ENCYCLOPAEDIA of Rebellions

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Toba rebellion 1781

Synopsis
The rebellion developed in the jurisdiction of the city of Jujuy, to its northeast, especially in the San Francisco valley, a transitional area between the Andean mountains and the Chaco region. In the second half of the 18th century, this region was on the edge of Spanish colonization, representing a true frontier zone with all its typical institutions: a “Spanish” city, Indian reductions, military forts, and haciendas. These would be precisely the targets of the rebel actions. They began with an uprising at the San Ignacio Reduction, followed by attacks on the Ledesma and Rio Negro forts and some haciendas, aiming to obtain weapons and recruit people for a final assault on the city of Jujuy. The incitement to revolt was based on the news of the coronation of an Inca king in Peru (which links this rebellion to the Great Andean Rebellion), as well as the rumor that the Spaniards of Jujuy were preparing to kill the Indians and the common people of the city and its territory. Despite being known by the name of an indigenous group (the Toba), the rebellion had a multi-ethnic character, with the participation of criollos, mestizos, and mulattos, in addition to those Indians already living in reductions, and other "uncivilized" indigenous groups from the Chaco. Clearly, it was also a plebeian rebellion participated in by the disadvantaged social and ethnic sectors of this colonial frontier society – Indians, Andean migrants who worked in the haciendas and ranches or on their small farms, soldiers from the forts (some of them convicts), rural workers, and the like – against the privileged segments represented by the Spaniards, who controlled land ownership, trade, and the political and military administration of the city. The revolt ultimately failed due to the intervention of regular troops and militias sent from Jujuy who defeated the insurgent forces. From the ensuing judicial process, 41 people were charged, of which 24 were sentenced to death. Later in April, there were other movements in the neighboring region of Puna de Jujuy, whose connections to the San Francisco valley events are still unclear.
Additional info

Starting date: . Ending: . Duration: 2 weeks. Name in sources: Rebelión Toba. Location: San Francisco valley, northeast of Jujuy city Country (current): Argentina. Monarchy: Spanish. Main participants: Indigenous, Peasants, Soldiers. Number of participants: 100-250. Main reasons & motivations: Anti-colonial. Leadership: José Quiroga (criollo), Pedro Serrano, and some Indian caciques. Relevance: medium.

Further reading
CRUZ, Enrique (2006). “Dominación y liderazgo carismático en la frontera del Chaco de Jujuy (Río de la Plata). La rebelión toba de 1781”. Claroscuro, 5, 263-288. CRUZ, Enrique (2010). “Diversidad y distinción en una rebelión indígena y mestiza. El caso de la rebelión toba de 1781 en la frontera del Chaco de Jujuy (Argentina)”. Revista de Estudios Sociales - Nueva Época, 1, 169-190. GLATSTEIN, Lucía (2019). “Un partido de indios y christianos. Formas de organización y dinámicas de acción colectiva en la jurisdicción de Jujuy (1781)”. Memoria americana. Cuadernos De Etnohistoria, 27 (1), 87-106.
Cite this entry

Serrão, José Vicente (2024). "Toba rebellion 1781", in J. V. Serrão and M. S. Cunha (coord), Rebellions in the Early Modern Iberian World. http://atlas.cidehusdigital.uevora.pt/revolt/toba-rebellion-1781/ (accessed on 10 Junho 2024).