Chapter 4 Lesson 2 The Search for Gold and Riches.

Chapter 4 Lesson 2The Search for Gold and

Riches

• Spain’s rulers wanted the conquistadors to explore the lands north of Mexico. – The Spanish King offered

grants to those who would lead expeditions into the northern continent.

• Ponce de Leon was a Spanish explorer who accepted the offer and received a grant.

The Spanish Move into Florida

• Ponce de Leon had sailed with Columbus on his second voyage.

• For a time he lived on the island of Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and Dominican Republic)

• Later he explored and conquered what is now known as Puerto Rico and was named governor of the island.

The Fountain of Youth

• He heard a story about a fountain whose waters were said to make old people young again.

• This “Fountain of Youth” was suppose to be on an island north called Bimini.

• He sailed north but did not find Bimini. Instead he landed on the North American mainland (St. Augustine).

• He named the mainland La Florida (Spanish for “filled with flowers”)

Fighting Back

• When he tried to establish a settlement in Florida, the Calusa Indians attacked.

• During the attack, Ponce de Leon was injured and later died.

• Though he never found the “Fountain of Youth,” he was the first Spanish explorer to set foot in what is now today the United States.

The Seven Cities of Gold

• Many people believed the stories that there were seven cities that were built of all gold.

• In 1536 four men (Alvar Cabeza de Vaca, two Spaniards, and a North Afican named Esteban) told the story to Spanish leaders in Mexico City.

• In 1539 the leaders sent Esteban and a priest, Marcos de Niza on an expedition to see if the story was true.

• In their journey, Esteban was killed by Zuni Indians, but Niza returned saying he had seen a golden city.

Francisco Vasquez de Coronado

No City of Gold

• In 1540, after hearing about Niza’s journey, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado and more than 1,000 soldiers set out to find the seven cities.

• He traveled north of Mexico through present-day Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma.

• After the disappointment of not finding the seven cities, he began the long trip home.

• The trail that he took home would later become known as the Santa Fe Trail.

• When he returned home, he claimed many new lands for Spain.

Hernando de Soto

Hernando de Soto

• The King of Spain gave Hernando de Soto a grant for an expedition to the northern part of the new continent.

• De Soto and his army of 600 soldiers sailed to the west coast of Florida in May 1539.

• They continued to move north and by the winter they reached present-day Georgia.

• Searching for gold, they went though South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee and then back south to Alabama.

Soto’s Expedition

• On his expedition, he encountered many Indian people and many battles took place.– the worst occurring in Alabama

• There were between 2,500 – 11,000 Indians killed in battle.

• The Spanish lost 20 men, but most of their supplies were destroyed.

New Land for Spain

• Although De Soto and his army were in poor condition they marched on to the banks of Mississippi River in May 1541.

• They were the fist Europeans to see this river. • There they searched for gold for three years

and never found any. • In 1542, Hernando de Soto died from a fever

and his men buried him in the Mississippi River.

• The soldiers returned home to Mexico claiming much of the land they explored for Spain.