The 18th century in colonial Tucumán. Perspective from Historical Anthropology

Abstract

The paper reflects processes of theoretical and methodological construction of two main themes upon which the author is working. In the first part, the most significant lines of the process of social change are analyzed, during the first half of the XVIII century, in colonial Tucumán. The consequences of the Calchaquí wars, ending in the previous century; the appearence of new social actors in urban and rural areas, such as poor Spanish and a considerable increase of mestizo population; the indigenous disappearence from the community and their internal migrations are analyzed here. Besides, the new social scene is aggravated by the war against the Chaco Indians. In th second part, some progress in the study of two cases of resident lawsuits (juicios de residencia) are presented, which leads to a discussion of problems of corruption, factionalism, and public ethics related to the Church's control upon social morale.