Information AboutViceroy |
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A viceroy is a royal official who governs a country or province in the name of and as representative of the Monarch . The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and French ''roi'', meaning king. His province or larger territory is called a Viceroyalty . The relative adjective is viceregal. A vicereine is a woman in a viceregal position (rare, as it usually includes military high command), or a Viceroy's wife. The etymological allusion to the royal style makes it be perceived as higher than Governor-general , even when in some cases it is a synonym for that administrative rank, and not necessarily above several 'provincial' (lieutenant-)governors. In some cases, the title (and the office, unless the title is not permanently attached to the job) is reserved for members of the ruling dynasty. It was not uncommon for potentials heirs to the throne to obtain such a post (or an equivalent one, without the viceregal style) as a test - and learning stage, not unlike the even loftier 'associations to the throne', such as the Roman '' Consortium Imperii -'' or the Caesars in Emperor Diocletian's original Tetrarchy . Under the monarchs of Spain The absolutist Kings of Spain employed numerous Viceroys to rule over various parts of their vast empire "where the sun never set", both European and overseas. In Europe, until the 18th century the Spanish crown appointed Viceroys of Aragon , Valencia , Catalonia , Sardinia , Sicily , Naples , and Portugal ( 1580 – 1640 ) Meanwhile in the , there were only two Spanish viceroyalties, the Viceroyalty Of Peru and the Viceroyalty Of New Spain . The Viceroyalty of Peru, with its capital in Lima , ruled over all of Spain's territory in South America, while the Viceroyalty of New Spain, with its capital in Mexico City , ruled over Spain's territory in Mexico, Central and North America, the Caribbean, and the Philippines. (Venezuela, in South America, was at times attached to the Viceroyalty of New Spain.) Due to the growing size of Spain's American colonies, new viceroyalties were created for New Granada in 1717 (capital, Bogotá ) and The Río De La Plata in 1776 (capital, Buenos Aires ). The viceroyalties of Spanish America were subdivided into smaller units, Audiencias and Captaincies General , which in many cases became the bases for the independent countries of modern Spanish America.
British Empire and Commonwealth From 1858 to 1947 (the height of the Raj, after the crown took over the role of the British East India Company), the British colonial Governor-General Of India was also known, though not officially, as the Viceroy Of India , and indeed only the last was a member of the royal family. The Lord Lieutenant Of Ireland was also sometimes referred to as a British Viceroy. The title itself and the Adjective "vice-regal", are used (poetically, but technically generally incorrect) in some Commonwealth Realms to refer to the function of the Governor-general (and in Canada, provincial Lieutenant-governor s, and in Australia, state governors) as representatives of The Crown . Other colonial viceroyalties
Other Domestic Viceroys, including personal unions
Exotic counterparts As many princely and administrative titles, viceroy is often used, generally unofficiously, to render somewhat equivalent titles and offices in non-western cultures. China In Imperial China , ''viceroy'' was the English translation of the title "general supervisor-protector" (督護 or 總督), otherwise translated as the ''Governor General'', who were heading large administrative divisions, directly under the imperial court. These divisions are usually two or three provinces. The regions included Zhili , Huguang , Liangjiang, Liangguang, Shangan, Minzhe, Yungui, and Sichuan. Li Hongzhang was viceroy of Huguang from 1867 to 1870, and Yuan Shikai was once Viceroy Of Chihli . Buddhist tradition
See also
Informal use US Ambassador Paul Bremer , the American civilian in-charge of the Iraqi reconstruction prior to return of soverignty has, on occasion, been referred to in the media as the "American Viceroy" to Iraq. The use of the term in this context is often pejorative and linked to War criticism. He could never truly be considered a Viceroy because the American constitution (in an original republic's tradition) forbids bestowing titles of nobility upon American citizens. Sources and references |