As A Member of The Audiencia
Quiroga founded the hospital-pueblo of Santa Fe (Mexico City), with his own money. This was his first attempt at building a Utopia on the model of Sir Thomas More. He converted many Indigenous to Christianity. He sat on the tribunal that ordered the president of the first Audiencia, Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán, to be returned to Spain in chains. Quiroga and the other oidores of the second Audiencia also conducted the trial of Juan Ortiz de Matienzo and Diego Delgadillo, oídores of the first Audiencia.
When the newly conquered Chichimec Indians of Michoacán rebelled in 1533, Quiroga was sent to that province as visitador (inspector). While an oídor Vasco de Quiroga became influenced by Thomas More's recently published Utopia (1516), he probably read the copy belonging to Bishop Juan de Zumarraga, now held at the library of the University of Texas at Austin.
In 1535 the second Audiencia turned over its governing powers to the first viceroy of New Spain, Antonio de Mendoza.
Read more about this topic: Vasco De Quiroga
Famous quotes containing the word member:
“If there is among you anyone in need, a member of your community in any of your towns within the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your needy neighbor. You should rather open your hand, willingly lending enough to meet the need, whatever it may be.”
—Bible: Hebrew, Deuteronomy 15:7,8.