''Adelantado'' (, , ; meaning 'advanced') was a title held by some Spanish nobles in service of their respective kings during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. It was later used as a military title held by some Spanish ''

conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

es'' of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. ''Adelantados'' were granted directly by the monarch the right to become

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

s and justices of a specific region, which they were charged with conquering, in exchange for funding and organizing the initial explorations, settlements and pacification of the target area on behalf of the

Crown of Castile The Crown of Castile was a medieval polity in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and, some decades later, the parliaments of the kingdoms of Kingdom of Castile, Castile and Kingd ...

. These areas were usually outside the jurisdiction of an existing '' audiencia'' or

viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...

, and ''adelantados'' were authorized to communicate directly with the Council of the Indies.

The ''reconquista''

The term has its origins in the ''

reconquista The ''Reconquista'' (Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese for ) or the fall of al-Andalus was a series of military and cultural campaigns that European Christian Reconquista#Northern Christian realms, kingdoms waged ag ...

'' and comes from the phrase ''por adelantado'' ( Spanish: 'in advance', although translations stating 'one who goes before' and 'the forward man' are also found). It is a

calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language ...

of Arabic '' Muqaddam'' () which has the exact same meaning. According to the '' Siete Partidas'', the office of ''adelantado'' was the equivalent of the Roman '' praefectus urbi'' (). The earliest definitively known ''adelantado'' was appointed by Alfonso X in 1253 in the recently conquered territory of ''La Frontera'' (

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

). However the office had precedents in the duties and rights held by some officers of the Navarrese dynasty of Castile and León, and

Álvar Fáñez Álvar Fáñez (or Háñez; died April 1114) was a Leonese nobleman and military leader under Alfonso VI of León and Castile, becoming the nearly independent ruler of Kingdom of Toledo (Crown of Castile), Toledo under Urraca of León and Castile, ...

or Fortún Sánchez in the Ebro valley performed similar services in detached territories beyond the frontier. It was during this time that the ''Siete Partidas'', commissioned by Alfonso X, more precisely defined the powers of the office. That law code created the position of an ''adelantado mayor'', who was at the same time an intermediary appellate judge, located in the judicial hierarchy between local justices and the king's court, and an executive officer, who as a direct representative of the king was charged with implementing royal orders in his assigned area. Most appointees were from the upper nobility or the royal family. After its success in Andalusia, the institution was introduced in the northern areas of the peninsula, merging with and becoming indistinguishable from an older judicial office, the Royal ''Merinos''.

Overseas

Beyond the peninsula, the term ''adelantado'' was granted to Alonso Fernández de Lugo in the conquest of the Canary Islands and was confirmed to members of his family. The term became modified over time. During the colonization of the Americas and the

Spanish East Indies The Spanish East Indies were the colonies of the Spanish Empire in Asia-Pacific, Asia and Oceania from 1565 to 1901, governed through the Captaincy General of the Philippines, captaincy general in Manila for the Monarchy of Spain, Spanish Crown, i ...

(Asia), each charter specified different powers to each ''adelantado'', sometimes in a vague manner, which often led to confusion as in the case between Juan de Oñate and the Viceroy of New Spain. The title was granted both as an inheritable title and one that lasted for the grantee's life only. With the publication of the Ordinances Concerning Discoveries (''Ordenanzas de descubrimientos, nueva población y pacificación de las Indias'') in 1573, the attributes of ''adelantados'' became regularized, although the title was granted much less often after this date, especially since the institutions of ''audiencias'', governors and viceroys had been developed. Nevertheless, the Ordinances are useful because they illustrate the powers ''adelantados'' often had. The Ordinances established that ''adelantados'', in their capacity as governors and justices of the new territories, had the right to hear civil and criminal cases in appeal, to name the '' regidores'' and employees of the '' cabildos'' of any towns founded, to name interim treasury officials, to issue ordinances on the use of land and mines, to establish districts, and to organize

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

s and name their captains. The first use of the title ''adelantado'' in the Americas was by Bartholomew Columbus, brother of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

, who governed

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

under this title during his brother's absence from 1494 to 1498. It was later inherited by Diego Colón after much litigation. Other conquistadors who were granted the title include: * 1512: Juan Ponce de León for

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and Biminí, renewed in 1524 for his son, Luis * 15??: Rodrigo de Bastidas for the

