José de Gálvez

Spanish colonial administrator

• Born: January 2, 1720
• Birthplace: Vélez-Málaga, Spain
• Died: June 17, 1787
• Place of death: Aranjuez, Spain

Gálvez reorganized New Spain’s tax system, strengthened New Spain’s defenses of its northern border, created a government tobacco monopoly that poured money into the Spanish treasury, and formed expeditions that developed the first nonindigenous settlements in Alta California.

Early Life

Born into a humble family, José de Gálvez (hoh-SAY thay GAL-vehs or GAL-veth) showed considerable promise as a young child and soon came to the attention of two of Málaga’s bishops, who made it possible for him to receive a solid education. Gálvez received his primary and some of his secondary education in Málaga, after which he went to Salamanca to continue his studies.

Gálvez entered the law school of the University of Madrid and eventually received a degree in law. His ecclesiastical protectors in Málaga, proud of the accomplishments of this son of impoverished parents, used their influence to have him appointed secretary to the Spanish minister of state, a post roughly equivalent to that of the secretary of state in the United States. This post was extremely important for Gálvez’s political and administrative development, for it would expose him to Spain’s international relations, most significantly to the country’s relations with the New World.

New Spain, as Mexico was called by the Spanish, was a territory rich in resources. Spain’s rulers realized that revenues from New Spain could greatly enhance their position as an international force, but great changes in the administrative structure of the area had to be accomplished before Spain could benefit directly and substantially from the riches of the new world.

Gálvez, a bright young man with considerable administrative potential, was also an acquiescent supporter of the Spanish monarchy, which made him, after considerable administrative exposure at home, a logical choice to serve the monarchy’s interests effectively in the Americas. That the need for such service was great was driven home emphatically in 1762 when Spain lost the critically important seaport of Havana to the British. This defeat solidified Spanish king Charles III’s determination to become stronger militarily in the New World and to shore up the relatively ineffective military system then in place in New Spain.

Life’s Work

José de Gálvez would soon be a seasoned statesman, appointed inspector general of all the judiciary councils and royal coffers of New Spain in 1765, taking over from Inspector General Juan de Villalba, who had been charged with establishing a professional army and a militia in the region. Villalba accomplished what was expected of him, but he created great resentment among many of the indigenous people by treading roughshod over local customs and by ignoring the political interactions required for unity. His troops were abusive to the indigenous, and were arrogant.

The new inspector general, Gálvez, also served as quartermaster general of Spain’s military forces in New Spain. He would hold these two posts until 1771. During his tenure, Gálvez increasingly realized the need for drastic reorganization and reform and set out to achieve this end. Among his early reforms was the reorganization of the customs houses that had been running inefficiently for decades, weakened by both nepotism and graft, or illegal or unfair gain. Gálvez replaced most of the administrators of these facilities with salaried employees who were held to very strict standards of professional conduct. He put the monopoly that made playing cards and the monopoly that manufactured and distributed pulque, a popular alcoholic beverage, under royal supervision. He replaced corrupt officials in the gunpowder industry with hand-picked, salaried employees.

The tobacco monopoly had been among the most important in New Spain and was said to employ fifty-six hundred workers in Mexico City alone and more than twelve thousand workers throughout New Spain. The monarchy had already taken steps toward reforming this monopoly before Gálvez arrived, but he intensified these reforms, arousing large numbers of the local populace. Nevertheless, the reforms achieved the economic ends the monarchy envisioned. Between 1768 and 1789, income from the tobacco monopoly credited to the royal treasury quadrupled.

Gálvez granted generous tax exemptions to the mining industry after the discovery of large mercury deposits in Spain, which enabled him to cut in half the price of mercury that was used in the production of silver in New Spain. His favoritism toward the mining industry caused considerable unrest, but it resulted in increases in the territory’s silver production, thereby enhancing the coffers of the Spanish monarchy substantially.

