Real Audiencia of Mexico

The Real Audiencia of Mexico, also called the Royal Audiencia of Mexico, was the highest tribunal of the Spanish crown in the Kingdom of New Spain. It was created by royal decree on 13 December 1527 and seated in Mexico City, the viceregal capital. The first audiencia was dissolved by the crown because of its mismanagement and corruption, and a second audiencia was established in 1530. The creation of the Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1535 then supplanted this arrangement as the main seat of royal authority. In 1548 a further audiencia was created in Guadalajara in western Mexico. The institution is a leading example of how the Spanish crown used high courts that also carried governing duties to control its overseas territories.