demonstrate about how relationships were understood by maroons, and the significance of dynamic relationships in order to sustain communities, navigate their context, and establish themselves in Spanish colonial society?
How does this compare to the way palenques and their leadership and operations are described in the testimonies? Specifically, paying attention to language on the political and military organization and the “human sacrifice” carried out by Queen Leonor on the Spanish male and Indigenous male. Why is it important to consider and compare how these primary sources were produced, how much mediation was involved, and who were their specific audiences at the time of production?
Why did Illesca’s letter not mention raw defiance but instead include what was important to Spanish authorities and the Crown?
What was Illesca’s end goal when writing his letter? What were his intentions?
1. What is the significance of the questions asked to the palenque residents for the trial testimonies in relation to the greater narratives being shaped by Spain? Particularly in the sections “The Palenque’s Political and Military Organization” through to the end of the excerpt?
2. How does the participation of “native allies” and black conquistadors affect predominate narratives about the colonization of Latin America? Beyond disproving the “myth of the white conquistador,” what are the wider implications of the active involvement of other oppressed peoples in perpetuating Spanish conquest?
Q1: Why was it necessary for the Quitenos to secure Esmeraldas and San Mateo in order to increase trade with San Mateo and Panama?
Q2: The night Alonso de Illescas was migrating his people, the Maroons, to resettle near San Mateo, why did warfare break out in the Esmeraldas, and who was the leading aggressor to start this?
1. How was Don Alonso De lllesca influenced by social and political aspects when he was a Maroon leader?
2. What was of Alonso De IIIesca trying to achieve when he wrote his letter and who was the audience?
1. As a black conqueror raised up in European colonial society, to what extent does Illesca’s letter, which suggested the change of strategies that would benefit Maroons but showed his loyalty to the Spanish court at the same time, demonstrate the complexity of African descendants’ identities in Colonial Latin America?
2. To what extent does Spain’s failure in completely take over the maroons show that the Spanish conquest of Latin America was incomplete and supports the argument that the fall of native American empires was the outcome of civil war between tribes?
What does the identity of Don Alonso, an African leader well versed in Spanish culture, tell us about racial categories and identities of the time?
How do these ideas differ from narratives around race today or in other geographical territories?