Apaches at War and Peace: The Janos Presidio, 1750-1858

Apaches at War and Peace is the story of the Chiricahua Apaches on the northern frontier of New Spain from 1750 to 1858, especially those within the region of the Janos presidio in northwestern Chihuahua. Using previously untapped archives in Spain, Mexico, and the United States, William Griffen relates how Apache raids and other hostilities were the norm until Bernardo do Galvez, viceroy of New Spain, encouraged the Apaches to settle near presidios. By 1790 some Apaches were in residence at Janos, and intermittent periods of peace and conflict ensued until Mexican independence brought more radical changes in Indian policy (such as the state of Sonora's offer of bounties for Indian scalps). Griffen explores issues of changing Indian policy, Indian-Mexican relations, and the entry of the United States onto the scene after its invasion of Mexico.