Diego López de Zúñiga, 4th Count of Nieva
Diego López de Zúñiga y Velasco, 4th Earl of Nieva de Cameros (Spanish: Conde de Nieva de Cameros ) (* 1500 in Burgos, Castile, Spain, † February 18, 1564 in Lima, Peru) was a Spanish officer who 1561 served as Viceroy of Peru until his assassination in 1564.
Military career
López began a career as an officer in the Spanish army and fought under King Philip II in the service of the Spanish crown in North Africa, Italy, Flanders, and Germany. King Philip sent him the end of 1558 as viceroy of Peru in South America. Due to adverse circumstances his departure was prevented for over a year, and he was only at the end of February 1560 from Cadiz on the way. After a long stay in Panama López reached in February 1561, Lima.
Viceroy of Peru
An important theme of his tenure was the question of whether the native Indians should be permanently committed to forced labor in the country estates ( encomenderos ) of the Spaniards. Another question was the administrative allocation of the silver mines of Potosí. Regardless crossed the ruthless exploitation of resources forward by the Spaniards: During López 's tenure, the Spanish exchequer received 651,000 ducats from Peru.
López for strengthened himself, to make the colonial administration independent of economic interests of the persons and ban 1564 the judges ( oidores ) to start their own business enterprise in the colony or to take over. In his tenure, the first work on building the Plaza de Armas of Lima and other urban innovations (such as the precursors of a sewage system ).
He had a reputation to deal with wasteful public goods and was a notorious womanizer, which went so far that he was in a royal charter from Madrid reminded ( 27 February 1563) to exercise restraint in his lifestyle.
He was murdered by a group of conquistadores at the gates of the government palace.
Sources and links
- Biography (in Spanish ) - accessed March 20, 2012
- Viceroy of Peru
- Person (Lima )
- Spaniard
- Man
- Born in 1500
- Died in 1564