Tasa de Santillán facts for kids
The Tasa de Santillán (pronounced Tah-sah day San-tee-YAHN), also known as the Santillán Rate, was an important set of rules for how Mapuche people worked for the Spanish in Chile. It was the first official law that controlled the system called encomiendas in the Captaincy General of Chile.
This law was created in 1558 by the Spanish governor García Hurtado de Mendoza. The actual rules were written by a legal expert named Hernando de Santillán, who came to Chile with Governor Mendoza. The Santillán Rate was the first time that labor rules between the Spanish and the Mapuche people were formally written down.
How the Santillán Rate Worked
Before this law, many Mapuche people were forced to work without clear rules. The Santillán Rate tried to make things a bit fairer. Instead of making all the native people work all the time, it set up a system where they took turns.
Here's how it worked:
- The leader of each Mapuche group, called a cacique, had to send some men to work.
- For mining work, one man out of every six had to go.
- For farm work, one man out of every five had to go.
These workers, who usually didn't get paid before, were now supposed to receive a small payment. This payment was called Sesmo. It meant they got one-sixth of what they produced from the mine at the end of each month.
The rules also protected some people:
- Women did not have to do this work.
- Men younger than 18 or older than 50 years old were also excused.
The Spanish boss, called an encomendero, was supposed to keep the workers healthy. They also had to teach the Mapuche people about Christianity quickly.
Why the Rate Didn't Last
The Santillán Rate didn't stay in place for very long. The governors who came after Mendoza changed or removed most of its rules.
Sadly, even with these rules, some Spanish bosses, like Pedro Avendaño, still treated the Mapuche workers very badly. This unfair treatment caused a lot of anger and led to future rebellions, especially among the Huilliche people, who are a group of Mapuche.
Because the Santillán Rate didn't work well, a new set of rules was created in 1580. This new law was called the Tasa de Gamboa, and it was introduced by Governor Martin Ruiz De Gamboa.
See also
- In Spanish: Tasa de Santillán para niños
