| • Science | • People | • Locations | • Timeline |
The leaders of Spanish expeditions to the New World called themselves conquistadores a name that denotes connectedness with the reconquista, the Christian desire to (re)conquer the Iberian peninsula from the MuslimA Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. The word Muslim means one who submits and implies complete submission to the will of God ( Allah). Muslims believe that nature is itself Islamic, since it follows natural laws placed by God. Thus, a Muslim s MoorsMoors is used in this article to describe the medieval Muslim inhabitants of al-Andalus and the Maghreb, whose culture is often called "Moorish". For other meanings look at Moors (Meaning) or Blackamoors. The name derives from the ancient Berber tribe of ( 711See also: phone number 711. Events April 30 Ummayad troops led by Tariq ibn Ziyad land at Gibraltar and begin their invasion of Spain. July 19 Ummayad Moors conquer the Iberian peninsula after the Battle of Guadalete Philippicus incites a revolt against J- 1492). They also evoked the name of Santiago Matamoros (" St. James the Moor-killer") before going into battle against the Native population of the Americas. Many conquistadors were poor nobles ( hidalgoHidalgo can mean: A traditional title of a person of nobility or gentry in the Spanish language, derived from Hijo de algo "Son of someone". Miguel Hidalgo, father of the independence of Mexico. Hidalgo State, a state in central Mexico. Hidalgo (movie) sts) seeking a fortune in the West Indies, since there were limited prospects in Europe.
The first Spanish conquest in the AmericasThe Americas (sometimes referred to as America is the area including the land mass located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, generally divided into North America and South America. The term also usually includes the Caribbean, the islands was the island of HispaniolaHispaniola (from Spanish, La Espanola is the second-largest island of the Antilles, lying east of Cuba. Christopher Columbus arrived there in 1492, and in 1493 founded the first Spanish colony in the New World on it. On March 10, 1496, Columbus left the i. From there Juan Ponce de León conquered Puerto Rico and Diego Velázquez took Cuba. The first settlement on the mainland was Darién in Panama, settled by Vasco Núñez de Balboa in 1512.
The most successful Conquistador was Hernán Cortés. Between 1520 and 1521 Cortés along with some Native American allies conquered the mighty Aztec empire, thus bringing present day Mexico (then called New Spain) under the dominion of the Spanish empire. Of comparable importance was the conquest of the South American Inca empire by Francisco Pizarro.
Rumours of golden cities ( Cibola in North America and El Dorado in South America) caused several more expeditions to leave for the Americas, but many returned without finding any gold or finding less gold than expected or finding Fool's Gold. Some Incan gold was found in South America and taken back to Spain, this lead to additional Conquistador expeditions in South America.