Alonso de Mendoza (
Garrovillas de Alconétar
Garrovillas de Alconétar is a municipality located in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain. According to the 2005 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 2372 inhabitants.
Nearby are found the remains of the Roman Alconétar B ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
c. 1471–1476 –
Tipuani
Tipuani is a town in the La Paz Department, Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in ...
, Imperio Español, 1549) was a Spanish captain,
conquistador
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
, and the founder of the city of
Nuestra Señora de La Paz. He was appointed by
Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca (June 1485 – 13 November 1567) was a Spanish bishop, diplomat and the second (acting) viceroy of Peru, from 10 April 10 1547 to 27 January 1550.
Biography
Pedro de la Gasca studied at the University of Salamanca and the Un ...
, the "Peacemaker," to found the city to commemorate the peace in the Peruvian colonies after the defeat of the Pizarro brothers.
Early life
Alonso de Mendoza was born between 1471 and 1476 in
Garrovillas de Alconétar
Garrovillas de Alconétar is a municipality located in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain. According to the 2005 census (INE), the municipality has a population of 2372 inhabitants.
Nearby are found the remains of the Roman Alconétar B ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
. He left the peninsula attracted by the news about the wealth of the New World, and by the Adventures of
Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of Peru.
Born in Trujillo, Spain to a poor family, Pizarro chose ...
and
Almagro
Almagro () may refer to:
People
*Diego de Almagro (1475–1538), Spanish explorer
*Diego Almagro II (1520–1542), assassin of Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro
*Luis Almagro (born 1963), Uruguayan lawyer, diplomat and politician
*Nicolás ...
, who had conquered the
Inca Empire
The Inca Empire (also known as the Incan Empire and the Inka Empire), called ''Tawantinsuyu'' by its subjects, (Quechua for the "Realm of the Four Parts", "four parts together" ) was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The admin ...
.
New World
Alonso de Mendoza fought as a soldier in Germany and Italy before moving to the New World. It is believed that he settled in Cuba when
Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar
Diego Velázquez de CuéllarPronounced: (1465 – c. June 12, 1524) was a Spanish conquistador and the first governor of Cuba. In 1511 he led the successful conquest and colonization of Cuba. As the first governor of the island, he establi ...
was the governor, as the name of one Alonso de Mendoza appears in a document signed in
Guanuco and dated 1520. Then he appears in Mexico serving under
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquess of the Valley of Oaxaca (; ; 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of w ...
, and in
San Sebastián del Puerto, from where he was later banished, accused of being an agitator.
Peru
Later Alonso de Mendoza moved to
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal
, national_motto = "Fi ...
, where his natural intelligence, people skills, and personal charm opened the doors of the headquarters of
Pizarro
Francisco Pizarro González, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish conquistador, best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of Peru.
Born in Trujillo, Spain to a poor family, Pizarro chose ...
, then at war with his partner
Diego de Almagro
Diego de Almagro (; – July 8, 1538), also known as El Adelantado and El Viejo, was a Spanish conquistador known for his exploits in western South America. He participated with Francisco Pizarro in the Spanish conquest of Peru. While sub ...
. He fought in the
battle of Las Salinas
The Battle of Las Salinas was a military conflict and decisive confrontation between the forces of Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarro against those of rival conquistador Diego de Almagro, on April 6, 1538, during the Conquest of Peru. Both camps clai ...
, against Almagro himself, and in the battle of
Chupas
After the assassination of Francisco Pizarro, in retaliation for his father's execution in 1538, Diego de Almagro II, ''El Mozo'', continued to press claims as the rightful ruler of Peru and as leader of his father's supporters. His claims w ...
, where "Diego, the Younger" died in action. After these actions, he was appointed governor of
Chuquisaca. During the turbulent years of
Gonzalo Pizarro
Gonzalo Pizarro y Alonso (; 1510 – April 10, 1548) was a Spanish conquistador and younger paternal half-brother of Francisco Pizarro, the conqueror of the Inca Empire. Bastard son of Captain Gonzalo Pizarro y Rodríguez de Aguilar (senior) (14 ...
