New Laws
Encyclopedia
The New Laws, in Spanish
Leyes Nuevas, issued November 20, 1542 by King Charles V
of Spain regarding the Spanish colonization of the Americas
, are also known as the "New Laws of the Indies
for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians", and were created to prevent the exploitation of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas
by the Encomenderos
(large enterprise landowners) by strictly limiting their power and dominion.
Blasco Núñez Vela
, the first Viceroy of Peru tried to enforce The New Laws which caused the encomenderos to revolt in a large scale rebellion in which he was killed by the landowning faction lead by Gonzalo Pizarro
. Having seen the effects of the New Laws in the Viceroyalty of Peru, Antonio Mendoza, Viceroy of New Spain
decided not to enforce the New Laws in his territories, in order to avoid conflict with the encomenderos. In this way due to massive pressure from the landowning classes the New Laws were never implemented in the two largest colonies of the Spanish Empire.
(Laws of Burgos), issued by King Ferdinand II of Aragon
on December 27, 1512. These laws were the first set of rules created to control relations between the Spaniards and the recently conquered indigenous people
, but they appeared to have simply legalized the system of forced Indian labor. During the reign of King Charles V
, the reformers gained steam, with Spanish missionary Bartolomé de las Casas
as a notable leading advocate. His goal was the abolition of the encomienda
system, which forced the Indians to abandon their previous lifestyle and homelands, and destroyed their culture and traditions. He was able to influence the King, and the fruit of the reformers' labor was the New Laws. His active role in the reform movement earned Bartolomé de las Casas the nickname, "Defender of the Indians".
system, including its solemn prohibition of the enslavement of the Indians and provisions for the gradual abolition of the encomienda system. The New Laws stated that the natives would be considered free persons, and the encomenderos could no longer demand their labor. The natives were only required to pay the encomenderos tribute, and if they worked, they would be paid wages in exchange for their labor. The laws also prohibited the sending of indigenous people to work in the mines unless it was absolutely necessary, and required that they be taxed fairly and treated well. It ordered public officials or clergy with encomienda grants to return them immediately to the Crown, and stated that encomienda grants would not be hereditarily passed on, but would be canceled at the death of the individual encomenderos.
and Almagro. As a result, the promulgation of the New Laws caused great unrest in the Spanish Americas
, leading to a revolt in Peru, led by Gonzalo Pizarro
. Pizarro headed protesting landowners who took to arms in order to "maintain their rights by force."
Gonzalo Pizarro was invited by the Supreme Court to assume control over its government after marching from Bolivia to Lima with his troops. Pizarro forced himself upon Lima and Quito. The revolt led to the overthrow of Viceroy Blasco Núñez Vela
, who had attempted to impose the decrees. Pizarro and his army defeated and killed Núñez Vela in 1546. Pizarro's power stretched all the way to Panama. Charles V and the court became alarmed and were convinced that the immediate abolition of the encomienda system would bring economic ruin to the colonies. To deal with the revolt, Charles V sent Pedro de la Gasca
, a bishop and diplomat in the service of the king, without an army but with full powers to rule and negotiate a settlement. However, Pizarro declared Peru independent from the King. La Gasca saw fit to suspend the New Laws. Pizarro was later captured and "executed as a traitor of the King."
Most of the ordinances of the New Laws went on to be incorporated into the general corpus of the Laws of the Indies
, except where they were superseded by newer laws.
A weaker issue of the New Laws was issued in 1552.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
Leyes Nuevas, issued November 20, 1542 by King Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
of Spain regarding the Spanish colonization of the Americas
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, are also known as the "New Laws of the Indies
Laws of the Indies
The Laws of the Indies are the entire body of laws issued by the Spanish Crown for its American and Philippine possessions of its empire. They regulated social, political and economic life in these areas...
for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians", and were created to prevent the exploitation of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
by the Encomenderos
Encomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
(large enterprise landowners) by strictly limiting their power and dominion.
Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela y Villalba was the first Spanish viceroy of Peru, from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546. He was charged by King Charles I with the enforcement of the controversial New Laws, which dealt with the failure of the encomienda system to protect the indigenous people of America from the...
, the first Viceroy of Peru tried to enforce The New Laws which caused the encomenderos to revolt in a large scale rebellion in which he was killed by the landowning faction lead by Gonzalo Pizarro
Gonzalo Pizarro
Gonzalo Pizarro y Alonso was a Spanish conquistador and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca Empire...
. Having seen the effects of the New Laws in the Viceroyalty of Peru, Antonio Mendoza, Viceroy of New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
decided not to enforce the New Laws in his territories, in order to avoid conflict with the encomenderos. In this way due to massive pressure from the landowning classes the New Laws were never implemented in the two largest colonies of the Spanish Empire.
