Chan Santa Cruz facts for kids

Areas under the Mayas' control, c. 1870

Chan Santa Cruz was the name of a special religious place in Mexico. It belonged to the Maya people known as the Cruzob (or Cruzoob). This name also referred to the town that grew around the shrine. Today, this town is called Felipe Carrillo Puerto. Less formally, Chan Santa Cruz was the name of an independent Maya state in the late 1800s. This state was located in what is now the Mexican state of Quintana Roo.

This area was the heart of the Caste War of Yucatán, which started in 1847. During this war, the Maya created their own independent areas on the eastern side of the Yucatán Peninsula. The main fighting ended in 1915. At that time, the Maya leaders agreed to recognize the Mexican government. However, smaller battles continued until the 1940s.

The Maya People and Their History
The Unique Religion of Chan Santa Cruz
- Sacred Books of the Maya
- The Maya Church and Its Beliefs
  - God and His Angels
  - Worship and Holy Crosses
Important Documents and Leaders
- Treaties and Correspondence
- Important Officials
Images for kids
See also

The Maya People and Their History

The people of the former Chan Santa Cruz state are mostly descendants of the ancient Maya. Long before Europeans arrived, this northern area was part of a large Maya state called Coba. This state was one of two main Maya groups in the eastern Yucatán Peninsula before the Spanish invasion.

After the Spanish arrived, other groups also came to the area. These included Arawak and Carib people from nearby islands. There were also Spanish sailors who were shipwrecked and African slaves who had escaped.

Spanish Arrival and Its Impact

When the Spanish began to settle nearby, one Maya group, the Xiu Maya, decided to team up with them. The Xiu Maya lived in the western part of the peninsula. They were tired of fighting both another Maya group, the Itza', and the Spanish. This alliance caused huge losses for the Itza' Maya state.

The Itza' state kept training Maya leaders in secret places in the southern province. One important place was Peten Itza', known as the 'Lake of the Adepts'. Even after the Spanish attacked and took their island capital, Nojpetén, in 1697, some Maya traditions continued. Some experts believe a special Maya book with hieroglyphs, now in Spain, was made in Nojpetén after the Spanish arrived. This shows how Maya culture tried to survive.

One Maya province called Uaan managed to stay hidden from the Spanish. Its capital, Chable, is mentioned in old Maya books. This province remained independent even after other Maya areas fell. It did so by keeping its existence a strict secret.

The Spanish spent many years trying to control the Maya in the western part of the Itza' state. This "pacification" continued through the 1700s. One famous campaign was against a Maya leader named Kanek. This fight ended when Kanek and his followers were defeated in 1761.

The Fight for Freedom: The Caste War

In the mid-1800s, people of Spanish descent in Yucatán declared their independence from Spain. They then started fighting among themselves for control of their new state. The Maya leaders saw this as their best chance to gain their own independence. They had been planning this for a while. Letters found later showed they had a military plan ready to go.

The uprising began on August 26, 1847. It happened shortly after the death of a Maya leader named Antonio Manuel Ay. Three days after his death, the eastern Maya, also called Uiz'oob, started a huge rebellion. This uprising almost completely drove the Yucatecos (people of Spanish descent) out of the Chan Santa Cruz area.

This rebellion, which reached its peak in 1848, was called La Guerra de las Castas (The Caste War) by the Mexicans. It led to the independence of the old Itza' Maya state. The western part of the peninsula, which was the former Xiu Maya state, stayed under the control of the Yucateco Creoles. The descendants of this short-lived Maya free state are still known as Cruzoob today.

The Talking Cross and the New Capital

The independent State of The Cross was officially announced in 1849. This happened in Xocén, a town near modern Valladolid. The capital city, Noh Kah Balam Nah Chan Santa Cruz, was founded around 1850. It was built near a sacred cenote, which is a natural well that provided holy water all year round. A special "talking cross" continues to speak at this shrine.

The city was designed like ancient Maya cities. It had a central square with important buildings around it. The 'Patron Saint's House' and a school were on the east. The Pontiff's (religious leader's) house was on the west. The General's houses were on the north, and the market and storage buildings were to the south. Other important towns in the state likely followed a similar plan.

How Big Was the Maya State?

At its largest, from the 1860s to the 1890s, the Chan Santa Cruz state covered all of the southern and central parts of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. Including allied groups, this state was the core of a larger movement for indigenous independence. It controlled almost all of the old Itza' territories. These lands stretched from Cape Catoche in the north down to include parts of what is now northwestern Belize and northeastern Guatemala.