Isthmus of Panama The Isthmus of Panama, historically known as the Isthmus of Darien, is the narrow strip of land that lies between the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, linking North America, North and South America. The country of Panama is located on the i ...

and Santa Marta * 1514: Vasco Núñez de Balboa for the South Sea * 1518: Ferdinand Magellan for the Spice Islands * 1518: Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar for Yucatán * 1527: Pánfilo de Narváez for Florida * 1527:

Pedro de Alvarado Pedro de Alvarado (; 1485 – 4 July 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, ''conquistador'', ''adelantado,'' governor and Captaincy General of Guatemala, captain general of Guatemala.Lovell, Lutz and Swezey 1984, p. 461. He participated in the c ...

for

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

García Añoveros 1987, p. 247. * 1529:

Francisco Pizarro Francisco Pizarro, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish ''conquistador'', best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Born in Trujillo, Cáceres, Trujillo, Spain, to a poor fam ...

for

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

, and Pedro de Mendoza for

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

* 1535: Pedro Fernández de Lugo for Santa Marta (as son of Alonso Fernández de Lugo, ''Adelantado'' of

Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...

and La Palma, he was a second-generation ''adelantado'') * 1537:

Hernando de Soto Hernando de Soto (; ; 1497 – 21 May 1542) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador who was involved in expeditions in Nicaragua and the Yucatan Peninsula. He played an important role in Francisco Pizarro's conquest of the Inca Empire in Peru, ...

for Florida * 1538:

Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada y Rivera, also spelled as Ximénez and De Quezada, (; 1509 – 16 February 1579) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador in northern South America, territories currently known as Colombia. He explored the territory n ...

for the New Kingdom of Granada * 1540: Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca for

Río de la Plata The Río de la Plata (; ), also called the River Plate or La Plata River in English, is the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River at Punta Gorda, Colonia, Punta Gorda. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean and ...

* 1549:

Pedro de Valdivia Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva (; April 17, 1497 – December 25, 1553) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' and the first royal governor of Chile. After having served with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in ...

for

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

* 1565: Juan Vásquez de Coronado for

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

* 1565: Pedro Menéndez de Avilés for Florida * 1571:

Miguel López de Legazpi Miguel López de Legazpi (12 June 1502 – 20 August 1572), also known as ''Adelantado, El Adelantado'' and ''El Viejo'' (The Elder), was a Spanish conquistador who financed and led an expedition to conquer the Philippines, Philippine islan ...

for the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

* 1595: Alvaro de Mendaña, and after his death his wife Isabel Barreto, for the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

, and Juan de Oñate for the Kingdom of New Mexico

References

Bibliography

* Ayala, Manuel Josef de. ''Diccionario de gobierno y legislación de Indias''. (Madrid: ''Ediciones de Cultura Hispánica, 1988'') * Fisher, Lillian Estelle. ''Viceregal Administration in the Spanish American Colonies''. Berkeley, University of California Press, 1926. * García Añoveros, Jesús María.
Don Pedro de Alvarado: las fuentes históricas, documentación, crónicas y biblografía existente
', Mesoamérica, vol. 13 (June 1987), pp. 243–282. CIRMA: Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala , * Jular Pérez-Alfaro, Cristina. ''Los adelantados y merinos mayores de León (siglos XIII-XV)''. (León: Universidad de León) * O'Callaghan, Joseph F. O. ''A History of Medieval Spain''. (Ithaca, Cornell University Press, 1975) * Pérez-Bustamante y González de la Vega, Rogelio. ''El gobierno y la administración de la Corona de Castilla''. (Ediciones Aldecoa, 1976) * Vargas Pereira, Marco Vinicio. "''El adelantantamiento en el Derecho Indiano.''" (Thesis, Universidad de Costa Rica, 1998) * Vázquez Campos, Braulio. ''Los adelantados mayores de La Frontera o Andalucía (siglos XIII-XIV)''. (Seville: ''Diputación Provincial de Sevilla)'' {{ISBN, 84-7798-230-9 Captaincy General of the Philippines Latin American caste system Conquistadors Gubernatorial titles Historical legal occupations Military history of Spain Reconquista Spanish colonization of the Americas Spanish conquest of the Canary Islands Spanish noble titles

The ''reconquista''

Overseas

See also

References

Bibliography