Subscribe for fascinating stories connecting the past to the present. In , while leading an expedition in search of gold, he sighted A decade later, he was serving as governor of the eastern province of Hispaniola when he decided to explore a nearby island, which became In , Coronado led a major Spanish expedition Francisco Pizarro was an explorer, soldier and conquistador best known for conquering the Incas and executing their leader, Atahuapla.
He was born around in Trujillo, Spain. The story of North American exploration spans an entire millennium and involves a wide array of European powers and uniquely American characters. Amerigo Vespucci was an Italian-born merchant and explorer who took part in early voyages to the New World on behalf of Spain around the late 15th century. By that time, the Vikings had established settlements in present-day North America as early as 1, A.
John Cabot or Giovanni Caboto, as he was known in Italian was an Italian explorer and navigator who may have developed the idea of sailing westward to reach the riches of Asia while working for a Venetian merchant.
Though the exact details of his life and expeditions are the Henry Hudson made his first voyage west from England in , when he was hired to find a shorter route to Asia from Europe through the Arctic Ocean. He let it be known that he would not let anyone stand in his way. De Soto enslaved, mutilated, and executed the natives, often without provocation. De Soto had one open-field battle at Napituca near Live Oak.
De Soto and his men were positioned in the surrounding woods in anticipation of an ambush. When the natives arrived, they charged. Some of the Indians were captured as slaves. Others were shot. De Soto held some chiefs as prisoners for a short time.
After this encounter, the Spaniards traveled west and came to the River of Deer now known as the Suwannee River. In the beginning of October, de Soto and his men crossed the Aucilla River with difficulty. Upon crossing it, they entered the Apalachee's main area. The natives destroyed their crops and burned their villages as they drew back, so that de Soto and his men could not use them. He probably was born in the town of Jerez de los Caballeros.
Although the family was of noble heritage, de Soto was poor and borrowed money to travel to the New World in He became a soldier, participating in raids and expeditions in Panama, Nicaragua, and Peru. By , he had gained fame as a cruel but successful military leader in the conquest of Native American groups in Central and South America and had become wealthy from his involvement in the sale of Indian slaves. He petitioned King Charles V for a governorship in Central America, but after complicated negotiations, the king offered him the opportunity to explore and conquer La Florida, which consisted of what is now the southern United States.
In addition, de Soto was made governor of Cuba, which would serve as his base for the conquest. In , he began gathering supplies and recruiting a paid army to participate in the expedition. In May , de Soto set out from Cuba with about men, plus horses, pigs, and equipment. His contract with the king required him to explore the region and establish settlements and forts. After landing on the southwest coast of Florida, the crew traveled through the Southeast before crossing the Mississippi River into what is now Arkansas on June 28, June 18 on the Julian calendar, which was used at that time.
The explorers were the first Europeans to set foot in Arkansas. The four known accounts of the expedition describe the Indians they encountered in the next two years. Scholars have long debated the actual route, but archaeologists have discovered small brass bells and other Spanish artifacts at a few archaeological sites—evidence of the expedition.
The fourth was written forty to fifty years later by Garcilaso de la Vega from interviews with survivors and appears to have many fictional additions.
Although these accounts are biased, together they give a fairly complete picture of de Soto. The most valuable aspect of the accounts is the portrayal of the Indian groups the expedition encountered. Typically, the explorers used the same name to refer to a chief, the town where the chief lived, and the region under his control. Because the names were unfamiliar to the Spanish-speaking explorers, their spellings vary in the different accounts, but they are assumed to be reasonable approximations of the names as spoken by the Indians.
They are the first recorded names of anyone living in Arkansas. De Soto died of fever on May 21, , in Ferriday, Louisiana. In his will, de Soto named Luis de Moscoso Alvarado the new leader of the expedition. De Soto was born c. He was raised at the family manor. De Soto's family hoped he would become a lawyer, but he told his father he would rather explore the West Indies.
An excellent horseman, de Soto was appointed captain of a cavalry exploration troop. Setting out from Panama to Nicaragua and later Honduras, de Soto quickly proved his worth as an explorer and trader, reaping large profits through his bold and commanding exchanges with the natives.
De Soto played a fundamental role in organizing the conquest of Peru and engaged in a successful battle to capture Cuzco. In de Soto returned to Spain a wealthy man.
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