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106-475: The hill comprises a 65,300 square metre park adorned with ornate facades, stairways and fountains. At the highest point there is a viewpoint popular with tourists visiting the city and meeting point. It was originally called Huelito o heutrecan by the pre-colonization inhabitants. However, the current name comes from the day in which Pedro de Valdivia conquered the hill, on December 13, 1540. That day celebrates " Santa Lucía ." Its first use by its missionaries

212-616: A meridian drawn from the Arctic Pole to the Antarctic , at a distance of 370 leagues (1,800 km) west of Cape Verde . Spain received the lands west of this line. The known means of measuring longitude were so inexact that the line of demarcation could not in practice be determined, subjecting the treaty to diverse interpretations. Both the Portuguese claim to Brazil and the Spanish claim to

318-482: A base for conquering much of Ecuador and Chile . Central Colombia , home of the Muisca was conquered by licentiate Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada , and its northern regions were explored by Rodrigo de Bastidas , Alonso de Ojeda , Juan de la Cosa , Pedro de Heredia and others. For southwestern Colombia, Bolivia , and Argentina , conquistadors from Peru combined parties with other conquistadors arriving more directly from

424-629: A brief stay in Santiago , Valdivia returned to the south again in December 1552. To keep the connection open between Concepción and the southern settlements, Valdivia had a number of forts built in Cordillera de Nahuelbuta . He moved against the Araucanians again in 1553 and built a fort at Tucapel. By the advice of the cacique Colocolo , the Araucanians united their efforts choosing as toqui (general-in-chief)

530-704: A civil war broke out in Castile, the Revolt of the Comuneros , and Valdivia joined the army of Spanish king Charles I . He later fought in Flanders in 1521 and Italy between 1522 and 1527, participating in the battle of Pavia as part of the troops of the Marquis of Pescara . In May 1527, Valdivia was involved in the sack of Rome as a member of Charles I's mutinous mercenary army. He traveled with Spanish forces to South America in 1535. He

636-509: A common story in Chile at the time was that Valdivia had been killed by being forced to drink molten gold. According to an even later legend, Lautaro took Valdivia to the Mapuche camp and put him to death after three days of torture, extracting his beating heart and eating it with the Mapuche leaders. Probably all the stories about his death are apocryphal, since none of his party survived the battle, and

742-455: A contract of partnership. The small expedition finally left Cuzco , Peru in January 1540, with Pizarro's permission and Pedro Sancho de Hoz as partner. They carried a plethora of seeds for planting, a drove of swine and brood mares, and almost a thousand native warriors, but few Spaniards. Only one woman was among the travelers, Inés de Suárez , Valdivia's mistress. En route more Spaniards joined

848-587: A free conquistador with the Spaniards to fight the Maya in Yucatán in 1540. After the conquests he settled in the city of Mérida in the newly formed colony of Yucatán with his family. In 1574, the Spanish crown ordered that all slaves and free blacks in the colony had to pay a tribute to the crown. However, Toral wrote in protest of the tax based on his services during his conquests. The Spanish king responded that Toral need not pay

954-571: A husband. Women who travelled thus include María de Escobar, María Estrada , Marina Vélez de Ortega, Marina de la Caballería, Francisca de Valenzuela, Catalina de Salazar. Some conquistadors married Native American women or had illegitimate children. European young men enlisted in the army because it was one way out of poverty. Catholic priests instructed the soldiers in mathematics, writing, theology, Latin, Greek, and history, and wrote letters and official documents for them. King's army officers taught military arts. An uneducated young recruit could become

1060-419: A military leader, elected by their fellow professional soldiers, perhaps based on merit. Others were born into hidalgo families, and as such they were members of the Spanish nobility with some studies but without economic resources. Even some rich nobility families' members became soldiers or missionaries, but mostly not the firstborn heirs. The two most famous conquistadors were Hernán Cortés who conquered

1166-499: A mutiny. The Spaniards' greed surfaced and overshadowed previous intentions when rumors of gold arose at the Marga Marga mines, in the vicinity of Valparaiso. The Spanish imposed slavery on the indigenous population to profit from the mines. On learning of Francisco Pizarro's murder in 1541, Valdivia had himself appointed governor of the territory by the council of the new city, and removed Chile from Peruvian control, acknowledging only

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1272-510: A naval expedition consisting of the barks San Pedro and Santiaguillo , under the command of Juan Bautista Pastene , to reconnoiter the southwestern coast of South America, ordering him to reach the Strait of Magellan . The expedition set sail from Valparaíso and although Pastene did not reach this goal, he explored much of the coast. He entered the bay of San Pedro , and made landings at what are now known as Concepción and at Valdivia , which

1378-586: A paragraph extracted from the text that Pedro de Valdivia sent to emperor Charles V describing the features of the new land conquered. Santa Lucía Hill is one of the entrances to the abyss in the videogame Abyss Odyssey , the entrance is located in the east part of the Terraza Neptuno . Santa Lucía Hill was featured on the second episode of The Amazing Race 7 with the competing teams finishing their leg in Santiago at Terraza Neptuno. The eighth season of

1484-521: A positive relationship between the conquistadores and Indians, which had been greatly harmed by Almagro and his merciless ways. At first, Valdivia was successful in his efforts, but this peaceful coexistence did not last long. One of the first orders that Valdivia gave was to have a ship constructed at the mouth of the Aconcagua River to send to Peru for further supplies and to serve as a courier service. He then had to return in haste to Santiago to subdue

