Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, born in Salamanca (Spain) in 1510. He arrived in Nueva España in 1535 and quickly became a trusted person of Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza. In 1538, he was appointed Governor of Nueva Galicia replacing the former, accused and convicted of mistreating the natives. As we told in
Tag: XVI century
The Great Expedition Of Hernando De Soto In 1538 Through The North American South
Hernando de Soto, conqueror and explorator Hernando de Soto, born in Jerez de los Caballeros (Badajoz - Spain), arrived in the Indias in 1514 in the fleet colonization of the governor of Panama Pedrarias Davila. Two years later, he was named captain of cavalry and participated in various conquests in Central
The Viceroy Mendoza and the Seven Cities of Cibola
The name "Seven Cities of Cibola" comes from the early sixteenth century, specifically 1508, the year in which the book of chivalry of Amadís de Gaula was published in Spain that narrates the Muslim invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, seven bishops fled Spain with a fabulous treasure and took it
Nuño de Guzmán, conquistador of Nueva Galicia
Nuño Beltrán de Guzmán, born in Guadalajara (Spain) in 1490. He was appointed governor of Panuco in 1525, a territory taken from its discoverer and conqueror Francisco de Garay. He marched to his governorate and once there and because of the rivalry between the king and Hernán Cortés he was
Pánfilo de Narváez and Cabeza de Vaca, exploration of the Southern United States
Panfilo de Narváez, Segovian born in 1470. He served the Governor of Jamaica, Juan de Esquivel, and then marched to the Hispaniola Isle where he was appointed lieutenant of Diego de Velázquez with whom he participated in the conquest and colonization of Cuba. When Cortés betrayed Velázquez, he sent him to
Esteban Gómez, exploration of the entire East Coast
Esteban Gómez, Portuguese navigator, was born in 1483 in Oporto (Portugal). In 1518 he was appointed pilot of Seville Contracting House, thus passing to serve the Spanish crown. He participated as a pilot of the nao Trinidad ('capitana' ship) in the journey of Fernando de Magallanes with the objective of
Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, foundation of the first Spanish settlement in North America
Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, born in Toledo (Spain) in 1475, was a oidor of the Royal Court of Santo Domingo (founded in 1511) and a sugar courier on the Hispaniola island. He traded with slaves and pearls that he obtained by financing expeditions to the coasts of the pearls in
Francisco de Garay, expeditions along the Gulf of Mexico coast
Francisco de Garay was an important figure in the Hispaniola island of those years. He arrived on the island on the second journey of Columbus. It was enriched with gold found near Santo Domingo and was related to María de Toledo, the wife of Diego Columbus. He was appointed Mayor
Ponce de león and the Discovery of Florida
Juan Ponce de León, born in Santervás de Campos (Valladolid - Spain) in 1460, arrived with Frey Nicolás de Ovando in 1502 at the Hispaniola island. He took part in its conquest and pacification and for this was granted the governorship of Higüey in the eastern part of it where
Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean
We are in the month of September 1513. Vasco Núñez de Balboa and 190 Spaniards depart from Darién direction to Careta, Caribbean region whose chieftain was an ally of the Spaniards and where a thousand more natives joined. From here, they entered the thick and green jungle in search of
The sad last days of Columbus in the New World: rebellions and civil wars
We continue with Christopher Columbus shipwrecked and forgotten along with his men in Jamaica during his Fourth trip to the New World. They had to contact someone as soon as possible to get out of there. They decided to send someone after the Hispaniola island. In mid-July 1503, he departed
Columbus’ Fourth Trip to the New World: First Expedition to Central America
After stay in Spain of almost fifteen months they had everything ready for the new and last voyage of Columbus to the New World. This expedition consisted of four caravels and one hundred and forty crew members, including his son Hernando, his brother Bartolomé and his nephew Andrea. They departed Cádiz
The investigation against Columbus brothers
Despite the fact that the facts attributed to the Columbus were sufficient in themselves for his trial, Bobadilla continued with the investigations to clarify other matters of great concern to the Catholic Kings. To this end, some twenty witnesses from different parts of the Hispaniola island were chosen, both friends
Colón arrested and jailed by Bobadilla
We leave Christopher Columbus with the concern of the arrival of Ojeda to the west coast of la Española. He sent his warden Francisco de Roldán to ask him for explanations and to invite him to take his feet off the island. What he didn't know is that other expeditions
Black Legend: “The majority of Spaniards arriving in the New World were criminal convicts.”
One of the most recurrent accusations of the legends is that the majority of Spaniards who came to the New World to populate it were criminals freed from the Castilian prisons and that in exchange for this freedom they were offered to leave to the new territories and thus killed