Pedro Antonio de Cevallos

Pedro Antonio de Cevallos Cortés y Calderón (Cádiz, June 29 1715 - Cordoba, December 26 1778) was a Spanish military, Governor of Buenos Aires between 1757 and 1766, and the first Viceroy of the Río de la Plata in 1776.

Pedro Antonio de Cevallos came from a renowned Cantabrian family.

His is best remembered for his part in the Spanish-Portuguese War, 1776-1777.
On october 12 1776 he sailed with an army from Cadiz, and spent the winter in Buenos Aires, where he had been appointed Viceroy. On april 22 1777 he landed in Montevideo with a force of 9316 men. He then marched to Colonia del Sacramento, a disputed Portuguese city in present-day Uruguay, which surrended almost immediately. He then marched towards Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, conquered Santa Catarina island, but received word from a treaty having been signed between Spain and Portugal and turned back.

He then returned to Buenos Aires where he reassumed the post of Viceroy on october 15 1777.
He introduced the Law of free Commerce of 1778, which allowed Buenos Aires to trade directly with Spain, instead of being forced to trade by way of the Viceroyalty of Peru. This law gave a boost to the development of Buenos Aires

He died on december 26 1778 in the Capuchin Convent of Córdoba (Spain), where he was stayed on his way to the Spanish Court. He was buried in the Cordoba Cathedral in a sumptuous ceremony, a memorable event in the city's history.

He never married and died without successor, but his sister Antonia de Cevallos Cortés Hoyos y Calderón received from King Charles III after his death the title of Marchioness de la Colonia.