Torres de Portugal, Fernando

March 31, 1584 Fernando Torres de Portugal was appointed to the post of Viceroy of Peru, he went to America, but his path due to health problems was quite long. Arriving at the colony, he landed in Paite on June 11, 1585 , and reached Lima on November 25 of the same year.

Fulfilling the order of King Philip II , the first thing he did was increase taxes and fees in the colony. The king needed huge funds for the construction of the Armada , and Torres de Portugal was able to give them, sending almost 5 million ducats to Spain over the 5 years of his reign.

Assuming attacks by English pirates , he took measures to strengthen the coast, new guns were made and placed for coastal defense. Soon after crossing the Strait of Magellan, the English pirate Thomas Cavendish made several attacks on the Peruvian coast, sacking Arica and Pisco , but did not touch Callao , guarded by the Spanish squadron.

On July 9, 1586, a strong earthquake occurred in Peru, following the tsunami that led to the destruction of Callao.

During the reign of Torres de Portugal in 1586, Isabel Flores de Oliva ( Holy Rose of Lima ) was born in Lima.

November 30, 1587, he held the fourth auto-da-fe along with the holy Inquisition of Lima.

In 1589, a smallpox epidemic erupted in Peru, and several hospitals were built by order of the Viceroy.

After the arrival of the new Viceroy of Garcia, Hurtado de Mendoza, Torres de Portugal went to the city of Magdalena, and later departed for Spain.

1. ↑ Fernando Torres y Portugal (Spanish) , Los diccionarios y las enciclopedias sobre el Académico . Date of treatment October 3, 2018.
2. ↑ Biografia de Fernando Torres y Portugal (Spanish) . www.biografiasyvidas.com. Date of treatment October 3, 2018.
3. ↑ Fernando Torres y Portugal (Spanish) , Los diccionarios y las enciclopedias sobre el Académico . Date of treatment October 3, 2018.

• Biography (Spanish)