•Spanish soldiers who came to the New World to help conquer and settle the Americas for Spain.•Some of their methods were

harsh and brutal especially to the Native American population.

•With every Spanish explorer were conquistadors and members of the Catholic Church to convert

Native Americans.

BALBOA (1475-1519) 1500: sails to the New World searching for treasure 1511-1513: founds a colony in South America

called Santa Maria de la Antigua del Darien; marries the daughter of a local Indian king leads an overland expedition killing hundreds of

Indians along the way September 1513 sees the Pacific Ocean; claims the

Pacific Ocean and all land touching it for Spain (North & South America)

Spends one month conquering natives along the Pacific coast stealing gold

Charged with treason and arrested by Pizarro; beheaded in 1519

BALBOA CLAIMING THE PACIFIC FOR SPAIN

Hernando Cortés

First Spanish Conquests: The Aztecs

Cortes conquered Aztec Empire in 1521 and took control of modern day Mexico.

Montezuma II

vs.

CORTEZ (1485-1547) 1504: arrives in Santo Domingo and lives there for 7

years 1511: takes part in Spanish conquest of Cuba 1519 - 1521: leads an expedition into Mexico November 1519: reaches capital of Aztec Empire and

meets Montezuma Aztecs probably thought Cortez was a God, so was

treated well at first. Cortez was afraid the Aztecs would eventually push him out, so he took Montezuma as a hostage before he was forced out of city.

May 1521 : After a series of negotiations, bloody battles & retreats, Cortez leads a final assault on the Capital City.

3 months later, Cortez destroys the Aztec society; 100,000 Aztecs killed and builds Mexico City on the ruins of the old Aztec Empire

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Francisco Pizarro

First Spanish Conquests: The Incas

Pizarro conquered Incan Empire in modern day Peru in 1533

Atahualpa

vs.

PIZARRO (1471-1541) 1532 - 1533: lands in San Mateo Bay; travels over land

then arrives at Cajamarco (present day Peru) Atahualpa was the 13th and last Emperor of the Incas and

has just won a civil war against his half-brother Atahualpa invites Pizarro to a celebratory feast, but Pizarro

ambushes him and kills thousands of the Incan soldiers before capturing & killing their leader, Atahualpa (de Soto is with Pizarro)

Atahualpa offers a huge ransom for his own release; Pizarro takes the money and has Atahualpa strangled anyway

Pizarro took huge amounts of gold & silver before destroying the city

Pizarro then founded the city of Lima

DE SOTO (1500-1542) 1537 - 1542; Given rights by Spain to

conquer Florida and was named the Governor of Cuba

May 30, 1539: begins expedition of the west coast of Florida with 10 ships, 600 soldiers, priests, and explorers, and 200 horses.

Spends four years searching for gold & silver, brutally capturing or killing native societies

Dies in 1542 of disease & buried someplace along the Mississippi River