Juan de Mendoza y Luna, 3rd Marquis of Montesclaros (January, 1571 – October 9, 1628) was a Spanish nobleman, man of letters, and the tenth viceroy of New Spain. He governed from October 27, 1603 to July 2, 1607. Thereafter he was viceroy of

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

, from December 21, 1607 to December 18, 1615. After returning to Spain, he became advisor to the king and a high official in the Court.

Youth and early career

Juan de Mendoza y Luna was born in Guadalajara in January 1571. He was the posthumous son of the 2nd Marqués de Montesclaros. He was raised by his mother, Isabel Manrique de Padilla. He served with distinction in the army of the Duke of Alba in the Portuguese campaign, as a captain of lancers. For his service, he was awarded the Order of Caballero de Santiago in 1591. Later he was governor of

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

, where he first became acquainted with the affairs of the Indies. On May 19, 1603 the Crown named him viceroy of New Spain.

As viceroy of New Spain

He made his formal entry into

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

on October 26, 1603, accompanied by his wife Ana de Mendoza, and assumed the reins of government. He immediately accused his predecessor, Gaspar de Zúñiga y Acevedo, Count of Monterrey of excessive spending and of exceeding his authority. Plans to colonize Alta California in the wake of

Sebastián Vizcaíno Sebastián Vizcaíno (1548–1624) was a Spanish soldier, entrepreneur, explorer, and diplomat whose varied roles took him to New Spain, the Baja California peninsula, the California coast and Asia. Early career Vizcaíno was born in 154 ...

's exploration were cancelled. In August 1604 there was another major inundation of Mexico City. Damage was extensive. The viceroy initially suggested moving the capital to the nearby hills of

Tacubaya Tacubaya is a working-class area of west-central Mexico City, in the borough of Miguel Hidalgo, consisting of the '' colonia'' Tacubaya proper and adjacent areas in other colonias, with San Miguel Chapultepec sección II, Observatorio, Daniel Ga ...

, but this was deemed too expensive. Then he decided to finish the drainage canal of Huehuetoca, but this was a project requiring many years and the labor of 15,000 Indians to complete. In the meantime he repaired the dikes constructed under Viceroy

Luís de Velasco Luis de Velasco y Ruiz de Alarcón (1511 – July 31, 1564) was the second viceroy of New Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the mid-sixteenth century. Biography Velasco was born in the town of Carrión de los C ...

, at the same time paving the streets of San Antonio Abad, Chapultepec, San Cristóbal and Guadalupe. Nevertheless, parts of the city remained submerged for a year. Mendoza y Luna also constructed an aqueduct on stone arches that conducted water from the springs on

Chapultepec Chapultepec, more commonly called the "Bosque de Chapultepec" (Chapultepec Forest) in Mexico City, is one of the largest city parks in Mexico, measuring in total just over 686 hectares (1,695 acres). Centered on a rock formation called Chapultep ...

to the center of the city. He cleaned the water channels and paved many streets with cobbles. He lifted restrictions on Indians returning to their land to live.

Later career and death

On November 20, 1606, Mendoza y Luna was named

viceroy of Peru The viceroys of Peru ruled the Viceroyalty of Peru from 1544 to 1824 in the name of the monarch of Spain. The territories under ''de jure'' rule by the viceroys included in the 16th and 17th century almost all of South America except eastern Braz ...

, with instructions to remain in New Spain until the arrival of his successor. The new viceroy, Luis de Velasco, 1st Marquess of Salinas del Río Pisuerga, arrived in July of the following year, and Mendoza sailed from Acapulco for

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of ...

in that month. He served as viceroy of Peru until 1615. During his government in Lima the famous Stone Bridge and the Alameda de los Descalzos of that city were built. He returned to Spain the following year, and served as counselor of state and of war. Subsequently, he was president of the council of Hacienda (treasury), and also of the council of Aragon. In 1621 King Philip IV made him a grandee of Spain. He died in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...

on October 9, 1628, at the age of 57.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * * García Puron, Manuel, ''México y sus gobernantes'', v. 1. Mexico City: Joaquín Porrua, 1984. * Orozco L., Fernando, ''Fechas Históricas de México''. Mexico City: Panorama Editorial, 1988, . * Orozco Linares, Fernando, ''Gobernantes de México''. Mexico City: Panorama Editorial, 1985, .

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendoza y Luna, Juan de, Marquis of Montesclaros 1571 births 1628 deaths Viceroys of New Spain Viceroys of Peru Spanish colonial governors and administrators Marquesses of Spain Knights of Santiago