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{{breadcrumb | link1=[[Peru Genealogy|Peru]] | link2= | link3= | link4= | link5=[[Peru Historical Geography|Historical Geography]] }} Spain instituted a viceroyalty system to govern its possessions in the New World. During the nearly three centuries of the colonial period, legal records and documents were subject to the jurisdiction of the appropriate viceroyalty. The viceroyalty of Peru from 1543[1]1821 included Chile, Peru, and parts of Bolivia. Some important dates concerning the changes in boundaries of Peru include: * '''1542–1821''' The Viceroyalty of Peru was divided into the Audiencias of Panamá (1535), Lima (1542), Santa Fe de Bogotá (1549), Charcas (1559; now Bolivia), Quito (1563), Buenos Aires (1661), Chile (1565 and 1609), Rio de la Plata (1777), and Cuzco (1787). Other governmental divisions created were commissions (encomiendas), provinces (provincias), and corrector district (corregimientos). * '''1717''' and The Virreinato of Santa Fe was erected. * '''1739''' It was suppressed from 1723 to 1739. * '''1777''' The Virreinato of Buenos Aires was erected. * '''1783–84''' The area of Peru was divided into seven Intendencias: Lima, Arequipa, Tarma, Huancavelica, Huamanga, Trujillo, Arica, Puno, and Cuzco. These were divided into districts (partidos). Later these Intendencias’ boundaries were arranged to coincide with the boundaries of the dioceses. * '''1836–39''' Peru and Bolivia were united until Chile won the battle of Yungay. * '''1862–66''' Peru was at war with Spain. * '''1879–83''' The War of the Pacific resulted in the loss of Tarata until 1925 and Tacna until 1929. Tarapaca and Arica were permanently lost to Chile. The viceroyalties were subdivided into legislative divisions called audiencias. These audiencias supervised local courts, applied Spanish law, and established a legal tradition that has persisted in Hispanic America. The jurisdictions of the audiencias formed the basic territories of the Latin American republics once they gained independence from Spain. The following list indicates the years in which audiencias were established under the viceroyalty for Peru, which included Chile: * Cuzco — 1787 * Lima — 1542 * Santiago — 1609 During the 19<sup>th</sup> century, international conflicts and border disputes altered many political jurisdictions of South America. These changes affected the subsequent registration of the local population. Chile acquired the mineral-rich Atacama Desert when it prevailed in the 1879–1883 War of the Pacific against Peru and Bolivia. The acquisition extended Chile’s northern border and completely cut off Bolivia’s access to the sea. You may need to determine previous boundaries and jurisdictions to locate your ancestors’ records. Gazetteers and histories are helpful sources of information about these changes. The following book explains more about the historical geography of South America. You can find this and similar materials at the FamilySearch Library and many other research libraries. * John Bartholomew (John George). A Literary & Historical Atlas of America. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1910. (FS Library book 912.19812 B283.) === Creation of Peruvian Departments === The departments of Peru were created as follows (* indicates former Intendency): Lima* 1821 Amazonas 1832 Ancash 1821 earlier known as Huaylás Apurímac 1873 from Cuzco and Huamanga* Arequipa* 1822 Ayacucho* 1822 earlier known as Huamanga Cajamarca 1855 Callao 1836 from Lima Cuzco* 1822 Huancavelica* 1822 anciently part of Huamanga, today Ayacucho Huánuco 1823 from Junin Ica 1866 Junín 1825 anciently an Intendencia of Tarma La Libertad 1821 Lambayeque 1874 from La Libertad Loreto 1861 from Amazonas Madre de Dios 1912 from Cusco and Puno Moquegua 1957 from Arequipa Pasco 1944 from Junin Piura 1861 Puno* 1822 San Martín 1906 from Loreto Tacna 1875 part of Chile from 1883–1929 Tumbes 1901 Ucayali 1980–1983 from Loreto Other sources about boundary changes are found in the FamilySearch Catalog under: PERU - HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY PERU - HISTORY PERU, [DEPARTMENT] - HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY PERU, [DEPARTMENT] - HISTORY [[es:Geografía histórica de Perú]] [[Category:Peru]]

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