Juan Ponce de León[a] (c. 1474 – July 1521[6]) was a Spanish explorer andconquistador known for leading the first official European expedition toPuerto Rico in 1508 andFlorida in 1513. He was born inSantervás de Campos, Valladolid, Spain, in 1474. Though little is known about his family, he was of noble birth and served in the Spanish military from a young age. He first came to the Americas as a "gentleman volunteer" withChristopher Columbus's second expedition in 1493.
By the early 1500s, Ponce de León was a top military official in the colonial government ofHispaniola, where he helped crush a rebellion of the nativeTaíno people. He was authorized to explore the neighboring island ofPuerto Rico in 1508 and to take office as thefirstGovernor of Puerto Rico by appointment of theSpanish crown in 1509. While Ponce de León grew quite wealthy from his plantations and mines, he faced an ongoing legal conflict withDiego Colón, the late Christopher Columbus's son, over the right to govern Puerto Rico. After a long court battle, Colón replaced Ponce de León as governor in 1511. Ponce de León decided to follow the advice of the sympatheticKing Ferdinand and explore more of theCaribbean Sea.
In 1513, Ponce de León led the first known European expedition toLa Florida, which he named during his first voyage to the area. He landed somewhere along Florida's east coast, then charted theAtlantic coast down to theFlorida Keys and north along theGulf coast. Though in popular culture he was supposedly searching for theFountain of Youth, there is no contemporary evidence to support the story, which most modern historians consider a myth.[7]
Ponce de León returned to Spain in 1514 and was knighted by King Ferdinand, who also reinstated him as the governor of Puerto Rico and authorized him to settle Florida. He returned to the Caribbean in 1515, but plans to organize an expedition to Florida were delayed by the death of King Ferdinand in 1516, after which Ponce de León again traveled to Spain to defend his grants and titles. He did not return to Puerto Rico for two years.[8]
In March 1521, Ponce de León finally returned toSouthwest Florida with the first large-scale attempt to establish a Spanish colony in what is now thecontinental United States. However, the nativeCalusa people fiercely resisted the incursion, and Ponce de Léon was seriously wounded in a skirmish. The colonization attempt was abandoned, and he died from his wounds soon after returning to Cuba in early July. He wasinterred in Puerto Rico; his tomb is located inside theCathedral of San Juan Bautista inSan Juan.
Before October 1235, a son of Ponce Vela de Cabrera and his wife Teresa Rodríguez Girón namedPedro Ponce de Cabrera[14] marriedAldonza Alfonso, an illegitimate daughter of KingAlfonso IX of León.[14] The descendants of this marriage added the "de León" to their patronymic and were known thereafter by the name Ponce de León.[15]
Although the identity of Juan Ponce de León's parents is still a matter of conjecture, according to Fuson and Arnade, citing Puerto Rican historian Aurelio Tió, Pedro Ponce de León and Leonor de Figueroa were most likely the parents of Juan Ponce de León.[16][17] Thus Ponce appears to have been a member of a distinguished and influential noble family.
