The Provincias Internas (Spanish: Inner Provinces), also known as the Comandancia y CapitanÃa General de las Provincias Internas (Commandancy and General Captaincy of the Inner Provinces), was an administrative district of the Spanish Empire envisioned in 1768 as including Sinaloa, Sonora, Nueva Vizcaya (today's Chihuahua and Durango) and Baja and Alta California, with its capital in Arizpe (Sonora). The jurisdiction was formally created in 1776, on the official grounds that it would provide more autonomy for the frontier provinces, present-day northern Mexico and the Southwestern United States—and perhaps with the unofficial goal of reducing the political and economic power of the viceroy running New Spain from Mexico City by creating a command for the northern regions. If the goal of its creation was to establish a unified government in political, military and fiscal affairs for northern New Spain, this unity was elusive. The Commandancy General experienced significant changes in its administration because of experimentation to find the best government for the frontier region as well as bureaucratic in-fighting between Mexico City elites and Bourbon reformers in Madrid. Its creation was part of the Bourbon Reforms and was part of an effort to invigorate economic and population growth in the region to stave off encroachment on the region by foreign powers. During its existence, the Commandancy General encompassed the provinces of New Navarre, New Biscay, The Californias, New Mexico, New Santander, New Kingdom of Leon, Coahuila (formerly New Extremadura) and Texas.
