Lost Livestock. Herds and Iberian Conquests (12th-17th centuries)

Abstract

The article analyzes the connection between the processes of conquest and colonization in certain areas of the Iberian Peninsula and America, highlighting the continuity of extensive livestock practices as a key element in territorial expansion. Ch. Bishko suggested that ranching in large open spaces, first developed in the peninsula, served as a precedent for its implementation in America. Through various examples from the Kingdom of Granada and the current province of Catamarca (Argentina), this practice is analyzed, characterized by the “loose” management of livestock, the participation of armed horsemen and shepherds, the straying of some of these “cerreros” animals, the branding, and the need to regularly concentrate them in “mestas.” In this sense, the articulation of looting activities with periods of livestock movements is emphasized. Furthermore, it is argued that extensive ranching not only adapted to empty spaces but also contributed to their emptying, eroded previous practices, and prefigured domains. The article also explores how these livestock practices persisted even after the conquests and the settlement of new populations, generating tensions during the integration of this ranching inertia in contexts of proliferating restrictive rights and agrarianization.