Chronology of a Brief History of Ecuador

   By

Alfredo Tinajero Cevallos and Amparo Barba González


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ANTECEDENTS

    It is believed that the ancestors of native Americans came from Asia and migrated to the western hemisphere by crossing the Bering Strait approximately 50,000 years ago. Their descendants dispersed toward the south and formed in time diverse civilizations.

    About 16,000 to 18,000 years ago arrived the first aborigines to what is today Ecuadorian territory. The most well known of the old cultures in the coastal region are: Las Vegas, Chorrera, Machalilla, Valdivia, Jambelí, Guangala, Bahía, Jama-Coaque, and La Tolita; in the highlands: El Angel, Tuncahuán, Chaullabamba, Narrio, Cotocollao, and Carchi. During the period of "Integration", many of these cultures unite and new ones are formed. In the coastal region evolve the cultures of Milagro-Quevedo, Atacames, Manteña, Huancavilca, Jama-Coaque II, and Chirije. In the highlands evolve the cultures of Palta, Cañari, Puruha, Cayambe, Panzaleo, Caranqui, Otavalo, Pastos, and Quillacinga. In the eastern region evolve the cultures of Napo and Cotococha.

    The polítical history of the aborigines of Ecuador before the Spanish conquest is based largely on speculation. The aborigines did not develop the skill of writing their languages. Their history was passed orally to their descendants. Except for two or three generations before the Spaniards arrived, one cannot give full credence to the events narrated by the Indíans. What has been substantiated is that Indian tribes and "pueblos" had a polítical-military form of government under a chief. Therefore, one could say that "kingdoms" did exist and that their chiefs were the equivalent to a "king". One of these "pueblos" organized in such manner is what can be categorized as the "Kingdom of Quito". The often cited "Shyris" of Quito never integrated their "kingdom" with other tribes or pueblos from what is now Ecuador. Only to defend their soil they confederated with other pueblos.

    The territory that now constitutes Ecuador had from 300,000 to 350,000 inhabitants when the first Spaniards arrived. Diseases (smallpox, measles and the common cold) brought by the Europeans, and the physical abuse exercised by them, reduced the indigenous population enormously.  Until the middle of the XV century, the number of inhabitants diminished even with the immigration of Europeans and the importation of African slaves.  The introduction of horses, cattle, sheep, poultry, european fruit plants, and of technology such as the wheel, the plow and iron tools, helped much in giving sustenance to the inhabitants.

THE CONQUESTS AND THE COLONIES

YEAR       PRINCIPAL EVENTS

1450     Approximate date when the (Cuzqueño) Inca Tupac-Yupanqui initiates the conquest of the northern region of the Andes. Only the kingdoms of the Chachapoyas, Huancabambas, Paltas and Cañaris are dominated.

1461     Approximate date when Tupac-Yupanqui tries to defeat the Northern Andes Confederation (Puruha-Quito-Caranqui).

1462     Approximate date of the battles of Tiocajas and Tixán; the Incas defeat Shyri Hualcopo Duchicela and Epiclachima . Hualcopo Duchicela retreats to Mocha.  Hualcopo Duchicela dies; he is succeeded by Shyri Cacha Duchicela.

1485     Approximate date of the death of Tupac-Yupanqui. Military chiefs and "Orejones" (big ears) in Cuzco acclaim his Tomebamban son, Huayna-Capac, " Inca". General uprising of the Northern Andes tribes.

1487     Caranquis are defeated by Huayna-Capac in Yaguarcocha. Cacha Duchicela dies on the plains of Atuntaqui.

1492     Oct. 12 - Christopher Columbus lands on the island of San Salvador (now Bahamas). Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabel I of Castile are King and Queen of Spain.

1504     Isabel I of Castile dies. She is succeeded by her daughter Juana I. Ferdinand of Aragon is Regent of Castile. Nov. 7 - Christopher Columbus discovers Panama.

1516     Charles I (grandson of Ferdinand) is King of Spain after the death of "Ferdinand the Catholic".

King Charles I

1522     Pedro Arias de Avila ("Pedrarias Dávila"), Governor of Panama, entrusts Pascual de Andagoya with a naval expedition to Peru. Andagoya reaches the San Juan River (in the Chocó) but the expedition fails because he becomes very ill and must return to Panama.

1524     Nov. 15 - After forming the "Empresa del Levante" (with Diego de Almagro, the priest Hernando de Luque and Gaspar de Espinoza), and buying the right of conquest from Pascual de Andagoya, Francisco Pizarro sails from Panama toward Peru.

1525     Inca Huayna-Capac dies in Quito; the Inca Empire (Tahuantinsuyo) is divided between his sons Atahualpa (son of the "mitimae" Tupac Pallacoca [ "mitimaes" are persons forcefully brought from other parts on the Empire to settle on conquered land]  and Huáscar (son of the Cuzqueña Mama-Cusi-Rimay). Atahualpa receives the territories in the Northern Andes region including the Cañari Kingdom. Huáscar receives those of the South.

1526     Pizarro lands near the San Juan River and searches for food while Bartolomé Ruiz de Estrada sails south. Sep. 21 - Ruiz explores the equatorial coast (Esmeraldas and Manabí) and captures three Indian rafters from Puná or Túmbez; one of them is baptized Felipillo (little Philip). Bartolomé Ruiz re-embarks Pizarro and Almagro and sails toward Barbacoas. Pizarro travels by land from Barbacoas to Atacames. To prevent failure of the expedition, Pizarro lands on the Isla del Gallo and sends Almagro to Panama to return with supplies. The Governor of Panama refuses to continue Pizarro's expedition and orders Captain Juan Tafur to rescue the Spaniards from the Isla del Gallo.  Pizarro and the "trece de la fama" (thirteen of the fame: Pedro Alcón, Alonso Briseño, Pedro de Candia, Antonio Carrión, Francisco de Cuellar, García de Jaren, Alonso de Molina, Martin de Paz, Cristóbal de Peralta, Nicolás de Ribera, Domingo de Soraluce, Juan de la Torre, y Francisco Villafuerte) refuse to return to Panama and remain behind on Gorgona island. Seven months go by before Bartolomé Ruiz returns from Panama to ask them again to go back to Panama; after he boards the ship Pizarro orders the heading to be "to the south".

1528     May 3 - Alonso de Molina and the Greek Pedro de Candía debark in Túmbez with Felipillo as interpreter. Pizarro goes south of the Chan-Chan River but does not debark and returns to Panama. The Governor of Panama, Pedro de los Ríos, refuses to provide support for the conquest of Peru. He argues that the events narrated to him are exaggerated stories. Pizarro sails to Spain to request direct authorization from the King.

1529     July 26 - Under the "Capitulaciones de Toledo," the Crown authorizes Francisco Pizarro to proceed with the conquest of Peru. Francisco Pizarro is named Governor, Captain General, "Adelantado" and "Aguacil Mayor" of New Castile.

  Francisco Pizarro

1530     Approximate date on which: Chief Chapera of the Cañari Kingdom disavows Atahualpa and submits to Huáscar. Troops from Cuzco under Atoco occupy Tomebamba. Atoco and Chapera advance toward Quito. Calicuchima is sent by Atahualpa to prevent the invasion by the Cuzqueños and Cañaris. Calicuchima is defeated in Mocha. Atahualpa and Calicuchima defeat the enemy in Molleambato; Chapera and Atoco are made prisoners and later executed in  Quito.

1531     Jan. - Francisco Pizarro sails from Panama toward Peru with three ships, 185 men, 27 horses and a few dogs. Two more ships join the expedition.

Approximate date on which: Huáscar sends an army under his brother Huanca Auqui to take revenge on Atahualpa. Huanca Auqui defeats and captures Atahualpa in Tomebamba. Atahualpa escapes and reorganizes his troops with Calicuchima and Quizquiz. Huanca Auqui is defeated in the II Battle of Tomebamba. Atahualpa orders the execution of all the Cañaris, including their wives and children, that took arms against him. Quizquiz, assisted by Calicuchima and Rumiñahui, defeat Huanca Auqui in Cusibamba and Cochaguaylla. Quizquiz and Calicuchima defeat Huanca Auqui in Bombón. Mayta Yupanqui replaces Huanca Auqui and is defeated in Yanamarca. Quizquiz defeats Mayta Yupanqui on the Angoyaco River. Calicuchima is defeated in Tovaray. Quizquiz and Calicuchima are defeated in Cotabamba. Quizquiz, Calicuchima and Rumiñahui defeat the armies of Huáscar in Chontacajas and Quipaipán. Huáscar falls prisoner of Quizquiz in Quipaipán (Cuzco). Huáscar is jailed in the fortress of Jauja. Quizquiz executes all the relatives of Huáscar, the royal family of the Incas, the priests, the Virgins of the Sun, the "Orejones" and nobles of the Court, and the chiefs of the army. Atahualpa, then in Quito, is proclaimed the sole Inca of the Tahuantinsuyo. Atahualpa departs from Quito toward Cuzco and on the way attempts to repress the insurgent Punáes. Atahualpa is wounded in combat and heads to Cajamarca to convalesce.