1590-571: A religious homogeneity. The 1492 discovery of the New World by Spain rendered desirable a delimitation of the Spanish and Portuguese spheres of exploration, thus dividing the world into two areas of exploration and colonization. This was settled by the Treaty of Tordesillas (7 June 1494) which modified the delimitation authorized by Pope Alexander VI in two bulls issued on 4 May 1493. The treaty gave to Portugal all lands which might be discovered east of

1696-666: A result of his expedition, the 1529 Diego Ribeiro world map outlined the East coast of North America almost perfectly. The Spaniard Cabeza de Vaca was the leader of the Narváez expedition of 600 men that between 1527 and 1535 explored the mainland of North America. From Tampa Bay, Florida , on 15 April 1528, they marched through Florida. Traveling mostly on foot, they crossed Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, and Mexican states of Tamaulipas , Nuevo León and Coahuila . After several months of fighting native inhabitants through wilderness and swamp ,

1802-418: A road which crossed the hill, which at the top accessed a chapel which he also built there, illuminated by the then-novel means of gas. The rest of the hill contains a park with fountains and lookouts. The actual hill is watered by a sophisticated irrigation system. The now iconic yellow and white facade is also a product of Vicuña Mackenna's remodelation. Vicuña Mackenna was assisted in realizing his designs by

1908-513: A secluded section of the General Cemetery , before said cemetery, in turn, was opened to all burials regardless of creed or social condition. In 1849 James Melville Gilliss led an American naval astronomical expedition to Chile in order to more precisely measure the solar parallax. An observatory was set up on Santa Lucía Hill and operated by Gilliss. When the expedition ended in September 1852

2014-673: A series of discussions and debates among the Bishops of the Dominican and Franciscan orders. The two orders had very different approaches to the conversion of the Indians. The Franciscans used a method of mass conversion, sometimes baptizing many thousands of Indians in a day. This method was championed by prominent Franciscans such as Toribio de Benavente . The conquistadors took many different roles, including religious leader, harem keeper, King or Emperor, deserter and Native American warrior. Caramuru

2120-561: A slaved domestic servant in Puebla, Mexico. In 1533, Juan Valiente made a deal with his owner to allow him to be a conquistador for four years with the agreement that all earnings would come back to Alonso. He fought for many years in Chile and Peru. By 1540, he was a captain, horseman, and partner in Pedro de Valdivia's company in Chile. He was later awarded an estate in Santiago; a city he would help Valdivia found. Both Alonso and Valiente tried to contact

2226-526: A small contingent to find it. With the guidance of Hopi Indians, Cárdenas and his men became the first outsiders to see the Grand Canyon. However, Cárdenas was reportedly unimpressed with the canyon, assuming the width of the Colorado River at six feet (1.8 m) and estimating 300-foot-tall (91 m) rock formations to be the size of a person. After unsuccessfully attempting to descend to the river, they left

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2332-677: Is now the southern and western United States , and from Mexico sailing the Pacific Ocean to the Spanish East Indies . Other conquistadors took over the Inca Empire after crossing the Isthmus of Panama and sailing the Pacific to northern Peru . From 1532 to 1572, Francisco Pizarro succeeded in subduing this empire in a manner similar to Cortés. Subsequently, other conquistadores used Peru as

2438-617: Is today Panama, reaching Inca territory by 1526. After one more expedition in 1529, Pizarro received royal approval to conquer the region and be its viceroy. The approval read: "In July 1529 the queen of Spain signed a charter allowing Pizarro to conquer the Inca. Pizarro was named governor and captain of all conquests in New Castile." The Viceroyalty of Peru was established in 1542, encompassing all Spanish holdings in South America. In early 1536,

2544-666: The Aztec Empire and Francisco Pizarro who led the conquest of the Inca Empire . They were second cousins born in Extremadura , where many of the Spanish conquerors were born. Catholic religious orders that participated and supported the exploration, evangelizing and pacifying, were mostly Dominicans , Carmelites , Franciscans and Jesuits , for example Francis Xavier , Bartolomé de Las Casas , Eusebio Kino , Juan de Palafox y Mendoza or Gaspar da Cruz . In 1536, Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas went to Oaxaca to participate in

2650-540: The Battle of Quilacura . Realizing that it would be impossible to proceed in such hostile territory with so limited a force, Valdivia wisely elected to return to Santiago shortly thereafter, after finding a site for a new city at what is now Penco and would become the first site of Concepción . Still, Valdivia managed to subdue the country between Santiago and the Maule River . To secure additional aid and confirm his claims to

2756-473: The Bio-Bio River in 1550 in which he defeated them but by no means broke their will to resist, a will that grew stronger when the conquistador established settlements in their territory. In spite of the fierce resistance at the Battle of Penco , he founded Concepción on March 3, 1550 . Later he founded the more southern villages of La Imperial , Valdivia , Angol and Villarrica , in 1551 and 1552. After

2862-833: The Biobío River in 1546, fought again in Peru (1546–1548), and returned to Chile as governor in 1549. He began to colonize Chile south of the Biobío and founded Concepción in 1550. He was captured and killed by Mapuche Indians during the Arauco War in 1553. The city of Valdivia in Chile is named after him. Pedro de Valdivia is believed to have been born in Villanueva de la Serena (some say Castuera ) in Extremadura , Spain around 1500 (some sources put his date of birth as early as 1497 or as late as 1505) to an impoverished hidalgo family. In 1520

