During my research for my historical fiction novel Calusa Gold, I frequently see the name “Felipe” associated with the Calusas and their contact with the Spaniards.
Thank you for this, Will. I had thought that the Calusas always turned away the Spanish. Now I know better. One story I heard, perhaps from the latter days of the Spanish presence: Three young Calusa boys (teenagers, I’m sure), stripped a priest naked, put him in a canoe, and pushed it into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. In a final gesture, the three of them mooned the poor guy — “showed him their bare buttocks,” read the report. Love that story.
Hi Ken, I read the same thing. I believe that happened when the Calusas went back to Mound key after abandoning it when the Spaniards killed Felipe. I found the following passage that i refers to events you mentioned:
"Finally, the veteran friar Feliciano Lopez and five other Franciscans arrived on Mound Key on September 18, 1697 intent on establishing a mission. Greeted by a young leader who spoke both the Apalachee and Timucua languages familiar to Lopez, the reception was at first cordial, but the Calusa requested food and clothing as recompense for their conversion. The documents make it quite clear that the Calusa expected their obedience to the Spaniards to be followed by a steady supply of food and other gifts. When this was not forthcoming, they became hostile and abusive to the missionaries, ultimately banishing them from their territory a few weeks later (Hann, 1991:41-45; for details see pp. 49–216)." This came from the following article: "Episodic complexity and the emergence of a coastal kingdom: Climate, cooperation, and coercion in Southwest Florida."
I will be happy to send you a pdf of the article if you wish.
Thank you for this, Will. I had thought that the Calusas always turned away the Spanish. Now I know better. One story I heard, perhaps from the latter days of the Spanish presence: Three young Calusa boys (teenagers, I’m sure), stripped a priest naked, put him in a canoe, and pushed it into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. In a final gesture, the three of them mooned the poor guy — “showed him their bare buttocks,” read the report. Love that story.
Hi Ken, I read the same thing. I believe that happened when the Calusas went back to Mound key after abandoning it when the Spaniards killed Felipe. I found the following passage that i refers to events you mentioned:
"Finally, the veteran friar Feliciano Lopez and five other Franciscans arrived on Mound Key on September 18, 1697 intent on establishing a mission. Greeted by a young leader who spoke both the Apalachee and Timucua languages familiar to Lopez, the reception was at first cordial, but the Calusa requested food and clothing as recompense for their conversion. The documents make it quite clear that the Calusa expected their obedience to the Spaniards to be followed by a steady supply of food and other gifts. When this was not forthcoming, they became hostile and abusive to the missionaries, ultimately banishing them from their territory a few weeks later (Hann, 1991:41-45; for details see pp. 49–216)." This came from the following article: "Episodic complexity and the emergence of a coastal kingdom: Climate, cooperation, and coercion in Southwest Florida."
I will be happy to send you a pdf of the article if you wish.
Thanks