Juan Ramírez de Velasco (c.1539 – 1597) was a Spanish conquistador of

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and

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. Founder of the province of

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Biography

Juan Ramírez de Velasco was born in the village of Estollo, son of a noble family of Castile, and descendant of the King of Navarre Ramiro Sánchez. In 1570 Ramirez was married in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

with Catherine de Ugarte, a Spanish noblewoman, daughter of Pedro Santiago de Ugarte and Ana de Velasco.

Career

In his youth Ramírez fought in

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and

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during the

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. Arrived in

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Ramirez was appointed governor of Tucumán by

Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...

to replace

Hernando de Lerma Hernando de Lerma Polanco (born November 1, 1541) was a conqueror, politician, lawyer and city founder from Salta, Argentina. On November 13, 1577, Lerma was named Governor of Tucumán, (in present Argentina) by Spanish King Philip II. Descr ...

. Ramírez served in the government of Tucuman between 1586-1593. In 1588 being the governor of Tucumán Juan Ramirez de Velasco made expeditions against the Indians in calchaquí valley and won the allegiance of a son of Juan Calchaquí. Shortly after he founded the city of Todos los Santos de la Nueva Rioja. In 1592 he founded the city of Madrid de las Juntas in the present department Metán. In 1594 Juan Ramírez Velasco was appointed commander of the

Governorate of the Rio de la Plata A governorate or governate is an administrative division headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states or provinces, the term ''governorate'' is typically used to calque divisions of ...

a position he held between 1595-1597. He was replaced by

Hernando Arias de Saavedra Hernando Arias de Saavedra (10 September 1561 – 1634), commonly known as Hernandarias, was a soldier and politician of Spanish Criollo peoples, criollo ancestry. He was the first person born in the Americas to become a governor of a European c ...

. Juan Ramirez de Velasco died in February 1597 in the City of Santa Fe, Argentina.

Notes

External links

www.portaldesalta.gov.ar
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramirez de Velasco, Juan 1530s births 1597 deaths Governors of Paraguay People from Santa Fe, Argentina People from La Rioja Province, Argentina Castilian conquistadors Governors of the Río de la Plata