's rebellion against king
Charles V of Spain, he seems to have acted on both sides. By the end of the rebellion he was serving under
Francisco de Carvajal
Francisco de Carvajal (1464 – 10 April 1548) was a Spanish military officer, conquistador, and explorer remembered as ''"the demon of the Andes"'' due to his brutality and uncanny military skill in the Peruvian civil wars of the 16th centur ...
, the "Demon of the Andes", who made him Captain and gave him different missions in a long campaign against the royalist
Diego de Centeno.
Mendoza's life took another dramatic turn when he decided to serve under the orders of
Pedro de la Gasca
Pedro de la Gasca (June 1485 – 13 November 1567) was a Spanish bishop, diplomat and the second (acting) viceroy of Peru, from 10 April 10 1547 to 27 January 1550.
Biography
Pedro de la Gasca studied at the University of Salamanca and the Un ...
, the envoy of the King, who entrusted him with a group of chivalry in the battle of
Sacsahuaman. Pedro de la Gasca, whose mission had ended in Peru with the resolution of the conflict, had decided to leave Peru, but he wanted to leave a legacy. On April 7, 1548, de la Gasca notified Captain Mendoza that he was appointed to found a new city to commemorate the victory of the royal forces and the peace. By the time, too, he had taken possession of productive gold mines in the region of Tipuani.
Foundation of La Paz
Three priests (Francisco Morales, Francisco Laroca and Francisco Alcócer) suggested Mendoza the location of the new city. Many members of the staff of the Viceroyalty of Peru, many commissioners and soldiers, priests and traders were familiar with a valley known as Chukiyawu, next to the
Illimani
Illimani (Aymara) is the highest mountain in the Cordillera Real (part of the Cordillera Oriental, a subrange of the Andes) of western Bolivia. It lies near the cities of El Alto and La Paz at the eastern edge of the Altiplano. It is the secon ...
mountain, and knew that there was a small Indian village. They had admired the beauty of the depression, a gigantic, rugged and irregular basin, with a river on the bottom. The river was called by the natives
Chukiyapu or Choqueyapu (Golden River).
Mendoza prepared the documents for the foundation to take place on October 20, 1548, but the authorities could not arrive in time, so the captain proceeded to a provisional act of foundation in the site of the Indian village of Laja or Laxa, in the Andean plains. Three days later, the official ceremony was held in the actual location. Morales, Laroca and Alcócer provided the general design for the city.
Nuestra Señora de La Paz became part of the route that connected Lima to
Potosí
Potosí, known as Villa Imperial de Potosí in the colonial period, is the capital city and a municipality of the Department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world at a nominal . For centuries, it was the location o ...
, the city built around the richest silver mine in the world. It was also part of the route to the goldfields of Tipuani, and the subtropical zone of Yungas. The site was well chosen, not only because it offered many advantages but also because it offered a good place for "Pascana" (rest and comfort) for travelers.
Death
In 1549 Alonso de Mendoza was commissioned to fight an Indian uprising in
Potosí
Potosí, known as Villa Imperial de Potosí in the colonial period, is the capital city and a municipality of the Department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world at a nominal . For centuries, it was the location o ...
. It is unclear if he returned to Chuquisaca before his death in Tipuani.
Popular culture
– A commemorative statue in honor of Alonso de Mendoza can be seen in La Paz, in the site where he founded the city, known then by the natives as Churupampa (Field of Shells). Part of downtown La Paz, its current name is Plaza Alonso de Mendoza.
– In
La Garrovilla (
Badajoz
Badajoz (; formerly written ''Badajos'' in English) is the capital of the Province of Badajoz in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. It is situated close to the Portuguese border, on the left bank of the river Guadiana. The population ...
), the main plaza is called Alonso de Mendoza.
– The town of
Garrovillas (
Cáceres) has named a street "Capitán Mendoza" after him.
– In 2003, a Metro station (Line 12) in Madrid, Spain, was named after Captain Alonso de Mendoza.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendoza, Alonso De
Extremaduran conquistadors
Spanish city founders
Viceroyalty of Peru people
1549 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
Colonial Bolivia
History of La Paz
People from the Province of Cáceres
16th century in the Viceroyalty of Peru
16th-century Spanish people