Ponce de León

Abstract

Juan Ponce de León was an important figure in the early years of the Spanish exploration and conquest of the Caribbean. He participated in the conquest of Hispaniola, earning the title of deputy governor of the province of Higüey. He then moved on to the exploration and conquest of Puerto Rico in 1508. He established yucca farms and gold mines on the island and extended Spanish authority over the Taíno there, although there were armed uprisings in 1511 and 1513. In 1511, he lost his title as governor of the island to Admiral Diego Colón, the oldest son of Cristopher Columbus. Through the patronage of King Ferdinand, Ponce de León received a license to explore and settle the island of Bimini and any unclaimed islands north of Hispaniola. In 1513, he sailed north along the east coast of Florida, eventually claiming the land for Spain and naming it La Florida. He then sailed to Spain and received a second more expansive license to settle La Florida. In 1514, he led a campaign to subdue Carib resistance on the island of Guadeloupe. Ponce de León returned to Florida in 1521. This time he attempted to build a settlement on the southwest coast of Florida, but was shot by members of the Calusa chiefdom. The colonization attempt failed and he died from his wounds in Cuba shortly thereafter. These expeditions were recorded in a number of the early Spanish chronicles. Those chroniclers mixed history, gossip, and mythology and through their works, the 1513 expedition to Florida became associated with the pursuit of a mythical fountain of youth. Ponce de León’s original logs and report of the journey have been lost and no known archival documents mention the fountain. More historically significant was his discovery of the Gulf Stream, which became a major avenue of transatlantic shipping for centuries to follow. As the founder of Spanish society in Puerto Rico, Ponce de León’s legacy has been studied as part of the island’s history. He was also the first of many Spanish explorers to attempt to conquer and settle Florida, giving him a founding place in Florida history and in the history of the Spanish borderlands in the southeastern United States.