2968-554: The Governor of Cuba Hernando de Soto . Dávila made an agreement with Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro , which brought about the discovery of Peru, but withdrew in 1526 for a small compensation, having lost confidence in the outcome. In 1526 Dávila was superseded as Governor of Panama by Pedro de los Ríos , but became governor in 1527 of León in Nicaragua. An expedition commanded by Pizarro and his brothers explored south from what

3074-452: The Israeli version of The Amazing Race also finished its sixth leg at Terraza Neptuno. 33°26′24″S 70°38′38″W  /  33.440°S 70.644°W  / -33.440; -70.644 Pedro de Valdivia Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpeðɾo ðe βalˈdiβja] ; April 17, 1497 – December 25, 1553 ) was a Spanish conquistador and

3180-497: The Paraná River . In 1517, Francisco Hernández de Córdoba sailed from Cuba in search of slaves along the coast of Yucatán . The expedition returned to Cuba to report on the discovery of this new land. After receiving notice from Juan de Grijalva of gold in the area of what is now Tabasco , the governor of Cuba , Diego de Velasquez , sent a larger force than had previously sailed, and appointed Cortés as Captain-General of

3286-580: The Persian Gulf , the East Indies , and East Africa ; and Filipe de Brito e Nicote who led conquests into Burma . Portugal established a route to China in the early 16th century, sending ships via the southern coast of Africa and founding numerous coastal enclaves along the route. Following the discovery in 1492 by Spaniards of the New World with Italian explorer Christopher Columbus ' first voyage there and

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3392-573: The victory of Xaquixahuana on April 9 of that year. In the battle, Valdivia met Francisco de Carvajal , who just like him had also fought in the Italian Wars , been at the Sack of Rome and helped to defeat Diego de Almagro. Nonetheless, a discontented faction from Chile managed to have him tried in Lima, accused of tyranny, malfeasance of public funds and public immorality. One of the charges levelled against him

3498-526: The 1520s and 1530s. Granted a house plot in Mexico City, he raised a family there, working at times as a guard and town crier. He claimed to have been the first person to plant wheat in Mexico. Sebastian Toral was an African slave and one of the first black conquistadors in the New World. While a slave, he went with his Spanish owner on a campaign. He was able to earn his freedom during this service. He continued as

3604-455: The 15th century, Portuguese explorers sailed the coast of Africa, establishing trading posts for tradable commodities such as firearms, spices, silver, gold, and slaves crossing Africa and India. In 1434 the first consignment of slaves was brought to Lisbon ; slave trading was the most profitable branch of Portuguese commerce until the Indian subcontinent was reached. Due to the importation of

3710-432: The 25° latitude — close to Taltal , Chile) had remained unexplored. Valdivia asked governor Francisco Pizarro for permission to complete the conquest of that territory. He got his permission but was appointed as Lieutenant Governor, rather than Governor as he had wanted. The expedition was fraught with problems from the beginning. Valdivia had to sell the lands and the mine that had been assigned to him in order to finance

3816-660: The Adelantado of Canary Islands , Pedro Fernández de Lugo , arrived to Santa Marta , a city founded in 1525 by Rodrigo de Bastidas in modern-day Colombia, as governor. After some expeditions to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta , Fernández de Lugo sent an expedition to the interior of the territory, initially looking for a land path to Peru following the Magdalena River . This expedition was commanded by Licentiate Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada , who ended up discovering and conquering

3922-658: The Americas. After Mexico fell, Hernán Cortés's enemies Bishop Fonseca , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar , Diego Columbus and Francisco Garay were mentioned in Cortés' fourth letter to the King in which he describes himself as the victim of a conspiracy. Infante Dom Henry the Navigator of Portugal, son of King João I , became the main sponsor of exploration travels. In 1415, Portugal conquered Ceuta , its first overseas colony. Throughout

4028-501: The Americas. The predisposition inspired a lot of the entradas to seek slaves as part of the conquest. After his father's death in 1479, Ferdinand II of Aragón married Isabella I of Castile , unifying both kingdoms and creating the Kingdom of Spain . He later tried to incorporate the kingdom of Portugal by marriage. Notably, Isabella supported Columbus' first voyage that launched the Spanish conquistadors into action. The Iberian Peninsula

4134-554: The Armada. Cortés then applied all of his funds, mortgaged his estates and borrowed from merchants and friends to outfit his ships. Velásquez may have contributed to the effort, but the government of Spain offered no financial support. Pedro Arias Dávila , Governor of the Island La Española was descended from a converso 's family. In 1519 Dávila founded Darién , then in 1524 he founded Panama City and moved his capital there laying

4240-459: The Aztecs, the slow progression of conquest, erection of towns, and cultural dominance over the natives brought more Spanish troops and support to modern-day Mexico. As trading routes over the seas were established by the works of Columbus, Magellan, and Elcano, land support system was established as the trails of Cortés' conquest to the capital. Human infections gained worldwide transmission vectors for

