The Jesuit Missions in South America.

The Indios Guaraní of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil would have been another indigenous people victim of the colonial conquest in South America, if the Jesuits weren't able to persuade the King of Spain to grant that vast region to their care.

The Jesuits promised to the King generous rewards, in the form of tributes, in exchange of the exemption from the "encomiendas" (hard labour to which were subjected all the other Indios), assuring that the region would be an Imperial dominion thanks only to the Gospel power.

Therefore, for about 150 years, the Jesuits succeeded in protecting the Guaraní from the raids of the slave-hunters from São Paulo (Paulistas). They founded several missions or "reducciones" and developed a kind of evangelisation a bit peculiar for that time. They put into practice the precepts of the Gospel, isolated the Guaraní from the bad influences of the Europeans and developed the creativity of the Indios.

The Jesuits, in the 17th and 18th Centuries, achieved this bold experiment in religious colonisation. It encompassed the vast zone of today’s Argentina, Paraguay, southern Brazil and Uruguay. It was one of the most singular creations of the Catholic missionary activity.

The first settlement was founded in 1609. Many other Missions were established along the rivers, in the Chaco, Guaira and Paraná territories.

The first missions were founded in Brazil, but due to the continuous raids of the Paulistas, were soon abandoned (1640s.).

Guided by the Jesuits, the Indios had advanced laws, founded free public services for the poor, schools, hospitals, established birth control, and suppressed the death penalty. A kind of society based on the principles of the primitive Christianity was established. All the inhabitants of the reducciones worked in the "tupambae" lands property of the community, and all the products which they produced were fairly divided among them. The Guaraní were very skilled in handicraft works, sculpture, woodcarving etc.; the reducciones, were the first "industrial" state of the South America. Indeed, such advanced products as watches, musical instruments, etc. were produced. The first typography of the New World was built in the reducciones. The working day was of about 6 hours (in Europe at that time was of 12-14 hours), and the free time was dedicated to music, dance, bow-shot contests and to prayer.

The Guaraní society was the first in history to be entirely literate.

The main settlements were along the Rio Paraná along the border of today's Argentina and Paraguay.

These missions reached their apogee in the first half of 18th century, gathered around about 30 missions. 100.000 to 300.000 Indios converted to Catholicism.

The missions assumed almost full independence, as if they were real nations.

The "reducciones" were centres of the community life. Around a wide square were concentrated the main buildings, like the church, the college, the churchyard. The Indios’ houses were faced on the other three sides of the square. The village was also provided with a house for the widows, a hospital, and several warehouses. In the centre of the square, rose on a tall base, a huge cross and the patron Saint statue, for which the mission was named.

Some "reducciones" numbered up to 20.000 inhabitants.

Trouble started in 1750s, when the King of Spain ceded a portion of the territory where the missions were located to Portugal. The Portuguese, that wanted to take economic advantage of these zones and of the work of the Indios, caused the so-called Guaraní wars which concluded in 1756 with the Indios defeat. The Missions ended in 1767, with the expulsion of the Jesuits. During thatin that time, the last missions also emptied and the Indios returned in the forest.

Today, of that time, left the beautiful ruins of some of the "reducciones", the indigenous languages: the Guaraní, is today the only native language to be the official language of a South American nation: Paraguay. The Indios Guaraní almost disappeared as they are reduced to only 50.000 people.

The remains of the reducciones, are one of the most interesting chapters of the colonial history, with some of the most remarkable examples of art of the 17th. and 18th. centuries in South America.

 

   Ruins of San Ignacio Mini (Argentina).

 

Ruins of 8 missions are  in Paraguay:

San Ignacio Guazù (1609)

Santa Rosa de Lima (1698)

Santa Maria da Fé (1647)

San Cosme y Damian (1652)  also an astronomic observatory.

Santiago (1651)

Itapua  today Encarnacion.

Jesus de Tavarangué (1685)               UNESCO world heritage.

Santissima Trinidad de Paranà (1706)    UNESCO world heritage.

 

Ruins of  15 missions are in Argentina:

San Ignacio Mini (1632)                             UNESCO world heritage.

Candelaria

Santa Ana (1637)                                         UNESCO world heritage.

Nuestra Senhora de Loreto                         UNESCO world heritage.

Corpus, San Carlos, San José, Martires, San Javier, Conception, Apostoles, Santo Tomé, Yapeiu, La Cruz.

Santa Maria la Major                                  UNESCO world heritage.

 

Ruins of 7 missions are in Brazil:

Sao Miguel Arcanjo (das Missoes) (1687) the chief mission of the seven in Brazil.  UNESCO world heritage site.

Close there were the missions of   Santo Angelo (1706), Sao Francisco de Borja (1682), Sao Nicolau, Sao Luiz Gonzaga, Sao Lourenço Martir (1690), Sao Joao Batista (1697). 

 

Chiquitos missions (Bolivia):

San Francisco Javier, Conception, Santa Ana, San Miguel, San Rafael, San José.   UNESCO world heritage site.

 

Taruma missions:

Between the Guaranì e Chiquitos missions, there were the  missions of Taruma: Sao Joaquin (1747), San Estanislao (1747), Belen (1760).

 

 

Map of the Guaranì Jesuitical Missions "Reducciones" in Argentina and Paraguay.

 

Maps of the Guaranì Jesuitical Missions "Reducciones" in Brazil and Argentina.