Vicente de Zaldívar (c. 1573 – before 1650) was a Spanish soldier and explorer in

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

. He led the Spanish force which perpetrated the

Acoma Massacre The Acoma Massacre refers to the punitive expedition by Spanish conquistadors at Acoma Pueblo in January 1599 that resulted in the deaths of around 500 Acoma men killed in a three-day battle, along with 300 women and children. Of the remaining Aco ...

at the

Acoma Pueblo Acoma Pueblo (, kjq, Áakʼu) is a Native American pueblo approximately west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. Four communities make up the village of Acoma Pueblo: Sky City (Old Acoma), Acomita, Anzac, and McCartys. These com ...

in 1599. He led or participated in several expeditions onto the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...

Early life

Vicente de Zaldívar was born in Pánuco, Zacatecas, circa 1573. The Zaldivar and Oñate families of Zacatecas and

were prominent and intertwined. His father, Vicente de Zaldívar, Sr., served in the

Chichimeca War The Chichimeca War (1550–90) was a military conflict between the Spanish Empire and the Chichimeca Confederation established in the territories today known as the Central Mexican Plateau, called by the Conquistadores La Gran Chichimeca. The ...

of 1550-1590 and other wars alongside his uncle (thus Vicente's great-uncle),

Cristóbal de Oñate Cristóbal de Oñate (1504, Spain—October 6, 1567, Pánuco, Zacatecas) was a Spanish Basque explorer, conquistador and colonial official in New Spain. He is considered the founder of the contemporary city of Guadalajara in 1531, as well as o ...

. His mother was Magdalena de Mendoza y Salazar. He had a brother,

Juan de Zaldívar ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

Juan de Oñate Juan de Oñate y Salazar (; 1550–1626) was a Spanish conquistador from New Spain, explorer, and colonial governor of the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México in the viceroyalty of New Spain. He led early Spanish expeditions to the Great Pla ...

, the founder of the Spanish colony of

in 1598, was their uncle and second cousin.

Career

In 1595, Zaldívar was appointed Sargento mayor by his uncle, Juan de Oñate, in their colonization of

for the Spanish Crown. They arrived in New Mexico in 1598.

Buffalo hunting

Food and resources were scarce in the young colony of New Mexico. On September 15, 1598, Zaldivar and his guide,

Jusepe Gutierrez Jusepe Gutierrez (also known as Joseph and usually called only by his given name),) (born c. 1572; fl. 1590s, death date unknown) was a Native Nahua guide and explorer. He was the only known survivor of the Umana and Leyba expedition to the Gre ...

, led a group of 60 men onto the

to determine whether

Bison Bison are large bovines in the genus ''Bison'' (Greek: "wild ox" (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison, ''B. bison'', found only in North Ame ...

, the American buffalo, could be domesticated. Departing from

Pecos Pueblo Pecos National Historical Park is a United States National Historical Park in San Miguel and Santa Fe Counties, New Mexico. The park, operated by the National Park Service, encompasses thousands of acres of landscape infused with historical ...

, Zaldivar journeyed 57 leagues eastward, about , probably to the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about .Acoma Pueblo Acoma Pueblo (, kjq, Áakʼu) is a Native American pueblo approximately west of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. Four communities make up the village of Acoma Pueblo: Sky City (Old Acoma), Acomita, Anzac, and McCartys. These com ...

in New Mexico on December 4, 1598, Zaldívar was promoted to

Maestre de Campo ''Maestre de campo'' was a rank created in 1534 by the Emperor Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Carlos V, inferior in rank only to the ''captain general, capitán general'' and acted as a chief of staff. He was chosen by the monarch in the Council o ...

, second in command to Oñate. In January 1599, Zaldívar avenged his brother's death in an attack on Acoma, culminating in the

in which hundreds of Acomans were killed or enslaved. Poet

Gaspar Pérez de Villagrá Gaspar Pérez de Villagrá (1555–1620) was a captain and legal officer (''procurador general'') in the Juan de Oñate expedition that first colonized Santa Fe de Nuevo México in 1598. Between 1601 and 1603, he served as the ''Alcalde mayor'' ...

subsequently wrote a poem about his victory.

Jumano War

Zaldívar was maestro de campo in the expedition to

Quivira Quivira is a place named by Spanish conquistador Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in 1541, for the mythical Seven Cities of Gold that he never found. Quivira was a province of the ancestral Wichita people, located near the Great Bend of the Arkans ...

in 1601. During that process, he encountered the

Jumano people Jumanos were a tribe or several tribes, who inhabited a large area of western Texas, New Mexico, and northern Mexico, especially near the Junta de los Rios region with its large settled Indigenous population. They lived in the Big Bend area in th ...

and served in the Jumano War of 1601.

Personal life

Zaldívar married María de Oñate, who was his cousin (

's daughter). They had an only son, Nicolas de Zaldívar y Oñate, who was later appointed

Adelantado ''Adelantado'' (, , ; meaning "advanced") was a title held by Spanish nobles in service of their respective kings during the Middle Ages. It was later used as a military title held by some Spain, Spanish ''conquistadores'' of the 15th, 16th and 17 ...

Later life and death

Zaldívar received the

Order of Santiago The Order of Santiago (; es, Orden de Santiago ), is a religious and military order founded in the 12th century. It owes its name to the Patron Saint of Spain, "Santiago" ( St. James the Greater). Its initial objective was to protect the pilgr ...

in 1626. He died by 1650.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaldivar, Vicente de 16th-century births 17th-century deaths Spanish soldiers Spanish explorers of North America Explorers of New Mexico Order of Santiago