The first black African people in the Americas weren't slaves. Black people also came as invaders and conquerors along with the Spanish, before coming as slaves. They helped the Spanish in the massacre of the indigenous people. They weren't forced nor were they slaves. Most of them were freed African men working for the Spanish crown, part taking in the so-called "discovery". African slavery did not begin with the "discovery of America" . African slavery began a few decades later and really took off around the 1600s when the indigenous populated almost became decimated by disease and were murdered by the invaders and no longer could be slaves to the Spanish Crown. Before that, you have a small number of Africans in the Spanish colonies who were freemen who were part taking in the massacre and conquest of indigenous people. There are numerous accounts of powerful black men in Hispaniola and Puerto Rico in the beginning of the Spanish invasion of the Americas. Although the first black African men came as freemen, even the ones who came as slaves aid the Spanish conquest of the Americas.
By the end of the century, 100,000 would have been shipped to the mainland, and since Spanish colonies were built mostly in high-population areas, the workforce was often native-born, and blacks would initially fill domestic roles, such as servants, symbols of social status. . While during the conquest, they would be auxiliaries of the conquerors (Restall: 2003: 54).
Diego Velázquez would write to the king in 1515 that many black slaves had participated in the conquest of Cuba (Restall: 2003: 56). The conquest of Mexico would have a few dozen, because at that time, a slave reached an exorbitant price (Díaz: 1568). The expeditions to Michoacán, Zacatula and Baja California would have hundreds of Africans. In some cases, outnumbering the Spanish. Alvarado's expedition to Peru in 1534 would have 200 slaves and servants and a small group of African volunteers. Along with Pizarro there would be two Africans in Cajamarca (see The trap of Cajamarca. The conquest begins with a checkmate in Moderna no. 37: The conquest of Peru), Juan García and Miguel Ruíz, voluntary free mulattoes, as well as an unknown number of slaves of African origin. In fact, the only casualty among the Spanish in Atahualpa's capture would be a black slave (Restall: 2003: 58 and Lockhart: 2012).
The first non-natives to see Cuzco in 1533 would include an African. Later, during the siege of the city of Manco Inca (see The Siege of Cuzco in Moderna #37: The Conquest of Peru), blacks would put out the fires set by the Andean attackers and 200 Africans with military experience would be sent to raise the siege. siege (Restall: 2003: 60). Between 1529 and 1537 the Pizarro brothers would receive 258 licenses to import slaves to Peru. In addition, many slaves would arrive illegally, 400 sent from Panama in 1535. It is estimated that during the civil war in Peru in the 1540s, the number of Africans would reach 2,000 and in the early 1550s 3,000 (Restall: 2003: 61).
Specific cases of black conquerors
There are well-documented individual cases of some slaves who would participate in the conquest and of the New World:
Juan Valiente, born in West Africa around 1505, came to Mexico as a slave. Around 1530 he was bought by Alonso Valiente, who baptized him and took him to work at his house in Puebla. In 1533 he convinced his lord to let him go as a conqueror, for a period of four years, to return with booty. In 1534 he joined Alvarado's expedition in Guatemala, which ended up heading north to Peru. There Diego de Almagro would reach an agreement with Alvarado and give his men the opportunity to join him. In 1535 Valiente would go with Almagro to the conquest of Chile, an expedition that proved to be very risky. In 1540, still in Chile, he would already be a captain where he would participate in the campaigns against the tribes of Auracania. Service for which he would be rewarded with land in the city of Santiago de Chile, and a parcel. He married Juana de Valdivia, possibly an African slave to the Governor of Chile.
During this time, Alonso Valiente would not forget the agreement he reached with his slave, after several years without being able to contact him, he sent his niece to make or arrange a payment for his manumission. Valiente kept his side of the agreement and wanted to regularize his situation with his former lord. In 1550 he paid a royal official to carry out the paperwork in Lima or Puebla, but the official fled to Spain with the money. In 1555 Alonso heard news of his slave again, but it was too late, Juan Valiente had died fighting against the tribes of Auracanias in the battle of Tucapel (Restall: 2000 and 2003). Other well-documented cases of black conquerors include those of Juan Garrido, Juan Bardales, Juan García, Sebastián Toral or Juan Beltrán (Restall: 2000 and 2003).
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