Francisco Vázquez De Coronado
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Francisco Vázquez de Coronado (; 1510 – 22 September 1554) was a Spanish
conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...
and explorer who led a large expedition from what is now
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
to present-day
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
through parts of the southwestern United States between 1540 and 1542. Vázquez de Coronado had hoped to reach the Cities of Cíbola, often referred to now as the mythical
Seven Cities of Gold The myth of the Seven Cities of Gold, also known as the Seven Cities of Cíbola (), was popular in the 16th century and later featured in several works of popular culture. According to legend, the seven cities of gold referred to Aztec mythology ...
. His expedition marked the first European sightings of the
Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile (). The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...
and the
Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...
, among other landmarks. His name is often Anglicized as Vasquez de Coronado or just Coronado.


Early life

Vázquez de Coronado was born into a noble family in
Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...
, Spain, in 1510 as the second son of Juan Vázquez de Coronado and Isabel de Luján. Juan Vázquez held various positions in the administration of the recently captured
Emirate of Granada The Emirate of Granada, also known as the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, was an Emirate, Islamic polity in the southern Iberian Peninsula during the Late Middle Ages, ruled by the Nasrid dynasty. It was the last independent Muslim state in Western ...
under Íñigo López de Mendoza, its first Christian governor. Francisco Vázquez de Coronado went to
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...
(present-day Mexico) in 1535 at about age 25, in the entourage of its first
Viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the Anglo-Norman ''roy'' (Old Frenc ...
, Antonio de Mendoza, the son of his father's patron and Vázquez de Coronado's personal friend. In New Spain, he married twelve-year-old Beatriz de Estrada, called "the Saint" (''la Santa''), sister of Leonor de Estrada, ancestor of the de Alvarado family and daughter of
Treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...
and
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Alonso de Estrada y Hidalgo, Lord of
Picón Picón is a municipality in Ciudad Real, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. It has a population of 661. It was also a province in New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally ...
, and his wife Marina Flores Gutiérrez de la Caballería, from a
converso A ''converso'' (; ; feminine form ''conversa''), "convert" (), was a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, or one of their descendants. To safeguard the Old Christian popula ...
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
family. Vázquez de Coronado inherited a large portion of a Mexican ''encomendero'' estate through Beatriz and had eight children by her.


Expedition


Preparation

Vázquez de Coronado was the Governor of the Kingdom of
Nueva Galicia Nuevo Reino de Galicia (New Kingdom of Galicia; ) or simply Nueva Galicia (''New Galicia'', ''Nova Galicia''), known in Nahuatl as Chimalhuacán (‘the land of shield bearers’), was an autonomous kingdom of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It w ...
(New Galicia), a province of New Spain located northwest of Mexico and comprising the contemporary
Mexican state A Mexican State (), officially the Free and Sovereign State (), is a constituent federative entity of Mexico according to the Constitution of Mexico. Currently there are 31 states, each with its own constitution, government, state governor, a ...
s of
Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...
,
Sinaloa Sinaloa (), officially the (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, compose the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 18 municipalities, and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales. It is located in northwest Mexic ...
and
Nayarit Nayarit, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nayarit, is one of the 31 states that, along with Mexico City, comprise the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in Municipalities of Nayarit, 20 municipalit ...
. In 1539, he dispatched Friar Marcos de Niza and Estevanico (more properly known as Estevan), one of only four survivors of the Narváez expedition, on an expedition north from Compostela toward present-day
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
. When de Niza returned, he told of a city of vast wealth, a golden city called Cíbola, whose Zuni residents were assumed to have murdered Estevan. Though he did not claim to have entered the city of Cíbola, he mentioned that it stood on a high hill and that it appeared wealthy and as large as Mexico City. Vázquez de Coronado assembled an expedition with two components. One component carried the bulk of the expedition's supplies, traveling via the Guadalupe River and Gulf of California under the leadership of Hernando de Alarcón. The other component traveled by land, along the trail on which Friar Marcos de Niza had followed Esteban. Vázquez de Coronado and Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza invested large sums of their own money in the venture. Mendoza appointed Vázquez de Coronado the commander of the expedition, with the mission to find the mythical
Seven Cities of Gold The myth of the Seven Cities of Gold, also known as the Seven Cities of Cíbola (), was popular in the 16th century and later featured in several works of popular culture. According to legend, the seven cities of gold referred to Aztec mythology ...
. This is the reason he pawned his wife's estates and was lent 70,000 pesos. In the autumn of 1539, Mendoza ordered Melchior Díaz, commander of the Spanish outpost at San Miguel de Culiacán, to investigate Friar de Niza's findings, and on November 17, 1539, Díaz departed for Cíbola with fifteen horsemen.Winship. p. 38 At the ruins of Chichilticalli, he turned around because of "snows and fierce winds from across the wilderness". Díaz had encountered Vázquez de Coronado before he had departed San Miguel de Culiacán, and reported that initial investigations into Friar de Niza's report disproved the existence of the bountiful land he had described. Díaz's report was delivered to Viceroy Mendoza on March 20, 1540.


