Luis Ponce de León (died July 20, 1526) was a Spanish judge and briefly the governor of

New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Am ...

, from July 4, 1526, to July 16, 1526.

Biography

Luis Ponce de León was an educated man and a

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

of Cordoba. He was a friend and aide of the corregidor of Toledo, Martín de Córdoba, conde de Alcaudete. Ponce's appointment came in 1525 after news about serious difficulties in New Spain began reaching the court of

Charles I of Spain Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) fro ...

and the

Council of the Indies The Council of the Indies ( es, Consejo de las Indias), officially the Royal and Supreme Council of the Indies ( es, Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias, link=no, ), was the most important administrative organ of the Spanish Empire for the Amer ...

. In 1524

Hernán Cortés Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca (; ; 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of w ...

had learned of the rebellion of Cristóbal de Olid in Honduras and abandoned his governorship of New Spain to treasury officials to head to Honduras. During his absence the governorship was chaotically shared among rival pro-Cortés and anti-Cortés factions in the treasury. Eventually rumors arrived in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

and in Spain that Cortés had died along the way to Honduras. King Charles I ordered a ''

juicio de residencia A ''juicio de residencia'' (literally, ''judgment of residence'') was a judicial procedure of Castilian law and the Laws of the Indies. It consisted of this: at the termination of a public functionary's term, his performance in office was subject ...

'' (a commission of inquiry) to investigate Cortés and ascertain the true situation in the colony, and the state of the interim government. To carry out these orders, Charles named Luis Ponce de León as judge of the ''residencia'' and governor of New Spain, at an annual salary of 3,000 ducats of gold. Ponce de León sailed from

Sanlúcar de Barrameda Sanlúcar de Barrameda (), or simply Sanlúcar, is a city in the northwest of Cádiz province, part of the autonomous community of Andalucía in southern Spain. Sanlúcar is located on the left bank at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River opposit ...

on February 2, 1526. In May, Cortés returned to Mexico City and resumed his governorship. Ponce was detained in Hispaniola until May 31, 1526, for repairs to his ship, arriving in Mexico City in June, He presented himself to the ayuntamiento (city government) on July 5, 1526. He carried with him the decree from Toledo dated November 4, 1525 granting him the powers, and Cortés stepped aside to honor the royal decree. Ponce de León left all the officials of the ayuntamiento in their positions. He was about 65 years old and ill with fever contracted on his arrival in

Veracruz Veracruz (), formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave), is one of the 31 states which, along with Me ...

. The fever had continued through the 12-day journey to the capital and did not let up even after his arrival there. After taking office, he retired from public occupations and soon died. Before his death he turned over his functions to

Marcos de Aguilar Marcos de Aguilar (died March 1, 1527) was briefly royal governor of New Spain (from July 16, 1526 to March 1, 1527). Marcos de Aguilar was born in Seville, Spain, and was a ''licenciado''. He served in various judicial capacities in Seville. Be ...

, his assistant who had accompanied him to the colony. Aguilar also had a royal appointment. He took over the government on July 16, 1526. Four days later Ponce de León died. He was interred in the first parish church in Mexico City, facing the Plaza Mayor. Aguilar, also aged, also died after governing only a short while. Cortés was suspected of poisoning the two royal officials.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ponce De Leon, Luis Colonial Mexico 1526 deaths 16th-century Mexican people Year of birth unknown