How did Indigenous peoples and Jesuits resist bandeirante raids?

To resist the slave-hunting expeditions known as bandeiras, Jesuit missionaries and Indigenous peoples employed several defensive strategies. As the primary opponents of the bandeirantes, Jesuit missionaries attempted to protect their mission villages by relocating them farther south and west, away from the reach of the raiders. Additionally, the Jesuits took the step of arming the Indigenous people living within these missions to help them defend against incoming attacks.1

Despite these efforts, the bandeirantes—who were often motivated by profit and adventure—frequently targeted these mission villages, leading to significant loss of life and the enslavement of thousands of Indigenous individuals.1