New Spain in the years following the…

New Spain in the years following the conquest of Central Mexico by Hernán Cortés had been governed by a military government, generally with the objectives of maximizing personal economic gains by the Spanish conquistadors.

The metropolitan government of Charles V in Burgos, hoping to establish a more orderly government, to reduce the authority of Cortés, and to secure the authority of the Spanish crown in the New World, had on December 13, 1527 named the Real Audiencia de México to take over the government of the colony.

This Audiencia consists of a president and four oidores (judges).

Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán had been named president.

His oidores were Juan Ortiz de Matienzo, Diego Delgadillo, Diego Maldonado and Alonso de Parada; these two last had fallen sick during the voyage to New Spain and died shortly after arrival.

At the time Guzmán was serving as governor of Pánuco, so Charles had ordered the judges to assemble in Veracruz and from there make a joint entrance into the capital.

The four from Spain, however, had not waited for the arrival of Guzmán, and proceeded directly to the capital.

They arrived on December 8, 1528, taking over the government on the following day.

They had been given a splendid reception by the city government.

Guzmán had arrived a few days after the others; the Franciscan cleric Juan de Zumárraga had arrived in the capital only a few days before the oidores, with the title of bishop-elect and protector and defender of the Indians.

The instructions given to the Audiencia included a recommendation for good treatment of the indigenous people and a directive that the investigation into the conduct of Cortés and his associates Pedro de Alvarado, Alonso de Estrada, Rodrigo de Albornoz, Gonzalo de Salazar and Pedro Almíndez Chirino be concluded within ninety days.

Most of these associates had participated in the government in the preceding few years while Cortés was in Honduras, with a lot of infighting among themselves and injustices to the population, both Spanish and indigenous.

Cortés himself is currently in Spain, where he is defending his conduct and appealing his loss of authority to Charles.

Cortés has had some success with his appeal, being named Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca and receiving some other honors.

Nevertheless, Guzmán is now in charge in New Spain.

Among his official acts is the placement of plaques bearing the royal coat of arms on the principal buildings of the capital, to stress that sovereignty resides in the king, not in Cortés.

He has Pedro de Alvarado arrested for questioning the loyalty of Gonzalo de Salazar.

There is already some animosity between Cortés and Guzmán, because the former had been reluctant to recognize the latter as governor of Pánuco.

Subsequent events make the two enemies.

The Audiencia has also banned direct communication with the court in Spain.

This is so effective that Bishop Zumárraga feels the necessity of hiding a letter sealed in wax in a cask, to be smuggled to the Spanish authorities by a confederate sailor.