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The documents presented here reflect several stages of Hernando de Soto's long American trajectory. ':. Appearing in chronological order as they were issued, the first of the collection relates his passage through Peru, where he had participated in the conquest under the command of Francisco Pizarro, also an Extremaduran. His active collaboration and leadership in some of the most important episodes of the Peruvian conquest, along with his proven loyalty, induced Pizarro to name him Teniente de Gobernador [lieutenant governor] of the city of Cuzco, the capital of the Incan empire. The post qualified him as supreme authority of the city surpassed only by Francisco Pizarro. The naming [nombramiento] appears dated July 27, 1534, eight months after the Spaniards entered that city; it was issued in the nearby settlement of Jauja and signed by the governor. Instructions are included in the document for carrying out the post, specifying his obligations. As lieutenant governor of Cuzco, Hernando de Soto had the power to intervene in matters of jus- "-Included are: I) a document naming De Soto as lieutenant governor of Cuzco [Archivo General de Indias, Seville (AGI). Patronato. Lega;o 90-A]; 2) a Cedula Real from 1537 authorizing certain other ships bound for the Indies to accompany De Soto [AG!. Indiferente General. Lega;o 1962, Folios 301 vto.-302]; 3) a Cedula Real from 1538 authorizing the same ships to leave by March 15 if De Soto was not ready (which he was not) [AG!. Indiferente General. Lega;o 1962, Folio 331 vto.]; 4) authorization for Dona Isabel to bring three women slaves to Cuba in her personal service [AG!. Indiferente General. Lega;o 1962, Folio 331]; 5) a lengthy interrogation for De Soto's admission to the Order of Santiago [Archivo Hist6rica Nacional. Secci6n Ordenes Militares (Santiago). Expediente No. 7855]; 6) a document in which De Soto granted wide authority to his wife to represent him in administering all his assets and properties [AG!. Justicia. Lega;o 750 (A)]; and 7) an inventory of De Soto's assets drawn up by Isabel de Bobadilla after learning of her husband's death [AG!. Justicia. Lega;o 750 (A)]. Spanish transcriptions of documents 5 and 6 have appeared before in Antonio del Solar y Taboada and Jose de Ru;ula y de Ochotorena, El Adelantado Hernando de Soto (Bada;oz, Spain: Ediciones Arqueros, 1929). tice, whether they be civil or criminal cases, and his authority extended to the Spanish population (residents or transients), as well as to the native population . Outside his jurisdiction were the defense of the city and conflicts brought about by indigenous uprisings. It is seen from this document that during this period Cuzco enjoyed ordinances that regulated municipal life not unlike those that also existed in Spain. In the instructions, for example, was the recommendation to Spaniards who had been awarded repartimientos and encomiendas of Indians not to commit abuses with their charges. This circumstance was entrusted to the care of De Soto, who was admonished to watch over the indigenous population and their treatment; he was also encouraged to begin the work of indoctrination and preaching of the Catholic faith among them. For barely two years De Soto held the post of lieutenant governor. In 1536, he returned to Spain and obtained the royal authorization to begin preparations for the expedition to Florida. Related to these preparations are two royal cedulas issued in Valladolid on December 7, 1537, and February 25,1538, respectively. When the first of these cedulas was granted, all of the preparations had concluded for the expedition that De Soto would direct toward what is now the southeastern United States, the fleet and participants having joined together in San Ltlcar de Barrameda. Through this document authorization was granted to the ships that were preparing to depart for the Indies in the company of the armada of the adelantado. With this concession the crown put into practice one of the means adopted in 1521 for the navigation of the Atlantic: the organization of convoys protected by warships to eliminate the dangers posed by pirates and corsairs and to safeguard the shipment of precious metals. Given the size of the armada that, under De Soto's command, was prepared to depart, and the material means within his reach, military protection was ensured. The second of the cedulas issued from Valladolid is couched in terms similar to the first. Due to the delay of the expedition's departure, the crown again recommended that the ships preparing...

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