Juan Sabeata facts for kids

Juan Sabeata (born around 1645, died around 1692) was an important Jumano Native American leader. He lived in what is now Texas. Sabeata tried to make friends with the Spanish or French. He hoped they would help his people. The Jumanos needed help to defend their land from the Apaches.

Early Life and Background

Sabeata, sometimes called Xaviata, was born after 1640. His birthplace was Las Humanas, a Pueblo village now known as Gran Quivira. Later, Sabeata traveled to Parral in northern Mexico. There, he became a Catholic and was given the Christian name Juan.

By 1683, Juan Sabeata had become a leader of the Jumano Indians and their allies. He likely did not speak Spanish very well. He used an interpreter to talk with others.

Meeting with the Spanish

In 1683, the Spanish were in a difficult spot on their northern border. A big Native American uprising, the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, had forced them out of New Mexico. Over 400 Spanish people died. The remaining 2,000 survivors moved to El Paso, Texas.

So, when Sabeata and other friendly Native American leaders came to El Paso in October 1683, the Spanish were happy to see them.

Sabeata told the Spanish he lived at La Junta. This was where the Rio Grande and Conchos rivers meet, near today's Presidio, Texas. He said many Native American nations had sent him. They wanted the Spanish to build Christian missions in their lands.

He also asked for Spanish help against the Apaches. The Apaches were attacking the Jumanos and their friends. Sabeata explained that most of his tribe lived east of La Junta. The Apaches were a constant threat.

Sabeata also mentioned that the Jumanos traded with 36 different tribes. He named the Tejas, a Caddoan tribe. This tribe later gave the state of Texas its name. He also warned the Spanish that "other Spaniards"—meaning the French—were trading with the Tejas.

Sabeata was very clever. He made the Spanish interested in converting the Jumanos to Christianity. He also made them worried about the French moving into lands they claimed. To impress them further, Sabeata told a story. He said the Jumanos won a battle because a cross came down from heaven to protect them. He even sent people to measure the church in El Paso. He promised to build two similar churches at La Junta.

The Dominguez de Mendoza Expedition

Because of Sabeata's request, three Spanish priests and many Native Americans left El Paso for La Junta. There, they found that the seven or more tribes had indeed built churches and homes for the missionaries.

Twenty Spanish soldiers, led by Captain Juan Domínguez de Mendoza, followed the priests. On January 1, 1684, the soldiers met with the priests, Sabeata, and many Native Americans. The group then set off for the Jumano lands. The journey took much longer than six days.

On January 17, the expedition reached a Cibolo Native American settlement on the Pecos River. This was probably downstream from today's Pecos, Texas. Juan Sabeata had gone ahead to prepare the Native Americans. They welcomed the Spanish with great excitement. They even fired several guns, including one Sabeata fired himself. This was against Spanish rules for Native Americans owning guns.

Sabeata and the Native Americans then convinced Dominguez de Mendoza to help them fight the Apaches. The expedition, guided by many Native Americans, continued east. They moved toward the Concho River. They sent out patrols to look for Apaches. They didn't see any Apaches in person, but some horses were stolen during an Apache raid. It's interesting that the Jumanos owned horses at this time. This is one of the earliest records of mounted Native Americans in the United States.

However, relations between Dominguez and Sabeata got worse. On February 19, Dominguez accused Sabeata of lying about the Apache threat. Sabeata probably realized the Spanish cared more about hunting bison than fighting Apaches or spreading Christianity. Sabeata left the expedition with some of the Jumano Native Americans. Many other Native Americans stayed with Dominguez.

The Spanish and the remaining Native Americans kept exploring eastward. Their path seems to have followed the Middle Fork of the Concho River. They went past today's San Angelo, Texas to the Colorado River. They camped there for almost two months to hunt bison. Their camp might have been near today's Ballinger, Texas. During this time, the Spanish and their Native American helpers killed 5,156 bison. The Spanish carefully saved the skins to sell when they returned to New Mexico. The priests baptized hundreds of Native Americans.

Sabeata's warning about the Apaches was correct. The Spanish camp was attacked several times. One Spanish soldier was hurt, and two Native Americans were killed. However, Mendoza later wrote that Sabeata had plotted to kill the Spanish. He also said Sabeata was not well-liked by the Native Americans. But the opposite seemed true. A big meeting of Native American tribes planned by the Spanish never happened. Most of the Native Americans who had been with Mendoza left. He feared an Apache attack. A much smaller group left camp in May and quickly returned to El Paso. They brought thousands of valuable bison skins with them.

