Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [349]-363).

This dissertation examines the cult of Our Lady of Remedios, one of the oldest Marian images in Mexico and declared the first patroness of the viceregal capital of New Spain in 1574. Despite Mexico City’s city council’s (cabildo) promotion of this Madonna as a relic of the conquest and the patroness of the City of Mexico, historians have not investigated the cult of Remedios extensively since the study of devotional practices in colonial Mexico has primarily focused on the Virgin of Guadalupe. As such, academics have underestimated the importance of Our Lady of Los Remedios, leading them to view her cult as unimportant to Novohispanic society. As this dissertation demonstrates, the cult of Our Lady of Los Remedios was not just prominent in the City of Mexico, but a frequent invocation in times of great misfortune. She was believed to remedythe ills of her devotees and the catastrophes that afflicted the metropolis, such as floods, droughts, and epidemics. As important as the sacred image of Our Lady of Los Remedios is to the history that I present, the core of this dissertation is the Confraternity of Los Remedios. My work examines the political and religious interests that Mexico City’s cabildo had in establishing and sponsoring the brotherhood and the role they played in supporting the cult image of Our Lady of Los Remedios. Additionally, due to the increasing religious devotion to Our Lady of Los Remedios, the Confraternity of Los Remedios received financial support from the generous offerings given to the revered statue. This outcome was financial independence, causing the Confraternity of Los Remedios to function as lenders, administrators of wills, and maintainers of records for different financial dealings. For this reason, I argue that the confraternity ceased to be an organization solelydedicated to religious purposes and instead became an institution of social and economic importance for the City of Mexico.