Expedition

Vázquez de Coronado set out from Compostela on February 23, 1540, at the head of a much larger expedition composed of about 400 European men-at-arms (mostly Spaniards), 1,300 to 2,000 Mexican Indian allies, four
Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...
friars (the most notable of whom were Juan de Padilla and the newly appointed
provincial superior A provincial superior is an officer of a religious institute (including religious orders) acting under the institute's Superior General. A provincial superior exercises general supervision over all the members of that institute in a territorial ...
of the Franciscan order in the New World, Marcos de Niza), and several slaves, both natives and Africans. Many other family members and servants also joined the party. He followed the Sinaloan coast northward, keeping the
Gulf of California The Gulf of California (), also known as the Sea of Cortés (''Mar de Cortés'') or Sea of Cortez, or less commonly as the Vermilion Sea (''Mar Vermejo''), is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean that separates the Baja California peninsula from ...
on his left to the west until he reached the northernmost Spanish settlement in Mexico, San Miguel de Culiacán, about March 28, 1540, whereupon he rested his expedition before they began trekking the inland trail. Aside from his mission to verify Friar de Niza's report, Melchior Díaz had also taken notice of the forage and food situation along the trail, and reported that the land along the route would not be able to support a large concentrated body of soldiers and animals. Vázquez de Coronado, therefore, decided to divide his expedition into small groups and time their departures so that grazing lands and water holes along the trail could recover. At intervals along the trail, Vázquez de Coronado established camps and stationed garrisons of soldiers to keep the supply route open. For example, in September 1540, Melchior Díaz, along with "seventy or eighty of the weakest and least reliable men" in Vázquez de Coronado's army, remained at the town of San Jerónimo, in the valley of Corazones, or "Hearts". Once the scouting and planning was done, Vázquez de Coronado led the first group of soldiers up the trail. They were horsemen and foot soldiers who were able to travel quickly, while the main bulk of the expedition would set out later. After leaving
Culiacán Culiacán, officially Culiacán Rosales, is a city in northwestern Mexico, the capital and largest city of both Culiacán Municipality and the state of Sinaloa. The city was founded on 29 September 1531 by the Spanish conquistadors Lázaro de ...
on April 22, 1540, Vázquez de Coronado followed the coast, "bearing off to the left", as Mota Padilla says, by an extremely rough way, to the Sinaloa River. The configuration of the country made it necessary to follow the river valley until he could find a passage across the mountains to the course of the
Yaqui River The Yaqui River (Río Yaqui in Spanish) (Hiak Vatwe in the Yaqui or Yoreme language) is a river in the state of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. It was formerly known as the Rio del Norte. Being the largest river system in the state of Sonora, th ...
. He traveled alongside this stream for some distance, then crossed to the Rio Sonora, which he followed nearly to its source before a pass (now known as Montezuma Pass) was discovered. On the southern side of the Huachuca Mountains he found a stream he called the ''Nexpa'', which may have been either the Santa Cruz or the San Pedro in modern
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
of modern maps, most likely the northward-flowing San Pedro River. The party followed this river valley until they reached the edge of the wilderness, where, as Friar Marcos had described it to them, they found Chichilticalli. Chichilticalli is in southern
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
in the Sulphur Springs Valley, within the bend of the Dos Cabezas and Chiricahua Mountains. This fits the chronicle of Laus Deo description, which reports that "at Chichilticalli the country changes its character again and the spiky vegetation ceases. The reason is that ... the mountain chain changes its direction at the same time that the coast does. Here they had to cross and pass the mountains in order to get into the level country." There Vázquez de Coronado met a crushing disappointment: Cíbola was nothing like the great golden city that de Niza had described. Instead, it was just a village of nondescript
pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...
s constructed by the Zuni. The soldiers were upset with de Niza for his mendacious imagination, so Vázquez de Coronado sent him back south to
New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( ; Nahuatl: ''Yankwik Kaxtillan Birreiyotl''), originally the Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain. It was one of several ...
in disgrace. Despite what is shown in the accompanying map, on-the-ground research by Nugent Brasher beginning in 2005 revealed evidence that Vázquez de Coronado traveled north between Chichilticalli and Zuni primarily on the future New Mexico side of the state line, not the Arizona side as has been thought by historians since the 1940s. Also, most scholars believe Quivira was about thirty miles east of the great bend of the
Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...
, ending about twenty miles west-southwest of the location depicted on the map, with Quivira being mostly on tributaries of the Arkansas River instead of directly on the
Kansas River The Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, is a meandering river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is potentially the southwestern most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is sometimes in turn the northwesternmost portion of ...
. For details, see the heading below, "Location of Quivira...."