Francisco Pizarro arrives to the Puná island and encounters its bellicose inhabitants. Pizarro departs from Puná toward Túmbez after hearing of the fratricidal war in the Tahuantinsuyo.

1532     May - San Miguel de Piura is founded by the Spaniards. Nov. 15 - Cotopaxi erupts.  Nov. 17 - While waiting for a visit from Atahualpa, Pizarro hides his troops at the entrances leading to the main square of Cajamarca. Atahualpa and his unarmed entourage enter the square. Friar Vicente Valverde, accompanied by Felipillo, engages Atahualpa in theological arguments. At the war cry of "San Tiago" 160 Spaniards (some mounted on horses) kill from 2,000 to 4,000 Indíans. Atahualpa is captured by Pizarro. While captive, Atahualpa orders his chiefs to execute his brother Huáscar. Atahualpa offers Pizarro an enormous quantity of gold and silver in exchange for his freedom; incredulous, Pizarro accepts the proposal.

1533     Apr. 14 - Diego de Almagro and Treasurer Alono Riquelme arrive to Cajamarca and are amazed by the treasure received. The Spaniards fear an Indian uprising.  Aug. 29 - After initial opposition by Pizarro, Atahualpa is tried, baptized and executed with the garrote in Cajamarca. In Quito, Rumiñahui overthrows Cozopanqui (uncle of Atahualpa) and declares himself Chief of Quito. Pizarro acknowledges Tupac-Huallpa (son of Huayna-Capac) as the Sovereign of the Tahuantinsuyo.

Sebastián (Moyano) de Benalcázar is named Lieutenant of San Miguel de Piura.
Benalcázar decides to initiate the conquest of Quito without the authorization from his superior officer Francisco Pizarro.

1534     Feb. - Adelantado Pedro de Alvarado sails from Guatemala toward the coast of Manabi with five ships, 500 soldiers, some Indians from Guatemala and many dogs. In Nicaragua he commadeers two other ships. Mar. - Alvarado and his troops land in Bahia de Caráquez with the purpose of conquering Quito.

Pedro de Alvarado

Apr. - Benalcázar undertakes the conquest of Quito to take the lead from Alvarado. Diego de Almagro and his troops follow Benalcázar with the same purpose. Troops of Benalcázar and Cañaris fight against troops of Rumiñahui in Tiocajas.
May - Benalcázar enters Quito and discovers that its riches are a myth; the town has almost 20,000 Indians that live in houses made of compacted earth or "cangahua" (clay) and covered with straw roofs. Upset for not finding gold, he goes toward Cayambe; in El Quinche he tortures and kills Indians so they divulge where are the remains of the ransom of Atahualpa that did not arrive in Peru. Disappointed he leaves toward Riobamba.

Jul. - Eruption of the volcano Tungurahua.

Almagro and Benalcázar wait for Alvarado near Riobamba. Aug. 23 - With the purpose of presenting Alvarado with a "fait accompli", Almagro founds the City of Santiago de Quito near Cicalpa.  Aug. 26 - Alvarado sells the remains of his expeditionary force. Aug. 28 - To accentuate the juridical and royal rights of Quito, Almagro founds from Riobamba the Villa de San Francisco de Quito.

Sep. 8 - Benalcázar, commanding nearly 300 men departs toward Quito to establish the Cabildo (Municipal Council) and arrives the 4th of december. In Quito, he finds that Rumiñahui has burned the town and decapitated the Virgins of the Sun as punishment for fraternizing with the Spaniards. Rumiñahui is captured.

Dec. 6 - Definitive possession of the Villa de San Francisco de Quito by Sebastián de Benalcázar.

Sebastian de Benalcázar

The Conquistadores took possession of the family of the Inca and with them started the origen of the "mestizaje."  The Indian women were enthralled by the physical appearance and power of the Europeans.

1535     Jan. 10 - Rumiñahui is executed. Mar. 10 - The Galapagos islands are discovered by Friar Tomás de Berlanga. Mar. 12 - Captain Francisco Pacheco founds the Villa Nueva of San Gregorio; later known as Portoviejo. July 25 - Wanting a sea port near Quito, Benalcázar founds Santiago de Guayaquil near Yaguachi; months later, after Benalcázar has departed to Quito, the settlement is abandoned by the Spaniards who survive a ferocious attack by the Chono Indians.

1536     Mar. 8 - Pedro de Puelles is named Lieutenant Governor of Quito. Gonzalo Díaz de Pineda is elected Mayor by the Cabildo of Quito.

Under orders from Francisco Pizarro, captains Hernando de Zaera and Pedro de Tapia found Guayaquil for the second time; the Huancavilca Indians ask the Spaniards to bring their own women and not to take theirs --- the Spaniards do not comply and have to adandon the settlement after being attacked.

The Spaniards suffocate insurrections headed by Manco Inca Yupanqui in Peru and his Indian allies in Quito.

Aug. 23 - The Cabildo of Quito imposes the tribute of the "Diezmo" (10 percent of all that is produced or earned by the natives; the Spaniards are to pay with colts or fillies); the tribute is destined for the activities of the Clergy.  Oct. - Benalcázar, searching for "El Dorado," departs from Quito toward the north to conquer the Cauca region. Dec. 8 - First founding of Pasto. Benalcázar founds Popayán and continues north to the vicinity of Antioquia. Quito looses part of its founders; 150 of the 204 founders abandon the city forever and settle in Pasto, Popayán, Cali and Almaguer.

1537     July 25 - Definitive founding of Guayaquil (at the foot of the Santa Ana Hill) by Francisco de Orellana. July - Benalcázar returns to Quito and secretly sends a Solicitor to Spain to petition the Council of the Indies that Benalcázar be granted the Governorship of Quito.

A civil war between the supporters of Almagro and Pizarro begins in Cuzco. The King had awarded the Governorship of the Province of "Nueva Toledo", that included Cuzco, to Marshall Diego de Almagro and the Governorship of the Province of "Nueva Castilla" to Francisco Pizarro (Marquis de los Atavillos). Diego de Almagro takes possession of Cuzco; Hernando Pizarro is captured and is to be executed but Almagro pardons him.

1538     Feb. - Benalcázar departs from Quito to conquer territories north of Popayán and continue to Spain to personally ask for the Governorship of Quito. In the plains of Bogotá he encounters Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada and Nicolás Federmán; together they depart to Spain to resolve who has rights over the conquered lands.

Mar. 14 - A Royal Decree (Cédula Real) orders that Captain Sebastián Benalcázar convey to the Marquis Francisco Pizarro all that he had conquered in the Province of Quito, by order of said Marquis.

Apr. 26 - Almagristas are defeated by Pizarristas at the battle of Salinas (Peru).
July 8 - Diego de Almagro is decapitated in Cuzco after Hernando Pizarro takes Cuzco with 700 men.

Sep. - Díaz de Pineda begins an expedition to Quijos. Nov. 9 - Lorenzo de Aldana is named Governor of Quito by the Marquis Pizarro; Aldana is unable to comply with the order to capture Benalcázar and take him to Lima to be executed.

The "Guagua" Pichincha erupts.

1539     Nov. 30 - Gonzalo Pizarro is named Governor of Quito by his brother the Marquis Francisco Pizarro; but he does not take possession of the post until December 1, 1540.

Gonzalo Pizarro

Definitive founding of Pasto by Lorenzo de Aldana.

1540     Mar. 10 - The Council of the Indies does not want to cut away the Governorship of Quito from the Marquis Pizarro; instead it gives Benalcázar the Governorship of Popayán as a reward for his services.

Expedition of Núñez de Bonilla to Macas.

1541     Feb. - Francisco de Orellana, Governor of Guayas, leaves Guayaquil with 30 horsemen to join Governor Gonzalo Pizarro in Quito and participate in his expedition to the Land of the Cinnamon (the Amazon basin).  Mar. 8 or 10 - Gonzalo Pizarro with 300 Spaniards, 4,000 Indians, many pigs and 900 dogs departs from Quito to the Land of the Cinnamon; he leaves Pedro Puelles as Lieutenant Governor of Quito. Orellana catches up with Pizarro after following the route used by Gonzalo Díaz de Pineda in 1538. Following orders from Pizarro, Orellana and 57 Spaniards sail down the Coca River searching for food but do not find it; hunger and distance impede them from returning where Pizarro awaits them.

Mar. 14 - Royal Decree grants the charter of City to the Villa of San Francisco de Quito. The Villa of Pasto is placed under the jurisdiction of Quito.

Jun. 26 - Avenging the execution of Diego de Almagro by order of Hernando Pizarro, followers of the son of Almagro assassinate the Marquis Francisco Pizarro in Lima.

Sep. 26 - The Cabildo of Quito recognizes Cristóbal Vaca de Castro as the Crown- appointed Governor of the Provinces of Nueva Castilla and Nueva Toledo. The Villa of Quito is ascended to the category of City. The first house with a "teja" roof is built in Quito; "tejas" begin to replace the straw roofs.

Cristóbal Vaca de Castro

Oct. 31 - Friar Vicente Valverde, named Bishop of Peru in 1537 after his participation in the capture of Atahualpa in Cajamarca, is killed in a macabre way and his body eaten by the Indians of the Island of Puná in revenge for his destruction of their idols and holy places.

