Diego Fernández de Córdoba, 1st Marquess of Guadalcázar facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Diego Fernández de Córdoba
Marquess of Guadalcázar
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| Viceroy of Peru | |
| In office July 25, 1622 – January 14, 1629 |
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| Monarch | Philip IV |
| Preceded by | Juan Jiménez de Montalvo |
| Succeeded by | Luis Jerónimo de Cabrera |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1578 Seville |
| Died | October 6, 1630 Guadalcázar |
Diego Fernández de Córdoba (1578 – 6 October 1630) was an important Spanish official. He held the title of the first Marquess of Guadalcázar. He served as the Viceroy of New Spain (which is now Mexico) from 1612 to 1621. Later, he became the Viceroy of Peru from 1622 to 1629. A viceroy was like a governor who ruled a colony in the name of the king.
Contents
Early Life and Royal Service
Diego Fernández de Córdoba was born in Seville, Spain, in 1578. When he was 20 years old, he had a special job. He traveled to Central Europe as an ambassador. His mission was to bring back Margaret of Austria to Spain. She was 13 or 14 years old and was going to marry King Philip III of Spain. In 1609, Diego was given the title of Marquess of Guadalcázar. This was a high honor from the king.
Viceroy of New Spain (Mexico)
King Philip III of Spain chose Fernández de Córdoba to be the viceroy of New Spain. He had already served the king as a close advisor.
Dealing with Challenges
- Stopping Uprisings: Early in his time as viceroy, he sent Captain Diego Martínez de Hurdaide to stop a rebellion. This uprising was by the Tehuecos people in Sinaloa. Captain Martínez de Hurdaide was successful after several battles.
- Founding New Cities: The viceroy also helped start many new towns. These included Lerma (in 1613), Córdoba (in 1618), and Guadalcázar (in 1620).
- Protecting Travelers: The city of Córdoba, in what is now Veracruz State, was founded for a special reason. It helped protect travelers on the road between Veracruz and Mexico City. These travelers were sometimes attacked by groups of people who had escaped slavery.
- Building Forts: He also finished building the Fort of San Diego in Acapulco. This fort protected the city from attacks from the Pacific Ocean.
Improving Mexico City
- Water and Sanitation: Fernández de Córdoba worked to make Mexico City cleaner and improve its water supply. He completed an aqueduct from Chapultepec in 1620. An aqueduct is like a bridge that carries water. This one had 900 arches!
- Drainage System: In 1616, work restarted on a big drainage project for the Valley of Mexico. This project was important because the city often flooded. King Philip III asked a Dutch expert, Adrian Boot, to help. Boot suggested diverting the Cuautitlán river, which caused many floods.
- Mining Regulations: He also set up a special court to control the buying and selling of mercury. Mercury was important for processing gold and silver from mines in New Spain.
Other Events in New Spain
- Another Uprising: In 1616, another major rebellion happened. This time it was among the Tepehuanes and nearby tribes in the north. The rebels killed some missionaries and many Spanish and mixed-race people. The governor of Durango, with help from the viceroy, fought back. After three months, the rebellion was mostly put down.
- Natural Disasters: New Spain faced tough times too. In 1616, a drought caused crops to fail, leading to a famine. In 1620, a large fire destroyed much of Veracruz.
Because of all his efforts to improve the colony, Diego Fernández de Córdoba was known as el Buen Virrey, which means "The Good Viceroy."
Viceroy of Peru
In 1622, Diego Fernández de Córdoba became the viceroy of Peru.
Key Actions in Peru
- Financial Reforms: He made changes to the tax system to make it fairer.
- Ending Conflicts: He also worked to stop conflicts between rival groups in the rich silver mining city of Potosí. These conflicts had caused a lot of trouble.
- Fortifying Lima: In 1624, he strengthened the defenses of Lima, the capital city. This was to protect it from pirate attacks. One famous attack was by Jacques l'Hermite, a Dutch explorer. L'Hermite tried to block and raid Callao, Lima's port, during his trip around the world.
In 1629, Viceroy Diego Fernández de Córdoba finished his term. He returned to Spain and passed away the next year, in 1630, at the age of 52. He died in Guadalcázar, the place that gave him his noble title.
See also
In Spanish: Diego Fernández de Córdoba (marqués de Guadalcázar) para niños
