I chose to visit Gran Quivara, since it has the largest pueblo ruins of the three missions, although the churches are better preserved at the other monument sites. The original pueblo ruins are in the foreground. The Spanish claimed the land for the King and forced the people here to build two churches, first the low ruin to the left and then the taller structure in the back. Some accounts describe the relations between the natives here and the Spanish as friendly and positive. From what I can tell, it’s hardly a coincidence that the pueblo was abandoned a few years after they started constructing the larger church for the missionaries. The local people endured Spanish diseases, grew Spanish plants that were ill adapted to the drought-stricken area, and other native tribes mistreated or attacked them as collaborators. They were prohibited from practicing their own religion, including singing native songs or performing dances, due to the strict rules of the Spanish Inquisition. If I had to go through any of that, I would leave too.