''The King's Fifth'' (1966) is a

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

historical novel by

Scott O'Dell Scott O'Dell (May 23, 1898 – October 15, 1989) was an 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 children's novels ...

that was the inspiration for the cartoon TV series ''

The Mysterious Cities of Gold ''The Mysterious Cities of Gold'', originally released in Japan as and released in France as ''Les Mystérieuses Cités d'Or'', is an animated series which was co-produced by DiC Audiovisuel and Studio Pierrot. Set in 1532, the series fo ...

''. It describes, from the point of view of a teenage Spanish Conquistador, how the European search for gold in 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. ...

of the Americas affected people's lives and minds. The title refers to the one fifth share of spoils expected by the Spanish Crown.

Plot summary

The story takes place in a time when the Spanish adventurers, known as

Conquistadors 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, ...

colonised Colonization, or colonisation, constitutes large-scale population movements wherein migrants maintain strong links with their, or their ancestors', former country – by such links, gain advantage over other inhabitants of the territory. When ...

the

of the Americas, in search of the mythical gold treasures of the dethroned Native Americans.

Characters

* Estéban de Sandoval - a teenage mapmaker to the expedition to Cibola to find the gold * Zia Troyano - a younger teenage Native American guide * Captain Blas de Mendoza (very loosely based on

Antonio de Mendoza Antonio de Mendoza y Pacheco (, ; 1495 – 21 July 1552) was a Spanish colonial administrator who was the first Viceroy of New Spain, serving from 14 November 1535 to 25 November 1550, and the third Viceroy of Peru, from 23 September 1551 ...

) - an aristocrat in search of gold * Father Francisco - a priest to the expedition who joined as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

and an

explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...

* Roa and Zuñiga - part of a trio of musicians who are Mendoza's cronies

Adaptations

TV series

The book was the inspiration for the 1982-1983 French cartoon TV series "Les Mystérieuses Cités d'or ''(The Mysterious Cities of Gold)''. A few of the central characters take their names from the book, the high-level quest (searching for the Cities of Gold) is the same, and the "golden lake" scene from the book is also present in the cartoon, but the similarities end there (the cartoon has motifs of fantasy and science fiction). The cartoon is set in South America, whereas the expedition in the book explores New Mexico and Arizona in North America.

Choose Your Own Adventure book

The book is also a slight influence in the

Choose Your Own Adventure ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' is a series of children's gamebooks where each story is written from a second-person point of view, with the reader assuming the role of the protagonist and making choices that determine the main character's actio ...

Time Machine's 1987 book ''Quest for the Cities of Gold,'' as the reader meets Esteban at different points.

Awards and nominations

Newbery Honor Newbery is a surname. People * Chantelle Newbery (born 1977), Australian Olympic diver * David Newbery (born 1943), British economist *Eduardo Newbery (1878–1908), Argentine odontologist and aerostat pilot * Francis Newbery (disambiguation), s ...

Book, 1967 *Federal Republic of Germany ''Jugendbuchpreis'', 1970

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kings Fifth, The 1966 American novels 1966 children's books American children's novels American novels adapted into television shows Children's historical novels Houghton Mifflin books Newbery Honor-winning works Novels set during the Conquest of the Americas Novels set in California Novels set in the 16th century Spanish conquests in the Americas