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TheNew Laws (Spanish:Leyes Nuevas), also known as theNew Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians,[1] were issued on November 20, 1542, byCharles V, Holy Roman Emperor (King Charles I ofSpain) and regard theSpanish colonization of the Americas. Following denunciations and calls for reform from individuals, such as the Dominican friarBartolomé de Las Casas, these laws were intended to prevent the exploitation and mistreatment of theindigenous peoples of the Americas by theencomenderos, by limiting their power and dominion over groups of natives.[2]
Blasco Núñez Vela, the firstViceroy of Peru, enforced the New Laws. He was opposed by a revolt ofencomenderos and was killed in 1546 by the landowning faction led byGonzalo Pizarro. Pizarro wanted to maintain a political structure built upon the Incan model theSpanish found in place. Although the New Laws were only partly successful, due to the opposition of colonists, they did result in the liberation of thousands of indigenous workers, who had been held in a state of semi-slavery.
The New Laws were the results of a reform movement in reaction to what were considered to be the less effective, decades-oldLeyes de Burgos (Laws of Burgos), issued by KingFerdinand II of Aragon on December 27, 1512.[3] These laws were the first intended to regulate relations between the Spanish and the recently conquered indigenous peoples of the New World. These are regarded as the firsthumanitarian laws in the New World. They were not fully implemented because of opposition by powerful colonists.
While some encomenderos opposed the restrictions imposed by the laws as against their interests, others were opposed because they believed the laws institutionalized the system of forced Indian labor. During the reign of King Charles I, the reformers gained strength. A number of Spanish missionaries argued for stricter rules, includingBartolomé de las Casas andFrancisco de Vitoria. Their goal was to protect the Indians against forced labor and expropriation, and to preserve their cultures. Some discussions challenged the very legitimacy of the conquest and colonization.
Eventually, the reformists influenced the King and his court to pass reforms that came to be known as theNew Laws.
Some of these laws were redundant. Some established protections and rights for Native Americans that native Spaniards did not have themselves.[citation needed] Given the distance from the colonies and the time needed to travel between there and Spain, the Crown was unable to fully monitor compliance with the more ambiguous laws.[citation needed]
The main examples are the cases of slavery andencomiendas. The new laws included the prohibition of enslavement of the Indians and provided for gradual abolition of theencomienda system in America by forbidding it to be inherited by descendants. The New Laws stated that the natives would be considered free persons, and theencomenderos could no longer demand their labour.
The prohibition against enslaving Indians "in any case, not even crime or war",[citation needed] was a right that did not apply to native Castilians themselves.[citation needed] The enslavement of Native Americans had been declared illegal in Castile in 1501, whenIsabella I declared native Americans to be both people and subjects of the Castilian crown, and so subject to the same rights and obligations as any other subject of the queen. Under those regulations, slavery was permitted almost exclusively as a penalty for a serious crime or some exceptional circumstances. Granting extra protection for Native Americans was an attempt by the crown to address its inability to monitor, from Spain, the legitimacy of the claims regarding reasons to enslave a person in the New World, and it acknowledged that false claims could be fabricated to enslave and exploit the native peoples.
The introduction and corruption of theencomienda system is now considered to have been an alternative for outright slavery and a Castilian institution that did not work properly in America. Theencomienda was a system that interchanged a person's work for military protection by a higher authority. It had been part of the Castilian legal system since the Reconquista. Given the limited size of the Crown's army, this system allowed nobles or warlords to trade protection for the labor of persons under their purview. It was a way to aid in ensuring the safety of the population of the border areas during the repopulation of the no-man's-land between Castile and the southern Muslim areas. It required either the consent of both parties or the direct intervention of the king, who was responsible for setting reasonable conditions for the parties and to intervene (militarily if required) in case of abuses.[5]
In America, however, colonists used encomiendas to create conditions similar to slavery in areas that did not require such protection. Authorities other than the king claimed the right to assign encomiendas and assigned the most unpleasant or dangerous jobs to the natives.
The New Laws established more specific regulations or stipulated the conditions under the Crown's authority:
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The King promulgated theNew Laws in 1542. In addition to regulating encomienda and treatment of Indians, they reorganized the overseas colonial administration. Several General Captainships were established, such as the Kingdom of Guatemala, to create another level of Crown authority in the colony.
When the New Laws were passed, every European man holding an encomienda in Peru learned that his grant of labor could be confiscated if he was guilty of having taken part in the civil disturbances ofFrancisco Pizarro andDiego de Almagro. As a result, privileged Spanish colonists were disturbed about implementing the New Laws. In Peru,Gonzalo Pizarro led a revolt of protesting encomenderos, who took to arms to "maintain their rights by force" for control of Indian lands and labor.
The Supreme Court of Peru invited Pizarro to take control of the government after his forces reached Lima from Bolivia. Pizarro took overLima andQuito (now in Ecuador). Viceroy Blasco Núñez Vela, who had attempted to impose the decrees, was overthrown. Pizarro and his army killed Núñez Vela in 1546. Pizarro's power stretched from Peru north to Panama. Charles I and the court became alarmed, and were convinced that the immediate abolition of theencomienda system would bring economic ruin to the colonies. To deal with the revolt, Charles I sentPedro de la Gasca to the colony; a bishop and diplomat, he did not command an army but was given full powers to rule and negotiate a settlement with Pizarro and his followers. However, Pizarro declared Peru independent from the King. La Gasca provisionally suspended the New Laws. Pizarro was later captured and executed, accused of being a "traitor to the King."[citation needed]
Although inNew Spain (nowMexico), the initial reaction ofencomenderos was noncompliance, they did not organize a rebellion as in Peru. New Spain's first viceroy,Antonio de Mendoza, prudently refrained from enforcing the parts of the New Laws most objectionable to theencomenderos.[6] Over time, theencomenderos complied with most aspects of the laws. Most already maintained a horse and arms in case of Indian rebellion, and had established a residence in a Spanish settlement. They hired priests to minister to the Indians whose labor was granted to them. While they were not allowed to retain theirencomiendas in perpetuity, they were permitted to bequeath the properties and labor once. They allowed Indians to fulfill obligations by payment of tribute, often in produce. The dramatic declines in Indian population due to epidemic disease, however, resulted in economic losses for theencomenderos.[7]
In 1545, the Crown revoked the inheritance restriction of the New Laws.[8][9] By strengthening the power of theencomenderos, theencomienda system was made secure. While the New Laws were partly successful, they did result in the liberation of thousands of indigenous workers from enforced servitude.[citation needed]
Most of the ordinances of the New Laws were later incorporated into the general corpus of theLaws of the Indies. In some cases they were superseded by newer laws. A weaker version of the New Laws was issued in 1552.[citation needed]