The European occupation of the Guaíra region in the 16^th and 17^th Centuries

Abstract

The European population nucleus in the Guaíra region during the 16^th and 17^th centuries had its own dynamics for its development and its destructurization. An analysis of works that describe the destruction of these populations shows that the “bandeirantismo paulista” was the main factor towards their disruption. However, analysis of documents, published by Jaime Cortesão, specifically on the Guaíra region of Guairá, indicates that this problem has to be inserted into a more extensive context. In fact, the “bandeirantismo” first of all preyed on the Indians and its participation in the process of European evacuation of this region may be understood if the social relations extant in the region are taken into consideration. The social relations mentioned above deal with the manner Indians, Jesuits and Spaniards lived and how they developed their contacts with the Portuguese. Native labor, supervised by the Jesuits or by the “encomenderos”, was responsible for the permanence of the colonizers in the region. Due to the good relationship between the Paulistas and the government of Paraguay and due to the constant arrests of Indians by the “bandeirantes”, the destructuring of the social and economic internal system of the region occurred. Such destruction caused the evacuation of the European from the region.