ABSTRACT
The article investigates the thinking of the first bishop of Michoacán and judge of the Royal Audience from 1531 to 1536, Vasco de Quiroga (c.1478-1565). It deals specifically with his arguments in objection to the wars waged by the Spaniards against the natives of New Spain, whose main source is his treatise entitled Information on Law. Inspired by Erasmus of Rotterdam, Quiroga argued that the requirements for wars to be considered fair were not being met and, therefore, the Spaniards were infringing Spanish law. Furthermore, he made explicit the immorality of the settlers and contrasted it with the good qualities of the natives. He also unveiled the manipulation of information sent to the crown. More than criticizing, the intention was to defend a different colonization, based on humanist Christianity, giving the indigenous people the dignity they deserved for being human.
Keywords:
fair war; New Spain; Vasco de Quiroga; erasmianism