The
Royal Audience of Quito (, sometimes referred to as
la Presidencia de Quito or
el Reino de Quito) was an administrative unit in the Spanish Empire which had political, military, and religious jurisdiction over territories that today include
Ecuador, parts of northern
Peru, parts of southern
Colombia and parts of northern
Brazil. It was created by Royal Decree on 29 August 1563 by
Philip II of Spain in the city of
Guadalajara (Law X of Title XV of Book II of the
Recopilación de Leyes de Indias). It ended in 1822 with the incorporation of the area into the
Republic of Gran Colombia, which had been established in 1819.