Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
rancisco Vásquez de Coronado was a Spanish ruler and explorer. He was the first European to explore North America's Southwest.
Coronado was a governor of a province in Mexico. He was chosen to lead an expedition to search for the legendary Seven Golden Cities of Cibola. These cities were rumored to contain gold and riches.
In 1540, Coronado and his team left central Mexico and traveled through what is now northern Mexico. They continued up through the southwestern area of the United States, where they explored many areas previously unexplored by Europeans. Coronado is credited with discovering the Great Plains, the Grand Canyon, and the territory that would one day become Arizona, Kansas, and New Mexico.
Coronado encountered many Native Americans on his expedition. He killed many Indians of the Zuñi, Hopi, and Pueblo tribes when they would not convert Christianity.
He never found the Seven Golden Cities of Cibola or any other gold, silver, or other treasures. Because of this, Coronado’s expedition was branded a failure by Spanish leaders. However, the expedition was extremely significant since it claimed the entire Southwest portion of the United States for Spain.
Coronado was a governor of a province in Mexico. He was chosen to lead an expedition to search for the legendary Seven Golden Cities of Cibola. These cities were rumored to contain gold and riches.
In 1540, Coronado and his team left central Mexico and traveled through what is now northern Mexico. They continued up through the southwestern area of the United States, where they explored many areas previously unexplored by Europeans. Coronado is credited with discovering the Great Plains, the Grand Canyon, and the territory that would one day become Arizona, Kansas, and New Mexico.
Coronado encountered many Native Americans on his expedition. He killed many Indians of the Zuñi, Hopi, and Pueblo tribes when they would not convert Christianity.
He never found the Seven Golden Cities of Cibola or any other gold, silver, or other treasures. Because of this, Coronado’s expedition was branded a failure by Spanish leaders. However, the expedition was extremely significant since it claimed the entire Southwest portion of the United States for Spain.
Much text taken word for word from EnchantedLearning.com, WorldBook online.com