Conquest of Cíbola

Vázquez de Coronado traveled north on one side or the other of today's Arizona–New Mexico state line, and from the headwaters of the Little Colorado River, he continued on until he came to the
Zuni River The Zuni (Zuñi) River is a tributary of the Little Colorado River in the southwestern United States. It has its origin in Cibola County, New Mexico, in the Zuñi Mountains at the Continental Divide. The river flows off the western slopes of the ...
. He followed the river until he entered the territory controlled by the Zuni. The members of the expedition were almost starving and demanded entrance into the community of Hawikuh (of which the preferred Zuni word is Hawikku). The residents refused, denying the expedition entrance to the community. Vázquez de Coronado and his expeditionaries attacked the Zunis. The ensuing skirmish constituted the extent of what can be called the Spanish Conquest of Cíbola. He never personally led his men-at-arms in any subsequent battles. During the battle, Vázquez de Coronado was injured. During the weeks that the expedition stayed at Zuni, he sent out several scouting expeditions. The first scouting expedition was led by
Pedro de Tovar Pedro de Tovar (born 1501) was a Spanish explorer, military man and colonial administrator. He was part of Francisco Vazquez de Coronado's expedition and led the first expedition to Seven Cities of Cibola, Cibola in 1540. Tovar was also the firs ...
. This expedition headed northwest to the
Hopi The Hopi are Native Americans who primarily live in northeastern Arizona. The majority are enrolled in the Hopi Tribe of Arizona and live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona; however, some Hopi people are enrolled in the Colorado ...
communities they recorded as Tusayan. Upon arrival, the Spanish were also denied entrance to the village that they came across and, once again, resorted to using force to enter. Materially, Hopi territory was just as poor as that of the Zuni in precious metals, but the Spaniards did learn that a large river (the
Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
) lay to the west.


Exploration of the Colorado River

Three leaders affiliated with the Vázquez de Coronado expedition were able to reach the
Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...
. The first was Hernando de Alarcón, then Melchior Díaz and lastly García López de Cárdenas. Alarcón's fleet was tasked to carry supplies and to establish contact with the main body of Vázquez de Coronado's expedition but was unable to do so because of the extreme distance to Cibola. He traveled up the Sea of Cortés and then the Colorado River. In this exploration, he hauled some supplies for Vázquez de Coronado, but eventually, he buried them with a note in a bottle. Melchior Díaz was sent down from Cíbola by Vázquez de Coronado to take charge of the camp of Corazones and to establish contact with the fleet. Soon after arriving at the camp he set out from the valley of Corazones in Sonora and traveled overland in a north/northwesterly direction until he arrived at the junction of the
Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...
and
Gila River The Gila River (; O'odham ima Keli Akimel or simply Akimel, Quechan: Haa Siʼil, Maricopa language: Xiil) is a tributary of the Colorado River flowing through New Mexico and Arizona in the United States. The river drains an arid watershed of ...
. There, indigenous informants, probably the Cocomaricopa (see Seymour 2007b), told him that Alarcón's sailors had buried supplies and left a note in a bottle. The supplies were retrieved, and the note stated that Alarcón's men had rowed up the river as far as they could, searching in vain for the Vázquez de Coronado expedition. They had given up and decided to return to their departure point because worms were eating holes in their boats. Díaz named the river the "Firebrand (Tizón) River" because the indigenous people of the area used firebrands to keep their bodies warm in the winter. Díaz died on the trip back to the camp in the valley of the Corazones. While at Hawikuh, Vázquez de Coronado sent another scouting expedition overland to find the Colorado River, led by Don García López de Cárdenas. The expedition returned to Hopi territory to acquire scouts and supplies. Members of Cárdenas's party eventually reached the South Rim of the
Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile (). The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...
, where they could see the Colorado River thousands of feet below, becoming the first non-Native Americans to do so. After trying and failing to climb down into the canyon to reach the river, the expedition reported that they would not be able to use the Colorado River to link up with Hernando de Alarcón's fleet. After this, the main body of the expedition began its journey to the next populated center of pueblos, along another large river to the east, the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...
in
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
.


Tiguex War

Hernando de Alvarado was sent to the east, and found several villages around the
Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...
. Vázquez de Coronado had one commandeered for his winter quarters, Coofor, which is across the river from present-day Bernalillo near
Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...
. During the winter of 1540–41, his army found themselves in conflict with the Rio Grande natives, which led to the brutal
Tiguex War Tigua, Tiguex, Tigüex, Tiwan, and Tiwesh may refer to: * Albuquerque metropolitan area The Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area, sometimes referred to as Tiguex (named after the Southern Tiwa), is a metropolitan area in central New Mexico ...
. This war resulted in the destruction of the Tiguex pueblos and the deaths of hundreds of Native Americans. The Spaniards also captured a Wichita woman, Big Eyes, who had been enslaved by the Tiguex, and who would become a guide for the expedition.


