CULTURE

The Founding of Santa Fe and the Story of the Martínez de Montoya Documents; In Which is Revealed How Santa Fe is Older than Commonly Thought and its Founder is Discovered

Thomas E. Chávez

(Adapted from a chapter in a forthcoming book tentatively titled Chasing History: Quixotic Quests for Artifacts, Art, and Heritage)

The Juan Martínez de Montoya documents are a bound group of pages dating from the 18th century into the third decade of the 19th century. They are the official record of a heraldry court in Spain that has copied in them letter and testimony dating to 1605. Through the use of internal information within the documents themselves and taken in context of other known documents, the veracity of these documents make them very valuable. They divulge or clarify facts of New Mexico’s early history, not the least of which is that Juan Martínez de Montoya, a captain under Juan de Oñate and, then, his son Cristóbal, established the village of Santa Fe sometime between late 1607 and August 1608.

Martínez de Montoya came to NM as a leader of a group of recruited colonists who arrived in December of 1600. Gaspar Pérez de Villagrá, who wrote La Hsitoria de la Nueva Mexico that was published in Spain in 1610, was sent south to Mexico City to recruit more colonists. Upon hearing that he would not be in charge of the returning expedition, he deserted the enterprise. Martínez de Montoya, the viceroy’s appointed leader, led the expedition north with a disappointedly small contingent of around eighty people. During the next five plus years Martínez de Montoya distinguished himself in various activities in NM. In 1601 he participated in Oñate’s expedition onto the plain where in present-day Kansas he gave good account of himself in a battle with the “Excajaque” Indians at the Quivera settlements. He also partook in a punitive expedition to Taos where other sources tell us that the pueblo was nearly completely destroyed. In 1603, he went to Acoma Pueblo, already reoccupied after the devastating battle in 1600. From there he went on to the Hopi pueblos. He participated in more than one campaign against the Apaches, and in 1605, while Oñate rode to the Gulf of California, Martínez de Montoya was named Alcalde Ordinario
(special or interim mayor) of the Spanish capital San Gabriel, where he was charged to maintain its defense.

Apparently in anticipation of leaving NM, Martínez de Montoya secured an audience with Juan de Oñate to certify his accomplishments and years of service. The captain wanted to make sure that, per the laws of the day, after five years of service in the new colony, he would receive what was due to him. Specifically, he wanted the minor Spanish title of nobility; that he and his ancestors would become hidalgos, which is a contraction of hijo de halgo, meaning “son of something.” The governor dutifully bore witness to Martínez de Montoya’s testimony. He also had it written down and signed and dated it on 6 October 1606.**

Martínez de Montoya did not immediately leave, probably because he was needed in NM. He was called upon to lead two punitive expeditions against the Apaches and joined another expedition as an officer under Cristóbal de Oñate, Juan’s son. He also served a second term as alcalde ordinario of San Gabriel.

Meanwhile, on 24 August 1607, Juan de Oñate sent a letter of resignation as governor to the Viceroy in Mexico City. Oñate was bitterly disappointed and discouraged with the lack of support for his colony. Oñate stipulated that he would keep his soldiers and colonists in NM until the following June. If no reply came by that time, he would order the abandonment of the colony. No doubt Martínez de Montoya shared the same anxiety as everyone else as they waited for the viceroy’s reply.