viceroy

A viceroy is a royal official who governs a territory on behalf of a monarch, typically in a colony or large province, with executive authority over administration, justice, and taxation. The viceroy acts as a deputy or representative of the sovereign, rather than as an independent ruler.

The term derives from Latin vicarius meaning “deputy,” via Old French vice-roy or Spanish virrey, literally meaning “in place of the king.”

In the early modern era, the Spanish Empire organized its American possessions into viceroyalties, notably New Spain (Mexico), Peru, New Granada, and Río de la Plata. Viceroys exercised broad civil and military authority and reported to the Crown and the Council of Indies, often assisted by audiencias as appellate bodies. The British Empire later used a related principle for its Indian administration, with the period’s top administrator titled Viceroy of India (often combined with Governor-General) from 1858 to 1947; the last holder was Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma.

The term also appears in other contexts, including a ceremonial or historical designation in various colonial administrations. In biology, viceroy is the common name of a North American butterfly, Limenitis archippus, which visually mimics the monarch butterfly as a form of Batesian mimicry.

Summary: a viceroy is a monarch’s representative who governs a territory on behalf of the crown, with origins in Latin and widespread historical use in European empires, as well as a modern usage in biology for a butterfly species.