12 - The voice of the rebels

Summary

As we might expect, none of the invading Indians left voluntary written testimony about the uprising. Fortunately for historical reconstruction, the trials held after the revolt produced detailed accounts in which the Indians being prosecuted expressed, in some cases with astonishing candor and bluntness, their motivations for joining the movement. Furthermore, letters and written orders exchanged by the Indian chiefs, and those sent between them and their subordinates, reveal the expectations of the movement's leaders. From these sources it is possible to follow the thread of the insurrections of March and April 1781 that followed the February invasion.

The eviction of the Indians from Oruro, accomplished after the difficult negotiations that have been recounted, did not put an end to their aspirations, as the Creoles and European Spaniards had naively hoped.

All February, March, and April insurrections were finally broken up, and this probably owed less to the royalist forces than to the lack of coordination among the Indians. As in other areas, the perception of defeat spread among the rebel Indians with the same speed as had the call to revolt. The Indians of the community surrendered en masse as soon as they knew of the defeat of their advance guard by the army sent to put the rebellion down. In most cases, the chieftains were not taken prisoner; rather, they were handed over by the Indians themselves.

In spite of the escriban's monotonous transcription – in most cases accomplished with the aid of a translator – it is not difficult to imagine the pathetic character of these scenes.