The Fall of the Maya Free State

From the late 1850s until 1893, the United Kingdom treated the Maya free state as an independent country. They even helped with peace talks between the Mexican state and the Maya Cruzoob state. These talks led to a signed international treaty. However, neither side officially approved it.

The Maya state traded a lot with the British colony of British Honduras (now Belize). Its army was much larger than the British military in the colony. Unlike the Mexicans, the British found it useful and profitable to have good relations with the Maya free state for many years.

But things changed after the Maya attacked and took over Bacalar. This was originally a Maya holy city. During the attack, the Maya killed British citizens along with the entire Yucatec garrison. It's not clear why the Maya general ordered everyone killed. Perhaps he was tired of repeatedly fighting for the city. This action scared the small British colonial government in nearby British Honduras.

The British Government then decided to distance itself from indigenous free states, especially the Maya free state. In 1893, the British signed the Spenser Mariscal Treaty. This treaty gave all of the Maya free state's lands to Mexico.

Meanwhile, the Creoles in the western Yucatán realized their small state, ruled by a minority, couldn't last against its Maya neighbor. They offered their country to anyone who would defend them. Mexico finally accepted. With a legal reason and a place to start from, the Mexican army occupied Chan Santa Cruz in the early 1900s.

Even after the Mexican occupation, the Maya continued to fight. They launched guerrilla attacks against the Mexicans. Their leader was General Francisco May. In 1935, General May signed a formal peace treaty with the Mexican government. Other treaties were signed by Maya leaders through the late 1930s and 1940s. After General May's death, Maya officials even tried to contact the United States government.

The Unique Religion of Chan Santa Cruz

One special part of the Maya free state was the return of Maya religion in its original form. This is sometimes called "The Cult of The Talking Cross." It was likely a continuation of old Maya beliefs. These beliefs came back strongly when the Spanish civil war allowed the Maya to be free from Spanish control. The Maya priests had kept their ancient religious texts and spiritual knowledge, and they still do today.

Sacred Books of the Maya

When a Spanish friar named Jacobo de Testera arrived in the 1500s, he started a project to collect Maya prayers, speeches, and descriptions of their life. He wanted to use this information to help the Spanish change Maya culture and religion. Diego de Landa's famous book, Relación de las cosas de Yucatán, contains much of this Spanish information.

The Maya elders who helped with this project, including Juan Na Chi Kokom, probably thought it was a way to save their culture and religion. After the project was stopped by the Roman Catholic Church, the Maya helpers gathered and rebuilt as much as they could. They put these materials into a collection of texts now known as the Books of Chilam Balam.

The Books of Chilam Balam are often seen as a collection of history and myths. But they also contain a lot of information about the ancient Maya Calendar and the priests who used it. These books include daily reminders for fortune-tellers, birth charts, rituals for each day, and instructions for training Maya calendar priests. They also have Maya prayers, advice for pregnant women, and details about Maya family life.

Other important Maya books include the Songs of Dzitbalche, which are songs, prayers, and ritual speeches. The Ritual of the Bakabs is often seen as a collection of medical texts. It also contains Maya songs, advice, prayers, and ritual speeches. These texts include information about Maya religious leaders, seers, and midwives. The second part of this book has many herbal remedies for different illnesses.

The Maya Church and Its Beliefs

After Yucatán declared independence, the peninsula split into two warring states. The Hispanic state in the west kept the Maya as slaves. But the Maya free state in the east supported their own native faith. For the first time in centuries, the Maya were in charge of a state that honored their beliefs. The Roman Church had always refused to allow native Maya to become priests. Instead, Maya priests' sons often worked as village assistants in the church.

Every Cruzero village and town has a Maya church. These churches house the Holy Cross in their sacred area. Maya churches are different from Roman churches because they have a walled inner sanctuary called the gloria.

God and His Angels

The Maya religion of Chan Santa Cruz has many important figures:

K'u, meaning 'God', is seen as one, invisible, and without a physical body.
Hunab K'u means 'Unique God'.
Hahal K'u means 'True God'.
Tepal and Ahau are titles meaning 'Lord' for God and His Angels.
Yumil Kaan means 'Father of the Sky'. This is a common name for God and His Angels.
Chakoob are 'Angels'. They are God's active force and carry out His will on Earth. People can ask them for help. There can be 1, 4, 5, 6, or 7 Chakoob, depending on the ritual. Each direction has a color and a Chakoob: East is red, North is white, West is black, South is yellow, Sky is blue, Earth is green, and the center is clear.
Kiichpam Kolel ('Beautiful Grandmother') and U Kolel Cab ('Grandmother Earth') represent the feminine forces of the universe. People can pray to them for good things.
Yumz'iloob are 'Fathers' or ancestors of a family line. People can ask them for good or bad things through prayers.
Balam ('Jaguar') is the protector of a village, town, or state.
Balamoob ('Jaguars') are the twenty protectors of the days in the 260-day Sacred Round.
Ik'oob ('Spirits') can be asked for good or bad things.
K'asal Ik'oob ('Evil Spirits') are chaotic. They must be removed before any ritual starts and calmed before it ends.
Ix Ceel ('Little Tree') is a small family cross used for devotion.

