The Toledo Reforms were a series of reforms implemented by Francisco Álvarez de Toledo to

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

's policies in the

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed fro ...

in the 1570s. The years 1533–1569 were considered the years of crisis and turmoil in the Viceroyalty of Peru. During these years there were several problems that emerged and that needed serious attention. The Spanish conquistadors found it hard to maintain order in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

. The problems that emerged during this time were the New Laws of 1542 that were established by

Blasco Núñez Vela Blasco Núñez Vela (c. 1490 – January 18, 1546) was the first Spanish viceroy of South America ("Viceroyalty of Peru"). Serving from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546, he was charged by Charles V with the enforcement of the controversial N ...

and the weakening of the '' encomienda'' system. These laws were established to put an end to the exploitation of

Amerindian The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples. Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...

s by the establishment of a fair

taxation A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, o ...

system. This angered the Spaniards because they felt that it was a direct interference in the lands that they won by force and because the laws hurt them from an economical standpoint. The weakening of the ''encomienda'' system also hurt the Spaniards economically. The New Laws reverted the encomienda to the King from the original holders who, had originally, wanted to pass them onto their descendants creating an almost aristocratic lineage. However, the King did not want their power and desire for it to get out of check. This system was weakened by competition from other Spanish economic ventures, tax and labor burdens of the ''encomenderos'', and the spread of European epidemic diseases amongst the Andean peoples. This economic crisis needed serious attention. To deal with the emerging problems, King Philip II of Spain named Francisco de Toledo, as the new Viceroy of Peru in 1568. During his twelve-year rule, he established reforms that he felt would deal with the economic crisis in the Andes. Francisco de Toledo's reforms dealt with 3 key issues. The first was organizing the indigenous peoples into large towns called ''reducciones''. The ''reducciones'' were then divided into 614 administrative districts called ''

repartimiento The ''Repartimiento'' () (Spanish, "distribution, partition, or division") was a colonial labor system imposed upon the indigenous population of Spanish America. In concept, it was similar to other tribute-labor systems, such as the ''mit'a'' of t ...

s''. Each ''repartimiento'' was headed by a ''

kuraka A ''kuraka'' ( Quechua for the principal governor of a province or a communal authority in the Tawantinsuyu), or curaca (hispanicized spelling), was an official of the Inca Empire who held the role of magistrate, about four levels down from the S ...

''. The second issue was imposing a regularized system of taxation which was the tribute tax. The tax amount was very high. The tribute was to be paid by all indigenous males between the ages of 18 and 50 and the amount to be paid was based on the social status of the payer. The ''kurakas'' were exempt from paying the tribute and were responsible for collecting the tribute. The final issue was the establishment of a system of forced labor called the '' mita''. The forced labor was used to work in the mercury and silver mines 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 ...

and

Upper Peru Upper Peru (; ) is a name for the land that was governed by the Real Audiencia of Charcas. The name originated in Buenos Aires towards the end of the 18th century after the Audiencia of Charcas was transferred from the Viceroyalty of Peru to t ...

. This system was established so that the wealth gained from these mines could be transferred to

References

*Kenneth J. Andrien, ''Andean Worlds'', 2001 Encomenderos Spanish colonization of the Americas Viceroyalty of Peru History of South America