1542     Feb. 11 - Francisco de Orellana, sailing a brigantine built by his men, discovers the Amazon River. Aug. 24 - Orellana arrives to the mouth of the Amazon River; he then sails with his men through unchartered waters to Venezuela.

Vaca de Castro entrusts the Governorship of Quito to Hernando de Sarmiento and goes to Lima to pacify Almagristas and Pizarristas.

Nov. 20 - Influenced by Friar Bartolomé de las Casas (defender of the Indians), King Charles I (Charles V of Germany) makes the Crown issue the "Leyes Nuevas" for the better governing of the colonies in America and the good treatment of the Indians; these laws eliminate the hereditary right to the "Encomiendas" (land and Indians entrusted to a Spanish "Encomendero"), deprive of "Encomiendas" to those who fought in civil wars in Peru, and orders that Indians shall be treated as royal subjects of the Crown.

The Viceroyalty of Peru is created and Blasco Núñez de Vela is appointed as its first Viceroy.

Viceroy Blasco Núñez de Vela

1543     Jun. - Gonzalo Pizarro and 80 almost naked Spaniards return to Quito after the expedition to the Land of the Cinnamon fails. All the animals except two dogs were eaten. The majority of the Indians died.

Viceroy Blasco Núñez de Vela enforces the "Leyes Nuevas" with violence; in Lima he stabs and kills Officer Yllan Suárez de Carvajal.

1544     The "Encomenderos" of Peru revolt against the Crown. The Magistrates (Oidores) of the Audience of Lima arrest the Viceroy and expel him to Spain. However, the Magistrate Juan Alvarez debarks the Viceroy in Tumbez so the Viceroy may go to Quito. Rodrigo de Ocampo is named Lieutenant Governor of Quito by the Viceroy Núñez de Vela.

1545     Mar. 4 - Núñez de Vela departs from Quito toward Piura; fearful of Pizarro, he retreats toward Quito. On the road he orders the beheading of Rodrigo Ocampo because of treason. The Viceroy leaves Quito and heads to Popayan while pursued by Pizarro. Pizarro arrives in Pasto and pretends to return to Lima; from Latacunga he returns to Quito with his troops, hoping that the Viceroy is there.

1546     The Viceroy and his few men join those of Benalcázar in Popayan.
Jan. 18 - Gonzalo Pizarro commanding 600 Spaniards (among them 200 harquebusiers and 140 mounted on horses) defeat the forces of the Viceroy in Iñaquito; the Viceroy is thrown from his horse and captured. The Pizarrista Licenciado Suárez de Carvajal, brother of deceased Yllan Suárez de Carvajal, in an act of vengeance orders his black slave to behead the Viceroy. Benalcázar has been wounded and captured but manages to escape. There are 50 Spaniards who die from the Viceroy's side and 20 from those of Pizarro; 70 prisoners are murdered by the Pizarristas; and the Royalists that fell wounded on the field are assassinated by Indians and blacks who rob them of their personal belongings. Pizarro orders that Hernando Sarmiento be beheaded.
July - Pizarro names Pedro Puelles Governor of Quito before he returns to Lima. Some "Encomenderos" want independence from Spain and believe that it is possible the Pope Paulo III would give Pizarro the investiture of the Kingdom.

Special Commissioner Pedro de La Gasca arrives in Lima; this priest, sent by the Court of Spain, begins a civil and military campaign against Gonzalo Pizarro and his allies. Alonso de Mercadillo founds Loja.

Pedro de La Gasca

1547     On easter-tuesday, a group of spaniards loyal to the King, who have been informed of the arrival of La Gasca, arrive in Guayaquil from the Villa of San Gregorio and proceed to decapitate the Pizarristas Captain Francisco Marmolejo and the Mayor Alonso Gutiérrez; Captain Manuel Estacio, Lieutenat Corregidor of Guayaquil appointed by Gonzalo Pizarro, is arrested. Manuel Estacio attempts to flee when he is taken from his cell to be garroted and is then assassinated in the street by Spaniards that came to watch the execution.

May - Pedro Puelles is assassinated in his bed by the Royalist Rodrigo de Salazar and his accomplices. Rodrigo de Salazar is appointed Governor of Quito.

Spaniards from Quito and Puerto Viejo join the army of La Gasca in Tumbez. Troops of Gonzalo Pizarro defeat those of La Gasca in the battle of Guiarina (Peru).

1548     Apr. 9 - La Gasca defeats Gonzalo Pizarro in the battle of Jaquijaguana. La Gasca enters Cuzco and starts the pacification. Gonzalo Pizarro and his principal allies are sentenced to death and executed.

La Gasca divides the East of the Viceroyalty into four conquests: Bracamoros, Yaguarsongo, Quijos and Macas.

The Audience of Bogota is created as a dependency of the Viceroyalty of Peru.

1549     Feb. 22 - Royal Decree prohibits that Indians be used for personal services in the Viceroyalty.

Alonso de Mercadillo founds Zamora. Expedition to Macas by Hernando de Benavente.

Expedition by Diego de Palomino to Bracamoros; Jaén is founded.

1550     July - The Indians of Lita and Quilca (west of Imbabura) rebel and kill their "Encomendero" Martín de Aguirre and 5 other Spaniards; Don Francisco (son of Atahualpa) and Sancho Hacho (an Indian chieftain from Latacunga) suffocate the rebellion.

1551     Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza assumes his post in Lima.

1552     Jun. 21 - The Viceroy of Peru Antonio de Mendoza dies.

Captain Egidio Ramírez Dávalos founds Quijos.

1553     Rebellion in Cuzco by Francisco Hernández Girón. Esmeraldas is populated accidentally, because of a shipwreck, by 17 black males and six black females; they soon control a great part of Esmeraldas with Indians they subjugate.

1555     Viceroy Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza, Marquis of Cañete, assumes his post in Lima.

Viceroy Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza

1556     Sep. 9 - Gil Ramírez Dávalos is named Governor and Captain General of Quito, Puerto Viejo, Guayaquil, Loja and Zamora, and their borders and jurisdictions.

Gil Ramírez Dávalos

King Charles V abdicates the throne of Spain in favor of his son Philip II.

King Philip II

Viceroy Hurtado de Mendoza entrusts Gil Ramírez Dávalos with the conquest of the Quijos, and Juan de Salinas Loyola with the conquest of Yaguarsongo and Pacamoros.

1557     Apr. 12 - The city of Santa Ana de los Ríos de Cuenca is founded in the Province of Tomebamba by Gil Ramírez Dávalos, under the orders of Viceroy Andrés Hurtado de Mendoza. Archelogical findings in 1998 indicate that the settlement of Paucarbamba, founded by "encomendero" Rodrigo Nuñez de Bonilla, precedes the founding by Ramírez Dávalos.

The first high seas ship built in the Viceroyalty is constructed in Puná.

1559     May 14 - Gil Ramírez Dávalos founds Baeza. July 7 - Melchor Vásquez de Avila is named Governor of Quito.

1561     The Count de Nieva assumes his post as Viceroy of Peru.

Melchor Vásquez de Avila is named Governor of the Quijos. The highlands and the coastal regions of the future "Ecuador" contain nearly 270,000 inhabitants.

1562     July 23 - The Indians of Quijos rebel and kill Spanish travelers; they also destroy bridges and way stations ("Tambos").

1563     Feb. 9 - The Magistrate of Lima, Juan Salazar de Villasante, is named Governor of Quito. Aug. 29 - Granting a petition made by the Cabildo of Quito, King Philip II issues a Royal Decree creating the Royal Audience and Chancery of San Francisco de Quito; the jurisdiction of the Audience includes all the provinces of the south down to Paita and Piura; in the east the Quijos and pueblos that may be discovered; in the west up to Buenaventura, and in the north the villas of Pasto, Popayán, Cali, Buga, Champachica and Guarchicona. Hernando de Santillán is named as the first President of the Royal Audience of Quito. The Royal Audience of Quito is subordinate to the Royal Audience of Lima. The royal Audiences were jurisdictions of third category.

The Captaincy General of Nueva Granada is created.

1564     Mar. 6 - Alonso Manuel de Anaya is named Governor of Quito; he governs for about 6 months until Hernando de Santillán assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

García de Castro is named Viceroy of Peru after the Count de Nieva is assassinated by a jealous husband (the Royal Audience of Lima had governed until the new Viceroy was named).

Hernando de Santillán founds the hospital Catalina Virgen y Mártir in Guayaquil; this hospital, the first in the Royal Audience, cures the ailment of "Bubas" (small tumors) with the root of the Sarsaparilla plant.

1566     Oct. 17 - The "Guagua" Pichincha erupts. Nov. 16 - Second eruption of the "Guagua" Pichincha.  Nov. 23 - Royal Decree prohibits to deprive the Indians of their chieftains and tribal masters.

1568     Jan. 26 - Hernando de Santillán, President of the Audience, is impeached by the "Comisario Regio" Gabriel Loarte; the President is removed from office and returned to Spain. The first Jesuits arrive to Lima.

1569    Francisco de Toledo is named Viceroy of Peru.  Dr. Lope Díaz Aúz de Armendáriz is named President of the Royal Audience of Quito. King Philip II introduces the Inquisition into Spanish America.