His relatives includedRodrigo Ponce de León, Duke of Cádiz, a celebrated figure in theMoorish wars (sometimes known as a "newCid"),[18][19] and Juan Ponce de León's first cousin.[20] Aurelio Tió, in hisNuevas fuentes para la historia de Puerto Rico, made a vigorous case for Juan Ponce's aristocratic heritage, determining that Juan Ponce's father was Pedro Ponce de León, the Fourth Lord of Villagarcía, and his mother was Leonor de Figueroa, the daughter of Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa, Lord of Salvaleón, and María Manuel; consequently Juan Ponce's paternal grandmother, Teresa de Guzmán (Teresa Ponce de León y Guzmán), was La Señora de la Casa Toral,[21] making Juan Ponce a Ponce de León on both sides of his family.[22]
Through this grandmother, Ponce de León was related to another notable family, the Núñez de Guzmáns; a contemporary chronicler,Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés, says that as a young man he served as a page and then as a squire to Pedro Núñez de Guzmán,[23] Knight Commander of theOrder of Calatrava.[24] Devereux says Ponce de León probably joined the Spanish campaigns against the Muslims in theGranada War[25] in which theCatholic Monarchs finally conquered in 1492 theNasrid Kingdom of Granada,[26] the last Muslim polity surviving in the Iberian peninsula.[27] Puerto Rican historian Vicente Murga Sanz states that as the squire of Pedro Núñez de Guzmán, it is possible that Juan Ponce de León fought on the side of Rodrigo Ponce de León at the Battle of Granada. Fernandez de Oviedo writes that when Juan Ponce de León arrived in the Americas he was a military man who had gained his experience in theGranada War, but Arnade cautions, "Without proof the biographers of the conquistador state that he accompanied Pedro Núñez de Guzmán in the war against the Moors during the Granada campaign".[28]
Arrival in the New World
In September 1493, some 1,200 sailors, colonists, and soldiers joinedChristopher Columbus for hissecond voyage to the New World.[29][30] Ponce de León, nineteen years old, was able to get passage in this expedition, with Núñez de Guzmán's help,[31] as one of 200 "gentleman volunteers".[32][33]
The fleet reached the Caribbean in November 1493. They visited several islands before arriving at their primary destination inHispaniola,[34] and anchored on the coast of a large island the native people called Borikén (Boriquen in Spanish), "the land of the brave lord", which would eventually become known asPuerto Rico.[35] This was Ponce de León's first glimpse of the place that would play a major role in his future. Historians are divided on what he did during the next several years, but it is possible that he returned to Spain at some point and made his way back to Hispaniola withNicolás de Ovando.[36]
Hispaniola
In 1502 the newly appointed governor,Nicolás de Ovando, arrived inHispaniola, with the Spanish Crown expecting him to bring order to a colony in disarray, a task in which he succeeded.[37][38] Ovando interpreted his instructions as authorizing subjugation of the nativeTaínos, and consequently authorized theJaragua massacre in November 1503. In 1504, when Taínos overran a small Spanish garrison inHigüey on the island's eastern side, Ovando assigned Ponce de León to crush the rebellion.[38]
Ponce de León was actively involved in the Higüey massacre, about which friarBartolomé de las Casas attempted to notify Spanish authorities. Ovando rewarded his victorious commander by appointing him frontier governor of the newly conquered province, then namedHigüey also. Ponce de León received a substantial land grant with anencomienda of sufficient Indian labor to farm his new estate.[39][40]
Ponce de León prospered in this new role. He found a ready market for his farm produce and livestock at nearbyBoca de Yuma where Spanish ships stocked supplies before the long voyage back to Spain. In 1505 Ovando authorized Ponce de León to establish a new town in Higüey, which he namedSalvaleón. In 1508 KingFerdinand (Queen Isabella having opposed the exploitation of natives but dying in 1504) authorized Ponce de León to conquer the remaining Taínos and exploit them by forcing them to mine gold.[41]
Around this time, Ponce de León married Leonora, an innkeeper's daughter. They had three daughters, Juana, Isabel and María,[1] and one son, Luis.[42] The large stone house Ponce de León ordered built for his growing family still stands today near the city ofSan Rafael del Yuma; he named it Salvaleón after his grandmother's estate in Castile.[43]
Puerto Rico
The ruins of Juan Ponce de León's residence atCaparra
As provincial governor, Ponce de León heard stories fromIsland Caribs who had been captured when they raided Spanish colonies. They told him of gold on the neighboring island of San Juan, nowPuerto Rico, which he had first seen as a member of Christopher Columbus's second voyage in 1493, describing a fertile land with much gold to be found in the many rivers. Inspired by the possibility of riches, Ponce de León requested and received permission fromOvando to explore the island.[44]
The official settlement of San Juan by Spaniards is often dated to 1508, when Ponce landed in acaravel with about fifty men on the southern coast of the island, but there is documentation in theArchive of the Indies (Archivo General de Indias) that he had led an expedition there with several hundred men as early as 1506, under orders by Governor Ovando to explore, settle, and conquer the island.[45] Puerto Rican scholar Aurelio Tió wrote two books which contain much archival material concerning Ponce de León, including documentation he discovered in Spain and in Puerto Rico.[46] He writes in detail of theProbanza de Juan González, according to which a temporary base was established on the west coast of Puerto Rico near the Bay of Añasco in 1506.[47][48] This earlier trip was said to have been done quietly because the Spanish crown in 1504 had commissionedVicente Yáñez Pinzón to explore the island and build a fort.[49] Pinzón did not fulfill his commission and it expired in 1507, leaving the way clear for Ponce de León.[50]
