Features of Formation and Functioning of the Spanish Colonial Administration in America During the 16^th and 17^th Centuries

Abstract

The problem of revising the colonial past of countries and continents sparks great interest due to the «left-wing» agenda in international relations and the ever-increasing role of territories that were formerly dependent, such as India, South Africa, Brazil, Mexico, etc. Anticolonial narrative is again in the focus of scientific discussions. The controversy around the increasing demands on the former metropolises, including Spain, about «repentance», return of cultural property and compensation for abuses committed by the colonizers in the distant past is particularly acute. During the exploration of new lands during the 16th and 17th centuries the Spanish faced the challenge of managing vast territories with heterogeneous indigenous populations. The solution to this problem lay in the creation of an effective system of authorities, which throughout the 16th and 17th centuries was continuously modified and became more complex. Seeking to create a bureaucracy similar to that of Castile, the colonizers brought to America not only its advantages, but also its faults. Indigenous peoples’ traditional systems of government were either replaced by European systems or incorporated into the new pyramid of power as the lowest echelon. The administrative situation of that period can be classified as juridical pluralism. The administration and management of overseas territories was carried out by specially established government agencies, i.e. the Council of the Indies and Casa de Contratación. Local administration was entrusted to viceroys, captain-generals, governors, and Audiencias. The basic unit of the Spanish living in the New World was the urban municipality around which everyday life was built. Creoles became an increasingly influential and ambitious political force in society. The 16th and 17th centuries formed the premises that brought about the creation of independent states in the Americas after the collapse of Spain’s colonial rule.

Keywords

• colony
• metropolitan country
• government
• authorities
• exploitation
• indigenous peoples
• municipality
• viceroyalty