4346-704: The Caribbean and Río de la Plata - Paraguay respectively. These conquests founded the basis for modern Hispanic America and the Hispanosphere . Spanish conquistadors also made significant explorations into the Amazon Jungle , Patagonia , the interior of North America , and the discovery and exploration of the Pacific Ocean. Conquistadors founded numerous cities, some of them in locations with pre-existing settlements, such as Cusco and Mexico City . Conquistadors in

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4452-626: The Castilian Crown. For example, Ioánnis Fokás (known as Juan de Fuca) was a Castilian of Greek origin who discovered the strait that bears his name between Vancouver Island and Washington state in 1592. German-born Nikolaus Federmann , Hispanicised as Nicolás de Federmán, was a conquistador in Venezuela and Colombia. The Venetian Sebastiano Caboto was Sebastián Caboto, Georg von Speyer Hispanicised as Jorge de la Espira, Eusebio Francesco Chini Hispanicised as Eusebio Kino , Wenceslaus Linck

4558-692: The Colorado River, sailed up the Gulf of California and a short distance into the river's delta. The Basques were fur trading, fishing cod and whaling in Terranova ( Labrador and Newfoundland ) in 1520, and in Iceland by at least the early 17th century. They established whaling stations at the former, mainly in Red Bay , and probably established some in the latter as well. In Terranova they hunted bowheads and right whales , while in Iceland they appear to have only hunted

4664-829: The Gulf of California coast to what is now Sinaloa , Mexico, over a period of roughly eight years. They spent years enslaved by the Ananarivo of the Louisiana Gulf Islands . Later they were enslaved by the Hans , the Capoques and others. In 1534 they escaped into the American interior, contacting other Native American tribes along the way. Only four men, Cabeza de Vaca, Andrés Dorantes de Carranza , Alonso del Castillo Maldonado , and an enslaved Moroccan Berber named Estevanico , survived and escaped to reach Mexico City . In 1539, Estevanico

4770-711: The Incan silver mines, Potosí was the most important site in Colonial Spanish America, located in the current department of Potosí in Bolivia and it was the location of the Spanish colonial mint. The first settlement in the way was the fort of Sancti Spiritu , established in 1527 next to the Paraná River . Buenos Aires was established in 1536, establishing the Governorate of the Río de la Plata . Africans were also conquistadors in

4876-410: The Moluccas depended on the treaty. It was particularly valuable to the Portuguese as a recognition of their new-found, particularly when, in 1497–1499, Vasco da Gama completed the voyage to India. Later, when Spain established a route to the Indies from the west, Portugal arranged a second treaty, the Treaty of Zaragoza . Sevilla la Nueva , established in 1509, was the first Spanish settlement on

4982-444: The Muslims back to Granada, which was the Muslims' last control of the Iberian Peninsula. The marriage between Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabel of Castile resulted in joint rule by the spouses of the two kingdoms, honoured as the "Catholic Monarchs" by Pope Alexander VI. Together, the Crown Kings saw about the fall of Granada, victory over the Muslim minority, and expulsion or forcibly converted Jews and non-Christians to turn Iberia into

5088-427: The Natives back; Valdivia and his troops made it back just in time to relieve the capital. By the time the battle ended the entire town had been destroyed and burned to the ground, animals were killed and the fields and stores were decimated. Only a small amount of property was not destroyed, including a handful of seeds, two sows, one pig and a pair of chickens. Valdivia organized his men into groups to keep watch over

5194-415: The architect Manuel Aldunate, the constructor Enrique Henes, and the stonecutter Andrés Staimbuck. A few years ago, Santa Lucía hill received an improvement in its illumination system and protections. Also, Fort Hidalgo was restored and reopened to the public. Traditionally, a cannon shot is fired exactly at noon. Located in Santa Lucía Hill there is a monument which consists of a 2 m high stone carved with

5300-688: The basis for the exploration of South America's west coast and the subsequent conquest of Peru . Dávila was a soldier in wars against Moors at Granada in Spain, and in North Africa, under Pedro Navarro intervening in the Conquest of Oran . At the age of nearly seventy years he was made commander in 1514 by Ferdinand of the largest Spanish expedition. Dávila sent Gil González Dávila to explore northward, and Pedro de Alvarado to explore Guatemala . In 1524 he sent another expedition with Francisco Hernández de Córdoba , executed there in 1526 by Dávila, by then aged over 85. Dávila's daughters married Rodrigo de Contreras and conquistador of Florida and Mississippi,

5406-437: The battlefield but also to serve as interpreters, informants, servants, teachers, physicians, and scribes. India Catalina and Malintzin were Native American women slaves who were forced to work for the Spaniards. Castilian law prohibited foreigners and non-Catholics from settling in the New World. However, not all conquistadors were Castilian. Many foreigners Hispanicised their names and/or converted to Catholicism to serve

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5512-404: The capital of the Aztec Empire. The fall of Tenochtitlan marks the beginning of Spanish rule in central Mexico, and they established their capital of Mexico City on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire was one of the most significant events in world history. In 1516, Juan Díaz de Solís , discovered the estuary formed by the confluence of the Uruguay River and

5618-454: The conquered territory, Valdivia returned in 1547 to Peru, leaving Francisco de Villagra as governor in his stead. There he tried to gather more resources and men to continue the conquest. When the Gonzalo Pizarro rebellion began in Peru, the insurgents attempted unsuccessfully to win Valdivia to their side. Nonetheless, early in 1548 Valdivia joined the royal army of Viceroy Pedro de la Gasca , and his military experience counted heavily in

