The Governorate of New Andalusia was a Spanish Governorate of the

Crown of Castile The Crown of Castile was a medieval polity in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and, some decades later, the parliaments of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Castile, Castile and Kingd ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

which existed between 1534 and 1542.

History

The governorate was created as one of King

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

's grants of 1534, establishing the ''

adelantado ''Adelantado'' (, , ; meaning 'advanced') was a title held by some Spain, Spanish nobles in service of their respective kings during the Middle Ages. It was later used as a military title held by some Spanish ''conquistadores'' of the 15th, 16th a ...

'' Pedro de Mendoza as its first

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

, captain general, and chief justice. The territory was described as extending 200 leagues down the Pacific coast from Diego de Almagro's grant of New Toledo, but was understood to involve the exploration, pacification, and settlement of the

Río de la Plata The Río de la Plata (; ), also called the River Plate or La Plata River in English, is the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River at Punta Gorda, Colonia, Punta Gorda. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean and ...

along the Atlantic. While in theory the Governorate of New Andalusia included all of present-day

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

and large segments of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, the ''adelantados'' were only able to effectively colonize the

Paraná River The Paraná River ( ; ; ) is a river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina for some ."Parana River". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. ...

, losing other territories to subsequent grants.

Disestablishment

After the establishment of the

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru (), officially known as the Kingdom of Peru (), was a Monarchy of Spain, Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in ...

in 1542, the Governorate of New Andalusia was replaced by the Governorate of the Río de la Plata, under the supervision of the Real Audiencia of Lima.

Governorates in Hispanic America

After the territorial division of South America between Spain and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, the Peruvian Hispanic administration was divided into six entities: *

Province of Tierra Firme During Spain's New World Empire, its mainland coastal possessions surrounding the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico were referred to collectively as the Spanish Main. The southern portion of these coastal possessionsthe northern portion of ...

, included the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

Coast, Central America, the Pacific Coast of Colombia and Mexico. *

Governorate of New Castile The Governorate of New Castile (''Gobernación de Nueva Castilla'', ) was the gubernatorial region administered to Francisco Pizarro in 1529 by King Charles I of Spain, of which he was appointed governor. The region roughly consisted of mode ...

, consisting of the territories from roughly the

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

ian-

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

n border in the north to

Cuzco Cusco or Cuzco (; or , ) is a city in southeastern Peru, near the Sacred Valley of the Andes mountain range and the Huatanay river. It is the capital of the eponymous province and department. The city was the capital of the Inca Empire unti ...

in the south. * Governorate of New Toledo, forming the previous southern half of the Inca empire, stretching towards central

. *Governorate of New Andalusia, which was not formally conquered by Spain until decades later. * Governorate of New León, the southernmost part of the continent until the

Strait of Magellan The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natura ...

. * Governorate of Terra Australis, territories from the south of the Strait of Magellan to the

South Pole The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is the point in the Southern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True South Pole to distinguish ...

. This territorial division set the basis for the Hispanic administration of South America for several decades. It was formally dissolved in 1544, when King Charles I sent his personal envoy,

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 ...

, to govern the newly founded

that replaced the governorates.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:New Andalusia, Governorate of Governorates of the Spanish Empire Former colonies in South America Former Spanish colonies Former political divisions related to Argentina Spanish colonization of the Americas Colonial Argentina Colonial Brazil * Colonial Peru Colonial Uruguay 1530s in South America 1540s in South America States and territories established in 1534 1534 establishments in South America 1534 establishments in the Spanish Empire States and territories disestablished in 1549 1549 disestablishments in South America 1549 disestablishments in the Spanish Empire History of South America

History

Disestablishment

Governorates in Hispanic America

See also

References