Early Spanish Conquest and Settlement

New Mexico History

Spanish Incidental Discovery of a ‘New World’ -America

In an effort to break with the monopolized Italian

European trade with India Spain started to look for

an alternate trade route. The Spanish monarchs

Queen Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon

financed the voyage of Christopher Columbus.

Columbus believed he could find an all water route

to India by sailing westward from Europe and in

1492, he started his search. Instead of arriving to

India, Columbus arrived to the Caribbean Islands

of present day Haiti and claimed the land for his

Spanish Monarchs naming it Nueva Espanola.

Hernando Cortez then conquered the Mexica

Aztec Empire of Tenochtitlan renaming it Mexico

City. Conquest continued and the vast Mexican

mainland became ‘New Spain of the Ocean Sea’

giving Spain immense wealth of gold and silver. 1

Columbus taking possession of the new country http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/91481671/

The Spanish acquirement of New Spain along with its vast wealth incited further

Exploration not only of the south, as Pizarro conquered Peru, but to the north as

well and attention was placed on Florida.Panfilo de Narvaez often heard of rich Indian villages located in

Florida’s interiorand in company of 400 me sailed for Florida in 1528. He found no

riches onlyunfriendly Indians and lethal fevers. Discouraged by no finds of wealth more than half of Narvaez men

sailed to NewSpain but storm and shipwreck destroyed their fleet and 80 Men end

up inGalveston Bay in present day TX. A year later only 15 men were alive captive by Indians; among the

captives wasAlvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca. In 1534, he escaped with two Spanish

and a moorNamed Esteban and marched westward crossing the Rio Grande

below presentday El Paso, back then part of New Mexico, reaching New Spain In

1536.1

First Southwest Exploration

De Narvaez and Cabeza de Vaca routes

Cabeza de Vaca and the other survivors described the land they had crossed as

one of little farming and few settlements with people who treasured some

beads, turquoise, coral and arrow heads. They also told stories of people far to

the north who lived in large houses and traded with turquoise. The Spaniards pay little attention to the impoverished land descried

by Cabezade Vaca and paid closed attention to the “treasures” of these people. In contemplating possible reaches on the north they started to recall

the fable of far rich lands with both European and American origins. The

Europeans saidthat when the Moors overran Portugal seven bishops fled and

somewhere in theAtlantic established church districts in very rich lands. The

American side was anAztec legend claiming the Aztec people had come from seven caves

far to thenorth; other tales described a land of gold and silver that lay a 40-

day journey tothe north. Having in mind the found reaches in their conquered

Mexico, they started to have hopes in finding another “new Mexico” where the

seven cities ofgold could be located and plans to explore the northern frontier

begun to form.1

The Seven Cities of Gold - Cibola

Early Spanish Explorers of America

Antonio de Mendoza, viceroy of New Spain, heard of the stories of Narvaez’ crewsurvivors and he sent a small expedition to fact-find about the seven cities ofgold. Upon the findings he then could decide if a bigger expedition would beworth to be sent. In 1539, the expedition lead by Fray Marcos de Niza and having Estevan as guide headed north and crossed the desert of present day Arizona. Estevan went ahead of the expedition with instructions of sending back crossesof different sizes; the bigger the cross the bigger the finding. He sent back a very large cross and Fray de Niza hurried to met him just to find out he had been killed.It is unknown from where the friar got the information he later provided toMendoza confirming the finding of the seven cities of gold; which just might havebeen the Villages’ walls reflecting the very bright desert sun giving them a

‘golden’ hue.

First Search to Find Cibola

Once Mendoza confirmed the seven cities of gold with its supposed immensewealth, he immediately organized a large expedition and chose Francisco Vazquezde Coronado this time Fray de Niza was the guide. In 1540, Coronado with more than 300 men on horse back and on foot, severalsoldiers and their families along with several hundreds of Indians to help with thelive stock, headed north in search of Cibola and its wealth.The Coronado expedition endured six hard months arriving at Zuni with its sixvillages, not seven, and its buildings plastered with mud not gold. That viewrevealed in the most explicit terms that the Spaniards had not found the sevencities of gold. The hostile Natives did not welcomed the explores and only afterforcefully subdued by Coronado’s men the Zuni make peace and the Spanish got muchneeded supplies but no precious metals. Coronado still believed in news arriving to him about rich villages on the northeastand sent expeditions to confirm those rumors. When the expeditions came back withreports of well established Pueblo villages near big rivers and vast plains, Coronadotook his expedition north arriving in winter time at Tiguex, present day Bernalillo.Still no sight of cities of gold only another tale of a rich city on the plains to the eastcalled Quivira; which Coronado planned to explore in the spring.

First Official Expedition of New Mexico

Francisco Vasquez de CoronadoThe Fist European to Explore North America’s Southwest

Coronado’s exploration was categorized as a failure for its lack of finding wealth.But hopes of acquiring new riches beyond the northern frontier were never lost. After Coronado’s return four more other explorations along the Rio Grande weretaken; which included missionary work and religious intentions to ‘save’ the Natives’souls.Among these explorers were Fray Bernardino Beltran, Fray Agustin and FrayFrancisco, the business man Antonio de Espejo, and the lieutenant governor ofNuevo Leon Gaspar Catano de Sosa.The friars met their dead at the Natives’ hands who feared they would be sendingmore unwanted Spaniards. The other business men returned almost emptyhanded but with a great tale of wealth in New Mexico, such account grew morecolorful with each telling. These expeditions might all failed due to its outcome of no found riches, but set a pathof recognized terrain, now with a new trail along the Rio Grande, for futureexplorations for settlement.