Looking for Other Allies

Sabeata's plan to get the Spanish to help against the Apaches failed. So, he turned to the French. La Salle had just started a French colony in eastern Texas. In 1686, a Jumano leader, probably Sabeata, met with the French. He said he was an enemy of the Spanish. He asked for French help against the Apaches. But La Salle's colony failed, so this help never came.

Sabeata was also involved in trading. He knew both Native American and Spanish ways. He and the Jumanos acted as go-betweens. They brought Spanish goods to Native Americans in eastern Texas. They traded these for Native American products, mostly buffalo hides. There were well-organized trade fairs all over Texas. These fairs likely existed long before the Spanish arrived.

In 1688, Sabeata was back at La Junta. The Spanish made him a governor of the Native Americans there. His past disagreements with Mendoza seemed to be forgotten. Juan de Retana was ordered to gather 90 Spanish soldiers and Native American allies. Their mission was to remove the French from east Texas. Sabeata was told to gather the Native American allies and wait for the Spanish at La Junta. Retana was the commander of the fort at San Francisco de Conchos. On his way north, he decided to attack the Toboso people. The Toboso were fighting the Spanish because of slave raids.

When Sabeata heard that Retana was delayed, he decided to contact the French himself. He left La Junta and explored on his own. He was able to report to Retana that Native Americans had destroyed the French settlement in eastern Texas. Most of the French had been killed. Only eight or nine survivors were living among the Tejas. Four or five Frenchmen asked to go with Sabeata to the Spanish settlements. They traveled with him for three days. However, they decided the group might be attacked by Coahuiltecans. They turned back, lacking Sabeata's courage. They gave Sabeata two pages from their books and a painting of a ship on parchment. These were proof to show the Spanish that they were truly French.

Sabeata appears again in Spanish records in 1690. A Spanish priest in a new mission in east Texas asked him to carry a letter to Spanish leaders in El Paso. A year later, he carried two more letters to the Governor of Coahuila. These letters asked for soldiers to protect the missions from the French.

It seems that Sabeata, the Jumanos, and other tribes now spent winters near Eagle Pass, Texas on the Rio Grande. In summers, they hunted buffalo in the Texas Hill Country near the Guadalupe River. They were likely pushed out of their original homeland along the Concho River. Sabeata also seemed to visit Spanish leaders in El Paso and Parral often.

In 1691, a Spanish group visited a large camp of Jumanos and other tribes on the Guadalupe River. About 3,000 people were there. Sabeata organized a welcome that included a procession. They carried a wooden cross. This was probably the same cross that had supposedly helped the Jumanos in a battle with the Apaches ten years earlier. The chief of the Cibola tribe and his people showed an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The chief of the Catqueasa, who spoke good Spanish, kissed the priest's hand in the Catholic way. It was a "splendid show of piety and devotion." Sabeata then asked again for a Spanish mission to be built among his people. The Spanish said no. They said the Jumanos visited Spanish settlements every year and didn't need missions. The Spanish felt some unfriendliness among the Native Americans. They decided not to stay camped with them.

In 1692, Sabeata organized a fight against the Chisos Native Americans. The Chisos had attacked the Native Americans at La Junta. This is the last time Sabeata is mentioned in Spanish records. He may have died or been killed in 1692 or 1693.

Why Was He Important?

Juan Sabeata is one of the few Native Americans who stands out in the Spanish records as an individual. His efforts to get the Spanish (and French) to protect the Jumanos from their enemies did not work. He lived at a time when the Spanish were not very strong on their northern border. They had few resources to control lands beyond a few towns.

Much of what we know about the Texas Native Americans during this time comes from Sabeata. His stories were recorded by the Spanish. He is known to have traveled across Texas at least eight times. He also visited El Paso, Parral, and other Spanish settlements many times. He was seen as a leader of the Jumanos. He also spoke for many Tonkawa, Caddoan, and Coahuiltecan groups and tribes in southern and central Texas.

After Sabeata disappears from history in 1692, the Jumanos also soon faded. In 1716, the Jumanos appear again in Spanish records, but as friends of their former enemies, the Apaches. The last mention of them as an independent people is in 1771.

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