Search for Quivira

From an indigenous informant the Spanish called " The Turk" (''el turco''), Vázquez de Coronado heard of a wealthy nation called
Quivira Quivira was a province of the ancestral Wichita people, located near the Great Bend of the Arkansas River in central Kansas, The exact site may be near present-day Lyons extending northeast to Salina. The Wichita city of Etzanoa, which flouris ...
far to the east. In spring 1541, he led his army and priests and indigenous allies onto the
Great Plains The Great Plains is a broad expanse of plain, flatland in North America. The region stretches east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, and grassland. They are the western part of the Interior Plains, which include th ...
to search for Quivira. The Turk was probably either Wichita or
Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska * ...
and his intention seems to have been to lead Vázquez de Coronado astray and hope that he got lost in the Great Plains. Alternately, it is possible that the Turk was leading Coronado to the large mound-building kingdoms of the southeast. With the Turk guiding him, Vázquez de Coronado and his army might have crossed the flat and featureless steppe called the Llano Estacado in the Texas Panhandle and Eastern New Mexico, passing through the present-day communities of
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and
Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
. The Spanish were awed by the Llano. "The country they he buffalotraveled over was so smooth that if one looked at them the sky could be seen between their legs." Men and horses became lost in the featureless plain and Vázquez de Coronado felt like he had been swallowed up by the sea. On the Llano, Vázquez de Coronado encountered vast herds of
bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...
—the American buffalo. "I found such a quantity of cows ... that it is impossible to number them, for while I was journeying through these plains ... there was not a day that I lost sight of them."


Querechos and Teyas

Vázquez de Coronado found a community of people he called Querechos. The Querechos were not awed or impressed by the Spanish, their weapons, and their "big dogs" (horses). "They did nothing unusual when they saw our army, except to come out of their tents to look at us, after which they came to talk to the advance guard, and asked who we were." As Vázquez de Coronado described them, the Querechos were nomads, following the buffalo herds on the plains. The Querechos were numerous. Chroniclers mentioned one settlement of two hundred tipis—which implies a population of more than one thousand people living together for at least part of the year. Authorities agree that the Querechos (Becquerel's) were
Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...
Indians. Vázquez de Coronado left the Querechos behind and continued southeast in the direction in which the Turk told him that Quivira was located. He and his army descended off the tabletop of the Llano Estacado into the
caprock Caprock or cap rock is a hard, resistant, and impermeable layer of rock that overlies and protects a reservoir of softer organic material, similar to the crust on a pie where the crust (caprock) prevents leakage of the soft filling (softer materia ...
canyon country. He soon met with another group of Indians, the Teyas, enemies of the Querechos. The Teyas, like the Querechos, were numerous and buffalo hunters, although they had additional resources. The canyons they inhabited had trees and flowing streams and they grew or foraged for beans, but not corn. The Spanish, however, did note the presence of mulberries, roses, grapes, walnuts, and plums. An intriguing event was Vázquez de Coronado's meeting among the Teyas an old blind bearded man who said that he had met many days before "four others like us". He was probably talking about
Cabeza de Vaca In Mexican cuisine, ''cabeza'' (''lit.'' 'head'), from barbacoa de cabeza, is the meat from a roasted beef head, served as taco or burrito fillings. It typically refers to barbacoa de cabeza or beef-head barbacoa, an entire beef-head traditionall ...
, who with Esteban and two other Spanish survivors of the Narváez expedition to Florida made his way across southern Texas six years before Vázquez de Coronado. Scholars differ in their opinions as to which historical Indian group were the Teyas. A plurality believe they were Caddoan speakers and related to the Wichita. The place where Vázquez de Coronado found the Teyas has also been debated. The mystery may have been cleared up—to the satisfaction of some—by the discovery of a likely Vázquez de Coronado campsite. While Vázquez de Coronado was in the canyon country, his army suffered one of the violent climatic events so common on the plains. "A tempest came up one afternoon with a very high wind and hail ... The hail broke many tents and tattered many helmets, and wounded many of the horses, and broke all the crockery of the army, and the gourds which was no small loss." In 1993, Jimmy Owens found crossbow points in Blanco Canyon in Crosby County,
Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, near the town of Floydada in Floyd County. Archaeologists subsequently searched the site and found pottery sherds, more than forty crossbow points, and dozens of horseshoe nails of Spanish manufacture, plus a Mexican-style stone blade. This find strengthens the evidence that Vázquez de Coronado found the Teyas in Blanco Canyon.


