Title: Hernando de Soto - HISTORY
Headings: Hernando de Soto
Hernando de Soto
Contents
Hernando de Soto’s Early Life and Career
De Soto’s Role in Conquest of Peru & Return to Spain
De Soto’s Expedition to North America
FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us!
VIDEOS
RELATED CONTENT

Content: In the spring, De Soto led his men north, through Georgia, and west, through the Carolinas and Tennessee, guided by Indians whom they took captive along the way. With no success finding the gold they sought, the Spaniards headed back south into Alabama towards Mobile Bay, seeking to rendezvous with their ships, when they were attacked by an Indian contingent near present-day Mobile in October 1540. In the bloody battle that followed, the Spaniards killed hundreds of Indians and suffered severe casualties themselves. After a month’s rest, the ever-ambitious De Soto made the fateful decision to turn northward again and head inland in search of more treasure. In mid-1541, the Spaniards sighted the Mississippi River. They crossed it and headed into Arkansas and Louisiana, but early in 1542 turned back to the Mississippi. Soon after, De Soto took ill with a fever. After his death on May 21, 1542 his comrades buried his body in the great river. His successor, Luis de Moscoso, led the remnants of the expedition (which was eventually decimated by half) on rafts down the Mississippi, finally reaching Mexico in 1543. FACT CHECK: