Criollo

Colonial society in New Spain was organized into a caste system based on origin and ancestry. Criollos were people of Spanish descent born in the Americas, while peninsulares were those born in Spain itself, who held the top posts in government and the Church.

Do not confuse criollos with mestizos, the children of Spanish and Indigenous parents. Resentment among criollos at being shut out of power became one of the driving forces behind the independence movement of 1810.