His earlier exploration had confirmed the presence of gold and gave him a good understanding of the geography of the island. In 1508,Ferdinand II of Aragon gave permission to Ponce de León for the firstofficial expedition to the island, which the Spanish then called San Juan Bautista. Ponce de León led a small exploratory party to Puerto Rico in 1508 that foundplacer deposits of gold in the western end of the island.[51] This expedition, consisting of about 50 men in one ship, left Hispaniola on 12 July 1508 and eventually anchored inSan Juan Bay, near today's city of San Juan.[52]
Ponce de León searched inland until he found a suitable site about two miles from the bay. Here he erected a storehouse and a fortified house, creating the first settlement in Puerto Rico,Caparra.[53] Although a few crops were planted, the settlers spent most of their time and energy searching forgold. By early 1509 Ponce de León decided to return to Hispaniola. His expedition had collected a good quantity of gold but was running low on food and supplies.[54]
Juan Ponce de León Conquistador monument in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
The expedition was deemed a great success and Ovando appointed Ponce de León governor of San Juan Bautista. This appointment was later confirmed by Ferdinand II on 14 August 1509. He was instructed to extend the settlement of the island and continue mining for gold. The new governor returned to the island as instructed, bringing with him his wife and children.[55] The rush of Spaniards from Hispaniola wanting to mine gold disrupted the way of life of the Taíno native people.
Back on his island, Ponce de León parceled out the native Taínos among himself and other settlers using the system of forced labor known asencomienda.[56] The Indians were put to work growing food crops and mining for gold. Ponce put those assigned to his personalencomienda,Hacienda Grande, to work searching for gold in the Toa Valley just east of San Juan.[57] Many of theSpaniards treated the Taínos very harshly and death rates were very high. The demand for slaves kidnapped from other islands grew. By June 1511, the Taínos, pushed to the limits of their endurance, began a short-lived rebellion, which was forcibly put down by Ponce de León and a small force of troops armed withcrossbows andarquebuses (long guns).[58][59]
Even as Ponce de León was settling the island of San Juan, significant changes were taking place in the politics and government of theSpanish West Indies. On 10 July 1509,Diego Colón, the son ofChristopher Columbus, arrived in Hispaniola as actingViceroy, replacing Nicolás de Ovando.[60] For several years Diego Colón had been waging a legal battle over his rights to inherit the titles and privileges granted to his father. The Crown regretted the sweeping powers that had been granted to Columbus and his heirs and sought to establish more direct control in the New World. In spite of the Crown's opposition, Colón prevailed in court and Ferdinand was required to appoint him Viceroy.[61]
Although the courts had ordered that Ponce de León should remain in office, Colón circumvented this directive on 28 October 1509 by appointing Juan Ceron chief justice and Miguel Diaz chief constable of the island, effectively overriding the authority of the governor. This situation prevailed until 2 March 1510, when Ferdinand issued orders reaffirming Ponce de León's position as governor. Ponce de León then had Ceron and Diaz arrested and sent back to Spain.[62]
The political struggle between Colón and Ponce de León continued in this manner for the next few years. Ponce de León had influential supporters in Spain and Ferdinand regarded him as a loyal servant. However, Colón's position as Viceroy made him a powerful opponent and eventually it became clear that Ponce de León's position on San Juan was not tenable.[63] Finally, on 28 November 1511, Ceron returned from Spain and was officially reinstated as governor.[64]
Rumors of undiscovered islands to the northwest ofHispaniola had reached Spain by 1511, andFerdinand was interested in forestalling further exploration and discovery by Colón. In an effort to reward Ponce de León for his services, Ferdinand urged him to seek these new lands outside the authority of Colón. Ponce de León readily agreed to a new venture, and in February 1512 a royal contract was dispatched outlining his rights and authorities to search for "the Islands of Beniny".[65]
The contract stipulated that Ponce de León held exclusive rights to the discovery of Beniny and neighboring islands for the next three years. He would be governor for life of any lands he discovered, but he was expected to finance all costs of exploration and settlement himself. In addition, the contract gave specific instructions for the distribution of gold, Native Americans, and other profits extracted from the new lands; the contract made no mention of a rejuvenating fountain.[66][67][68]
Ponce de León equipped three ships with at least 200 men, including several Africans, at his own expense and set out from Puerto Rico on 4 March 1513.[69] The only near contemporary description known for this expedition comes fromAntonio de Herrera y Tordesillas, a Spanish historian who apparently had access to the original ships' logs or related secondary sources from which he created a summary of the voyage published in 1601.[70][71][72] The brevity of the account and occasional gaps in the record have led historians to speculate and dispute many details of the voyage.
