Many would say that the most famous landmark in Santa Fe New Mexico would be the Saint Francis of Assisi Basilica Cathedral just one block east of the plaza. There had been a place of worship at the cathedral's site since the founding of Santa Fe in the the year 1610. The cathedral was constructed by Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy between 1869 and 1886. Prior to this the site was home to an older adobe church. Archbishop Lamy was a very significant figure in 1800's Santa Fe. Today, the settlement about 15 miles southeast of Santa Fe was named in his honer and is now best known as the Santa Fe stop for Amtrak's Southwest Chief train than travels between Chicago and Los Angeles.A significant contribution to the old adobe church occurred in 1626 when Fray Alonso Benavides brought Our Lady of the Rosary to Santa Fe. The chapel in fact was built at that time for the statue. During the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, the statue was removed, but returned in 1693 during the peaceful return of the Spanish settlers. She was renamed La Conquistadora in honor of the peaceful manner in which it was believed she entered the hearts of the natives.
Another interesting note is that the current cathedral was elevated to the status of Basilica in 2005 by Pope Benedict XVI. Also the patron saint of the diocese of Saint Francis was brought to the cathedral during the 1967 renovations. In every respect, the story of Santa Fe and the story of New Mexico has everything to do with the establishment of the old Spanish missions. Much has been written about the twenty-one missions built in California during the period of 1765 and 1833. Many of those were either built or inspired by Fray Junipero Serra, the first being the mission in San Diego California built in 1765. On the other hand, the missions in New Mexico including ones in and around Santa Fe were built decades earlier. The Spaniards first traveled to present day New Mexico primarily over two routes. There was the Coronado Expedition in 1540 which arrived from Mexico via present day Arizona. Coronado's expedition was a scouting expedition. It's goal was not to build settlements. In fact, the 1540 expedition was in search of the Seven Cities of Gold which Coronado and others heard so much about from the Indians in Mexico.
Throughout Spanish rule of the Nuevo Mexico Santa Fe was a center for exploration and mission work. Franciscan friars constructed eleven churches and by 1617 had converted more than 14,000 Native Americans to the Spanish form of Christianity. During the Spanish rule, the event of the most significance was the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. The revolt was attributed to the relatively harsh rule of both the Spanish military and their friars. In their quest to colonize the region and convert the Indian to Christianity, many strict rules were put in place as well as punishments for disobeying. The native Americans were forced to build churches on the very spot where their traditional kiva was located. They were also forced to work to aid the Spanish commercial interests rather than tending to their own pueblos. Mostly because of this denigration and prohibition of their traditional religion, many of the Pueblo people kept a latent hostility toward the Spanish. The year 1680 was when all of this came to a head. The result was a coordinated attack on everything Spanish. During this revolt the majority of the friars were slain. The Spaniards were forced to withdraw from the entire region and fled back south along the Rio Grande River. The Spaniards were absent for twelve years when they finally returned for good in 1692. Asa surprise to some, their return was not met with much violence at all. The new governors of the territory dealt with the Indians in a new and kinder way. Although there still was resentment from a few, the Native Americans and the Spaniards continued to live peaceable. It was not until the Mexican Revolt in the early 1800's that the Spaniards were driven out of Nuevo Mexico for the last time.
What is now Santa Fe was first inhabited by Indians as far back as 1050. The Spaniards first settled in northern New Mexico in the year 1598. Don Juan de Onate became the first Governor and Captain-General of New Mexico. The capital then was built in San Juan Pueblo about 25 miles north of Santa Fe. The city of Santa Fe itself was founded by Don Pedro de Peralta, New Mexico's third governor. Peralta named the city, "La Villa Real de la Santa Fe de San Francisco de Assisi", or "The Royal City of the Holy Faith of Saint Francis of Assisi".
Santa Fe is a great vacation destination and St. Francis Basilica is a real treasure for the city and a significant part of it's rich history. (Photos from author's private collection)
