These entries are intended as an introduction to Taos for those who are preparing to visit us at La Posada de Taos. It is my hope that others will take interest and begin the journey to learn and understand about this unique place.
I'm writing about a place in the Hinterland where history stretches as far back as time itself and where its peoples have helped shape the destiny of our great nation in ways that are unknown to most. It's the story of the Taos Pueblo and of towering historical icons such as Kit Carson. If I were to write the story of America's Conquest of the West, the story of Taos would be inextricably woven into each chapter.
Starting with the Taos Pueblo -- the oldest continually inhabited place in our country. I've always wondered how it is that the Taos were never forcibly relocated from the ancestral home as were so many other Native Americans. Why has this place somehow been continuously inhabited -- never destroyed or abandoned. It is a fundamental piece of the story of what makes Taos so incredibly special, not just to those of us who live here, but to our entire national identity. Here's why:
When I visit the Taos Pueblo with its 1000-year old dwellings, I think about all the storms it has weathered -- both literally and figuratively. In the context of American expansionism in the 19th Century and the brutality we inflicted on so many tribes, it seems miraculous that this place has remained intact much as it has always been.
Perhaps it's as simple as the fact that the Taos were already settled in place when the Spanish arrived not long after 1500. They were not nomadic as were so many other Native Americans who we forcibly removed from their lands and pushed into remote and desolate reservations. They had an architecturally complex and unique home and were farmers and traders. The Navajo Nation, on the other hand, were "enemies" because they would not settle down or remain in place as the American Government insisted was necessary for peaceful coexistence.
Another reason that the Taos have survived "in place" is that they have continuously and closely observed their religious and cultural traditions passed down from time immemorial. From the time the Spanish arrived almost 500 years ago, the Taos were a close-knit community bound together by their complex religious ceremonies. It is completely my opinion, but some measure of respect for these traditions has always overcome efforts to destroy the Taos culture.
More likely than maintaining religious freedom is the fact that when Spanish Catholics arrived to spread the Gospel, the Taos were receptive to the New Testament story because it so closely resembled some of their own oral histories. I suppose one could say that over time the two religious systems came to a form of detente where major observances were held simultaneously or within close time-frames to one another. Thus, today Taos Pueblo celebrates the 2-day ceremony of San Geronimo with Catholic Vespers every September 29 and completely Native traditions on September 30.
But peace has not always been the status quo. The Pueblo Revolt in the 1600's saw the violent rejection of all things Spanish and Catholic in New Mexico. The Taos participated from the beginning of the Revolt and saw it to the bitter end. Although I'm not trying to dismiss the importance of these years of violence and struggle in the history of the Taos people, it seems to me that when the Spanish returned, it was with a better understanding of the importance of allowing the Taos their Native religious traditions.
The Taos have also been the victims of repeated efforts to take their ancestral lands away from them. Fraud and deception sometimes resulted in the loss of lands to an amazing array of people who history does not smile upon. The Taos have had to work to retain their lands and to protect themselves from being overrun by those who want to claim this place as their own.
The Taos have had to struggle against the U.S. Government's blatant land grab in the guise of "preserving" natural resources. When Congress created the Kit Carson National Forest in the Teddy Roosevelt Era, it carved out ancestral lands of the Taos containing their most sacred place -- Blue Lake.
Problem was that the boundaries of the ancestral lands of the Taos had been recognized by the Spanish long before the United States laid claim to the New Mexico Territory. The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo stipulated that the American government would honor the land and water rights granted by the King of Spain. Depriving the Taos of control over the lands containing Blue Lake can be equated with forcibly relocating them from their homes.
After years of legal efforts, however, Congress and President Richard Nixon finally returned the disputed lands to the control of the Taos Pueblo. It was the first time in this nation's history that the U.S. Government had given back lands it had taken from a Native American tribe. In fact, the peaceful triumph of the Taos in these efforts is credited with beginning a new wave of legal and civil rights efforts on behalf of Native Americans across the United States.
Next: Taos Mountain
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