When was the Tiguex War fought?

The Tiguex War was the first named war between Europeans and Native Americans in the United States. It was fought between the members of the Francisco Vázquez de Coronado expedition against 12 pueblos of Tiwa Indians and other Puebloan tribes along the Rio Grande in the area of Bernalillo, New Mexico in the winter of 1540-41.

The local natives raised several varieties of corn, along with squash, beans, and cotton. They also wove fine cotton cloth and traded with other tribes for buffalo hides, and ornamental and ceremonial goods such as turquoise, seashells, and exotic feathers.

When the main group of the Spanish expedition arrived in the cold winter of New Mexico in 1540, they were not satisfied with living in “straw huts” and soon took over the pueblo buildings. The natives were forced out of their homes with nothing but the clothes they wore and took shelter in other area pueblos.

The expedition also arrived in need of food, shelter, and warm clothing. They sometimes bartered for what they needed, but more often just took it. The Tiguex had been pushed to their limit and violence ensued.

By March 1541, the war was over. By that time, hundreds of Tiguex had been killed, along with a smaller number of Spanish and Mexican soldiers. Many Tiguex villages had been burned or abandoned. The Tiguex, reduced in numbers, many living in the mountains away from their homes, now fully understood the implacable foe in their midst.