Title: Hernando de Soto | 10 Facts On The Spanish Explorer | Learnodo Newtonic
Headings: Hernando de Soto | 10 Facts On The Spanish Explorer
Hernando de Soto | 10 Facts On The Spanish Explorer
#1 His parents wanted him to be a lawyer
#2 His first expedition was to the West Indies
#3 He amassed a fortune through slave trading in Nicaragua
#4 He played a major role in defeating the Incas in the Battle of Cajamarca
#5 He made an enormous fortune during the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire
#6 Hernando de Soto was made governor of Cuba in 1537
#7 His famous expedition landed at Tampa Bay in May 1539
#8 His expedition fought one of the bloodiest battles with North American natives
#9 Hernando de Soto was the first recorded European to reach the Mississippi River
#10 His expedition had several major repercussions
De Soto’s Expedition After His Death

Content: De Soto’s party encountered a man named Juan Ortiz, a survivor from an earlier expedition who had lived with the natives for 12 years. He became their interpreter as they marched inwards in search of gold, a passage to China and what they could term an advanced civilization. A map showing the proposed route of the De Soto’s North America Expedition
#8 His expedition fought one of the bloodiest battles with North American natives
De Soto and his men set up camp for the winter at the small Indian village of Apalache near present-day Tallahassee. In spring the expedition moved through modern day Georgia. It was guided by natives whom they abducted along the way. Though they didn’t find the gold they were looking for, the female chief of the chiefdom Cofitachequi turned over the pearls of her tribe to them. During their return journey towards Mobile Bay, the expedition became involved in a bloody battle with the residents of Mabila, a fortified city in southern Alabama. Though they decimated the natives, the Spanish lost more than 200 men and many were injured. They also lost most of their equipment and all their pearls. Depiction of De Soto and his men burning Mabila
#9 Hernando de Soto was the first recorded European to reach the Mississippi River
On May 8, 1541, De Soto’s troops became the first Europeans to reach the Mississippi River.