Topic(s):   Explorers
Quick Facts
Full name | Vasco Nunez de Balboa
Born | 1475 (Jerez de los Caballeros, Spain)
Died | January, 1519 (Acia, Panama)
Nationality | Spanish
Occupation(s) | explorer, governor, soldier
Major Achievement(s) | first European to see the Pacific Ocean from its eastern shore
In 1500 Balboa sailed to the New World in search of riches. He did not get rich, though. Balboa decided to become a farmer in Hispaniola. (We call that Haiti and the Dominican Republic, now.) The farm did not do well. Balboa lost all his money. He and his dog stowed away on a ship. The leader of the ship, Enciso, found him. He was going to put Balboa off the ship but Balboa knew a lot about where they were going. Encisco let him stay.Balboa helped Encisco start a new city, Santa Maria. (It was between what is now Panama and Columbia.) Then he threw out Encisco. Balboa made himself mayor. Later, he helped throw out the governor, too. People liked Balboa better. He became governor.Balboa explored new lands in what we call Panama. While looking for gold and pearls, he heard of another sea. In 1513, he climbed a mountain and saw the other sea. He was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from the New World.Balboa and his men went to the sea. They fought more people and took their riches. They claimed the sea and land for Spain. The king was happy when he heard the news.Balboa had made enemies. He was forced out as mayor and governor. The new governor did not like him. He was afraid Balboa was after his job. He had Balboa beheaded.

Topic(s):   Explorers
Quick Facts
Full name | Hernando de Soto
Born | around 1496 or 1497 (Jerez de los Caballeros, Spain ?)
Died | May, 1542 (now MacArthur, Arkansas)
Nationality | Spanish
Occupation(s) | conquistador (Spanish soldier), explorer
Major Achievement | first European to explore Florida and the southeastern United States; first European to see and cross the Mississippi River
Hernando de Soto wanted to be rich and powerful. When he was a teenager, de Soto left Spain. He sailed to Panama. De Soto was very cruel to the natives there. He fought and captured many Indians. He made money by selling slaves.De Soto joined Pizarro's army and helped Pizarro conquer the Incas. De Soto did not get along with Pizarro, so he went back to Spain. He was rich and famous.The king of Spain made de Soto governor of Cuba. De Soto got permission to explore North America. In 1539, he left Cuba to sail to Florida. De Soto took hundreds of men. He also took horses, war dogs, and pigs. He was looking for gold.For about three years, de Soto and his men explored much of the southeast. He kept hearing about gold farther on. He was brutal to the natives he met. He tortured and killed them. They fought him most of the way. De Soto crossed the Mississippi River. He searched for gold in what is now Texas and Arkansas. Finally, he got sick and died.About half of de Soto’s soldiers had died. The men who were left hid De Soto's body. They had told the Indians he was a god. De Soto’s men went back to Florida. It was a terrible trip. The natives hated the soldiers.De Soto and his soldiers did not find gold. They may have left horses and pigs that became ancestors of mustangs and razorbacks of today.

Topic(s):   Explorers
Quick Facts
Full name | Christopher Columbus (English), Crostobal Colon (Spanish)
Born | maybe between August 26 and October 31, 1451 (Genoa, Italy ?)
Died | May 20, 1506 (Valladolid, Spain)
Nationality | Italian
Occupation(s) | navigator, explorer
Major Achievement | discovered the Caribbean islands, Central America and South America
No one is quite sure where Columbus was born. Most people say Genoa, Italy. No one knows exactly when. Columbus was born sometime in the year 1451.Columbus wanted a shorter way to the Indies. People knew the world was round. Columbus thought the ocean was smaller than it is. But most people did not agree that the world was tiny.Columbus went to Portugal, then to Spain for help. He told the king and queen of Spain they would get rich. Columbus told the king and queen he could take the Christian religion to the Indies. They finally said, "Yes."Columbus took three ships across the Atlantic Ocean. The names of the ships were the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. The ships landed in the Bahamas. No one is sure where. They also went to Cuba and Haiti. Columbus thought he had found the Indies. He called the people "Indians."Columbus made three more trips after that. He never admitted he found a new continent. That is why it is not named after him. He never found the riches he expected. He brought back a little gold, some new foods and slaves. He may have brought sickness home, also. He did leave sickness and destruction in the New World.Was Columbus a hero or a mean explorer? People disagree. He did not get the riches and power he wanted. But Columbus was wealthy when he died. Where is he buried? That is just another thing we don't know for sure. We do know that he got Europe interested in the New World.

2. Describe the accomplishments of:  Vasco Núñez de Balboa (Spain), Hernando de Soto (Spain),  and Christopher Columbus (Spain).

3. Describe examples of cooperation and conflict between European explorers and Native American / American Indians.