Antonio de Lebrija was born in 1507, in Alcántara,

Extremadura Extremadura (; ext, Estremaúra; pt, Estremadura; Fala: ''Extremaúra'') is an autonomous community of Spain. Its capital city is Mérida, and its largest city is Badajoz. Located in the central-western part of the Iberian Peninsula, it ...

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 ...

; and died in 1540, in Brozas, also in Extremadura. He was a

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

conquistador who participated in the Spanish conquest of the Muisca and the Chimila peoples. He was the treasurer of the conquest expedition which left Santa Marta in April 1536 following the high quality

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...

trail, the ''Camino de la Sal'', along the Suárez River up the slopes of the

Eastern Ranges The Eastern Ranges is an Australian rules football team in the NAB League, the Victorian statewide under-18s competition. The club is a founding member of the competition (1992) and has produced several players for the Australian Football Leag ...

of the Colombian Andes towards the Muisca Confederation.

Expeditions

Early explorations

Antonio de Lebrija was born in Alcántara in

in 1507, possibly a grandson of his namesake, historian and humanist

Antonio de Nebrija Antonio de Nebrija (14445 July 1522) was the most influential Spanish humanist of his era. He wrote poetry, commented on literary works, and encouraged the study of classical languages and literature, but his most important contributions were i ...

.Rodríguez Freyle, 1638, p.69 He left Spain for the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...

with García de Lerma, arriving at Santa Marta in 1529. Under the command of de Lerma's nephew, Pedro de Lerma, de Lebrija participated in the conquest of the Chimila people in the Valle de Upar, Cesar. Here he discovered the confluence of the

Magdalena River The Magdalena River ( es, Río Magdalena, ; less commonly ) is the main river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of ...

with the tributary that received his name, the

Lebrija River Lebrija River is a river of northern Colombia. It originates in the Cordillera Oriental (Colombia), Eastern Ranges of the Colombian Andes in Piedecuesta and flows through the northern part of the department of Santander Department, Santander into ...

.Los caballeros de la conquista
/ref> As captain and treasurer, with seven years of experience in Tierra Firme, de Lebrija joined the expedition in search of '' El Dorado'', which was led by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada and left Santa Marta in April 1536.Setenta y cinco por ciento sabían firmar
/ref>
–

Banco de la República The Bank of the Republic ( es, Banco de la República) is the central bank of Colombia. It was initially established under the regeneration era in 1880. Its main modern functions, under the new Colombian constitution were detailed by Congress ...

Foundation of Bogotá

In 1538, on the Bogotá savanna, De Quesada sent De Lebrija, along with Juan de Céspedes, Juan de San Martín, and Gómez del Corral ahead to locate the most favourable site to found the capital of the New Kingdom of Granada.Salcedo Salcedo, 2011, p.158 They selected a location in

Teusaquillo Teusaquillo is the 13th locality of Bogotá, capital of Colombia. It is located in the geographic center of the city, to the northwest of downtown Bogotá. This district is inhabited by middle and upper class residents. It is an urbanized locality ...

, where

Santa Fe de Bogotá Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

was founded on August6, 1538.

Return to Spain

After the two conquistadors

Nikolaus Federmann Nikolaus Federmann ( es, link=no, Nicolás Féderman, ) (c. 1505, Ulm – February 1542, Valladolid) was a German adventurer and conquistador in what is modern-day Venezuela and Colombia. He is a significant figure in the history of Klein-Vened ...

and

Sebastián de Belalcázar Sebastián de Belalcázar (; 1479/1480 – 1551) was a Spanish conquistador. De Belalcázar, also written as de Benalcázar, is known as the founder of important early colonial cities in the northwestern part of South America; Quito in 1534 and Ca ...

arrived in Bogotá, De Lebrija departed with De Quesada, and fellow conquistador Juan de Albarracín for

Guataquí Guataquí is a municipality and town of Colombia in the department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative div ...

, a town they had founded. Guataquí, on the Magdalena River, was the port where De Albarracín ordered the construction of two small boats by the indigenous Panche people.Prieto, 2009, p.26 From here, the Spanish conquistadors left for Cartagena, from where they sailed back to Spain. In Cartagena, in July 1539, de Lebrija authored a letter to the

Real Audiencia of Santo Domingo The Real Audiencia of Santo Domingo was the first court of the Spanish crown in America. It was created by Ferdinand V of Castile in his decree of 1511, but due to disagreements between the governor of Hispaniola, Diego Colon and the Crown, i ...

, describing the activities in the New Kingdom.Friede, 1960 De Lebrija died in 1540 in Brozas, Extremadura.

''Epítome''

Antonio de Lebríja is mentioned as ''Librixa'', and in the early chronicle about the Spanish conquest, a work of uncertain authorship, '' Epítome de la conquista del Nuevo Reino de Granada''.''Epítome'', p.82

Named after Antonio de Lebrija

Lebrija Lebrija () is a city and municipality of Spain located in the autonomous community of Andalusia, most specifically in the Province of Sevilla. It straddles the left bank of the Guadalquivir river, and the eastern edge of the marshes known as La ...

Santander Santander may refer to: Places * Santander, Spain, a port city and capital of the autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain * Santander Department, a department of Colombia * Santander State, former state of Colombia * Santander de Quilichao, a m ...

, Santander

References

Bibliography

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