A new view of the native revolts in Spanish Florida and the West Indies in the 16th century

Abstract

Abstract. This study is a more general research of the Christianization of Florida in the 16th and 18th centuries. This topic became a separate study since when compiling the chronology of Christianization and the foundation of settlements, there were revolts of local residents. When identifying the causes of these revolts, identical and recurring events were identified. To identify them we studied the cause-and-effect relationships between Spaniards and natives. We compared primary sources, their translations from various Spanish sources, as well as recent archaeological finds and research, reviewed data on the nature of the revolts, researchers work; we also compared the facts and the process of describing events during Christianization. To complete this work it was necessary to find the kinship and the root cause that gave rise to the prerequisites for the revolt. We decided to step over the theory of class struggle and apply the search for the cause of revolts in interpersonal relations (social psychology), studying the chronology of witnesses of that time. The author uses the gender factor, i.e. the relationship between man and woman, as a new concept when considering the processes of revolts of natives and introduces a new term expectation formula, applied to the relations between the local chiefs (caciques) and Spaniards. The gender factor is important as an increase or, conversely, as a decrease in the expectation formula, at a low or zero value when revolts begin. At the same time, the expectation formula has a clear dependence on the size of the ego of the local leaders, who assumed certain benefits for themselves and that can be seen in the formula of the cause-and-effect relationships that led to revolts against the Spanish crown. As a result, we came to the conclusion that socio-psychological and behavioral universal factors can explain both the acceptance and rejection of the union of aborigines with Europeans, without involving the study of the theory of class struggle. When the expectation factor was lowered or dropped, the union broke up, and this led to a revolt of the natives on the Spanish territories.