5724-405: The conquests and explorations of the Age of Discovery . Conquistadors sailed beyond the Iberian Peninsula to the Americas , Oceania , Africa and Asia , establishing new colonies and trade routes . They brought much of the " New World " under the dominion of Spain and Portugal. After Christopher Columbus ' arrival in the West Indies in 1492, the Spanish, usually led by hidalgos from

5830-543: The crops and protect the city against attack. For the next two years, there were men always saddled and armed, ready to fight in case the Natives posed a threat to Spanish authority. This event meant a real setback for the conquest of the Chilean territory. The resistance of the Native people became stronger daily, and as the ship that he had constructed in Aconcagua was also destroyed by the natives, Valdivia sent in 1542 overland to Peru his lieutenant Alonso de Monroy with five followers to seek reinforcements, but, on account of

5936-435: The disturbance in that country in consequence of the defeat of El Mozo Almagro by Cristóbal Vaca de Castro , Monroy could not obtain much aid, and returned in September 1543, with only seventy horsemen, also sending by sea a vessel with provisions and ammunition to the port of Aconcagua. In September 1543 new arms, clothes and other equipment arrived from Peru on the ship Santiaguillo ; thanks to these new supplies, Valdivia

6042-419: The early conquest campaigns in the Caribbean and Mexico. In the 1500s there were enslaved black and free black sailors on Spanish ships crossing the Atlantic and developing new routes of conquest and trade in the Americas. After 1521, the wealth and credit generated by the acquisition of the Aztec Empire funded auxiliary forces of black conquistadors that could number as many as five hundred. Spaniards recognized

6148-410: The epic poem La Araucana by Alonso de Ercilla . He is also a major character in several historical novels, such as Inés y las raíces de la tierra , by María Correa Morande (1964); Ay Mamá Inés - Crónica Testimonial (1993) by Jorge Guzmán; Arauco: A Novel (2013) , by John Caviglia; and Inés of My Soul ( Spanish : Inés del alma mía ) by Isabel Allende (2006), They sure did something for

6254-439: The events, the execution of Valdivia was personally ordered by Caupolicán , who had him killed with a lance, and later his head, and those of two of his bravest companions, were put on display. Alonso de Góngora Marmolejo , another contemporary chronicler, writes that Valdivia offered as a ransom for his life the evacuation of all the Spanish settlements in the Mapuche lands and the gift of large herds of animals, but this offer

6360-451: The expedition, attracted by Valdivia's fame as a brilliant leader. These conquistadores had formed part of the failed campaigns to the highlands of Bolivia; together around 150 Spaniards joined the expedition. Valdivia resolved to avoid the road over the Andes, which had proved fatal to Almagro's army, and set out resolutely through the Atacama Desert . On the way, Sancho de Hoz, seeking sole leadership, tried to murder Valdivia but failed. He

6466-419: The expedition. A shortage of soldiers and adventurers was also problematic; the men were not interested in conquering what they believed were extremely poor lands. While Valdivia was preparing the expedition, Pedro Sánchez de la Hoz arrived from Spain with a royal grant for the same territory. To avoid difficulties, Pizarro advised the two competitors to join their interests, and on December 28, 1539, they signed

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6572-399: The famous warrior Caupolicán . Valdivia had earlier captured and presumably made friends with Lautaro , an Araucanian youth who became his groom. Lautaro secretly remained true to his own people and rejoined them to show Caupolicán a means by which Valdivia could be defeated. Toward the end of 1553, the Araucanians under Lautaro revolted and they fell on the over-extended Spanish forces in

6678-435: The first Adelantado of Cuba , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar founded the island's first Spanish settlement at Baracoa; other towns soon followed, including Havana , which was founded in 1515. After he pacified Hispaniola , where the native Indians had revolted against the administration of governor Nicolás de Ovando , Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar led the conquest of Cuba in 1511 under orders from Viceroy Diego Columbus and

6784-434: The first circumnavigation of the world by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521, expeditions led by conquistadors in the 16th century established trading routes linking Europe with all these areas. The Age of Discovery was hallmarked in 1519, shortly after the European discovery of the Americas, when Hernán Cortés began his conquest of the Aztec Empire. As the Spaniards, motivated by gold and fame, established relations and war with

6890-429: The first royal governor of Chile . After serving with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders , he was sent to South America in 1534, where he served as lieutenant under Francisco Pizarro in Peru , acting as his second in command. In 1540, Valdivia led an expedition of 150 Spaniards into Chile, where he defeated a large force of indigenous warriors and founded Santiago in 1541. He extended Spanish rule south to

6996-590: The first time: from Africa and Eurasia to the Americas and vice versa . The spread of Old World diseases , including smallpox , influenza , and typhus , led to the deaths of many indigenous inhabitants of the New World . In the 16th century, perhaps 240,000 Spaniards entered American ports. By the late 16th century, gold and silver imports from the Americas provided one-fifth of Spain's total budget. Contrary to popular belief, many conquistadors were not trained warriors, but mostly artisans, lesser nobility or farmers seeking an opportunity to advance themselves in

