Hernando De Soto

Spain 1539 - 1542

Hernando De Soto’s father was a poor nobleman. When his parents died, Don Pedrarsias adopted Hernando. He grew up with the Don’s daughter, Doña Isabel. The servants didn’t think much of a ragged orphan. On the first day De Soto went to that great house, he was determined to become rich and powerful. Then he thought that everyone would respect him.

When he was nineteen, Don Pedrarias took Hernando to Panama where he was governor. In Panama, De Soto would try to make his fortune and become a hero. Far to the north Cortés had just conquered Mexico. Don Pedrarias sent De Soto north to conquer Nicaragua with General Cordoba. Later De Soto traveled with Pizarro to Peru where they conquered the huge Incan empire of Atahualpa. There, he became rich with Inca gold. He returned to Spain and married Doña Isabel.

After so many adventures in Panama and Peru, Hernando became bored with court life in Spain. The King of Spain wanted De Soto to explore a big place in America called “Florida”. (What was called “Florida” in 1539 was really all the land in the southeast. That big place called “Florida” in 1539 is now the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi.) De Soto knew that Cuba and Peru were rich, so he thought maybe “Florida” was too, so he went to “Florida”. The King of Spain made De Soto the governor of “Florida”. De Soto was ordered to take an army to explore the area and to make the Indians there become Christians and to start a settlement and a hospital.

Isabel and Hernando sailed from Spain with 600 men, 300 horses, and many priests. Isabel stayed in Cuba while Hernando’s army explored “Florida”. De Soto was thirty-five years old and very excited about conquering new lands for Spain.

De Soto explored much of the southeast of America to find more gold for Spain. When he found no riches, the Native People told him to leave and search in other places. When De Soto got to each new place, the native people were very friendly in the beginning. The Native People let De Soto and his army visit their villages. But then De Soto and his army took the Native People for prisoners and made the Natives carry all their heavy riches they were stealing. When the Natives were taken prisoners, they rebelled!

In 1541 De Soto was the first European to ever see the Mississippi River. He and his men nearly starved to death and their clothing was only rags after traveling for so long in places they did not know. De Soto died of a fever near the Mississippi River in 1542.

Information taken from:

Explorers Cooperative Learning Activities

by Mary Strohl and Susan Schneck

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