Chapter 4: Early
Explorers
The Conquistador
Answer the following questions about the picture above:
OPTIC
1.O - What is the overview ? What is the picture of? What is the setting?
2.P - List the parts/details of the picture.
3.T – What could the Title be of the picture if you had to give it one?
4.I - Inference – what do the parts tell you about what is going on in
the picture?
5.C – In conclusion– What does the visual have to do with the topic? Why
did I choose this visual?
Conquistadors were Spanish soldiers who
played a major role in the discovery and
mapping of the New World, but they left a
trail of blood along the way. Between the
15th and 19th centuries, conquistadors
waged war on the indigenous peoples of
North and South America, devastating
communities through the use of guns and
the introduction of diseases such smallpox
and diphtheria. No one knows how many
people died as a result of the Spanish
conquest of the Americas, but some
historians estimate that between 90 and 95
percent of the indigenous population of the
New World was wiped out.
Chapter 4
First Steps in a New Land
I. Columbus sights a New World
A. First sight of land October 1492
B. Claimed lands for Spain
1. Most of South America
2. Caribbean Islands
3. Central America
4. Mexico
5. Parts of present day U.S.
C. Establishes colony on island in
West Indies - Hispiniola
Christopher Columbus
Columbus
Voyages of Christopher
Columbus
II. New Spain
A. Conquistadors
1. Spanish soldiers/conquerors
2. Defeated native Americans
B. Friars
1. Members of Catholic Religious order
- priests
2. Sent to convert Native Americans
3. Planned to convert by establishing
missions
Spanish Missions
III. Cortes Lands in Mexico
A. Arrives 1519 on east coast of Mexico
B. Found Aztecs in Tenochtitlan
C. Plundered city then rebuilt
D. Named Mexico City
Hernan Cortes
Cortes and the Aztec Empire
Tenochtitlan
Tenochtitlan
Tenochtitlan
Tenochtitlan
IV. Pineda explores the Texas coast
A. Arrived in Mexico in 1519
B. First European to explore the Texas
coast
V. Cabeza de Vaca
A. Shipwrecked in Texas
B. Adopted ways of Karankawas
C. Became shaman
1. healer
2. spiritual leader
3. medicine man
D. Spent 7 years wandering across Texas
E. Learned much about geography and people
***Pineda was probably first to step foot on Texas
soil
Day 2 – Cabeza De Vaca
 OPTIC – picture
 Soapstone – journal writings
 From Karankawa POV or the
Spaniards POV – how do you see Cabeza
de Vaca
Use O.P.T.I.C . to analyze the picture
6. O - What is the overview ? What is the picture of? What is the setting?
7. P - List the parts/details of the picture.
8. T – What could the Title be of the picture if you had to give it one?
9. I - Inference – what do the parts tell you about what is going on in
the picture?
10. C– Conclusion – how does this deal with what we are studying? Why did I
choose this?
Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca
•Cabeza de Vaca possessed a keen mind, inquisitive nature,
and exceptional memory, which made him an ideal
explorer.
•He provided the first descriptions of Texas landforms,
Indians, and plants. Cabeza de Vaca was the only Spaniard
to record the names and practices of the Indian tribes of
South Texas and to locate them relative to each other
•In 1529, Cabeza de Vaca crashed on Galveston Island
because of a hurricane.
•The survivors named their island Malhando, meaning
misfortune. They were the first non-Indians to set foot upon
Texas soil.
•Naked and miserably cold, they presented such a sad
spectacle to the Karankawa Indians that they sat down with
 The survivors named their island
Malhando, meaning misfortune. They
were the first non-Indians to set foot
upon Texas soil.
 Naked and miserably cold, they
presented such a sad spectacle to the
Karankawa Indians that they sat down
with them and cried.
 Luckily, Cabeza de Vaca knew enough
about medicine that he was able to
heal many Indians. He became known
among the tribe as a “medicine man.”
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey
of Alvar Nunez
Cabeza de Vaca
and His
Companions, from
Florida to the
Pacific, 1528-1536
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey
of Alvar Nunez
Cabeza de Vaca
and His
Companions, from
Florida to the
Pacific, 15281536
Questions 1 - 5
 1. After reading the description of Cabeza de Vaca’s treatment at the hands
of the Coastal Indians. What would your reaction be to the situation?