7102-410: The garrison. On one side of the hill, Fort Hidalgo was finished in 1820 as a defensive point. On the other side, the hillside terrain was used as a "cemetery for the dissidents", people who did not follow the then-official Roman Catholic faith, or were considered otherwise unworthy of burial at hallowed grounds. However, the remains buried in the hillside under this fashion were eventually transferred to

7208-433: The history of Chile by Alvaro Espinoza . Conquistador Conquistadors ( / k ɒ n ˈ k ( w ) ɪ s t ə d ɔːr z / , US also /- ˈ k iː s -, k ɒ ŋ ˈ -/ ) or conquistadores ( Spanish: [koŋkistaˈðoɾes] ; Portuguese: [kõkiʃtɐˈðoɾɨʃ, kõkistɐˈdoɾis] ; lit 'conquerors') is the term used to refer to Spanish and Portuguese soldiers and explorers who carried out

7314-411: The indigenous Muisca , and establishing the New Kingdom of Granada , which almost two centuries would be a viceroyalty. Jiménez de Quesada also founded the capital of Colombia, Santafé de Bogotá . Juan Díaz de Solís arrived again to the renamed Río de la Plata , literally river of the silver, after the Incan conquest. He sought a way to transport the Potosi's silver to Europe. For a long time due to

7420-416: The island of Jamaica , which the Spaniards called Isla de Santiago . The capital was in an unhealthy location and consequently moved around 1534 to the place they called "Villa de Santiago de la Vega", later named Spanish Town , in present-day Saint Catherine Parish . After first landing on " Guanahani " in the Bahamas , Columbus found the island which he called "Isla Juana", later named Cuba. In 1511,

7526-476: The land in the name of the Spanish king. Soon thereafter they continued south and in December 1540, eleven months after they left Cuzco, Valdivia and his expedition reached the valley of the Mapocho river, where they established the capital of the territory. The valley was extensive and well populated with natives. Its soil was fertile and there was abundant fresh water. Two high hills provided defensive positions. Soon after their arrival, Valdivia tried to convince

7632-635: The latter. The Spanish fishery in Terranova declined over conflicts between Spain and other European powers during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. In 1524, the Portuguese Estêvão Gomes , who had sailed in Ferdinand Magellan 's fleet, explored Nova Scotia, sailing South through Maine, where he entered New York Harbor and the Hudson River and eventually reached Florida in August 1525. As

7738-519: The native inhabitants of his good intentions, sending out delegations bearing gifts for the caciques . Finally on February 12, 1541, Valdivia officially founded the city of Santiago de la Nueva Extremadura (named after Saint James, Santiago in Spanish, and Valdivia's home region of Extremadura , Spain). The ceremony was held at the foot of the Huelén hill (now known as Santa Lucia hill ). After arriving in Chile, Valdivia and his men worked to restore

7844-826: The new world since they had limited opportunities in Spain. A few also had crude firearms known as arquebuses . Their units ( compañia ) would often specialize in forms of combat that required long periods of training that were too costly for informal groups. Their armies were mostly composed of Spanish troops, as well as soldiers from other parts of Europe and Africa. Native allied troops were largely infantry equipped with armament and armour that varied geographically. Some groups consisted of young men without military experience, Catholic clergy who helped with administrative duties, and soldiers with military training. These native forces often included African slaves and Native Americans, some of whom were also slaves. They were not only made to fight in

7950-470: The northern lands of New Spain in 1540–1542. Francisco Vázquez de Coronado reached Quivira in central Kansas. Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo explored the western coastline of Alta California in 1542–1543. Vázquez de Coronado's 1540–1542 expedition began as a search for the fabled Cities of Gold, but after learning from natives in New Mexico of a large river to the west, he sent García López de Cárdenas to lead

8056-486: The northwest of Hispaniola . Juan Ponce de León equipped three ships with at least 200 men at his own expense and set out from Puerto Rico on 4 March 1513 to Florida and surrounding coastal area. Another early motive was the search for the Seven Cities of Gold , or "Cibola", rumoured to have been built by Native Americans somewhere in the desert Southwest. In 1536 Francisco de Ulloa , the first documented European to reach

8162-455: The observatory and related equipment was sold to the Chilean government and formed the nucleus of the first National Astronomical Observatory . In 1872 Benjamín Vicuña Mackenna decided to conduct a dramatic change to the urban atmosphere of the city of Santiago, among his many works aimed to improve the city, and thus initiated an extensive remodelation of the hill. The works of 1872 consisted of

8268-588: The only known witnesses were indigenous fighters captured in subsequent battles. Valdivia was an educated man and wielded the pen as well as the sword. In 1552 Valdivia despatched Captain Jerónimo de Alderete with a narrative of his exploits directly to the king Charles I . His twelve letters, addressed to the king and mostly preserved in the archives of the Indies, are models of a vigorous and fluent style, and of great historical interest. His career and death are treated in

8374-589: The other to make an agreement about Valiente's manumission and send Alonso his awarded money. They were never able to reach each other and Valiente died in 1553 in the Battle of Tucapel. Other black conquistadors include Pedro Fulupo, Juan Bardales, Antonio Pérez, and Juan Portugués. Pedro Fulupo was a black slave that fought in Costa Rica. Juan Bardales was an African slave that fought in Honduras and Panama. For his service he