Quivira

Another guide, probably Pawnee and named Ysopete, and probably Teyas as well told Vázquez de Coronado that he was going in the wrong direction, saying
Quivira Quivira was a province of the ancestral Wichita people, located near the Great Bend of the Arkansas River in central Kansas, The exact site may be near present-day Lyons extending northeast to Salina. The Wichita city of Etzanoa, which flouris ...
lay to the north. By this time, Vázquez de Coronado seems to have lost his confidence that fortune awaited him. He sent most of his expedition back to New Mexico and continued with only forty Spanish soldiers and priests and an unknown number of Indian soldiers, servants, and guides. Vázquez de Coronado, thus, dedicated himself to a reconnaissance rather than a mission of conquest. After more than thirty days journey, Vázquez de Coronado found a river larger than any he had seen before. This was the
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...
, probably a few miles east of present-day
Dodge City, Kansas Dodge City is a city in and the county seat of Ford County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 27,788. It was named after nearby Fort Dodge, which was named in honor of Grenville Dodge. The city ...
. The Spaniards and their Indian allies followed the Arkansas northeast for three days and found Quivirans hunting buffalo. The Indians greeted the Spanish with wonderment and fear but calmed down when one of Vázquez de Coronado's guides addressed them in their own language. Vázquez de Coronado reached Quivira itself after a few more days of traveling, on July 29, 1541. He found Quivira "well settled ... along good river bottoms, although without much water, and good streams which flow into another". Vázquez de Coronado believed that there were twenty-five settlements in Quivira. Both men and women Quivirans were nearly naked. Vázquez de Coronado was impressed with the size of the Quivirans and all the other Indians he met. They were "large people of very good build". Vázquez de Coronado spent twenty-five days among the Quivirans trying to learn of richer kingdoms just over the horizon. He found nothing but straw-thatched villages of up to two hundred houses and fields containing corn, beans, and squash. A copper pendant was the only evidence of wealth he discovered. The Quivirans were almost certainly the ancestors of the Wichita people. Vázquez de Coronado was escorted to the further edge of Quivira, called Tabas, where the neighboring land of Harahey began. He summoned the "Lord of Harahey" who, with two hundred followers, came to meet with the Spanish. He was disappointed. The Harahey Indians were "all naked – with bows, and some sort of things on their heads, and their privy parts slightly covered". They were not the wealthy people Vázquez de Coronado sought. Disappointed, he returned to New Mexico. Before leaving Quivira, Vázquez de Coronado ordered the Turk garroted (executed). The Turk is regarded as an Indian hero in a display at Albuquerque's Indian Pueblo Cultural Center because his
disinformation Disinformation is misleading content deliberately spread to deceive people, or to secure economic or political gain and which may cause public harm. Disinformation is an orchestrated adversarial activity in which actors employ strategic dece ...
led Vázquez de Coronado onto the Great Plains and thus relieved the beleaguered pueblos of Spanish depredations for at least a few months.


Location of Quivira, Tabas, and Harahey

Archaeological evidence suggests that Quivira was in central
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
with the westernmost village near the small town of
Lyons Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
on Cow Creek, extending twenty miles east to the Little Arkansas River, and north another twenty miles to the town of Lindsborg on a tributary of the Smoky Hill River. Tabas was likely on the Smoky Hill River. Archaeologists have found numerous 16th-century sites in these areas that probably include some of the settlements visited by Vázquez de Coronado. At Harahey "was a river, with more water and more inhabitants than the other". This sounds as if Vázquez de Coronado may have reached the Smoky Hill River near Salina or Abilene. It is a larger river than either Cow Creek or the Little Arkansas and is located at roughly the 25 league distance from Lyons that Vázquez de Coronado said he traveled in Quivira. The people of Harahey seem Caddoan, because "it was the same sort of a place, with settlements like these, and of about the same size" as Quivira. They were probably the ancestors of the Pawnee.


Expedition end

Vázquez de Coronado returned to the Tiguex Province in New Mexico from Quivira and was badly injured in a fall from his horse "after the winter was over", according to the chronicler Castañeda—probably in March 1542. During a long convalescence, he and his expeditionaries decided to return to New Spain (Mexico). Vázquez de Coronado and his expedition departed New Mexico in early April 1542, leaving behind two friars. His expedition had been a failure. Although he remained governor of
Nueva Galicia Nuevo Reino de Galicia (New Kingdom of Galicia; ) or simply Nueva Galicia (''New Galicia'', ''Nova Galicia''), known in Nahuatl as Chimalhuacán (‘the land of shield bearers’), was an autonomous kingdom of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It w ...
until 1544, the expedition forced him into bankruptcy and resulted in charges of war crimes being brought against him and his field master, Cárdenas. Vázquez de Coronado was cleared by his friends on the Audiencia, but Cárdenas was convicted in Spain of basically the same charges by the Council of the Indies. Vázquez de Coronado remained in
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
, where he died of an infectious disease on September 22, 1554. He was buried under the altar of the Church of Santo Domingo in Mexico City.


