Isabel and Orocomay: Indigenous Sovereignty and the Politics of Territorial Control in the Sixteenth-Century Caribbean

Abstract

This article uses the histories of two Indigenous cacicas, Isabel and Orocomay, to analyze the assertion of Indigenous sovereignty and territorial control on the islands and mainland coast of the southeastern Caribbean during the early decades of the sixteenth century. By focusing on their histories, the article examines the complex network of intercultural relationships that emerged in the Atlantic world through the exploitation of oyster banks and the pearl trade. Additionally, it explores how these relationships intersected with the expansionist policies of the Spanish monarchy. This approach demonstrates how the assertion of Indigenous sovereignty through political and military actions actively molded the southeastern Caribbean’s geopolitical configurations by resisting and reconfiguring colonial attempts at political and social control.