The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata had a French viceroy at the time, Santiago de Liniers. However, his appointment took place before the Peninsular War, and France was not involved at all in it: it was instead a consequence of the British invasions of the Río de la Plata, a conflict between Britain and the Spanish colonies. Napoleon and Joseph sent the Marquis of Sassenay to the zone, seeking support from Liniers to the new monarchy, but Liniers rejected it and confirmed his loyalty to the captive king Ferdinand VII.