Family

Within a year of arriving in New Spain, he married Beatriz de Estrada, called "the saint". Beatriz was the second daughter of Alonso de Estrada and Marina de la Caballería; niece of Diego de Caballeria. The Estrada-Coronado union was a carefully calculated political union that Francisco and Marina orchestrated. Through this marriage, Francisco became a wealthy man. Beatriz brought to the marriage the encomienda of Tlapa, the third largest
encomienda The ''encomienda'' () was a Spanish Labour (human activity), labour system that rewarded Conquistador, conquerors with the labour of conquered non-Christian peoples. In theory, the conquerors provided the labourers with benefits, including mil ...
in New Spain. This marriage was an important source of funding for Francisco's expedition. Beatriz and Francisco have been reported, through different sources, to have had at least four sons (Gerónimo, Salvador, Juan, and Alonso) and five daughters (Isabel, María, Luisa, Mariana, and Mayor).Shirley Cushing Flint "No Mere Shadows: Faces of Widowhood in Early Colonial Mexico" University of New Mexico Press 2013 pp 40 After Alonso's death, Beatriz ensured that three of their daughters were married into prominent families of New Spain. She never remarried. Beatriz reported that her husband had died in great poverty, since their encomiendas had been taken away from them due to the
New Laws The New Laws ( Spanish: ''Leyes Nuevas''), also known as the New Laws of the Indies for the Good Treatment and Preservation of the Indians, were issued on November 20, 1542, by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (King Charles I of Spain) and regard t ...
, and that she and her daughters lived in misery too, a shame for the widow of a conqueror that had provided such valuable service to his majesty. This, as most reports from the early days of New Spain, both positive and negative and regarding all things, have been proven to be false, part of the power struggles among settlers and attempts to exploit the budding new system that tried to find a way to administer justice in land the king could not see nor the army reach. Francisco, Beatriz and their children actually ended their days comfortably.


Commemoration

In 1939, United States 76th Congress passes the Coronado Exposition Commission Act of 1939 authorizing the erection of a monument at the nearest point of the international boundary between the United States and Mexico where the Coronado expedition first crossed into North America. In 1952, the United States established Coronado National Memorial near
Sierra Vista, Arizona Sierra Vista (; ) is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, the population of the city is 45,308, and is the 27th most populous city in Arizona. The city is part of the Sierra ...
to commemorate his expedition. The nearby Coronado National Forest is also named in his honor. In 1908, Coronado Butte, a summit in the Grand Canyon, was officially named to commemorate him. A large hill northwest of Lindsborg, Kansas, is called Coronado Heights. Coronado High Schools in Lubbock, Texas;
El Paso El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
, Texas;
Colorado Springs Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010. Colorado Springs is the second-most populous c ...
, Colorado; and Scottsdale, Arizona were named for Vázquez de Coronado. Coronado Road in
Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
, was named after Vázquez de Coronado. Similarly, Interstate 40 through Albuquerque has been named the Coronado Freeway.
Coronado, California Coronado (Spanish language, Spanish for "Crowned") is a resort town, resort city in San Diego County, California, United States, across San Diego Bay from downtown San Diego. It was founded in the 1880s and incorporated in 1890. Its population ...
is not named after Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, but is named after Coronado Islands, which were named in 1602 by Sebastián Vizcaíno who called them ''Los Cuatro Coronados'' (the four crowned ones) to honor four martyrs. The mineral Coronadite is named after him.


