Hey hey USA - 30th October - the tragedy of St Jerome's church

While we were in the Pueblo we looked at the Catholic Church that was used by the puebloans. We didn't know that it was a new structure built to replace an older building the remains of which were still present in the grave yard.


In August 1846 at the end of the American Mexican war the state of New Mexico was taken out of Mexican hands and ceded to the US. The Mexicans living in New Mexico were justifiably worried that the land granted to them by the Mexican government would now be forfeit.The conquering troops had not treated the local inhabitants kindly and there was a lot of resentment also building up in the local Native Americans, including the puebloans of New Mexico.
This culminated in January 1847 when a revolt was staged by the Taos Mexicans and the people of the Taos Pueblo. The local governor Charles Bent was killed and scalped in front of his family and the sheriff and other members of the American administration were also killed. The next  day a mill and distillery were besieged by the insurgents and about 16 Americans killed. The revolt also began to spread across the rest of New Mexico.
More than 300 troops were brought up from Santa Fé to Taos and reinforced with 65 volunteers. On their journey north they beat back a combined force of 1500 Hispanos and Puebloans who retreated into the Pueblo and took shelter in the adobe church of St Jerome. The US army breached the walls of the church and shot cannons into the interior resulting in the death of around 150 rebels. 400 more were captured in hand to hand fighting.
The next day a hastily convened 'trial' took place in the Taos plaza. In all 28 men were convicted of treason and executed by hanging in the plaza.

I looked at the old church of St Jerome just before we left the Pueblo and the place seemed to be oppressively sad.








Memorial to the veterans of the Taos Pueblo


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