 2. Why did the Indian tribes ask Cabeza de Vaca to trade or barter for
them?

 3. Cabeza de Vaca felt the life of a trader gave him advantages. What were
these advantages?

 4. What was Cabeza de Vaca’s “principal objective” in becoming a trader?

 5. What did the coastal Indians think about Cabeza de Vaca’s role as a
trader?
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey of
Alvar Nunez Cabeza
de Vaca and His
Companions, from
Florida to the Pacific,
1528-1536
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey of
Alvar Nunez Cabeza
de Vaca and His
Companions, from
Florida to the Pacific,
1528-1536
Questions 6 - 8
 6. What action did Cabeza de Vaca take to
help the Indian who was suffering from an
arrow wound?
 7. Based on the Indians reaction to surgery,
had they seen medicine of this type before?
How would you have reacted?
 8. What, if any, fame did Cabeza de Vaca
receive for this “cure”?
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey of Alvar
Nunez Cabeza de Vaca
and His Companions,
from Florida to the
Pacific, 1528-1536
Question 9
 9. List the comparisons the Indians
made between Cabeza de Vaca to his
fellow Spaniards?
Primary
Source
Adventures:
Cabeza de
Vaca
from The Journey of
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de
Vaca
and His Companions,
from Florida to the
Pacific, 1528-1536
Question 10
 10. Cabeza de Vaca called buffalos
“cow.” How did he describe their hair
and meat?
SOAPSTone
Speaker – Speaker or Author, and any information that
might identify his/her POV on the subject
Occasion – time and place of the piece, what encourages
the piece, what encourages the piece to be created
Audience – The group of readers or listeners for who the
piece is intended
Purpose – Reason behind the piece, what does the
speaker want the audience to think after reading or
hearing this piece
Subject – general topic, content, or idea of the piece
Tone – what is the attitude of the speaker, look at the
authors word choice, sentence construction, and
imagery
Journal Entry on the
backside of your notes:
 On the backside of yesterday’s notes,
create your own journal entry from the
Point of View of the Karankawas who
have been living with Cabeza de Vaca or
from the point of view of Cabeza de Vaca
Chapter 4 Section 2
I. Quest for Texas Gold
A. Cabeza de Vaca reports
1. “vast and handsome”
2. “very fertile”
3. No gold, but heard of treasures
4. Inspires others like Viceroy
Mendoza
Cabeza de Vaca & Estevanico
II. Fray Marcos Leads a New Expedition
A. Priest
B. Estevanico accompanies
1. guide
2. makes friendships
with natives
3. Sees Cibola
a. Seven cities
b. Rich in gold, silver, precious
gems
4. Killed by Indians
C. Reported seeing city full of treasures
Cibola
III. Coronado Disappointed
A. Sent to find Cibola
B. Found Zuni village and disappointed
C. Continued to find Grand Canyon
D. Met Turk to took them to Quivira
E. Described plains - sky “like a bowl”,
lakes “round as plates”, tall grass they
were lost in
F. Found Native American settlement
and put Turk to death
Francisco Vazquez de Coronado
Coronado and the Turk
Coronado’s Route
IV. Moscoso explores East Texas
A. With De Soto’s group
B. First Europeans to reach Mississippi
River
C. Led expedition west to lower Brazos
River
V. New Mexico is Founded
A. Spanish did not find treasure in Texas
B. Few attempts at settlements in Texas
C. Decide to make a settlement on Rio
Grande
Explorer Map of Texas