The Pueblo Revolts August–October 1680

The Pueblos Native American Indians were a collection of tribes living in Arizona and New Mexico. They lived in villages, frequently in dwellings carved out of cliffsides, and their economies were primarily agricultural. The Spanish colonized what was to become New Mexico in 1601. Once there, they persecuted and subjugated the Pueblo Indians, forcing them to adopt Christianity. If they resisted, the reprisals were brutal, including amputations, imprisonment and torture. Between August–October 1680, 2,500 Pueblo and Hopi Indians slaughtered 400 Spanish colonists, driving any survivors back to El Paso del Norte. This assertion of Indian independence led to the region being left undisturbed for a further ten years. The Indians restored their religious and tribal practices. When the Pueblos were once again under Spanish dominion, the Spanish were more tolerant and did not interfere with their established culture.