The reforms Gálvez imposed created smoldering resentment throughout New Spain, but it was his expulsion of the Jesuits from the country that sparked eruptions of violence in 1767. Indigenous insurgency gripped San Luis Potosí and Michoacán. The Jesuits had contributed a great deal to local society, particularly in their establishment of schools and medical facilities for local peoples. The Society of Jesus, as the Jesuits were designated, was a self-governing group of highly intelligent clergymen who defied the Papacy with considerable regularity.

The indigenous people had a strong sense of their own rights, and the Jesuits were often their supporters in opposition to the ruling government. The indigenous regarded the Jesuits as their advocates. When uprisings occurred in 1767, Gálvez ignored the traditional ways the indigenous had solved such problems, and he authorized Spanish troops to put down the uprisings with maximum force. The results were devastating. Some 85 local people were hanged, 73 were publicly flogged, 117 were exiled, and 674 were imprisoned. Putting down simple rioting by such draconian means sowed the seeds for considerable future resentment and unrest.

Gálvez reinstated Spain’s sovereignty in the high courts. He sought to control the municipal governments by appointing honorary aldermen and magistrates. He also reinforced the systematic collection of taxes, enhancing Spain’s wealth. He revoked many tax exemptions that had been in effect for years, causing considerable resentment. Gálvez’s methods for enforcing tax collection were so successful that by the end of the eighteenth century, New Spain was yielding 70 percent more in taxes than was the Iberian Peninsula.

When Gálvez returned to Spain at the end of his service in New Spain, he became active in the council of the Indies, rising to be its president in 1774. He was appointed minister in general and councillor of state to the Indies in 1775. He continued to serve until shortly before his death in 1787. Two years before he died, he received the title marquess of Sonora.

Significance

José de Gálvez will be remembered for his radical changes to New Spain’s tax system, a reorganization that was to become the basis for the Bourbon Dynasty’s economic reforms in Spain and in other European venues. Also, he created and maintained a monopoly on the government’s trade in tobacco, which added great sums to Spain’s treasury.

Under Gálvez’s leadership, Spanish forces occupied parts of Alta (Upper) California (now the U.S. state of California). His most memorable reforms, however, included establishing intendancies, official governments modeled on the French system and set up to control colonial provinces to ensure European supremacy in governmental administration.

Largely through Gálvez’s influence, his brother, Matias de Gálvez, and his nephew, Bernardo de Gálvez, were appointed viceroys of New Spain during the 1780’s. The city of Galveston, Texas, is named after the Gálvez family.

Bibliography

Beerman, Eric. José de Gálvez: The First Marques of Sonora. Sonora, Calif.: Tuolumne County Historical Society, 1980. Interesting for the local color relating to Gálvez being named marques of Sonora.

Cheetham, Nicolas. Mexico: A Short History. New York: Crowell, 1971. Although somewhat dated, this resource offers an overview that should help readers who are unfamiliar with Mexican history.

Kirkwood, Burton. The History of Mexico. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2000. Kirkwood’s treatment of the colonial period is concise and well controlled. A useful source for building a background.

Meyer, Michael C., and William H. Beezley, eds. The Oxford History of Mexico. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. Three contributions contain valuable information about Gálvez. The fullest account is in Virginia Guedea’s “The Old Colonialism Ends, the New Colonialism Begins.” Also useful are accounts by Mark A. Burkholder in “An Empire Beyond Compare” and Robert Patch in “Indian Resistance to Colonialism.”

Mills, Kenneth, and William B. Taylor, eds. Colonial Spanish America: A Documentary History. Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources, 1998. A comprehensive resource of primary documents relating to the colonial history of New Spain. Chapter 39 provides “José de Gálvez’s Decrees for the King’s Subjects in Mexico (1769, 1778).” Includes illustrations, a bibliography, and an index.

Priestley, Herbert I. José de Gálvez, Visitor-General of New Spain, 1765-1771. Berkeley: University of California Publications, 1916. Despite its age, this extraordinary biography by one of the leading scholars in Mexican history remains the best book on Gálvez. An outstanding achievement in biographical writing.

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. Mexican Nation: A History. New York: Macmillan, 1923. Priestley delves into Gálvez’s role in the history of Mexico with keen insight and clarity. A valuable resource.