Jesuit Missions in South America

Jesuit Mission of San Ignacio Mini

Five Jesuit missions were built in the land of the Guarani Indians in the 17th and 18th centuries, four of these are in present day Argentina and one in Brazil. The ruins at San Ignacio Mini are the best preserved of these. The missions were all laid out in the same pattern with a large open square surrounded by the church, residence of the Fathers and houses of the Indians. The Jesuits purpose was to educate the natives and convert them to Christianity and they also sought to protect them from capture and abuse from Spanish and Portuguese colonists.

The Jesuits were granted the frontier zone of Paraguay from the Spanish Crown in 1609 and they built 30 reducciones or settlements in the area, charged with converting and educating the native Indians and protecting them from the abuses of colonial forces. La Santísima Trinidad was the capital of the Guayra area and the most ambitious of the settlements, constructed in 1706 with a fine dome and elaborate decoration which demonstrates the fusion of European and indigenous influences.

Five Jesuit missions were built in the land of the Guarani Indians in the 17th and 18th centuries, four of these are in present day Argentina and one in Brazil - the ruins of Sao Miguel das Missoes. The missions were all laid out in the same pattern with a large open square surrounded by the church, residence of the Fathers and houses of the Indians. The Jesuits purpose was to educate the natives and convert them to Christianity and they also sought to protect them from capture and abuse from Spanish and Portuguese colonists.

Jesuit fathers arrived in the Viceroyalty of Peru in the 16th century, sent by the Spanish Crown to bring Christianity to the indigenous people. Between 1696 and 1760, they built six reducciones - San Francisco Javier, Concepción, Santa Ana, San Miguel, San Rafael and San José, settlements of Christianised Indians which were inspired by the ideal cities of 16th century philosophers. The reducciones were laid out around a large rectangular space, with houses regularly spaced along three sides and the church, workshop and schools along the fourth.