The Bishop’s Utopia
THE EARLY MODERN AMERICAS
Peter C. Mancall, Series Editor
Volumes in the series explore neglected aspects of early modern history in the western hemisphere. Interdisciplinary in character, and with a special emphasis on the Atlantic World from 1450 to 1850, the series is published in partnership with the USC-Huntington Early Modern Studies Institute.
The Bishop’s Utopia
Envisioning Improvement in Colonial Peru
Emily Berquist Soule
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA PRESS
PHILADELPHIA
This book is made possible by a collaborative grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Publication of this volume was assisted by funding from the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports.
Copyright © 2014 University of Pennsylvania Press
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations used for purposes of review or scholarly citation, none of this book may be reproduced in any form by any means without written permission from the publisher.
Published by
University of Pennsylvania Press
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4112
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Soule, Emily Berquist, 1975–
The bishop’s utopia : envisioning improvement in colonial Peru / Emily Berquist Soule. — 1st ed.
p. cm. — (The early modern Americas)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8122-4591-2 (hardcover : alk. paper)
1. Martínez Compañón y Bujanda, Baltasar Jaime, 1735–1797. 2. Martínez Compañón y Bujanda, Baltasar Jaime, 1735–1797. Trujillo del Perú a fines del siglo XVIII. 3. Indians of South America—Material culture—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad) 4. Indians of South America—Ethnobotany—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad) 5. Indians of South America—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad)—Social conditions—18th century. 6. Social planning—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad)—History—18th century. 7. Utopias—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad)—History—18th century. 8. Natural history—Peru—Trujillo (La Libertad) 9. Material culture in art. I. Title. II. Series: Early modern Americas.
F3611.T8S68 2014
985'.033—dc23 2013035999
For Zoey
A map of the world that does not include Utopia is not worth even glancing at, for it leaves out the one country at which Humanity is always landing. And when Humanity lands there, it looks out, and, seeing a better country, sets sail.
—Oscar Wilde
This trip was longer than I had thought, because there was something to do everywhere I went … and it was not easy.
—Martínez Compañón to Viceroy Croix, 1786
CONTENTS
Introduction. Utopias in the New World
Chapter 1. The Books of a Bishop
Chapter 2. Parish Priests and Useful Information
Chapter 3. Imagining Towns in Trujillo
Chapter 4. Improvement Through Education
Chapter 5. The Hualgayoc Silver Mine
Chapter 6. Local Botany: The Products of Utopia
Chapter 7. The Legacy of Martínez Compañón
Conclusion. Martínez Compañón’s Native Utopia
Appendix 1. Ecclesiastical Questionnaire Sent to Priests Prior to the Visita Party’s Arrival
Appendix 2. Natural History Questionnaire Sent to Priests Prior to the Visita Party’s Arrival
Archives and Special Collections Consulted
Illustrations
INTRODUCTION
Utopias in the New World
From the moment the Spanish set foot in what would soon be known as the “New World,” they were seeking mineral wealth, neophyte Catholics, free labor, natural resources, and wondrous marvels. But above all, the first Europeans to cross the Atlantic ventured to the other side of the world in search of dreams. They envisioned shining cities of gold and palaces overflowing with jewels and silver. They dreamed of forests where rainbow-hued birds fluttered overhead. They imagined becoming little monarchs with their own kingdoms and vassals. They dreamed of their epic deeds being immortalized in history books. And some of them believed that with all this behind them, they would return to Europe and claim the international dominance that they were convinced was the destiny of Spain.
What happened to those dreams—the civil wars between brothers, the capture and execution of kings, and the decimation of an estimated 90–95 percent of America’s original peoples—has