Origins
The New Laws were the results of a reform movement spurred by what was seen as the failure of the decades-old Leyes de BurgosLeyes de Burgos
The Leyes de Burgos , promulgated on December 27, 1512 in Burgos, Kingdom of Castile , was the first codified set of laws governing the behavior of Spaniards in the Americas, particularly with regards to the Indigenous peoples of the Americas ...
(Laws of Burgos), issued by King Ferdinand II of Aragon
Ferdinand II of Aragon
Ferdinand the Catholic was King of Aragon , Sicily , Naples , Valencia, Sardinia, and Navarre, Count of Barcelona, jure uxoris King of Castile and then regent of that country also from 1508 to his death, in the name of...
on December 27, 1512. These laws were the first set of rules created to control relations between the Spaniards and the recently conquered indigenous people
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, but they appeared to have simply legalized the system of forced Indian labor. During the reign of King Charles V
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 and, as Charles I, of the Spanish Empire from 1516 until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I and his son Philip II in 1556.As...
, the reformers gained steam, with Spanish missionary Bartolomé de las Casas
Bartolomé de Las Casas
Bartolomé de las Casas O.P. was a 16th-century Spanish historian, social reformer and Dominican friar. He became the first resident Bishop of Chiapas, and the first officially appointed "Protector of the Indians"...
as a notable leading advocate. His goal was the abolition of the encomienda
Encomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
system, which forced the Indians to abandon their previous lifestyle and homelands, and destroyed their culture and traditions. He was able to influence the King, and the fruit of the reformers' labor was the New Laws. His active role in the reform movement earned Bartolomé de las Casas the nickname, "Defender of the Indians".
Contents
The New Laws consisted of many regulations on the encomiendaEncomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
system, including its solemn prohibition of the enslavement of the Indians and provisions for the gradual abolition of the encomienda system. The New Laws stated that the natives would be considered free persons, and the encomenderos could no longer demand their labor. The natives were only required to pay the encomenderos tribute, and if they worked, they would be paid wages in exchange for their labor. The laws also prohibited the sending of indigenous people to work in the mines unless it was absolutely necessary, and required that they be taxed fairly and treated well. It ordered public officials or clergy with encomienda grants to return them immediately to the Crown, and stated that encomienda grants would not be hereditarily passed on, but would be canceled at the death of the individual encomenderos.
Resistance
When the New Laws were passed, every European man in Peru learned that his allotment of land and Indians could be confiscated if he was guilty of having taken part in the civil disturbances of Francisco PizarroFrancisco Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess was a Spanish conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire, and founder of Lima, the modern-day capital of the Republic of Peru.-Early life:...
and Almagro. As a result, the promulgation of the New Laws caused great unrest in the Spanish Americas
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Colonial expansion under the Spanish Empire was initiated by the Spanish conquistadores and developed by the Monarchy of Spain through its administrators and missionaries. The motivations for colonial expansion were trade and the spread of the Christian faith through indigenous conversions...
, leading to a revolt in Peru, led by Gonzalo Pizarro
Gonzalo Pizarro
Gonzalo Pizarro y Alonso was a Spanish conquistador and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca Empire...
. Pizarro headed protesting landowners who took to arms in order to "maintain their rights by force."
Gonzalo Pizarro was invited by the Supreme Court to assume control over its government after marching from Bolivia to Lima with his troops. Pizarro forced himself upon Lima and Quito. The revolt led to the overthrow of Viceroy Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela
Blasco Núñez Vela y Villalba was the first Spanish viceroy of Peru, from May 15, 1544 to January 18, 1546. He was charged by King Charles I with the enforcement of the controversial New Laws, which dealt with the failure of the encomienda system to protect the indigenous people of America from the...
, who had attempted to impose the decrees. Pizarro and his army defeated and killed Núñez Vela in 1546. Pizarro's power stretched all the way to Panama. Charles V and the court became alarmed and were convinced that the immediate abolition of the encomienda system would bring economic ruin to the colonies. To deal with the revolt, Charles V sent Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca was a Spanish bishop, diplomat and the second viceroy of Peru, from April 10, 1547 to January 27, 1550....
, a bishop and diplomat in the service of the king, without an army but with full powers to rule and negotiate a settlement. However, Pizarro declared Peru independent from the King. La Gasca saw fit to suspend the New Laws. Pizarro was later captured and "executed as a traitor of the King."
Legacy
Finally, in 1545, the rule stating that the encomienda system would no longer be hereditary was revoked, and the place of the encomienda system was again secure. Although the New Laws were largely unsuccessful, they did result in the liberation of thousands of indigenous workers.Most of the ordinances of the New Laws went on to be incorporated into the general corpus of the Laws of the Indies
Laws of the Indies
The Laws of the Indies are the entire body of laws issued by the Spanish Crown for its American and Philippine possessions of its empire. They regulated social, political and economic life in these areas...
, except where they were superseded by newer laws.
A weaker issue of the New Laws was issued in 1552.