Joan Orpí i del Pou, also ''Juan Orpín'' or ''Juan Urpín'' (1593 in

Piera Piera is a municipality that covers a large portion of the southeastern corner of the comarca of Anoia in Catalonia, Spain, on the left bank of the Anoia river. The agricultural land, mostly non-irrigated, is used for the cultivation of cereals ...

– 1 July 1645 in

Barcelona, Venezuela Barcelona is the capital of Anzoátegui State, Venezuela and was founded in 1671. Together with Puerto La Cruz, Lecheria and Guanta, Barcelona forms one of the most important urban areas of Venezuela, with a population of approximately 950,000. ...

) was a Spanish conquistador, known for founding New Barcelona in

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, and for founding the short-lived '' Province of New Catalonia'' (1633–1654). In 1623 he journeyed to Araya. In 1624 the Governor of

New Andalusia Province New Andalusia Province or Province of Cumaná (1537–1864) was a province of the Spanish Empire, and later of Gran Colombia and Venezuela. It included the territory of present-day Venezuelan states Sucre, Anzoátegui and Monagas. Its most im ...

, Diego de Arroyo Daza, named Orpí

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

of the province, a position he held until 1627/8. That year the

Real Audiencia of Santo Domingo The Real Audiencia of Santo Domingo was the first court of the Spanish crown in America. It was created by Ferdinand V of Castile in his decree of 1511, but due to disagreements between the governor of Hispaniola, Diego Colon and the Crown, i ...

recognised the law degree he had obtained in Barcelona, and he began acting as a legal representative of the Audiencia in Caracas. In 1631 he moved to Santo Domingo, where the difficulty of communication between the

Venezuela Province The Venezuela Province (or Province of Caracas) was a province of the Spanish Empire (from 1527), of Gran Colombia (1824-1830) and later of Venezuela (from 1830), apart from an interlude (1528 - 1546) when it was contracted as a concession by the ...

(Caracas) and the

( Cumaná) was a matter of some concern. He agreed to launch an expedition to secure the territory between the

Unare River The Unare River is a river of Venezuela. It drains into the Caribbean Sea. In the 17th century the Dutch had a fort at the mouth of the river. It was constructed to protect their salt collection in the area. The other Dutch fort ever to stand on w ...

and the Neverí River, inhabited by the Cumanagotos, and was granted the royal privilege to do so, despite opposition from others. His expedition began in 1632 but had to be called off when the privilege was revoked, and he had to plead a case to the Audiencia and to the

Council of the Indies The Council of the Indies ( es, Consejo de las Indias), officially the Royal and Supreme Council of the Indies ( es, Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias, link=no, ), was the most important administrative organ of the Spanish Empire for the Amer ...

to regain it, which he was able to do in 1636. A second expedition was launched in 1637, and Orpí founded New Barcelona (''Nueva Barcelona del Cerro Santo'') in February 1638. New Barcelona became the capital of the Province of Nueva Cataluña he created in 1633, extending along the coast from ''San Felipe de Austria'' (

Cariaco Cariaco is a town in the state of Sucre, Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a co ...

) to Cabo Codera, and down to the

Orinoco River The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the wor ...

. After his death in 1645 the Province did not last long, being merged into

in 1654, while New Barcelona had to be refounded in 1671.

Further reading