Juan de Ovando: Governing the Spanish Empire in the Reign of Phillip II (review)

Although once described as "the dominating figure in [the] formulation of all policies of [Spain's] colonial government" (p. 21), Juan de Ovando (1515–1575) has not attracted the scholarly attention he deserves. Partly, this can be attributed to the lack of documentation relating to Ovando's personal affairs, but it is also connected to the recent "native turn" among historians of colonial Spanish America and the resulting tendency to ignore the individuals responsible for the governance of Spain's overseas empire. Whatever the precise explanation for this neglect, Stafford Poole's biography of this important Spanish official goes a long way to filling this important gap in our knowledge.

Specialists in Spanish and Spanish-American history know that Ovando, who occupied such important offices as President of the Council of the Indies, was a key figure in the reforms of the imperial administration ordered by King Philip II during the 1570's. Ovando literally had his hand in every aspect of these reforms, and he was personally responsible for such important initiatives as the "relaciones geográficas," the first comprehensive ethnographic-cum-geographic survey of the Americas. Dedicated to the principle of "good governance," Ovando was also instrumental in the codification of the "Laws of the Indies," ordinances designed not only to protect the natives from abusive Spanish practices but also to grant the monarchy greater control over its sprawling dominions in the New World. The task was Sisyphean, but Ovando was determined to bring "order" to the Indies where previously there had been little or none.

Much of this volume is straightforward biography, and despite the lack of documents, Poole—a noted historian of the colonial Spanish American world—not only reconstructs much of Ovando's career but also provides much in the way of useful background information along the way. Successive chapters follow Ovando from his native Cáceres to Salamanca, where he studied and later taught civil law, to Seville, where he became a provisor (ecclesiastical judge) and immersed himself in both inquisitorial matters and in archdiocesan management. At this point Ovando—aged almost sixty—entered into the service of Philip II. His first task: a visita or reform of the University of Alcalá de Henares, a commission that required considerable diplomatic skills in as much as the shoals of university politics were then every bit as dangerous as they are now. He then moved on to a position on the Supreme Council of the Inquisition, where, according to Poole, he was a "rather consistent, though not outstanding participant" (p. 95). Even so, Ovando's determination to be the king's "good servant" evidently persuaded Philip II that he was the person best suited to undertake a visita of the Council of the Indies, and, more broadly, the reform of the administration of his empire in the New World. The successful outcome of this visita led first to Ovando's appointment as President of the Council of the Indies, and subsequently to that of the Council of Finance, where he struggled, without much success, to curtail abuses and to straighten out the monarchy's chaotic finances.

Poole categorizes Ovando as a letrado, one of the many legally-trained individuals known for their dedication and loyalty to the monarchy. Poole's understanding of what he calls the "letrado mentality" is somewhat reductionist, as letrados were far less homogeneous in their interests than he suggests. Yet if a quintessential letrado existed, Ovando was it, as he was a man with few passions other than work. "I hate to be idle," he once wrote (p. 199). Yet Poole also characterizes Ovando as a man of vision who fervently believed in Spain's providential mission in the New World. In this respect Ovando was a true architect of empire, and this excellent study serves as a timely reminder of the need for other studies highlighting the achievements and aspirations of the other...