Freed from constant persecution by army squads, rebel society consolidated in the late 1850s. Chan Santa Cruz and other villages in the surroundings and in the direction of Bacalar were transformed into more solid settlements. The Caste War rebels (kruso’b) gradually regained the initiative in the struggle with Yucatán and maintained it up to the end of the century. The reduction in military pressure opened up new opportunities to assault frontier settlements. In contrast to the first phase of the war and as a result of their reduced military capacity, the rebels refrained from the notion of conquering or controlling territory. Instead, they developed a pattern of surprise attacks to loot cattle, pigs, mules, horses and valuables, selling them in Belize in exchange for arms, ammunition and other essential supplies.

Kruso’b military organization was less formalized and hierarchical than that of the Federal Mexican Army or of Yucatecan militia units, but a certain amount of discipline was called for during combat and on raiding expeditions. In addition, fundamental norms had to be guaranteed to maintain order in kruso’b settlements or to settle personal disputes. The threat or use of force was key in achieving these aims, and the kruso’b political system as a form of strongman rule (caudillaje) made violence a recurrent part of the system. Follower loyalty depended much on lucrative raids. Since the success of such ventures could never be guaranteed, numerous leaders set about gaining additional revenue with the promise of more reliable returns. The wealth generated by these activities allowed them to draw on their own resources to prefinance raids or weather periods of scarcity when looting was impossible. Hence, farming or commercial activities such as the sale of rum would have rendered the authority structure more stable. The accumulation of wealth, however, was a double-edged sword. Kruso’b were not only suspicious of taxation but also of individual wealth (unlike that for the cult).