People of the Missions

Who lived in these missions?

Indigenous South Texans, Franciscan Friars, amongst other Spaniards like soldiers.

 

Franciscan Friar and Indigenous Working

NPS Photo

Indigenous Families

The majority of the population of these missions was made up of the Indigenous peoples. Those who built and lived in the San Antonio missions came from a many different family bands. Collectively they are referred to as Coahuiltecans (kwa-weel-teh-kans).
Their strictly regulated mission life represented a profound change for people who had followed the rhythms of nature. Ranging throughout south Texas and northeastern Mexico, their movements were dictated by the seasonal availability of food. While distinct dialects and religious practices were found among these bands, they shared some characteristics.

For resources like proctection and a more reliable food source, the Indigenous families joined the mission communities and assimiliated to the Spanish way of life for survival.

The Franciscans

Franciscans carried out the mission efforts. A mendicant order of friars, preferring practical application of their beliefs to theological debate, the Franciscans served the Church as protectors of the peoples. They entered the area early on, accompanying explorers, acting as their chroniclers. Their primary task was to spread Christianity and to extend Spanish culture to whatever lands the Spanish Crown granted them as their field.

Colegios, or colleges, were founded as bases of operation and training for the missionaries. Those providing missionaries for the Texas field were located in Querétaro and Zacatecas, Mexico. The Querétarans were the first to start missions in Texas. Father Antonio Margil de Jesús, a prominent missionary in the founding of early missions in eastern Texas, came to believe the field of work was so great that another college was necessary. He helped found the College of Zacatecas and, as its representative, began Mission San José, the only community on the San Antonio River at that time under its jurisdiction. In 1767, when the Jesuits, whose missions to the west in Baja California, Sinaloa, and Sonora, were expelled from the Spanish empire, the Franciscans of the College of Querétaro were called upon to take over those fields.

Spaniards in New Spain

Spaniards were diverse in nature and background. Some were soldiers or missionaries directly from Spain. Many others came as long time residents of New Spain (now Mexico). Distinctions were made between criollos, those born in the Americas, and peninsulares, those born in Spain. Criollos were considered inferior to those who came from the mother country.

Those persons of mixed race - Indigenous and Spaniard - known as mestizos, were one of the most rapidly growing groups in frontier society. Having Spanish names but a culture that was a mixture of Indigenous Texan and Spanish, they became the backbone of the Spanish empire in the Americas. Mestizos made up the majority of conscripts in the army; they became artisans, traders, and local officials.