Did you know De Soto was not the first Spanish explorer in Florida In 1527 Pánfilo de Narváez led an expedition there and disappeared Eight years later just four survivors of the expedition reached Mexico Meet the Boss In the early 1500s the Spaniard Hernando de Soto led the first European expedition into the southeastern United States De Soto and his men were the first Europeans to cross the Mississippi River POOR LIFE IN SPAIN Noble but poor Young man seeks fortune abroad Hernando de Soto was born around 1500 in Extremadura Spain He came from a noble but poor family Another noble Pedro Arias Dávila paid for de Soto to go to university but opportunities were still limited for the young man in Spain He wanted to seek fame and fortune in Spain’s empire in the Americas In 1514 when Dávila was named the first governor of Spain’s new colony in Panama de Soto sailed with him to America IN THE NAME OF SPAIN Exploring Central America In Panama de Soto became captain of a cavalry troop that explored the rain forest above In the following years he served with the Spanish conquerors in Nicaragua and explored Honduras He became one of the most experienced and powerful conquistadors Just 10 years after arriving in the New World he had earned his own encomienda or estate and a position in the government 4 TRAVEL WITH THE GREAT EXPLORERS
INTO PERU Overthrowing the Inca Conquering new lands In 1532 de Soto served as a captain on the expedition of Francisco Pizarro to the Inca Empire of Peru The Inca were fighting a civil war so the Spanish took advantage of their distraction to capture and overthrow the new emperor Atahualpa Pizarro and his men shared the gold and silver from the Inca treasury Pizarro and his captains became very wealthy Atahualpa Atahualpa during his De Soto became friendly with captivity and taught him to play chess The Inca paid a huge ransom in gold for their emperor above but the Spaniards killed him anyway ORDERED TO FLORIDA De Soto strikes it rich Takes control of Cuba After the conquest of Peru de Soto left returned to Spain The king made him the governor of Cuba in return for his service He also ordered de Soto to explore and colonize La Florida the name for Spain’s territory in North America which was a far larger area than what Florida is today The king and de Soto hoped that La Florida would prove as wealthy as the Inca Empire EXPLORE WITH HERNANDO DE SOTO 5
Where Are We Heading No one knows de Soto’s exact route but we know he traveled through Florida Georgia the Carolinas Tennessee Alabama Mississippi and Arkansas COMING ASHORE A natural bay Landing in Florida On May 25 1539 de Soto’s expedition landed in a natural bay on the west coast of Florida Historians think they came ashore near the mouth of the Manatee River at the southern tip of Tampa Bay right Did you know Some stories suggest that de Soto named the Appalachian Mountains for the Apalachee people of northern Florida In fact the mountains are far from Apalachee lands so this is unlikely NORTH AMERICA Florida Tampa Bay Manatee River TRAVEL UPDATE TRAVEL UPDATE Keep your feet dry If you’re heading into Florida be prepared for difficult terrain and avoid it where possible As de Soto and his men marched north they came to the Green Swamp The swamp which lies between Tampa and Orlando is full of obstacles such as cypress domes and waters full of alligators It was so large the expedition had to turn west to travel around its edge 6 TRAVEL WITH THE GREAT EXPLORERS
LIVING IN ANHAICA Overthrowing the Apalachee and seizing their homes In October 1539 the expedition reached Anhaica the main town of the Apalachee people in what is now Tallahassee The Spaniards took over the town which consisted of 250 buildings and forced the Apalachee people to move out In1988 archaeologists found the ruins of Anhaica as well as evidence that the Spaniards had spent the winter there NO WEAPONS ALLOWED Hot springs are neutral territory Enjoyed by everyone FIRST ACROSS THE MISSISSIPPI Native peoples patrol the river Spaniards sneak across at night In May 1541 the expedition reached the eastern bank of the Mississippi River just south of what is now Memphis Tennessee Armed warriors in canoes patrolled the river to stop the Spaniards reaching the west bank De Soto’s men built boats and crossed the river at night to avoid an attack They were the first Europeans to cross the Mississippi River After crossing the Mississippi de Soto visited what is now Hot Springs Arkansas Several different Native tribes used the thermal springs which they called the Valley of the Vapors The springs were neutral territory which meant all the tribes laid down their weapons so everyone could enjoy the waters in peace in Apalachee We seek not war with anyone but our wish is to cultivate peace and friendship We are in search of a distant province and all we ask is food during our journey Hernando de Soto greets warriors EXPLORE WITH HERNANDO DE SOTO 7