1575     July 9 - Antonio de Ribera and Ruy Díaz Fuenmayor founds Riobamba (later known as Villa del Villar Don Pardo).  Aug. 8 - Pedro García de Valverde assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Sep. 8 - The "Guagua" Pichincha erupts.

1577     The Viceroy issues ordinances to regulate the work performed by the Indians in the "Obrajes" (wool mills).

1578     Indians in Quijos abused by their "Encomenderos" rebel and destroy Avila and Archidona; all their inhabitants are butchered and their homes pillaged and burned. Baeza is able to rout the Quijos with the help that arrives from Quito.

1579    Diego de Narváez assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Friar Antonio de Zúñiga reports to the King of Spain that of the 3,000 children attending the schools in Quito 2,000 are "Mestizos" (half-breeds).

1580    Royal Decree prohibits granting "Encomiendas" without the prior consent of the Viceroy. The Villa of Riobamba is founded.

1581    Martín Enríquez de Almanza assumes his post as Viceroy of Peru.
Pedro Venegas de Cañaveral is named Provisional President of the Royal Audience of Quito; in reality his wife Magdalena governs.

1582    June 14 - The "Guagua" Pichincha erupts.

1583    Mar. 12 - After the death of Viceroy Enríquez de Almanza, the Royal Audience of Lima runs the government.

1585    Fernando Torres y Portugal, Count de Villar Don Pardo, assumes his post as Viceroy of Peru.

1586     May 27 - In Quito, the painter Miguel de Benalcázar, a "Mestizo" son of Sebastián de Benalcázar, is condemned to death and hanged for organizing a conspiracy against the colonial authorities.  July - The Jesuits arrive in Quito.

Royal Decree prohibits that Blacks, "Mulatos" (a mix of White and Black), "Mestizos" and "people of other mixtures" live among the Indians.

1587     Pirates under the command of Robert Thomas Cavendish are surprized in Puná by the Corregidor of Guayaquil, Don Jerónimo de Reinoso. He and his soldiers attack the pirates; 27 pirates and 6 soldiers die. Four young pirates are captured and turned over to the Tribunal of the Inquisition in Lima; the youngest one, 13 years old, is sentenced to reclusion for life at the school of the jesuits, the other three, being older, are acused of being heretics and burned at the stake on the 2nd of april in 1592.

Aug. 2 - Manuel Barros de San Millán assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Aug. 29 - Earthquake in Quito is followed by epidemics; thousands of persons die.

1589    García Hurtado de Mendoza, Marquis de Cañete, assumes his post as Viceroy of Peru.

Viceroy Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza

1591     Oct. 19 - Royal Decree regulates the salary and the personal service performed by the Indians. Nov. 1 - Royal Decree establishes in the Viceroyalty a tax known by the name of "Las Alcabalas" (a 2% tax for all sales except for articles of basic necessity).

1592     July 24 - "Revolution of Las Alcabalas" : Members of the Cabildo of Quito oppose the "Alcabalas" and name Alonso Moreno Bellido (a colombian) chief of the rebellion. President Barros asks the Viceroy, García Hurtado de Mendoza, for help. The Viceroy sends troops from Lima under the command of General Pedro de Arana. The Quiteños form a militia to defend themselves from Arana and name Pedro Zorilla as the general in charge of the militia. Dec. 28 - Alonso Moreno Bellido dies from gunfire of unknown origin. Members of the Audience take refuge in the church of San Francisco to escape being assassinated by the populace.  Some Quiteños, fearing economic and social reprisals by the Crown, suggest declaring Independence.

1593     Mar. 22 - Esteban de Marañón assumes his post of President of the Audience of Quito. Arana with 500 harquebusiers brutally punishes the leaders of the revolution in Quito; the mayors Jimeno and De la Vega, and the Councilman Diego de Arcos, are executed. Esteban de Marañón, acting in the function of Royal Inspector, tries Manuel Barros and orders his perpetual exile from America and hands down other punishments. The election of ordinary mayors is prohibited, because these were the ones that promoted the rebellion.

1594     Jan. 22 - Royal Decree orders that governors of Quito be audited for possible impeachment every five years.

1598     King Philip II of Spain dies. Philip III assumes the throne.
The office of Ordinary Mayor is eliminated for Quito.

1599     Logroño is destroyed by Jíbaros, lead by Quirruba, who rebel against high taxes; all white men are killed immediately except Aldarete, Governor of Macas, to whom they pour molten gold into his mouth until he dies.

1600     Feb. 23 - Miguel de Ibarra assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Presidente Ibarra prohibits the "Mita" (forced recruitment of labor) for the "Obrajes" and mines and for private work.

1604    Gaspar Zúñiga de Acevedo y Fonseca, Count de Monterrey, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru after he is rescued from a shipwreck in Galapagos.

1606     Sep. 28 - By initiative of President Ibarra, Cristóbal de Troya Pinque founds  Villa de San Miguel de Ibarra. Oct. 2 - The Cabildo of Villa de San Miguel de Ibarra is established.

1607    Juan de Mendoza y Luna, Marquis de Montesclaros, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru; he replaces the deceased Gaspar Zúñiga de Acevedo.

1608     Apr. 29 - Miguel de Ibarra dies. Diego de Armenteros y Henao, the Magistrate with longest tenure, is entrusted with the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1609    Juan Fernández de Recalde assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1611     Diego de Ugarte completes the last expedition to Esmeraldas. Pablo Durango Delgadillo, Corregidor of Otavalo, initiates a road to the coastal region and the construction of a sea port in San Mateo Bay.

1612    Juan Fernández de Recalde dies. Matías de Peralta, the Magistrate with longest tenure, is entrusted with the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1614     Sep. 30 - Antonio de Morga assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1615   Francisco de Borja y Aragón, Prince de Esquilache, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

1617     Eager to reduce the political and social agitation in the colonies, the Crown issues the "Ley de la Alternativa" which orders alternation in the election of provincial heads of government between "Criollos" (Creoles) and "Peninsulares" (those born in Spain).

1618     The Viceroy grants Diego Vaca de Vega the right to conquer Mainas (in the Marañón region) and names him Governor of that territory.

1619    Dec. 8 - Santiago de Borja is founded in Mainas.

The construction of the road from Ibarra to the mouth of the Santiago River begins.
Cristóbal de Troya departs to Esmeraldas to subdue the rebellious Malaba Indians.

1621     King Philip III of Spain dies. He is succeeded by his son Philip IV .

Viceroy Borja y Aragón returns to Spain and entrusts the Viceroyalty to the Royal Audience of Lima. Aug. 8 - Jesuits found the University of San Gregorio Magno in Quito.

1622    Diego Fernández de Córdova, first Marquis de Guadalcázar, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

1624     Mar. - The road between Quito and Bahía de Caráquez is completed.
June 6 - Dutch naval troops commanded by Jacob L'Hermite take the Island of Puná and attack Guayaquil. Of the 400 pirates more than 50 die; 15 defenders die and one is made prisioner. The dutch are routed and flee.  Aug. 25/26 - Captain Gubernat, lieutenant of L'Hermite, invades Puná with 800 men and in Guayaquil he burns ships and buildings; 83 pirates are killed (among them Gubernat) and 40 are wounded while 15 defenders die and 28 are wounded. With the death of Gubernat the pirates flee.

1625    Juan de Mañosca, Inquisitor of the Tribunal of Lima, establishes in Quito the "Tribunal del Santo Oficio de la Inquisición". The President of the Audience, Antonio de Morga, and the Magistrates are arrested.

1627     Sep. 18 - Antonio de Morga, the Magistrates, and the Prosecutor are restored to their posts. King Philip IV orders Mañosca to suspend the visit to the Royal Audience of Quito and to dedicate himself only to his functions of Inquisitioner.

1628    Luis Gerónimo Fernández de Cabrera Bovadilla y Mendoza , Count de Chinchón, is named Viceroy of Peru. Héctor de Villalobos is named Corregidor of Ibarra and Governor of Esmeraldas.

1629     Lojanos send leafs of  the "Quina" plant to the Countess de Chinchón in Lima; this starts the dissemination of the "Chinchón" as a medicine (Quinine) against malaria.

1631     The commerce between Guayaquil and Acapulco dies due to the prohibition to trade between the Viceroyalty of Peru and the Viceroyalty of New Spain (Mexico).

1635     Royal Decree orders that titles and appointments to posts that are sellable, and those which can be resigned from, be issued only by the Viceroy of Peru.
Feb. - Indians of Maynas kill 34 Spaniards from Borja; the Spaniards kill many more Indians later.

1636     July 21 - Antonio de Morga, President of the Royal Audience of Quito, dies.
Dec. 7 - Guayaquil is engulfed in a general fire.

1637     Sep. 19 - Alonso Pérez de Salazar, named President of the Royal Audience of Quito by the King, assumes his post.

1638     The Portuguese Captain Pedro de Texeira and some of his soldiers arrive in Quito after ascending the Amazon and Napo rivers; two Jesuits join them to go back with them.

1639    Pedro de Toledo y Leiva, Marquis de Mancera, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

1641    Alonso Pérez de Salazar, President of the Royal Audience of Quito, dies.
Royal Decree prohibits the publication of history books without permission from the Council of the Indies.