Sporadic Explorations Before Settlement

By the end of the sixteen century explorers had discovered no treasure, Spanishofficials started to see NM as a land worth of settlement and now the new interests were permanent settlement and missionary work. Along with this newquest the desire of finding an all water route through the Americas, the longdreamed “Northwest Passage” to the Pacific Ocean.Spain’s King Philip II, officially sanctioned the new priorities in 1583, and orderedthe viceroy to find the right person to colonize New Mexico, and fourteen yearslater Don Juan de Onate was the man chosen for the duty. He was given the titlesof governor and captain general of the province along with authority to apportion

landto the settlers who would accompany him.Onate was favored for the task thanks to his wealthy background anddistinguished family. He was married to Dona Isabel Cortez Tolosa, a descendentof both Mexico’s conqueror Hernan Cortez and Aztec emperor Moctezuma. Healso possessed invaluable military experience of 20 years of service as a soldierfighting Indians in northern New Spain.

Plans for Permanent Settlement

Onate’s wealth came in handy as he had to agree to pay for most of the expeditionincluding the soldiers and settlers expenses in addition of the purchase ofsupplies and livestock. The government only paid the expenses of friars going toconvert the NM Natives. At the beginning of 1598, Onate’s expedition started witha group of 400 men which included soldiers and families with wives and children,ten Franciscan friars and the first NM historian Gaspar Perez de Villagra. The expedition utilized 83 carts and herded 7,000 head of livestock and the group’smarch extended two miles long front to back. They marched to the Rio Grandestopping at present day El Paso, TX, resting and proclaiming the land for theSpanish crown. Continuing with the journey the got to the land of the PirosIndians where they received food and water and named the place Socorro andkept their travel north. On July 1598, Onate proclaimed San Juan, near present dayEspanola, the site of the first Spanish settlement in NM and within two weeks thefoundation for a church was laid.

First Spanish Settlement Expedition

After several months the Spaniards moved to the west side of theRio Grande in an attempt to put distance from the San Juan people and to gainroom for expansion. There the Spaniards built their second settlement named SanGabriel. After going through hard times and requesting reinforcements of supplies, soldiers and friars, Onate felt the colony was strong enough to allow himtake further explorations. In 1601, he set to search the land east of San Gabriel insearch of the so tell riches of Quivira. Instead of wealth Onate saw large fields ofbeans and corn and counted thousands of souls to be saved. Discouraged hereturned to San Gabriel to find it almost empty, its settlers tired of his strict ruledescaped down the Rio Grande. Onate did not give up and took further westexplorations in search of the “Northwest Passage” finding the Colorado River,which he followed to the Gulf of California. Disappointed and much poorer than at the start to the venture, Onate left office under king’s suspension and officiallyresigned his dual posts of governor and captain general of NM in 1607.

First Spanish Settlement Expedition (Cont.)

Don Juan De OñateThe Last Spanish Conqueror

Don Juan de Oñatetexasbeyondhistory.net

Works Cited1. Roberts, Calvin A., and Susan A. Roberts, New Mexico Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2006.

Image CreditsEnchanted Learning. “Explorers of North and Central America.” Cabeza De Vaca Route.http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/page/d/devaca.shtml (accessed October 13, 2012).

Enchanted Learning. “Explorers of North and Central America.” Coronado’s Route.http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/page/c/coronado.shtml (accessed October 13, 2012).

Enchanted Learning. “Explorers of North and Central America.” De Narvaez Route. http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/page/n/narvaez.shtml (accessed October 13, 2012).

Enchanted Learning. “Explorers of North and Central America ” De Onate’s Expedition.” http://www.enchantedlearning.com/explorers/indexo.shtml accessed October 14, 2012).

Library of Congress. “Columbus taking possession of the new country." Library of Congress - Teacher’sGuide Primary Source Set. Hispanic Exploration in America. http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/primarysourcesets/hispanicexploration/pdf/teacher_guide.pdfhttp://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/91481671/ (accessed October 13, 2012).

PBS. “Francisco Vasquez de Coronado” New Perspectives of The West. http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/people/a_c/coronado.htm (accessed October 14, 2012).

Robenalt, Jeff. “Cabeza de Vaca” Saga of a Texas Ranger-Series. http://sagaofatexasranger.com/cabeza-de-vacaphotos/(accessed October 14, 2012). The Marine’s Museum “Panfilo De Narvaez.” The Explorers. http://ageofex.marinersmuseum.org/index.php?type=explorer&id=36 (accessed October 14, 2012).

Office of the State Historian. “Don Juan de Onate takes Possession of New Mexico.” http://www.newmexicohistory.org/filedetails.php?fileID=305 (accessed October 14, 2012).