Popular culture

''
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' is a 1989 American action adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Jeffrey Boam, based on a story by George Lucas and Menno Meyjes. It is the third installment in the Indiana Jone ...
'' references the "Cross of Coronado". According to the film, this gold cross, discovered in a Utah cave system, was given to Vázquez de Coronado by
Hernán Cortés Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro Altamirano, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca (December 1485 – December 2, 1547) was a Spanish ''conquistador'' who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions o ...
in 1521. Such an event never happened because Vázquez de Coronado would have been 11 or 12 years old in 1521 and still living in Spain. In addition, when Indy captures the cross from robbers aboard a ship off the coast of Portugal, the ship can be seen to be named ''The Coronado''. In the classic
young adult novel Young adult literature (YA) is typically written for readers aged 12 to 18 and includes most of the themes found in adult fiction, such as family dysfunction, substance abuse, alcoholism, and sexuality. It is characterized by simpler world build ...
, '' The King's Fifth'' by
Scott O'Dell Scott O'Dell (May 23, 1898 – October 15, 1989) was an American people, American writer of 26 novels for young people, along with three novels for adults and four nonfiction books. He wrote historical fiction, primarily, including several chi ...
, the main characters, Estéban de Sandoval and Blas de Mendoza, seek Coronado's expedition and temporarily join it. It is there that they meet the third main character, Zia Troyano, a teenage Zuni Native American. Sandoval and Mendoza participate in the battle of Hawikuh (during which Sandoval is wounded) and describe the injury sustained by Coronado during that battle. The song "Hitchin' to Quivira" from independent singer-songwriter Tyler Jakes's 2016 album ''Mojo Suicide'' is based on the story of Vázquez de Coronado's expedition. The song "Coronado And The Turk" from singer-songwriter
Steve Tilston Steve Tilston (born 26 March 1950) is an English folk singer-songwriter and guitarist. Early life Steve Tilston was born in Liverpool and brought up in Leicestershire. A graphic designer before taking up music in 1971, Tilston lived in Bristol ...
's 1992 album ''Of Moor And Mesa'' is based on the story of Vázquez de Coronado's expedition. The 1995 film, ''Charlie's Ghost: The Secret of Coronado'' also known as '' Charlie's Ghost Story'' starring
Cheech Marin Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American comedian and actor. He gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s with Tommy Chong, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dom ...
, follows the story of a young boy who meets the ghost of Coronado and tries to help him by giving his remains a proper burial. In 1992, underground found-footage filmmaker Craig Baldwin made the film ''O No Coronado!'' detailing the expedition of Vázquez de Coronado through the use of recycled images from Westerns, conquest films, and ''The Lone Ranger'' television series.


See also

* Chamuscado and Rodriguez Expedition *
Antonio de Espejo Antonio de Espejo (c. 1540–1585) was a Spanish explorer who led an expedition, accompanied by Diego Perez de Luxan, into what is now New Mexico and Arizona in 1582–83.pg 189 - The expedition created interest in establishing a Spanish col ...


References


Sources

* Winship, George Parker, translator and editor (1990) ''The Journey of Coronado 1540–1542''. Golden, CO: Fulcrum Publishing. Introduction by Donald C. Cutter.