8480-504: The party reached Apalachee Bay with 242 men. They believed they were near other Spaniards in Mexico, but there was in fact 1500 miles of coast between them. They followed the coast westward, until they reached the mouth of the Mississippi River near to Galveston Island . Later they were enslaved for a few years by various Native American tribes of the upper Gulf Coast . They continued through Coahuila and Nueva Vizcaya ; then down

8586-549: The remnant of the garrison. He was ambushed before arriving to his destination and the Battle of Tucapel would be Valdivia's last. As each successive wave of attackers was wiped out or beaten off by the Spaniards, Lautaro sent another, until the entire Spanish company was massacred. The dreaded conquistador was captured still alive along with a priest by the Mapuche . There are many versions of how Valdivia's killing took place. According to Jerónimo de Vivar , an author contemporary with

8692-455: The royal authority, an arrangement the Crown found acceptable. Secure now in his own domain, he pushed exploration southward and aided the development of the country by dividing the land among his ablest followers and parceling out the Indians in encomiendas. Chile possessed minerals, but Valdivia definitely subordinated mining to agriculture and stock raising. Still, the colony was not prosperous; gold

8798-635: The service of the Portuguese Crown led numerous conquests and visits in the name of the Portuguese Empire across South America and Africa , going "anticlockwise" along the continent's coast right up to the Red Sea , as well as commercial colonies in Asia, founding the origins of modern Portuguese-speaking world . Notable Portuguese conquistadors include Afonso de Albuquerque who led conquests across India ,

8904-569: The slaves as early as 1441, the kingdom of Portugal was able to establish a number of population of slaves throughout the Iberia due to its slave markets' dominance within Europe. Before the Age of Conquest began, the continental Europe already associated darker skin color with slave-class, attributing to the slaves of African origins. This sentiment traveled with the conquistadors when they began their explorations into

9010-426: The south. One of the first signs that a big rebellion was building was the attack on the fort at Tucapel, where they managed to destroy the fortress on December 2, 1553. Valdivia was at Concepcion when he received notice of this event, and, believing that he could easily subdue the uprising, he hurried southward, sallying forth with only 40 men to stamp out the rebellion. Near the ruins of the fortress Valdivia gathered

9116-489: The tax because of his service. Toral died a veteran of three transatlantic voyages and two Conquest expeditions, a man who had successfully petitioned the great Spanish King, walked the streets of Lisbon, Seville, and Mexico City, and helped found a capital city in the Americas. Juan Valiente was born in West Africa and purchased by Portuguese traders from African slavers. Around 1530 he was purchased by Alonso Valiente to be

9222-577: The value of these fighters. One of the black conquistadors who fought against the Aztecs and survived the destruction of their empire was Juan Garrido . Born in Africa, Garrido lived as a young slave in Portugal before being sold to a Spaniard and acquiring his freedom fighting in the conquests of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and other islands. He fought as a free servant or auxiliary, participating in Spanish expeditions to other parts of Mexico (including Baja California) in

9328-560: The west and south of Spain, began building a colonial empire in the Caribbean using colonies such as Santo Domingo , Cuba , and Puerto Rico as their main bases. From 1519 to 1521, Hernán Cortés led the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire , ruled by Moctezuma II . From the territories of the Aztec Empire , conquistadors expanded Spanish rule to northern Central America and parts of what

9434-825: Was Wenceslao Linck, Ferdinand Konščak , was Fernando Consag, Amerigo Vespucci was Américo Vespucio, and the Portuguese Aleixo Garcia was known as Alejo García in the Castilian army. The origin of many people in mixed expeditions was not always distinguished. Various occupations, such as sailors, fishermen, soldiers and nobles employed different languages (even from unrelated language groups), so that crew and settlers of Iberian empires recorded as Galicians from Spain were actually using Portuguese, Basque, Catalan, Italian and Languedoc languages, which were wrongly identified. Castilian law banned Spanish women from travelling to America unless they were married and accompanied by

9540-572: Was a Portuguese settler in the Tupinambá Indians. Gonzalo Guerrero was a Maya war leader for Nachan Can, Lord of Chactemal . Gerónimo de Aguilar , who had taken holy orders in his native Spain, was captured by Maya lords too, and later was a soldier with Hernán Cortés. Francisco Pizarro had children with more than 40 women, many of whom were ñusta . The chroniclers Pedro Cieza de León , Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés , Diego Durán , Juan de Castellanos and friar Pedro Simón wrote about

9646-531: Was appointed governor of the island. As governor he authorized expeditions to explore lands further west, including the 1517 Francisco Hernández de Córdoba expedition to Yucatán . Diego Velázquez , ordered expeditions, one led by his nephew, Juan de Grijalva , to Yucatán and the Hernán Cortés expedition of 1519. He initially backed Cortés's expedition to Mexico, but because of his personal enmity for Cortés later ordered Pánfilo de Narváez to arrest him. Grijalva

9752-553: Was as a point of worship, or prayer in the years of the chicken pox outbreak (1541). In 1816, Manuel Olaguer Feliú , the Brigadier of the Royal Engineers, designed and built two forts or castles on Santa Lucía Hill, one north and the other south of the hill. The forts were built out of stone and lime and could fit eight or twelve cannons each. Besides, Olaguer Feliú drew and built an outbuilding for ammunition depot and to house