The three ships in this small fleet were theSantiago, theSan Cristobal and theSanta Maria de la Consolacion. Anton de Alaminos was their chief pilot. He was already an experienced sailor, and would become one of the most respected pilots in the region. After leaving Puerto Rico, they sailed northwest along the great chain of Bahama Islands, known then as the Lucayos.[73]
Herrera wrote that on 27 March 1513, Easter Sunday, they sighted land he described as an island that was unfamiliar to the sailors on the expedition. Because many Spanish seamen were acquainted with the Bahamas, which had been depopulated by slaving ventures, some scholars believe that this "island" was actually Florida, as it was thought to be an island for several years after its formal discovery.[73] Historian and marine archeologist Samuel Turner says that Ponce de León sighted the Florida coast on Easter Sunday of 1513, and that many historians have misinterpreted Herrera's text by claiming it was one of the Bahama Islands Ponce saw on that date. Turner writes that because Beimini is described as an island, they assume that Herrera refers to one of the Bahama Islands, variously proposing that this "island" wasEleuthera,Man-O-War Cay,Great Abaco,[74] orGrand Bahama.[75]
For the next several days the fleet crossed open water until2 April, when they sighted land which Ponce de León believed was another island. He named itLa Florida in recognition of the verdant landscape and because it was theEaster season, which the Spaniards calledPascua Florida (Festival of Flowers). The following day they came ashore to seek information and take possession of this new land.[76][77]
The precise location of their landing on the Florida coast has been disputed for many years. Some historians believe it occurred at or nearSt. Augustine,[78] but others prefer a more southerly landing at a small harbor now calledPonce de León Inlet.[76] Some believe that Ponce came ashore even farther south near the present location ofMelbourne Beach,[79][80] a hypothesis first proposed by Douglas Peck, an amateur historian who attempted to reconstruct the track of the voyage sailing in his 33-footBermuda-rigged sailboat. Samuel Turner dismisses this theory,[81] pointing out that Ponce's fleet encountered a storm on 30 March, sailing in it for two days, with no indication in Herrera of the wind direction or how strong it was, and that this fact complicates any attempt to reconstruct the voyage (not to mention that Peck's boat was nothing like the Spanish ships). On 2 April, after the weather improved, Ponce's pilot Anton de Alaminos took anavigational fix by the sun at noon in nine fathoms of water with aquadrant or amariner's astrolabe, and obtained a reading of 30 degrees, 8 minutes of latitude, the coordinate recorded in the ship's log when it was closest to the landing site, as reported by Herrera (who had the original logbook) in 1601.[73][82] This latitude corresponds to a spot north of St. Augustine between what is now theGuana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve andPonte Vedra Beach.[73][83] The expedition sailed north for the remainder of the day before anchoring for the night and rowing ashore the next morning.
