The New Laws (or Leyes Nuevas in Spanish) of 1542 (of King Carlos I), also known as the "New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Presevation of the Indians" were created to prevent the exploitation of the indigenous people by the encomenderos, or landowners, by strictly limiting their power, during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. They were enforced by Blasco Núñez Vela, the first viceroy of Peru, who quickly became unpopular among the encomenderos and fled to Quito to escape a large revolt.
The laws were the results of a reform movement spurred by what was seen as the failure of the decades-old Leyes de Burgos (or Laws of Burgos), issued by Ferdinand II (Catholic) 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 Carlos I, 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 destroyed their culture. 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 Las Casas the nickname, "Defender of the Indians".
The New Laws consisted of many regulations on the encomienda 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 men, 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.
When the New Laws were passed, every white 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 Pizarro and Almagro. As a result, the promulgation of the New Laws caused great unrest in Spanish America, 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. King Carlos and the court became alarmed, and were convinced that the abolition of the encomienda system would bring economic ruin to the colonies. To deal with the revolt, King Carlos sent a priest with absolute power. However, Pizarro declared Peru independent from the King. The priest suspended the New Laws and Pizarro was "executed as a traitor of the King." 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 slaves.
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.
See also
References
- Kenneth J. Andrien, Andean Worlds, 2001
- Joseph Pérez. Historia de España ISBN 84-8432-091-X
- Spain. The New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians. New York: AMS Press, 1971. ISBN 0-404-06159-1 Facsimile edition of a London, Chiswick Press, 1893 edition by Henry Stevens and Fred W. Lucas.
- Crow, John A. (1992). The Epic of Latin America. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-07723-2.
- "Laws of the Indies". Encyclopedia Britannica Online. http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9042315. Retrieved 2008-11-03.
- "Pizarro, Gonzalo." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 6 Nov. 2008 <http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9060257>.
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