Worship and Holy Crosses

The Cruzoob celebrate two big annual festivals. These come from two ancient Maya festivals. U K'in Crus (The Day of The Cross) is the ancient Maya New (365-day) Year Festival. U K'in Kolel (The Feast of Our Grandmother) is the ancient Maya New (360-day) 'Year' Festival.

The Cruzoob also hold Masses and Novenas. These always include offerings of corn tortillas, and often tamales, meat, fruit, atole (a warm drink), pepper, chocolate, a dessert, and an alcoholic drink.

The Holy Cross is very important. It must be guarded and "fed" several times a day. Every household has a small cross. It is dressed in a tiny huipil (a woman's dress) and has a mirror around its neck. This small female cross was known as Ix Cel ('Little/female Tree') in ancient times. Besides the village cross and household crosses, there are special crosses for important families, four Guardian Crosses at the town entrances, and others that protect sinkholes and wells.

Even in the 21st century, the religion of the people is mixed. Some are fully devoted to the indigenous church and its calendar. Others are Roman Catholic, Protestant, or Evangelical. The shrines of the "Talking crosses" are still a very important part of the local culture. In 2002, the Mexican Government officially recognized the Church of the Talking Cross as a real religion. Before this, indigenous priests were sometimes seen as practicing witchcraft.

Important Documents and Leaders

The 'Proclamation of Juan de la Cruz' is the Maya free state's official declaration of independence. It also includes the state's constitution and rules. Besides military service and supporting the indigenous church, the constitution promised equal and fair treatment for all people who accepted the new state's rule.

Treaties and Correspondence

The Maya state had many important documents, including:

Treaties with the Yucateco state.
A treaty with the Yucateco state that the British Government helped arrange in 1884.
Treaties with the British Government.
Official letters with the United States government.
Treaties with the Mexican Government, signed by General May.
The Spenser Mariscal Treaty of 1893, between Mexico and the British Government.

Important Officials

Most Maya religious leaders were not paid or were paid by donations. They were often older and poorer, having spent their own money to pay for community festivals.

Religious Leaders

Nohoch Tata, meaning 'Great Father', was the highest religious leader of the Maya church.
Kan Ek', meaning 'Wise Star', was one of four Cardinals. They were based in four holy cities.
Cho'op, meaning 'Macaw', was a Provincial or Bishop. The Cho'opil Uaan is now the Supreme Pontiff.
The first Nohoch Tata was Manual Nahuat, from 1847 to 1851.
K'in, meaning 'Sun', was a Priest and a fortune-teller who used the Maya Sacred Calendar.
Ik', meaning 'Spirit', was an Exorcist who performed blessings.
Uay, meaning 'Familiar Spirit', was a Medium who had good connections with the spirit world.
K'ay, meaning 'Fish', was a Cantor (singer).
T'an, meaning 'Word', was an Orator (speaker).
Le, meaning 'Leaf', was a Herbalist (someone who used plants for medicine).

Civil Leaders

Halac Uinik, meaning 'Real Man', was a civil official like a provincial governor or president. The first Halach Uinik at Chan Santa Cruz was Jose Maria Barrera.
Batab, meaning 'Hatchet', was a local civil official at the village level.
Tupil, meaning 'Earring', was an entry-level civil official. This included the Kambesah ('Teacher') and the Kanan K'u ('Sacristan').

Military Leaders

Ahau K'atun Kiuik', the General de la Plaza, was the supreme commander of the Maya military. Bernardino Cen was one of the most effective generals. The last fully recognized general was General May, who signed peace treaties with Mexico. Today, the military mostly serves as an honor guard for the Maya Church.
Ahau K'atun, a General, there were four of these, one for each direction.
Other military ranks included Coronel (Colonel), Major, Ah K'atun (Captain), Teniente (Lieutenant), Sergento (Sergeant), Caporal (Corporal), and K'atun (Private/Soldier).

Images for kids

Modern design of a Cruzob Flag
Chan Santa Cruz Monument in Cozumel