City of Potosí

Founded in 1545 as a mining town, it soon produced impressive ample, and the population eventually exceeded 200,000 people.

In Spanish there is yet a saying, vale un Potos, "to be worth a Potos" (that is, "to be of a courteous value"). For Europeans, PeruBolivia was portion of the Viceroyalty of Peru and was known as Alto Per past becoming independent as part of Bolivia. Potosi was a mythical home of riches, it is mentioned in Miguel de Cervantes' nimbly-known novel, Don Quixote (second allocation, chap. LXXI) as a estate of "fantastic richness". One theory holds that the mint mark of Potos (the letters "PTSI" superimposed concerning one option) is the stock of the dollar sign.

Native laborers were used to engagement in the region of its mines through the times-privileged Incan mita system of contributed labor. Many of them died due to the aggressive conditions of the mine computer graphics.

According to Noble David Cook, "A key factor in concord the impact of the Potosi mita upon the Indians is that mita labor was unaccompanied one form of put it on at the mines. A 1603 relation avowed that of 58,800 Indians in pursuit at Potosi, 5100 were mitayos, or less than one in ten. In accumulation to the mitayos there were 10,500 mingas (contractual workers) and 43,200 aimless wage earners. Yet mitayos were required to make a benefit of the dogfight others refused: predominantly the transport of the ore going on the shafts to the mouth of the mine."

To compensate for the diminishing original labor force, the colonists made a request in 1608 to the Crown in Madrid to begin allowing the importation of 1,500 to 2,000 African slaves per year An estimated quantity of 30,000 African slaves were taken to Potos during the colonial time. African slaves were in addition to motivated to show in the Casa de la Moneda (mint) as acmilas humanas (human mules). Since mules would die after a couple of months pushing the mills, the colonists replaced the four mules taking into account twenty African slaves.

During the Bolivian War of Independence (18091825), Potos frequently passed together in the midst of the manage of Royalist and Patriot forces. Major leadership mistakes came bearing in mind the First Auxiliary Army arrived from Buenos Aires (knocked out the command of Juan Jos Castelli), this led to an increased wisdom that Potosi required its own independent slant.

When the second add occurring army arrived, it was venerated competently and the commander, Manuel Belgrano, did much to heal the appendix wounds inflicted by the tyrannical Castelli. When that army was motivated to retreat, Belgrano took the calculated decision to blow taking place the Casa de la Moneda. Since the locals refused to evacuate, the explosion would have resulted in many casualties. The mingle was lit, but calamity was averted by locals who put the unite out. Two more expeditions from Buenos Aires would snatch Potos.