In the 1960s Lewis Hanke outlined the ambitious goal of compiling documentation about the viceroys of New Spain and Peru during the years of Hapsburg rule. After more than a decade’s labor, the last of twelve volumes containing the promised material has appeared, thus making available sources cited earlier in his Guía de las fuentes en el Archivo General de Indias (reviewed in HAHR, May 1978).
Hanke has provided about 1,600 pages on the viceroys of New Spain and just over 2,000 pages on those of Peru. Five volumes are devoted to Mexico’s viceroys from the celebrated Antonio de Mendoza to the Conde de Moctezuma, whose rule ended in 1701. Seven volumes carry the viceroys of Peru from the ill-fated Blasco Núñez Vela to the close of the Conde de Monclova’s tenure in 1705.
The purpose of the volumes is to make available to scholars extensive, detailed information concerning the Hapsburg era rather than a history of the times or a systematic study of viceregal administration. The documents selected reveal much about the viceroys and the regions they administered as well as the Crown’s attitudes toward the colonies and their most highly ranked officials. Fascinating material on colonial society, economy, and government appears throughout. A brief bibliographic essay, and comments on the sources presented, precedes the documentation for each viceroy. References to previously published documents concerning the viceroy and published archival material in the General Archive of the Indies appear as appendixes. Both are helpful aids to scholars.
Among the documents published are royal instructions, relaciones the viceroys prepared, charges levied against viceroys, and sentences by the Council of the Indies. The documentation is necessarily uneven, for not all viceroys received detailed instructions, left relaciones, or were subjected to residencias. Varied tenures in office further affected the sources they left. Consequently, the materials published differ widely from viceroy to viceroy. For example, Pedro Nuño Colón de Portugal, Duque de Veragua, died in Mexico five days after assuming office. The single document of his tenure is the instructions he received. In contrast to four pages for Veragua, Hanke devoted more than 135 pages to Viceroys Conde de Monterrey (Mexico, 1595-1603), Marqués de Gelves (Mexico, 1621-24), Conde de Castellar (Peru, 1674-78), and the Marqués de Mancera (Peru, 1639-48), and more than 450 pages to Melchor de Navarra y Rocafull, Duque de la Palata (Peru, 1681-89). He has provided documentation as well for interim administrations, whether served by individuals or by the audiencias of Mexico or Lima.
The material presented in these volumes is rich and rewarding and separate name and location indexes for each set further enhance their use. Scholars will appreciate the material’s utility in their research as well as in the preparation of lectures for the classroom. Professor Hanke deserves commendation for successfully executing this massive project.