1642    Juan de Lizarazu assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1644    Dec. 17 - Juan de Lizarazu dies. Antonio Rodríguez de San Isidro Manrique succeeds him as Interim President of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1645    Feb. - Epidemic in Quito is accompanied by earthquake in Riobamba; almost 11,000 persons die.

1646     Antonio Rodríguez de San Isidro, Interim President of the Audience, dies. Alonso Ferrer de Ayala governs provisionally.

1647    Martín de Arriola takes possession of the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1648    García Sarmiento y Sotomayor, Count de Salvatierra, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

1650    Until this year, the houses in Quito were generally of one level and many with straw roofs. Only a few wealthy or titled persons built two story houses with "teja" roofs.

1652     Martín de Arriola dies. Juan Morales de Aramburo, the Magistrate with longest tenure, is temporarily entrusted with the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1655    Luis Enríquez y Guzmán, Count de Alba de Aiste, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

Nov. 5 - Pedro Vásquez de Velasco assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1660    Oct. 27 - A huge eruption of the "Guagua" Pichincha.

1662     Jan. 23 - Antonio Fernández de Heredia assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1665     King Philip IV of Spain dies; he is succeeded by his four years old son Charles II.   Mariana of Austria, mother of Charles II, is named Regent.

Antonio Fernández de Heredia dies. Alonso Castillo de Herrera, the Magistrate with longest tenure, is temporarily entrusted with the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1667    Pedro Fernández de Castro, Count de Lemos, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.  Pedro Bohórquez, the "Phony Inca", is captured and executed in Peru.

1670     Sep. 20 - Diego del Corro Carrascal assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1673    Baltazar de la Cueva Enríquez, Count de Castellar, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

Diego del Corro Carrascal dies; in March, Bishop Alonso de la Peña y Montenegro is named Interim President.

1677    The Viceroyalty of Peru is under the charge of Prelate Melchor de Liñan y Cisneros.

1678    Lope Antonio de Munive, named President of the Royal Audience of Quito by Charles II, assumes his post.

1684     Dec. 17/18 - Guayaquil is invaded by English pirates led by Captains Edward Davis, Swam and Edward Eaton; the pirates are routed but one defender dies and 8 are wounded.

1687     Apr. 21 - Guayaquil is attacked and looted by English and French pirates under George d'Hout (English) and Picard and Groniet (Frenchmen). Of the more than 260 pirates, 35 die and 46 are wounded; 75 defenders die and more than 100 are wounded. The pirates take the women as concubines. Quito pays the ransom demanded by the pirates with the condition they release the hostages and not burn Guayaquil.

1689    Melchor de Portocarrero, Count de la Monclova, assumes the post of Viceroy of Peru.

Apr. 25 - Antonio de Munive, President of the Royal Audience of Quito, dies. The population of Guayaquil is less than 2,000 inhabitants.

1691    Jan. 10 - Mateo de la Mata Ponce de León assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1699    June 20 - Earthquake in Ambato, Riobamba and Latacunga; almost 8,000 persons die  -- one third of the inhabitants of Latacunga.

1700     King Charles II of Spain dies. His successor is Philip V of Bourbon. Beginnings of the conflict of succession to the Spanish Crown.

King Philip V

1701     Persons who do not reside in the Indies lose their "Encomiendas" to the Crown.

1703     Aug. 18 - Francisco López Dicastillo assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1704     Royal Decree prohibits the "Mita" in the "Obrajes" and orders that only volunteer workers be employed.

1705     The Archduke Charles enters Cataluña and is proclaimed King of Spain.

1706     The Crown of Aragon proclaims Archduke Charles King of Spain.

1707     Mar. 1 - Juan de Sosaya assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

"Encomiendas" that have less than fifty Indians are terminated. A fire destroys 130 houses in the new town subdivision of Guayaquil.

1709     May 2 - The English captains Woodes Rogers and Etienne Courtney, and 110 other pirates, loot Guayaquil and demand ransom; however, they suddenly depart without collecting all the ransom after an epidemic of yellow fever breaks out.

1710     Bishop Diego Ladrón de Guevara leaves his post of Bishop of Quito after he is entrusted with the Government of the Viceroyalty of Peru.

Archduke Charles is proclaimed King Charles III in Madrid.  Philip V recovers the throne of Spain after he expels Charles III.

1715     Jul. 28 - Santiago de Larraín Barros is named Interim President of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1717     May 27 - Royal Decree creates the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada and makes Santa Fe de Bogotá the seat of its government; the Royal Audience of Quito is eliminated and all of its jurisdictions are incorporated to the new Viceroyalty.

1718    Jorge de Villalonga, Count de la Cueva, is named Viceroy of Santa Fe.
Philip V incorporates all the "Encomiendas" in America to the Crown.

1720     July 12 - By Decree the Crown orders that, contrary to the Decree of 1718, some "Encomiendas" dedicated to personal service not be incorporated to the Crown.

1722     Mar. 26 - The Royal Audience of Quito is restored and subordinated to the Viceroyalty of Peru.  Diego Morcillo Rubio de Auñón is the Viceroy of Peru.

Santiago de Larraín Barros assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito (he was confirmed to the post by Philip V in 1721). The prohibition to commerce cocoa between Guayaquil and Acapulco (Mexico) is renewed.

1723     Nov. 5 - By request from Viceroy Jorge de Villalonga, a Royal Decree eliminates de Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada.

The Cabildo of Quito requests the reduction in the real estate tax. A severe drought affects the highlands.

1728    José Armendáriz is Viceroy of Peru. Dec. 30 - Dionisio de Alcedo y Herrera assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1730     The Indians of Pomallacta rebel when Esteban Joseph Rodríguez de Eguez tries to take possession of the Indian's communal land he had bought from the colonial administration.

1735    Antonio de Mendoza, Marquis de Villagarcia, is named Viceroy of Peru.
Vicente Maldonado is given permission to build the road from Quito to Esmeraldas.

1736     Dec. 19 - José de Araujo y Río assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.  May 29 - A delegation from the Academy of Science of Paris   ("La Condamine") arrives in Quito to make geodetic measurements and studies of astronomy.

1739     Aug. 20 - Royal Decree re-establishes the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada and re-incorporates the Audience of  Quito again to this Viceroyalty. Sebastián de Eslava is named Viceroy of Nueva Granada.

The President of the Royal Audience of Quito, José de Araujo y Río, is accused by Dionisio de Alcedo y Herrera to have been involved in illegal commerce.

1740     A Royal Decree establishes the territorial limits of the Audience of Quito in its incorporation to the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada. Guayaquil suffers an epidemic of yellow fever.

1741     Nov. 24 - Paita is looted and set on fire by the pirate Anson.

The construction of the road from Quito to Esmeraldas (by way of Nono) is initiated by Pedro Vicente Maldonado.

1742    July 6 - Cotopaxi erupts.

1743     "La Condamine" starts its first scientific trip to the eastern jungles.

1744     June 3 - Manuel Rubio de Arévalo assumes the post of Interim President of the Audience after Araujo y Río is temporarily suspended from this post.
Nov. 30 - Cotopaxi erupts.

1745     Mar. 15 - The Latacungueño Fernando Félix Sánchez de Orellana, Marquis de Solanda, is the first "Criollo" to assume the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

"La Condamine" finalizes the geodetic measurements.

1746     Jan. 10 - The "Cabildo" in Quito, during an open meeting, urges reduction of the real estate tax and passes a resolution to request the Royal Audience to pass a measure to curtail the hoarding of farms and land by the clergy. Feb. 10 -  Cotopaxi erupts.

1747     José de Araujo y Río is declared innocent by the King. July 6 - King Philip V dies; his brother Ferdinand VI assumes the throne of Spain.

Temporary establishment of the government monopoly on "Aguardiente" (sugar cane alcohol).

1753     Sep. 22 - Juan Pío Montúfar y Fraso, Marquis de Selva Alegre, assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

1755     King Ferdinand VI prohibits completing the road from Quito to Esmeraldas. Earthquake devastates Quito. The first printing press begins to operate in Ambato.

1756     The real estate tax is reduced to three percent.

1757     Feb. 22 - Severe earthquake in Latacunga; hundreds of people die. A census ordered by Ferdinand VI estimates that Quito has 10,000 inhabitants.

1759     Aug. 10 - King Ferdinand VI of Spain dies. His brother Charles III succeeds him to the throne.

King CharlesIII

The Asiento de Ambato is designated Villa de Ambato. Epidemic in Quito kills thousands of its inhabitants.

1761    Pedro Messía de la Cerda is named Viceroy of New Granada.
Manuel Rubio de Arévalo, the Magistrate with longest tenure, assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience after the death of Juan Pío Montúfar.

1762     Dec. 8 - Royal Decree elevates the "Corregimiento" of Guayaquil to the status of "Gobernación;" the "Gobernación" has approximately 72,000 inhabitants.

1763     Mar. 5 - Royal Decree orders a census of the Indians and a new distribution of them to the "Mita" for labor in the fields.

Viceroy Pedro Messía de la Cerda designates Juan Antonio Zelaya to be the first Governor of Guayaquil.

