Governorate of New Andalusia

For the Caribbean coastal colony, see Governorate of New Andalusia (1501–1513).

The Governorate of New Andalusia was a Spanish Governorate of the Crown of Castile in South America which existed between 1534 and 1617.

Governorate of New Andalucía of Río de la Plata Gobernación de Nueva Andalucía
1534–1617
Cross of Burgundy
The adelantado grants of Charles V prior to the establishment of the Viceroyalty of Peru.
Status	Governorate of the Crown of Castile
Capital	Asunción
Official languages	Spanish
Religion	Catholicism
Government	Monarchy
King
Historical era	Spanish Empire
• Created with the name "Governorate of New Andalusia"	1534
• Divided in Governorate of Paraguay and Governorate of the Río de la Plata	1617
Currency	Escudo
Preceded by Succeeded by Inca Empire Guaraní people Diaguita Indigenous peoples in Argentina Indigenous peoples in Paraguay Captaincy General of Chile Governorate of the Río de la Plata Governorate of Paraguay

History

The governorate was created as one of King Charles V's grants of 1534, establishing the adelantado Pedro de Mendoza as its first governor, 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 along the Atlantic.

While in theory the Governorate of New Andalusia included all of present-day Uruguay and Paraguay and large segments of Chile, Argentina and Brazil, the adelantados were only able to effectively colonize the Paraná River, losing other territories to subsequent grants.

Disestablishment

After the establishment of the Viceroyalty of Peru 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, the Peruvian Hispanic administration was divided into six entities:

• Province of Tierra Firme, included the Caribbean Coast, Central America, the Pacific Coast of Colombia and Mexico.
• Governorate of New Castile, consisting of the territories from roughly the Ecuadorian-Colombian border in the north to Cuzco in the south.
• Governorate of New Toledo, forming the previous southern half of the Inca empire, stretching towards central Chile.
• 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.
• Governorate of Terra Australis, territories from the south of the Strait of Magellan to the South Pole.

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, to govern the newly founded Viceroyalty of Peru that replaced the governorates.

See also

• Colonial Argentina
• Governorate of New Andalusia (1501–13) — in the colonial Venezuela region.
• India Juliana
• New Andalusia Province, or Province of Cumaná (1537–1864) — in the colonial Venezuela region.