After remaining in the area of their first landing for about five days, the ships turned south for further exploration of the coast. On 8 April they encountered a current so strong that it pushed them backwards and forced them to seek anchorage. The smallest ship, theSan Cristobal, was carried out of sight and lost for two days. This was the first known encounter by Europeans with theGulf Stream, occurring where it reaches maximum force between the Florida coast and the Bahamas. Because of the powerful boost provided by the current, it would soon become the primary route for eastbound ships leaving the Spanish West Indies bound for Europe.[84]
They continued down the coast hugging the shore to avoid the strong head current. By 4 May the fleet reached and namedBiscayne Bay. They took on water at an island they named Santa Marta (nowKey Biscayne) and explored theTequesta Miami mound town at the mouth of the Miami River. The Tequesta people did not engage the Spanish, but instead evacuated into the coastal woodlands. On 15 May they left Biscayne Bay and sailed along theFlorida Keys, looking for a passage to head north and explore the west coast of the Florida peninsula.[84]
From a distance the Keys reminded Ponce de León of men who were suffering, so he named themLos Martires (the Martyrs).[84] Eventually they found a gap in the reefs and sailed "to the north and other times to the northeast" until they reached the Florida mainland on 23 May, where they encountered theCalusa, who refused to trade and drove off the Spanish ships by surrounding them with warriors in sea canoes armed with long bows.[85]
Again, the exact site of their landfall is controversial. The vicinity ofCharlotte Harbor is the most commonly identified spot, while some assert a landing further north atTampa Bay or evenPensacola.[87] Other historians have argued the distances were too great to cover in the available time and the more likely location wasCape Romano orCape Sable.[87] Here Ponce de León anchored for several days to take on water and repair the ships. They were approached byCalusa, who initially indicated an interest in trading, but relations soon turned hostile.[88][89]
Several skirmishes followed with casualties on both sides. The Spaniards captured eight Calusa (four men and four women) and seized five war canoes abandoned by the retreating warriors. On 5 June, a final confrontation occurred when some 80 Calusa warriors attacked a party of eleven Spanish sailors. The result was a standoff with neither party willing to come within striking distance of their opponents' weapons.[88][89]
On 14 June they set sail again looking for a chain of islands in the west that had been described by their captives. They reached theDry Tortugas on 21 June.[38] There they captured giant sea turtles,Caribbean monk seals, and thousands of seabirds. From these islands they sailed southwest in an apparent attempt to circle around Cuba and return home to Puerto Rico. Failing to take into account the powerful currents pushing them eastward, they struck the northeast shore of Cuba and were initially confused about their location.[90]
Once they regained their bearings, the fleet retraced their route east along the Florida Keys and around the Florida peninsula, reachingGrand Bahama on 8 July. They were surprised to come across another Spanish ship, piloted byDiego Miruelo, who was either on a slaving voyage or had been sent byDiego Colón to spy on Ponce de León. Shortly thereafter Miruelo's ship was wrecked in a storm and Ponce de León rescued the stranded crew.
From here the little fleet disbanded. Ponce de León tasked theSanta Maria with further exploration while he returned home with the rest of crew. Ponce de León reached Puerto Rico on 19 October 1513 after having been away for almost eight months. The other ship, after further explorations returned safely on 20 February 1514.[91]
Although Ponce de León is widely credited with the discovery of Florida, he almost certainly was not the first European to reach the peninsula. Spanish slave expeditions had been regularly raiding the Bahamas since 1494 and there is some evidence that one or more of these slavers made it as far as the shores of Florida.[92] Another piece of evidence that others came before Ponce de León is theCantino Map from 1502, which shows a peninsula near Cuba that looks like Florida's and includes characteristic place names.