1764    Mar. 7 - The "Forasteros" (Foreign) Indians of Riobamba rebel and refuse to serve in the "Mita" as a pre-condition to receive land in the community.
Nov./Dec. - The government monopoly on "Aguardiente" is permanently established and taxes are imposed at the customhouses.

1765     May 7 - "Barrios" (neighborhoods) of Quito rebel in protest to the government monopoly on "Aguardiente" and the taxation at the customhouse; the "Estancos" (government liquor stores) and the customhouses are set on fire. Troops of Governor Juan Antonio Zelaya arrive in Quito and suffocate the revolt known as the "Rebelión de los barrios". June. 28 - All unmarried male Spaniards are expelled from the Audience.

1766    Juan Antonio Zelaya assumes the Presidency of the Audience. Indians in Molleambato (Salcedo) rebel against the collection of taxes.

1767     Jul. 23 - Joseph Angel Diguja y Quiñones assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.  Aug. 20 - By order of Charles III the Jesuits in the Audience are expelled and their extensive wealth is confiscated by the Crown. The confiscated haciendas, later auctioned by the Crown, become the economic base of the wealthy landed gentry in the "Sierra."

1768    Apr. 4 - Cotopaxi erupts.  Apr. 25 - Concerted ("Conciertos") Indians in the "Obraje" of San Ildefonso (between Pelileo and Patate) rise against the additional work and kill the administrator; the leaders of the insurrection are captured and executed.

1770     The Indians in Patate rebel.

1771     Apr. 16 - The Indians in the "Obrajes" of Tilipulo and La Calera rebel in opposition to their numbering; troops of the Corregidor of Latacunga defeat and kill 8 of the insurgents.

May 23 - The status of Cuenca is raised from "Corregimiento" to "Gobierno".

1773     The government monopoly on tobacco is established in Quito. The Tungurahua volcano erupts and causes large destruction.

1776     Taxes at the customhouse for the export of cocoa are cut in half.  Royal Decree prohibits the marriage between white and colored peoples in Spanish America.

1777     The post of President of the Audience is annulled; Joseph Angel Diguja y Quiñones governs as Regent. In compliance to the Treaty of San Ildefonso, between Spain and Portugal, the Royal Audience of Quito cedes a large part of its territory in the Amazon Basin to the Portuguese (today territory of Brazil).

Nov. 9/16 - The Indians of Tabacundo, Cotacachi, Caranqui and Atuntaqui revolt; they believe that an order to number them is to enslave their children and take them to the customhouse; the Indians kill 16 whites and "Mestizos" and the whites and "Mestizos" kill 48 male and female Indians; Joseph Angel Diguja suffocates the insurrection but does not impose the death penalty to the insurgents.

1778    Sep. 29 - José García de León y Pizarro assumes the Presidency and Regency of the Audience.  Sep. 1 - "Mestizos" and Indians of Guano rebel believing that numbering them would bring them more taxes; after the rebellion is suffocated the leaders of the insurrection are executed.

1780     Jan. 9 - "Mestizos" in Pelileo, and the Indians of Píllaro and Quisapincha rebel in protest to the increase in "Alcabalas" ordered by García de León y Pizarro; Antonio Solano Salas suffocates the rebellion and executes the leaders.

1784     May 3 - Juan Joseph de Villalengua y Marfil assumes the Presidency and Regency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Villalengua founds the (public) "Universidad de Santo Tomás de Aquino."

1785     Sep. - Epidemics of  measles and other diseases kill thousands of persons in Quito and other places.

1786    Earthquake in Riobamba.

1787     Eugenio de Santa Cruz y Espejo, considered to be an agitator, is prosecuted, arrested and banished to Bogota for exalting the insurrection of Tupac Amaru and satirize the colonial authority in his book "El retrato de golilla."

1788     Dec. 14 - King Charles III of Spain dies. King Charles IV assumes the throne.

1789     By initiative of Espejo, the patriotic society "Escuela de la Concordia" is founded.

1790     Apr. 19 - Juan Antonio Mon y Velarde assumes the Regency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

The Indians of Guamote rebel against the collection of the "Diezmo".

1791     June 13 - Luis Muñoz de Guzmán Montero de Espinosa assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito; in addition, he is named Commanding General of the Arms subordinated to the Viceroy of Santa Fe.

1792     Jan. 5 - Eugenio Espejo publishes the first issue of the newspaper "Primicias de la Cultura de Quito."

The commerce of cocoa is allowed between Guayaquil and Mexico.

1793     The Viceroy of Santa Fe de Bogota declares that the districts of Esmeraldas, Tumaco and La Tola are under the jurisdiction of Popayán.

1797    The old city of Riobamba is destroyed by an earthquake; 6,306 persons die in Riobamba, 5,908 in Ambato, and 2,000 in Latacunga and other places.
Feb. 4 - Villa del Villar Don Pardo is moved to the Tapi plateau.

1799    Feb. 3 - Luis Francisco Héctor, Baron de Carondelet, assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito.

Luis Francisco Héctor, Baron de Carondelet

Jun. 17 - The new Villa de Riobamba is re-established on the Tapi plateau.

1802     July 15 - Royal Decree creates the Bishopric of Mainas and places the General Command of the province under the Viceroyalty of Peru; the decree stipulates that the borders with the Royal Audience of Quito extend "up to where the rivers are no longer navigable".

The German scientist Alexander Von Humboldt arrives to the Audience of Quito.

1803     Feb. 27 - Rebellion against the "Diezmos" in Columbe and Guamote.
July 7 - Royal Decree orders that the execution of administration, justice, war and finance of the "Gobernación de Guayaquil" be subject to the Viceroyalty of Peru.

1806     Aug. 10 - The President of the Audience, Luis Héctor, Baron de Carondelet, dies.  Colonel Diego Antonio Nieto, a Spanish military officer passing through Quito on his way to Peru, claims for himself the Presidency of the Royal Audience of Quito. Manuel de Urriez, Count Ruiz de Castilla, Titular President of the Royal Audience of Quito, assumes command over the Audience.

1807     Sep. 9 - King Charles IV prohibits the Viceroy of Peru from interfering in the governing of Guayaquil in affairs that are not of a military nature.

1808     King Charles IV abdicates in favor of his son Ferdinand VII. The Emperor of France, Napoleon Bonapart, makes Ferdinand VII  abdicate in favor of his father so he will abdicate in favor of Napoleon; Napoleon then gives the crown of Spain to his brother Joseph Bonapart.
 
King Ferdinand VII King Joseph Bonapart

Dec. 25 - In the hacienda Chillo-Compañía (near Quito) Juan Pío Montúfar (Marquis de Selva Alegre), Juan de Dios Morales, Manuel Rodríguez de Quiroga, Juan de Salinas y Zenitagoya, Miguel Riofrío and Nicolás de la Peña Maldonado meet to plan the overthrow of the Frenchified Spanish authorities; they would govern in the name of Ferdinand VII "as long as he would come to reign in America"; to the contrary, Independence would be proclaimed.

Juan Pío Montúfar

1809     Mar. - The Chillo-Compañia conspiracy for Independence is discovered by the authorities and almost all the conspirators are arrested; however, they are set free after they claim that all had been planned because of the loyalty they have toward Ferdinand VII.

Aug. 9/10 - Revolution in Quito: The home of Manuela Cañizares is picked as the meeting place to launch a revolution; although being one of the main conspirators, Juan Pio Montúfar does not attend the final preparations for the revolution because he repents in his participation and cries on his knees before the friar José Riofrio.

With the money provided by the family and friends of Montúfar, Juan de Salinas obtains support from soldiers at the Royal Barracks; Count Ruiz de Castilla is overthrown and a "Junta Suprema" is formed composed of the Marquis de Selva Alegre, Marquis de Orellana, Marquis de Solanda and Manuel Matheu, Pedro Montúfar, Juan de Dios Morales (Colombian) and Manuel Rodriguez de Quiroga (Bolivian).  Juan Pio Montúfar orders the making of a gold scepter for himself.
To make their authority felt, they form the "Falange de Quito" consisting of 25 companies under the command of Colonel Juan Salinas.

Juan Salinas (Without his large whiskers and bushy beard)

Pasto, Guayaquil and Cuenca do not recognize the authority of the "Junta Suprema" and that of other members of the government who give themselves attributes of "Majesty", "Highness", "Serene Lord", and "Lordship". Finding itself isolated, the "Junta Suprema" reinstates the power to Count Ruiz de Castilla after obtaining his promise that there will not be reprisals against them.

Neo-grenadine Royalist troops, under Commander Dupret and Commander Aldarete, and others from Piura under Colonel Arredondo, enter Quito.

Dec. 4 - The promise given to the revolutionaries is not honored and they are incarcerated.  The Prosecutor Tomás de Arechaga asks the death penalty be given to 40 of the leaders and 32 soldiers of the garrison that participated in the revolution.

The Province of Guayaquil is subordinated to the Viceroy of Peru on military affairs.

