Bartolomé Romero was a twenty-six-year-old alcalde ordinario  of Santa Fe when he testified before Friar Alonso de Benavides in September 1628—more than two years after the initial arrival of the Inquisition in New Mexico. He denounced Juana de la Cruz for witchcraft, providing more detail about incidents that Benavides had alluded to when collecting statements in 1626. He claimed that because of “something that had happened between the two of them,” Juana de la Cruz had vowe

Having finished recording all the depositions of the colonists before the Inquisition, Friar Alonso de Benavides drafted a summary transmittal letter before sending all of the evidence to his superiors in Mexico City. This is the reason why any of these records survived, for less than sixty years later, the Pueblo Revolt would destroy much of the documentation of early 17th-century New Mexico.   Chief among Friar Benavides’ concerns were the denunciations of Don Juan de Eulat

Summoned before the Inquisition, Sebastián Rodríguez de Salazar testified that he was 44 years old and had arrived in New Mexico as an alférez  in the retinue of Governor Don Juan de Eulate from New Spain, accompanied by his wife (who was Luisa Díaz). During the journey, he had overheard the argument between the governor and friar Pedro de Ortega about married people being better than priests. He also recounted a similar episode that had taken place in front of the church, in

Juan López Olguín had already made two other statements to the Inquisition, one denouncing Juan Gómez de Luna  and another denouncing Alonso Varela . In his third statement he denounced the conduct of the former governor Don Juan de Eulate, recounting many of the same episodes that other witnesses had already spoken about.   A paleographic transcription of López Olguín’s testimony in Spanish is available in the Cibola Project’s “Cross vs. Crown in New Mexico, 1626.” Statement

Alonso de Benavides summoned Francisco Gómez to confirm the earlier testimony he had received about Governor Don Juan de Eulate. Gómez...

Alonso de Benavides summoned Alonso Varela to corroborate what other witnesses had already divulged regarding the conduct of Governor Don...

In the Origins of New Mexico Families , Fray Angélico Chávez stated that Isabel Olguín was the daughter of Juan López Olguín and Catalina...

Catalina Bernal and Juana López came forward in May to denounce themselves and others for practicing witchcraft. Catalina testified...

Several women accused others or denounced themselves to the Inquisition for engaging in superstitious activities, often involving plants...

Juan Gómez de Luna, an interpreter of the Tewa language and encomendero  of the pueblo of San Lázaro, aroused the suspicions of several...

Captain Francisco de Madrid came forward voluntarily to denounce Governor Juan de Eulate to Friar Alonso de Benavides regarding his...

Pedro Durán y Chávez appeared in several other witness statements to the Inquisition regarding the conduct of Governor Don Juan de...

Simón Pérez de Bustillo was summoned to testify before the Inquisition to corroborate Friar Ortega’s statement  denouncing Governor...

Diego de Vera, native of the Canary Islands, made three statements to Friar Alonso de Benavides: one denouncing Governor Don Juan de...

Captain Hernán Martín Serrano came forward of his own volition to denounce Governor Juan de Eulate to the Inquisition on 28 January 1626....

The priest who was serving as the notary for all of the inquisition testimony, Friar Pedro de Ortega, testified against Governor Juan de...

Captain Pedro Márquez testified against Governor Juan de Eulate to the Inquisition on 28 January 1626. He recounted an incident that took...

Matías López del Castillo made two statements to the Inquisition on 27 January 1626. The first statement concerned accusations of heresy...

Captain Francisco Pérez Granillo testified before Alonso de Benavides in Santa Fe on 27 January 1626, describing an incident that took...

Juan Frescos was a Flemish miner who accompanied the wagon-train escort that was carrying the new governor, Don Felipe Sotelo Osorio, from New Spain to Santa Fe in December 1625.