Diego García de Moguer (1484 or 1496–1544) was a Spanish explorer who also sailed for the

Portuguese Crown This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Through the n ...

later in life. The

Diego Garcia Diego Garcia is the largest island of the Chagos Archipelago. It has been used as a joint UK–U.S. military base since the 1970s, following the expulsion of the Chagossians by the UK government. The Chagos Islands are set to become a former B ...

island, the largest of the

Chagos Archipelago The Chagos Archipelago (, ) or Chagos Islands (formerly , and later the Oil Islands) is a group of seven atolls comprising more than 60 islands in the Indian Ocean about south of the Maldives archipelago. This chain of islands is the southernmo ...

, is named after him.

Biography

Spanish sources indicate that Diego García was born in

Moguer Moguer is a municipality and small city located in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. According to the 2023 census, it has a population of 22,956. Its surface area is , and its population density is . The present site of Moguer had been ho ...

in 1484 (or 1496), but there are Portuguese sources say he was born in

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

. However, his first expedition, in 1515, was with

Juan Díaz de Solís Juan Díaz de Solís ( – 20 January 1516) was a 16th-century navigator and explorer. He is also said to be the first European to land on what is now modern day Uruguay. Biography His origins are disputed. One document records him as a Portugues ...

in search of an oceanic passage leading to the Far East, returning to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

after the death of Díaz de Solís in the

Río de la Plata The Río de la Plata (; ), also called the River Plate or La Plata River in English, is the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and the Paraná River at Punta Gorda, Colonia, Punta Gorda. It empties into the Atlantic Ocean and ...

basin in 1516. He participated in the expedition of

Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer best known for having planned and led the 1519–22 Spanish expedition to the East Indies. During this expedition, he also discovered the Strait of Magellan, allowing his fl ...

and

Juan Sebastián Elcano Juan Sebastián Elcano (Elkano in modern Basque language, Basque; also known as ''del Cano''; 1486/1487 – 4 August 1526) was a Spaniards, Spanish navigator, ship-owner and explorer of Basques, Basque origin, ship-owner and explorer from Getaria ...

between 1519 and 1522. García received approval for a new voyage. According to his own account, Diego García set sail on 15 January 1526, but historians have doubted the accuracy of this date, and are more inclined to accept 15 August 1527 (suggested by chronicler Herrera) as the actual departure date.J.T. Medina (1908) ''Los viajes de Diego García de Moguer al Rio de la Plata'', p.87, p.94 reviews the date controversy, and concludes in favor of August 15, 1527. Diego García sailed from

A Coruña A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality in Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province ...

Cape Finisterre Cape Finisterre (, also ; ; ) is a rock-bound peninsula on the west coast of Galicia, Spain. In Roman times it was believed to be an end of the known world. The name Finisterre, like that of Finistère in France, derives from the Latin , mean ...

, in command of an expedition with three ships. The voyage was financed by merchants to find a suitable spice route, intended to follow Elcano's route and passing through the

Magellan Strait The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and the Tierra del Fuego archipelago to the south. Considered the most important natural ...

. After voyaging through the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, García arrived on the south coast of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. In February 1528, he explored the area around the Río de la Plata, an excursion documented in

José Toribio Medina José Toribio Medina Zavala (; October 21, 1852 - December 11, 1930) was a Chilean bibliographer, prolific writer, and historian. He is renowned for his study of colonial literature in Chile, printing in Spanish America and large bibliographies s ...

's ''Los viajes de Diego García de Moguer'' (''The travels of Diego García de Moguer''). As he navigated through the

Paraná River The Paraná River ( ; ; ) is a river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina for some ."Parana River". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. ...

in early 1528, he met men from the Sebastian Cabot group. He was informed that Cabot was at the fort of Sancti Spiritu located at the confluence of the Paraná River in Carcaña. With a ship and a

barquentine A barquentine or schooner barque (alternatively "barkentine" or "schooner bark") is a sailing vessel with three or more masts; with a square rigged foremast and fore-and-aft rigged main, mizzen and any other masts. Modern barquentine sailing ...

, García navigated the Paraná River, arriving at the Sancti Spiritu fort. He was surprised and indignant to find Cabot there. He ordered Captain Caro to abandon the place as he, García, alone had been charged by Spain to explore the region. However, after it was explained that Cabot was also in the service of Spain, they joined forces. García continued upstream between what are now the towns of

Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, an ...

and Bella Vista where he met Cabot who forced him to cooperate in trying to find the legendary Sierra de la Plata. Together they explored the

Pilcomayo River Pilcomayo (in Hispanicized spelling) ( Quechua Pillkumayu or Pillku Mayu, ''pillku'' red, ''mayu'' river, "red river", Guarani Ysyry Araguay ) is a river in central South America. At long, it is the longest western tributary of the Paraguay Riv ...

and then followed it as far as the strait. Garcia and Cabot continued their attempts to explore the mythical kingdom about which they had heard from Captain Francisco Cesar, hearing that the place was rich in gold, silver, and sheep (llamas) with which fabrics were made. It was the

Inca Empire The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

of the legendary

City of the Caesars The City of the Caesars (Spanish Ciudad de los Césares), also variously known as ''City of Patagonia'', ''the Wandering City'', ''Trapalanda'' or ''Trapananda'', ''Lin Lin'' or ''Elelín'', is a mythical city of South America. It was supposedly ...

in Chile. Arguments between García and Cabot eventually ended both expeditions, the two men returning to Spain to settle their disputes through legal measures. The dispute arose as García claimed full control of the area he had explored. In the court case which was held in Spain the verdict went in favour of García. The reason was that Cabot who was assigned to go to the Spice Islands never went there but explored the Sierra de la Plata which was a violation. As a punishment he was exiled for two years to

Oran Oran () is a major coastal city located in the northwest of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria, after the capital, Algiers, because of its population and commercial, industrial and cultural importance. It is w ...

. As a result of all the feuding between García and Cabot, the Spaniards failed to ensure the defense of the fort at Sancti Spiritus, which was attacked by the natives in September 1529 while Cabot and García were in San Salvador. In late September or early October 1529, García's caravel traveled to the

Ducks Bay Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family (biology), family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and goose, geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfam ...

(in southern Brazil), picked up Francisco García (who belonged to Cabot's expedition) and traveled to Spain, arriving there on 28 July 1530. Cabot abandoned a planned expedition to the

Spice Islands In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for ...

. Instead, on 21 May 1534, Diego García de Moguer sailed his caravel ''Concepción'' back to Río de la Plata. He passed the

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

island of

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

, then continued to Brazil and on to the estuary of the

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and Paraná rivers. He re-discovered the island of

in the 16th century, then in the service of Portugal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia, Diego 15th-century births 1544 deaths Explorers of Argentina Spanish explorers of South America Spanish military officers 16th-century Spanish explorers People of Moguer