Further reading

* Blakeslee, D. J., R. Flint, and J. T. Hughes 1997. "Una Barranca Grande: Recent Archaeological Evidence and a Discussion of its Place in the Coronado Route". In ''The Coronado Expedition to Terra Nueva''. Eds. R. and S. Flint, University of Colorado Press, Niwot. * Bolton, Herbert Eugene. (1949) ''Coronado: Knight of Pueblos and Plains'' (New York: Whittlesey; Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press).
Ebook
* Bolton, Herbert E. (1949) ''Coronado on the Turquoise Trail: Knight of Pueblos and Plains.'' Coronado Cuarto Centennial Publications, 1540–1940, vol. 1. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. Reprinted in 1949 jointly with Whittlesey House, New York, under the title ''Coronado, Knight of Pueblos and Plains''. * Bolton, H. E. (1960) ''Rim of Christendom''. Russell and Russell, New York. * Bolton, Herbert E. (1921) ''The Spanish Borderlands: A Chronicle of Old Florida and the Southwest.'' Chronicles of America Series, vol. 23. Yale University Press, New Haven. * Castañeda, Pedro de. (1990) ''The Journey of Coronado''. Translated with an extensive introduction by George Parker Winship, modern introduction, Donald C. Cutter, ''The Journey of Coronado'', Fulcrum Publishing, hardcover, 233 pages, On-line a
PBS - The West
* Chavez, Fr. Angelico, O.F.M. (1968) ''Coronado's Friars.''. Academy of American Franciscan History, Washington D.C. * Day, Arthur Grove. (1981) ''Coronado's Quest: The Discovery of the Southwestern States'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1940; rpt., Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1981, )
Ebook
* De Voto, Bernard. (1952) ''The Course of Empire.'' Houghton, Mifflin, Boston. * Duffen, W., and Hartmann, W. K. (1997) "The 76 Ranch Ruin and the Location of Chichilticale". In ''The Coronado Expedition to Tierra Nueva: The 1540–1542 Route Across the Southwest''. Eds. Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint. University Press of Colorado, Niwot. ** (1997) ''The Coronado Expedition to Tierra Nueva: The 1540–1542 Route Across the Southwest'', edited by Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint. University Press of Colorado, Niwot. * Flint, Richard and Shirley Cushing Flint. (1993) "Coronado's Crosses, Route Markers Used by the Coronado Expedition". ''Journal of the Southwest'' 35(2) (1993):207–216. ** (2003) ''The Coronado Expedition from the Distance of 460 Years''. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. ** (2005) ''Documents of the Coronado Expedition, 1539–1541: They Were Not Familiar with His Majesty nor Did They Wish to Be His Subjects.'' Southern Methodist University Press, Dallas. * Richard Flint, Shirley Cushing Flint. ''A Most Splendid Company: The Coronado Expedition in Global Perspective''. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2019. *Forbes, Jack D. (1960) ''Apache, Navaho, and Spaniard.'' University of Oklahoma Press, Norman. * Hammond, George P. (1940) ''Coronado's Seven Cities.'' United States Coronado Exposition Commission, Albuquerque. * Hammond, George P., and Edgar R. Goad. (1938) ''The Adventure of Don Francisco Vásquez de Coronado.'' University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. * Hammond, George P. and Agapito Rey. (1920) ''Narratives of the Coronado Expedition 1540–1542''. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque (reprint by AMS Press, New York, 1977). * Hammond, George P., and Agapito Rey, eds. (1940) ''Narratives of the Coronado Expedition, 1540–1542.'' Coronado Centennial Publications, 1540–1940, vol. 2. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. * Haury, Emil W. (1984) "The Search for Chichilticale". ''Arizona Highways'' 60(4):14–19. * Hedrick, Basil C. (1978) "The Location of Corazones". In ''Across the Chichimec Sea''. Ed. C. Riley, Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale. * Herrick, Dennis (2013) "Winter of the Metal People: The Untold Story of America's First Indian War, Sunbury Press, Mechanicsburg, PA. * Hodge, Frederick W. and Theodore H. Lewis, ed. (1907) ''Spanish Explorers in the Southern United States'', Vol. II (1907, xiii, 413 p.; rpt., Texas State Historical Association, 1985, 411 pages, , pbk.) * Lee, Betty Graham. (1966) ''The Eagle Pass Site: An Integral Part of the Province of Chichilticale''. Thatcher: Eastern Arizona College Museum of Anthropology Publication No. 5. * Mill, J. P., and V. M. Mills (1969) ''The Kuykendall Site: A Prehistoric Salado Village in Southeastern Arizona''. El Paso Arch. Soc. Spec. Report for 1967, No. 6, El Paso. * Reff, Daniel T. (1991) ''Disease, Depopulation and Culture Change in Northwestern New Spain, 1518–1764''. (University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City). ** Reff, Daniel T. (1997) "The Relevance of Ethnology to the Routing of the Coronado Expedition in Sonora". In ''The Coronado Expedition to Tierra Nueva: The 1540–1542 Route Across the Southwest''. pp. 165–176, Eds. Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing Flint. University Press of Colorado, Niwot. * Sauer, Carl O. (1932) ''The Road to Cibola''. Ibero-Americana III. University of California Press, Berkeley. * Schroeder, Albert E. (1955) "Fray Marcos de Niza, Coronado and the Yavapai". ''New Mex. Hist. Rev.'' 30:265–296; see also 31:24–37. * Seymour, Deni J., (2007) "An Archaeological Perspective on the Hohokam-Pima Continuum". ''Old Pueblo Archaeology Bulletin'' No. 51, December 2007:1–7. * Seymour, Deni J. (2008) "Despoblado or Athapaskan Heartland: A Methodological Perspective on Ancestral Apache Landscape Use in the Safford Area". Chapter 5 in ''Crossroads of the Southwest: Culture, Ethnicity, and Migration in Arizona's Safford Basin'', pp. 121–162, edited by David E. Purcell, Cambridge Scholars Press, New York. * Seymour, Deni J. (2009) "Evaluating Eyewitness Accounts of Native Peoples Along the Coronado Trail From the International Border to Cibola". ''New Mexico Historical Review'' 84(3):399–435. * Seymour, Deni J. (2009) ''Where the Earth and Sky are Sewn Together: Sobaípuri-O'odham Contexts of Contact and Colonialism''. Book manuscript. * Udall, Steward S. (1984) "In Coronado's Footsteps". ''Arizona Highways'' 60(4):3.


External links


The Search for Chichilticale

''The journey of Coronado, 1540–1542, from the city of Mexico to the Grand Canon of the Colorado and the buffalo plains of Texas, Kansas and Nebraska, as told by himself and his followers''
written by Pedro de Castañeda and translated by George Parker Winship, 1922 publication, searchable copy with page numbers a
archive.org

Coronado: Misfortune's Explorer
Primary Source Adventure, a lesson plan hosted b
The Portal to Texas History


June 29, 1541, Ford County, KS



* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vasquez De Coronado, Francisco Spanish explorers of North America Spanish conquistadors People from New Spain 16th-century Spanish explorers People from Salamanca 1510s births 1554 deaths