Juan de Oñate

Juan de Oñate y Salazar (Spanish: [ˈxwan de‿oˈɲate] ^ⓘ; 1550–1626) was a Mexican/Novohispanic conquistador, explorer and viceroy of the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México in the viceroyalty of New Spain, in the present-day U.S. state of New Mexico. He led early Spanish expeditions to the Great Plains and Lower Colorado River Valley, encountering numerous indigenous tribes in their homelands there. Oñate founded settlements in the province, now in the Southwestern United States.

Oñate is notorious for the 1599 Ácoma Massacre. This series of events transpired after Oñate sent his nephew, Juan de Zaldívar, to ask Acoma Pueblo to submit to the Spanish throne and Catholicism. Accounts of what happened next differ. The majority of accounts include the Spaniards forcefully taking Acoma blankets and food. A fight ensued and many of the Spanish group, including Zaldívar, were killed.

Oñate arrived at Acoma Pueblo on January 21st with an army including cannons and muskets. The Spanish set fire to the Pueblo. Approximately 800–1000 Ácoma were murdered. After this initial attack, on February 12th, Oñate ordered that the right foot be cut off every man over 25.

Today, Oñate remains a controversial figure in New Mexican history: in 1998, the right foot was cut off a statue of the conquistador that stands in Alcalde, New Mexico, in protest of the massacre, and significant controversy arose when a large equestrian statue of Oñate was erected in El Paso, Texas, in 2006. On June 15, 2020, the statue of Oñate in Alcalde, New Mexico was temporarily removed by Rio Arriba County workers at the direction of officials, put into storage. In 2023, The statue was erected again in Española, New Mexico, placed on the grounds of the county annex building.