1810     After finishing the penal process in Quito against the revolutionaries, the documentation is sent to the Viceroy of Nueva Granada so the decision on the sentence be made.  Patriots in Quito organize armed groups to rescue the prisoners.
Aug. 2 - Quiteños assault the penitentiary at El Carmen Bajo and liberate the majority of the soldiers; the assault against the Royal Barracks, where the leaders of the revolution are confined, is repulsed by the troops of Colonel Arredondo; during the combat for the Royal Barracks, Salinas, Morales, Riofrío, Arenas, Larrea, Aguilera, Oleas, Villalobos, Cajias, Melo, Peña, Ascázubi and 20 other leaders are assassinated in their cells; more than 200 persons die (most of the victims are from Quito but there are some from Guayaquil, Colombia and Bolivia). Sep. 9 - The "Comisionado Regio de la Junta Central de España", Carlos Montúfar, arrives in Quito.

Carlos Montúfar

Sep. 19 - A second "Junta Suprema" is established, under the Presidency of Count Ruiz de Castilla, that resolves its submission to the Regency Council of Spain.
Oct. 8 - The Presidency of Quito secedes from the Viceroyalty of Santa Fe.
Oct. 10 - The "Junta Suprema" declares the Independence.

Oct. 10 - Joaquín Molina y Zuleta, named President of the Audience by the Regency Council of Spain, assumes his post in Guayaquil; Quito does not recognize the authority of Molina Zuleta.

The Viceroy of Peru, José Fernando de Abascal y Souza, Marquis de la Concordia, subordinates the "Gobernación de Guayaquil" to the Audience of Lima in judicial matters; in this manner, he totally annexes this "Gobernación" to the Viceroyalty of Peru.

Viceroy José Fernando de Abascal y Souza

1811     Troops from Quito under Carlos Montúfar route the Royalist troops under Colonel Arredondo in Guaranda. Cuenca remains loyal to the Royalists. The seat of the Royal Audience of Quito is moved to Cuenca.

Feb. 20 - Troops from Quito defeat the Royalist troops in Paredones (Cañar).

Troops from Quito under Colonel Pedro Montúfar defeat the Royalist troops of the Governor of Pasto, Miguel Tacón, in Cuáspud, Sapuyes, El Chupadero and El Guaytara.

Bishop José Cuero y Caicedo replaces Ruiz de Castilla as President of the "Junta Suprema."

Dec. 4 - A Constituent Congress is installed; this Congress secedes from the Regency of Spain and recognizes Ferdinand VII as the King.

1812     Feb. 15 - A Constituent Congress in Quito writes the "Constitución Quiteña" (First Political Charter).

Toribio Montes is named President of the Audience of Quito by the Regency Council of Spain.

Count Ruiz de Castilla, who in his youth commanded with others the platoon that executed Tupac Amaru, is butchered  in Quito and his body dragged through the streets. The Magistrate Fuertes y Amar is hanged without legal process.  Pedro Calixto and his son, Monarchist colonials, are summarily condemned to death by a popular tribunal, without the right of defense, and shot.

Patriots under Commander Chica are defeated in Mocha by Royalist forces. The Royalist troops under Toribio Montes defeat the Army of Independence in many battles. Dec. 2 - The Patriots are finally defeated in San Antonio de Ibarra; the Spanish power is re-established throughout the Audience. The Patriots that survive the short Independence are shot, confined, or banished to Spanish colonies.

The "Cortes" of Cádiz approve the Political Constitution of the Spanish Monarchy.

1813     Bishop José Cuero y Caicedo is banished for his complicity in the Independence.

Spain is liberated and Joseph Bonapart abandons it. Ferdinand VII recovers the Crown
.
The Royal Audience swears to be faithful to the Constitution of Cádiz.

1814     The Royal Audience is informed that Ferdinand VII has recovered the throne of Spain and that he does not recognize the Constitution of Cádiz of 1812.

Toribio Montes requests the Royal Council of the Indies that Mainas be returned to his jurisdiction.

1815     The "Gobernación de Guayaquil" petitions the King of Spain to be separated from the Viceroyalty of Peru and be adhered to the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada.

Insurrection in Quijos because of non-fulfillment of the Royal Decree of 1802.

1816     The Government of the Royal Audience of Quito is restituted by Toribio Montes.

1817    Juan Ramírez de Orosco is named President of the Royal Audience of Quito.

Juan Pío Montúfar, Manuel Matheu and Guillermo Valdivieso are banished to Cádiz after being accused of conspiring against the authorities.

1818     Antonio Ante is arrested and banished to Ceuta (Spanish penal colony in Morocco) for leading a conspiracy against the Spanish government in Quito. Juan Pío Montúfar dies in the prison of Cádiz.

1819    Melchor de Aymerich is named President of the Royal Audience of Quito.

June 23 - Royal Decree grants the petition of Guayaquil to be adhered to the Viceroyalty of Nueva Granada; this way it rejoins the Audience of Quito.

Aug. 7 - Simón Bolívar Palacios defeats the royalist army at the battle of Boyacá.  Aug. 9 - Bolivar enters Sta. Fe de Bogotá; Juan Sámano, last Viceroy of Nueva Granada, flees. Dec. 17 - Bolivar creates the Republic of Colombia; Simón Bolívar and Francisco de Paula Santander are named President and Vice-president, repectively.

1820     King Ferdinand VII swears the Constitution of 1812.  Aug. 5 - Esmeraldas proclaims its Independence.   In Peru, José de San Martín and his liberating armies prowl in the highlands and on the sea coast with the intent of blockading Lima.
Sep. - Passing through Guayaquil on the way to their native Venezuela, Miguel de Letamendi, Luis Urdaneta and León de Febres Cordero, all ex-officers of the Royalist battalion "Numancia", join with José de Antepara and José de Villamil Joly (Lousianan son of a Spaniard) to plan the overthrow of the government.

Oct. 9 - Almost without bloodshed, a group of civilians supported by soldiers from the "Granaderos de Reserva", a Peruvian battalion quartered in Guayaquil, overwhelm the resistance of the Royalist guards and the authorities are arrested.  José Joaquín de Olmedo is named "Jefe Civil" of Guayaquil. A General Assembly names a "Junta Gubernativa" composed of Gregorio Escobedo, Manuel Espantoso, Rafael Jimena and Luis Fernando de Vivero.

Oct. 10/23 - Daule, Babahoyo, Zamborondón, Baba, Jipijapa, Naranjal, Portoviejo and Montrecristi declare their Independence. Nov. 3 - Cuenca declares its Independence and names José Maria Vásquez de Noboa "Jefe Civil."

Nov. 9 - Patriots under León de Febres Cordero triumph over the Royalist Army in the "Camino Real" (Guaranda). Nov. 18 - Guayaquil creates a Constitution and elects a "Junta Suprema Permanente" (Olmedo, Francisco María Roca and Rafael Jimena).
 
 
Olmedo Roca Jimena

Nov. 11/19 - Machachi, Latacunga, Riobamba, Ambato, Alausí, Loja, Tulcán and Guaranda join the Independence.  Nov. 22 - Royalist troops under Colonel Francisco González defeats Luis Urdaneta in Huachi (Tungurahua). Urdaneta had 1,800 soldiers (500 from Tungurahua), 800 had horses, 1,000 on foot, 600 had rifles and 1,200 sticks, rocks or nothing; almost 800 are left dead on the field. The Spaniard Francisco Tamariz murdered halve of the people of Tisaleo; the women, mainly of Pillaro and Chacata, were raped.

Nov. 28 - Guayaquil recognizes Simón Bolívar as the "Jefe Supremo de la Gran Colombia."  Dec. 20 - Troops of José María Vásquez de Noboa clash with those of Colonel Francisco González in Verdeloma (Azuay); González takes Cuenca and, as a warning to others, orders a cruel execution of 28 peasants.

1821     Jan. 3 - In Tanizagua (Guaranda) the Royalist Friar Francisco Xavier Benavides ambushes and defeats the Patriotic troops under the Argentinean Commander José Baltazar García y Zaldua; 410 Patriots are killed and 120 are made prisoners; Commander José Baltazar García is shot by an entire squadron and decapitated; his head is sent to Quito to be exhibited by Aymerich on the bridge over the Machángara River.

General José Mires, a Spaniard subordinate to Bolívar, arrives in Guayaquil with armament for the Patriots.  May 15 - Antonio José de Sucre debarks in Guayaquil with 700 men (the majority Colombians and Venezuelans); his purpose is to get Guayaquil to grant him the military command to direct the campaign to take Quito, and incorporate Guayaquil to the Gran Colombia -- before San Martín does it for Peru.

Antonio José de Sucre Alcalá

Aug. 19 - Mires annihilates the Royalist troops of González in Yaguachi; González lost nearly 200 men between those killed and made prisoners.  Nov. 12 - The army of Sucre is defeated on the sandy plains of Huachi by the cavalry of Aymerich; Sucre lost 800 men who for the most part were killed (one of them was the Guayaquileño José de Antepara -- a precursor of the Independence), and 50 prisoners (among them was José Mires).

Nov. 23 - General Juan de la Cruz Murgeón , named Captain General and new President of the Royal Audience of Quito, arrives in Atacames with 800 men.
Nov. 24 - To have enough time to rebuild his army, Sucre signs an armistice of  90 days with the Spanish General Tolrá. Sucre is able to gather 1,700 men. The armies of San Martín have taken Lima and are preparing to march toward Loja, Cuenca and Guayaquil.

