Po'pay

Po'pay was a Tewa religious leader from a place called Ohkay Owingeh. He lived during a time when Spanish rule was very hard on the Pueblo people. The Spanish controlled the Rio Grande valley in New Mexico starting in 1598. They used forced labor and stopped many Pueblo religious ceremonies. New diseases also made many people sick. Because of these things, the Pueblo population dropped to about 15,000 people. Po'pay wanted to change this. He wanted his people to return to their old ways of life. He believed this would bring back peace and independence.

Po'pay was a very strong and respected leader. In 1675, he was one of 47 religious leaders arrested by the Spanish government. The Spanish accused them of witchcraft. Po'pay was whipped and imprisoned in Santa Fe. Later, he went to the remote Taos Pueblo to plan a rebellion. He worked in secret to talk to leaders from many different towns. These towns spoke six different languages and were far apart. To keep the plan a secret, he used knotted cords. Runners carried these cords to different Pueblos. The number of knots told people how many days were left until the revolt.

The revolt began in August 1680. The plan was for each Pueblo to rise up against the Spanish in their own area. Then, they would all move toward Santa Fe. The Pueblo army was very large. Some people thought it had 2,500 warriors. They surrounded the Spanish in the Governor's palace. By August 21, the Spanish survivors began a long walk south. They traveled all the way to El Paso. The Pueblo people did not attack them while they were leaving. This successful revolt kept the Spanish out of the territory for twelve years.

After the Spanish left, Po'pay became a leader for the Pueblo peoples. He tried to remove everything that was Spanish from the land. He even tried to stop people from following Christian beliefs. However, life was not easy after the revolt. A drought destroyed many crops, so there was not enough food. Also, groups like the Apaches and Navajo began to raid the Pueblos. The different Pueblo villages sometimes disagreed with each other too. Some people even thought Po'pay was acting like a tyrant. He died around 1688, and the Pueblo lands remained divided.

Even though things changed, the revolt left a lasting mark on history. When the Spanish returned in 1692, life was not the same as before. The Spanish stopped using the forced labor system. They also allowed the Pueblo people to hold their own religious ceremonies. This created a new blend of Spanish and Pueblo cultures in New Mexico. Today, Po'pay is remembered as a hero by many. In 2005, a large statue of him was placed in the U.S. Capitol. The statue shows him holding the knotted cords and a bear fetish.