According to a popular legend, Ponce de León discovered Florida while searching for the Fountain of Youth. Though stories of vitality-restoring waters were known on both sides of the Atlantic long before Ponce de León, the story of his searching for them was not attached to him until after his death. In hisHistoria general y natural de las Indias of 1535,Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés wrote that Ponce de León was looking for the waters ofBimini.[93]
A similar account appears inFrancisco López de Gómara'sHistoria general de las Indias of 1551.[94] Then in 1575,Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, a shipwreck survivor who had lived with the Native Americans of Florida for 17 years, published his memoir in which he locates the waters called the River Jordan (flowing out of Eden) in Florida,[95] and says that Ponce de León was supposed to have looked for them there.[96]
Though Fontaneda doubted that Ponce de León had really gone to Florida looking for the waters, the account was included in theHistoria general de los hechos de los castellanos ofAntonio de Herrera y Tordesillas of 1615. Most historians hold that the search forgold and the expansion of theSpanish Empire were far more imperative than any potential search for such a fountain.[97][98]
Between voyages
Upon his return to Puerto Rico, Ponce de León found the island in turmoil. A party ofCaribs from a neighboring island had attacked the settlement ofCaparra, killed several Spaniards and burned it to the ground. Ponce de León's ownhouse was destroyed and his family narrowly escaped.Colón used the attack as a pretext for renewing hostilities against the localTaíno tribes. The explorer suspected that Colón was working to further undermine his position on the island and perhaps even to take his claims for the newly discovered Florida.[99]
Ponce de León decided he should return to Spain and personally report the results of his recent expedition. He left Puerto Rico in April 1514 and was warmly received by Ferdinand when he arrived at court inValladolid. There he was knighted,[38] and given a personalcoat of arms, becoming the first conquistador to receive these honors. He also visitedCasa de Contratación inSeville, which was the central bureaucracy and clearinghouse for all of Spain's activities in the New World. The Casa took detailed notes of his discoveries and added them to thePadrón Real, a master map which served as the basis for official navigation charts provided to Spanish captains and pilots.[100]
During his stay in Spain, a new contract[101] was drawn up for Ponce de León confirming his rights to settle and governBeniny and Florida,[102] which was then presumed to be an island. In addition to the usual directions for sharing gold and other valuables with the king, the contract was one of the first to stipulate that theRequerimiento was to be read to the inhabitants of the islands prior to their conquest. Ponce de León was also ordered to organize an armada for the purpose of attacking and subduing the Caribs, who continued to attack Spanish settlements in the Caribbean.[103]
Three ships were purchased for his armada and after repairs and provisioning Ponce de León left Spain on 14 May 1515 with his little fleet. The record of his activities against the Caribs is vague. There was one engagement inGuadeloupe on his return to the area and possibly two or three other encounters.[104] The campaign came to an abrupt end in 1516 when Ferdinand died. The king had been a strong supporter and Ponce de León felt it was imperative he return to Spain and defend his privileges and titles. He did receive assurances of support from CardinalFrancisco Jiménez de Cisneros, the regent appointed to govern Castile, but it was nearly two years before he was able to return home to Puerto Rico.
Meanwhile, there had been at least two unauthorized voyages to "his" Florida both ending in repulsion by the native Calusa or Tequesta warriors. Ponce de León realized he had to act soon if he was to maintain his claim.
Last voyage to Florida
In early 1521, Ponce de León organized a colonizing expedition consisting of some 200 men, including priests, farmers and artisans, 50 horses and other domestic animals, and farming implements carried on two ships. The expedition landed somewhere on the coast ofsouthwest Florida, likely in the vicinity ofCharlotte Harbor or theCaloosahatchee River, areas which Ponce de León had visited in his earlier voyage to Florida.[105]
Before the settlement could be established, the colonists were attacked by theCalusa, theindigenous people who dominated southern Florida and whose principal town was nearby. Ponce de León was mortally wounded in the skirmish when, historians believe, an arrowpoisoned with thesap of themanchineel tree struck his thigh.[106]
The expedition immediately abandoned the colonization attempt and sailed toHavana,Cuba, where Ponce de León soon died of his wounds. He was buried inPuerto Rico, in the crypt ofSan José Church from 1559 to 1836, when his remains were exhumed and transferred to theCathedral of San Juan Bautista.[107] Inscribed on the side panel of the altar-tomb in his mausoleum are these words in Latin: "MOLE SVB HAC FORTIS REQVIESCVNT OSSA LEONIS OVI VICIT FACTIS NOMINA MAGNA SVIS" ("Under this structure rest the bones of a lion, more for his great deeds than for his name").[108]
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