San Gabriel de Yungue-Ouinge, or San Gabriel de Yunque, was the site of the first Spanish capital of its provincial territory of

Santa Fe de Nuevo México Santa Fe de Nuevo México ( en, Holy Faith of New Mexico; shortened as Nuevo México or Nuevo Méjico, and translated as New Mexico in English) was a Kingdom of the Spanish Empire and New Spain, and later a territory of independent Mexico. The ...

. It is located where the

Rio Chama The Rio Chama, a major tributary river of the Rio Grande, is located in the U.S. states of Colorado and New Mexico. The river is about long altogether. From its source to El Vado Dam its length is about , from El Vado Dam to Abiquiu Dam is about ...

meets the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

, west of present-day

Ohkay Owingeh, New Mexico Ohkay Owingeh (Tewa: Ohkwee Ówîngeh ), known by its Spanish name as San Juan de los Caballeros from 1589 to 2005, is a pueblo and census-designated place (CDP) in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico. Ohkay Owingeh is also a federally recognized tribe ...

. The pueblo of Yuque Yunque was taken by

Juan de Oñate Juan de Oñate y Salazar (; 1550–1626) was a Spanish conquistador from New Spain, explorer, and colonial governor of the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México in the viceroyalty of New Spain. He led early Spanish expeditions to the Great Pla ...

, and he founded his colonial government there. It was moved to Santa Fe in 1610. The site was declared a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1964. The archaeological site was leveled and plowed over in 1984, and a historical marker has been placed on the west side of the

, off the old

New Mexico State Road 74 State Road 74 (NM 74) is a state highway in the US state of New Mexico. Its total length is approximately . NM 74's southern terminus is at NM 68 in Ohkay Owingeh, and the northern terminus is at U.S. Route 84/U.S. Route 285 U. ...

Description and history

The pueblos of Ohkay and Yunque were two interrelated Puebloan settlements, Ohkay's establishment estimated around 1200 CE and Yunque's around 1300. The present-day tribal lands of Ohkay Owingeh encompass the area of both settlements. When

arrived in 1598 to establish a Spanish provincial headquarters, he at first established a military camp outside the Ohkay pueblo, which he dubbed "San Juan" (a name by which the Ohkay pueblo was known for many years, before reclaiming its native name in the early 21st century.) The Puebloans agreed to make the Yunque pueblo, located between the Chama River and Rio Grande, available as a compound for the Spanish, and its residents were evacuated to Ohkay. In the fall of 1598, the Spanish erected a church and dug an

acequia An acequia () or séquia () is a community-operated watercourse used in Spain and former Spanish colonies in the Americas for irrigation. Particularly in Spain, the Andes, northern Mexico, and the modern-day American Southwest particularly n ...

(water channel) to bring water to Yunque. The site remained New Mexico's colonial capital until 1610, when Oñate was replaced by

Pedro de Peralta Pedro de Peralta (c. 1584 – 1666) was Governor of New Mexico between 1610 and 1613 at a time when it was a province of New Spain. He formally founded the city of Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1610. In August 1613 he was arrested and jailed for almo ...

, who established the Spanish capital at Santa Fe. The Yunque pueblo was either abandoned entirely by the Spanish, or left with a few colonists, but it was eventually abandoned entirely. The location of this early colonial capital was of recurring interest to historians, and was tentatively identified in the 1890s. In the 1930s, the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

surveyed the area but was unable to make a definitive determination. Excavations in the 1940s and 1960s made it abundantly clear that the area was an early Spanish settlement site, with the church site and a military barracks among the structures whose remains were found. After these excavations, the natives began removing adobe bricks from the ruins for reuse, and the site was levelled and buried. A cross and memorial marker indicate the site.

References

External links

* Colonial New Mexico History of Rio Arriba County, New Mexico Geography of Rio Arriba County, New Mexico Buildings and structures completed in 1598 Buildings and structures in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico National Historic Landmarks in New Mexico Historic American Buildings Survey in New Mexico Spanish-American culture in New Mexico Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area National Register of Historic Places in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico {{NewMexico-NRHP-stub

Description and history

See also

References

External links