Written by Sean Quinn
Many explorers are considered great because they had discovered a new continent, or a new trade route, or something else of that sort. Francisco Vasquez de Coronado was not considered a great explorer in his time because his expedition was a complete failure. But now, we do not look on his expedition as a complete failure, but as one of the greatest discoveries of all.
Born in Salamanca, Spain in 1510, Francisco Vasquez De Coronado would grow up to be one of the most well-known Spanish explorers to explore in the "New World", now known as North America. Here he made his fame by searching for the "Seven Cities of Gold". Although he never found any of the "Seven Cities of Gold", Coronado is now known as one the greatest explorers to explore in the Southwestern United States.
Coronado lived in Spain until he was 25 years old. While he was a child, he became good friends with Antonio de Mendoza. Mendoza later became one of the king's favorite subjects and he was appointed viceroy of New Spain. He moved out because his wealthy parents decided to leave the family fortune to his older brother instead of him. He then traveled to New Spain, now called Mexico. In 1538, Coronado was married to his long time love Beatris Estrada. Four years later, Coronado moved to New Spain and he was appointed governor of Nueva Galicia, by his old friend Mendoza. Here he learned of the tales of the "Seven Cities of Gold" also known as, "The Seven Cities of Ciabola" and the attempts of Cabeza de Vaca, to find the famed cities. The "Cities of Gold" were said to have been the rich settlements of Native American cultures. Eventually the Spanish government told Coronado that he was to head an overland expedition to find and conquer these legendary cities.
In April of 1540, Coronado headed out on his expedition to claim the "Cities of Gold" for Spain. He was accompanied by 300 Spanish soldiers and many Indian slave troops. He led his troops into the areas of nowadays Arizona and New Mexico. There he found the settlements of the Zuni Indians and the first of the so called "Seven Cities of Gold". Instead of being a city made of pure gold, it turned out to be an Indian pueblo. He thought that they would know where in legendary "Cities of Gold" might be hidden , so he captured them. After searching their cities, Coronado found no traces of gold and other valuables.
While in the Zuni settlement, many of his men went off in search of the cities. These men spread out far and wide and were the first known European men to reach the Rio Grande and The Grand Canyon. Along the way, they met many Indian tribes such as; the Pueblos, Acoma, Pecos, and Taos.
In the spring of 1541, an Indian brave came forward with a rumor that a very rich town lie east and that it was one of the "Cities of Gold" and so Coronado and his men headed eastward into Texas while looking for one of the cities of gold named Quivira. He eventually found the city, but to his dismay, the city was just a bunch of Indian teepees. The slave admitted to making the story of the golden city up and, after hearing this, Coronado had the man executed. Although he never found any of the "Cities of Gold", Coronado accomplished many things while on his expedition through the American Southwest. He was the first European to cross the Great Plains, first European to cross the Arkansas River, and he was the first European to ever see an American Bison or Buffalo.In 1542, Coronado and his men returned to New Spain in disappointment. In 1544 Coronado was charged with corruption and negligence, for not succeeding in his expedition, and was relieved of his duties as governor. In 1554 on September 22, Coronado died in his home in Mexico City. Shortly after his death, Spain took control of the lands that Coronado had explored and did not give him any credit for his discoveries of the Southwest.
Although considered a failure in his time, Coronado's expedition is now thought of as one of the greatest explorations of the New World. Coronado is now known as the first explorer of the Southwest United States and a memorial has been set up in his honor in Brisbee, Arizona.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Coronado and the Discovery of the Southwest: A. Grove Day, Meredith Press, New York, 1953
The Journey of Coronado 1540-1542: George Parker Winship, Fulcrum Publishing, Golden, Colorado, 1990