1822     Jan. 18 - Sucre and his army march toward Cuenca. Jan. 22 - Troops of San Martín (1,062), under the command of General Andrés de Santa Cruz and General Lavayen, join Sucre in Saraguro. Feb. 21 - General Tolrá abandons Cuenca to Sucre.

Apr. 8 - Juan de la Cruz Murgeón dies in Quito; Melchor de Aymerich assumes the Presidency of the Royal Audience.

Apr. 21/22 - Sucre enters Riobamba after the Argentinean cavalry defeats the Royalists in Tapi.

Before the battle of Pichincha, the towns of the Sierra were forced to provide shelter to the "libertadores". To the 1,000 homes of Ambato arrive almost 3,000 soldiers (including Rusians and Scotts). The "libertadores" impose taxes, seize and steal farm animals; the Colombian and Venezuelan "zambos" take the best looking women.

May 18 - General Mires, who had been imprisoned in Quito, escapes assisted by Rosita Montúfar who bribes the sentries; Mires arrives next day to the hacienda Chillo-Compañía and provides Sucre with the order of battle of the Royalist Army.

May  24 - On the foothills of Pichincha, Sucre and his 2,971 South Americans and European mercenaries defeat 1,894 Royalists under Melchor de Aymerich. The "Albión" and "Magdalena" battalions, last to enter into combat, provide the victory to Sucre when they overwhelm the "Aragón" battalion composed of Spanish troops and officers. In the battle die 400 Royalists and 200 Patriots. Days later dies the Standard Bearer of the "Yaguachi" battalion, Lieutenant Abdón Calderón Garaycoa (a youngster born in Cuenca), who, after being severely wounded by multiple shots of gunfire and collapsing, continued to encourage his companions to force the attack against the Royalists. May 25 - General Melchor de Aymerich capitulates in Quito.
June 16 - Simón Bolívar Palacios, President of the Gran Colombia, arrives in Quito.

Simón Bolivar Palacios

July 11 - Bolívar assumes command of Guayaquil. July 26 - Bolívar meets San Martín in Guayaquil; San Martin soon self banishes and leaves Bolivar to attempt the total independence of Peru.  July 31 - Bolívar annexes Guayaquil to the Gran Colombia. Bolívar decrees that the provinces of Guayaquil and Manabí (that included Esmeraldas) become the "Departamento de Guayaquil" and names General Bartolomé Salom as its "Intendente".

Jaen joins the Gran Colombia; Peru protests to Bolívar.

1823     Aug. 8 - Bolivar sails from Guayaquil to Callao to direct the war against the Royalists in Peru.

Sucre resigns the "Intendencia" of the "Departamento del Ecuador" (Quito) and departs to Peru to fight Royalists; Colonel Vicente Aguirre is named "Intendente." General Bartolomé Salom is named "Jefe Civil y Militar" of the "Distrito del Sur" (Ecuador, Guayaquil and Azuay).

Bartolomé Salom

Apr. 12 - Forced conscription causes a rebellion in Quito; 36 men, women and children die in the Santo Domingo Square.  Thousands of "Ecuadoreans" are sent to Peru to liberate it.

July 17 - In Ibarra, an "Ecuadorean" militia commanded in person by Bolivar defeats Royalist Pastusos under Agustín Agualongo; 800 corpses are left on the field.

Bolívar designates General Juan José Flores Civil and Military Governor of Pasto, and Antonio Lemus Governor of the Province of Quijos.

The "Tratado Castillo-Portocarrero," under which Peru recognizes the "Uti Possidetis" of 1809, is signed in Guayaquil.

1824     Ene. 12 - Bolivar decrees the death penalty for anyone who steals ten pesos or more from public funds.  May 25 - A Royalist resurgence is suffocated by force in Gualaceo.  July 25 - Under the "Ley Gran Colombiana de División Territorial," "Ecuador" is officially designated as the "Distrito del Sur" consisting of 3 departments: Ecuador (Quito) with the provinces of Imbabura and Chimborazo; Azuay, with Loja, Cuenca, Mainas and Jaén; and Guayaquil, with Guayaquil and Manabí. General Pedro Murgueytio is named "Jefe Superior" of the "Distrito del Sur". General Juan José Flores is named Commandant General of the "Departamento del Ecuador." The "Distrito del Sur" is governed by Neo-grenadine or Venezuelan military officers.-- The Spanish domination has been substituted by another !

Aug. 6 - Bolivar defeats the Royalists at the battle of Junín. Preparing his return to Bogota, at the request of Congress, Bolivar hands over the command of his army to Sucre.  Dec. 8 -  At the battle of Ayacucho, Sucre defeats the Royalist forces of  Viceroy La Serna commanded by Gen. Canterác;  9,310 Royalists are defeated by 5,780 Colombians  --- 1,800 Royalists die and 700 are wounded; Sucre has 370 dead and 600 wounded --- Viceroy La Serna is made prisoner.

1825     The population of the "Distrito del Sur" is estimated to reach 526,000 inhabitants; Guayaquil has only 16,139 inhabitants.

1826     Aug. 28 - Quito, Guayaquil and Cuenca proclaim by Public Act the Dictatorship of Simón Bolívar and decide to adopt the Bolivian Constitution.

Bolívar establishes "Juntas de Beneficencia" (social work organizations) in Quito, Guayaquil and Pasto. Juan José Flores suffocates a rebelion (motivated by unpaid wages) of the veterans from the "Araure" column who pass through Quito on their way to Venezuela. Gabriel Pérez is named "Jefe Civil and Militar" of the "Distrito del Sur".

1827     Mar. - The "Tercera División Auxiliar Colombiana" rebels in Lima and enters the "Departamento del Sur." The "Tercera División" rejects the "Bolivarist" authorities and recognizes the power of the Anti-bolivarist Municipal Councils.

Colonels Juan Francisco and Antonio Elizalde, supported by troops from Guayaquil, proclaim General José de LaMar y Cortázar (Cuenca-born Presidente of Peru and heroe of the battle Ayacucho) "Jefe Civil y Militar del Departamento."  Diego Noboa is named "Intendente".

José de LaMar y Cortázar

Sep. 22 - The "Vencedores" battalion, under the command of the "Bolivarist" Colonel Manuel León, takes the city of Guayaquil and order is restored.

1828     Convention of Ocaña: The purpose of the convention is to establish a "Bolivian" Constitution; Bolivar says he does not want to be king but proposes that the president of the republic be elected for life and that the posts of senator be hereditary --- his proposals are rejected.

Mar. 3 - Bolívar demands that Peru give back the province of Jaén and parts of the southern territory. July 5 - Bolívar declares war on Peru.  Peru blockades the Colombian coastline from Tumbes to the Isthmus of Panama. Jul. 13 - Simón Bolívar declares himself dictator after he orders his delegates to the Convention of Ocaña not to assist so it would dissolve (June 11) lacking a quórun.
Sep. 23/24 - Peruvian naval forces under the command of Admiral Jorge Guisse shell the city of Guayaquil; the port garrison under the command of Colonel O'Leary forces them to withdraw. Sep. 25 - An assassination attempt against Bolivar, masterminded by ex-vicepresident Santander, is frustrated in Bogota by the Quiteña Manuela Sáenz (Bolivar's favorite mistress).  Most of the conspirators are executed; Santander is sentenced to death but Bolivar exiles him.
 

Manuela Sáenz y Aizpuru  ("the liberator of the liberator")

Nov. - Loja is occupied by Peruvian troops under the command of General LaMar; he wants to liberate the southern and Guayas regions from the domination by Neo-grenadine and Venezuelan military officers and to annex these territories to Peru.

1829     Jan. 19 - The civil authorities leave Guayaquil after its Governor, Juan Illingworth, capitulates to the Peruvian Commander José Boterin. Feb. 10 - Cuenca is occupied by Peruvian troops. Feb. 27 - General LaMar and General Agustín Gamarra, commanding 8,000 men, are defeated at the Tarqui Gap by 4,000 Colombians under Marshal Sucre; Cuencanos relatives of La Mar and others from the Austro fight on the side of La Mar. The rifles used by the Colombians, equipped with more modern sights, cause terrible havoc in the Peruvian lines; the Colombians suffer 154 deaths and 206 wounded; the Peruvians loose 2,500 men between those killed, wounded and captured.  Feb. 28 - Peru and the Gran Colombia sign the "Convenio del Girón "; this agreement recognizes the territorial borders to be "those which the old Viceroyalties had before the Independence...".

July 10 - The "Armisticio de Piura," which imposes the return of Guayaquil to the Gran Colombia, is signed.   Sep. 22 - "Tratado de Guayaquil:" The Gran Colombia and Peru recognize the Girón Agreement and close the war between them.

Venezuela, now ruled by José Páez, announces its decision to secede from the Gran Colombia.

The dissolution of the Gran Colombia is pushed by the oligarchies; the integrity of the Gran Colombia is seen by them as bolivarian centralism contrary to the privileges of  the economically and socially powerful local families. Colombian and Venezuelan generals want to divide the empire liberated by Bolivar among themselves.

THE REPUBLIC 
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