9858-534: Was assigned for a year to present-day Venezuela . He was moved to Peru in 1537. There he took part on the side of Hernando Pizarro in his struggle against Diego de Almagro and fought in the battle of Las Salinas in 1538; Almagro was defeated and captured. Afterwards Valdivia accompanied Hernando and Gonzalo Pizarro to conquer both the province of Collao and las Charcas in High Peru (currently Bolivia ). As compensation for his help in conquering these lands, he

9964-412: Was awarded a silver mine and became a wealthy man. Valdivia had married Marina Ortíz de Gaete in Spain. In Peru he became attached to Inés de Suárez , a Spanish widow who accompanied him to Chile as his mistress. After the failure of the expedition of Diego de Almagro in 1536, the lands to the south of Peru (then known as Nueva Toledo , extending from the 14° — close to modern day Pisco , Peru — to

10070-423: Was finally appointed as adelantado and won the royal assent to his coveted title of Governor of Chile , returning to the settlement with his position and prestige considerably strengthened. Between 1549 and 1553, after his return to Santiago, Valdivia again undertook the conquest of southern Chile, but faced heavy resistance from the indigenous population. Valdivia had a clash with the warlike Araucanians beyond

10176-457: Was granted manumission and a pension of 50 pesos. Antonio Pérez was from North Africa, and a free black. He joined the conquest in Venezuela and was made a captain. Juan Portugués fought in the conquests in Venezuela. During the 1500s, the Spanish began to travel through and colonize North America. They were looking for gold in foreign kingdoms. By 1511 there were rumours of undiscovered lands to

10282-426: Was in the position to start the rebuilding of Santiago and to send an expedition, led by Juan Bohón , to explore and populate the northern region of Chile. This expedition founded La Serena halfway between Santiago and the northern Atacama Desert , in the valley of Coquimbo . Valparaíso , though used as a port by the Spaniards from the start, had no considerable population until much later. In 1544 Valdivia sent

10388-508: Was largely divided before the hallmark of this marriage. Five independent kingdoms: Portugal in the West, Aragon and Navarre in the East, Castile in the large center, and Granada in the south, all had independent sovereignty and competing interests. The conflict between Christians and Muslims to control Iberia, which started with North Africa's Muslim invasion in 711, lasted from the years 718 to 1492. Christians, fighting for control, successfully pushed

10494-528: Was later named in honor of the commander. Encountering severe storms further south, he then returned to Valparaiso. In February 1546 Valdivia himself set out, with sixty horsemen plus native guides and porters, and crossed the Itata River . He arrived as far as the Bío-Bío River where he intended to further efforts at colonization by founding another town. However, Mapuche warriors defended their territory at

10600-488: Was made from Valdivia's skull. The warriors ran around the corpse, brandishing their lances and uttering cries, while the rest of the assembly stamped with their feet. Another contemporary chronicler, Pedro Mariño de Lobera , wrote that Valdivia offered to evacuate the lands of the Mapuche but says he was shortly thereafter killed with a large club by a vengeful warrior named Pilmaiquen , who said that Valdivia could not be trusted to keep his word once freed. Lobera says that

10706-632: Was one of four men who accompanied Marcos de Niza as a guide in search of the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola , preceding Coronado . When the others were struck ill, Estevanico continued alone, opening up what is now New Mexico and Arizona. He was killed at the Zuni village of Hawikuh in present-day New Mexico. The viceroy of New Spain Antonio de Mendoza , for whom is named the Codex Mendoza , commissioned several expeditions to explore and establish settlements in

10812-453: Was pardoned, but from then on had to accept subordinate status. The natives of the region were not pleased by the return of the Spaniards due to the maltreatment they had suffered under Almagro. With many promises, Valdivia was able to regain their trust. After a march of five months, and suffering great privations, the expedition arrived at the Copiapo valley. Valdivia officially took possession of

10918-422: Was rejected. The Mapuche first cut off his forearms and roasted and ate them in front of him before killing him and his accompanying priest. Alonso de Ercilla reports that Valdivia was killed with the blow of a club, and then with a knife a warrior cut open his breast and ripped out his heart, which was then handed to the toqui, who sucked its blood; the heart was passed around from one to another. A drinking cup

11024-482: Was scarce and the Araucanians warlike. After an apparent peaceful period the Natives began to resist the invaders. Valdivia marched against the tribes and defeated them at Cachapoal. While away, on September 11, 1541, local people led by Michimalonco attacked Santiago. The defense of the city was led by Pedro's mistress Inés de Suárez . The Spaniards, desperate and willing to fight until death, were able to eventually push

11130-468: Was sent out with four ships and some 240 men. Hernán Cortés, led an expedition (entrada) to Mexico, which included Pedro de Alvarado and Bernardino Vázquez de Tapia. The Spanish campaign against the Aztec Empire had its final victory on 13 August 1521, when a coalition army of Spanish forces and native Tlaxcalan warriors led by Cortés and Xicotencatl the Younger captured the emperor Cuauhtemoc and Tenochtitlan,

11236-536: Was that he, being married, openly lived with Inés de Suárez "...in the manner of man and wife and they sleep in one bed and they eat in one dish..." . In exchange for being freed, and for his confirmation as Royal Governor, he agreed to relinquish her and to bring to Chile his wife, Marina Ortíz de Gaete , who only arrived after Valdivia's death in 1554. He was also ordered to marry Inés off, which he did, upon his return to Chile in 1549, to one of his captains, Rodrigo de Quiroga . As recognition for his services Valdivia

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