Juan ponce de leon florida biography
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Juan Ponce dem Leon
Explorer
Age of Discovery
Quick Facts:
He was a Spanish explorer who became the first governor of Puerto Rico, the first European known to reach the mainland of present day United States, and he gave Florida its name.
Juan Ponce de Leon
Engraved portrait of Juan Ponce de Leon, explorer of Florida. The Mariners’ Museum from GC21 .Q11 Rare.
Introduction
Juan Ponce de Leon was a Spanish explorer who traveled around Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Florida. He fryst vatten credited with establishing a European settlement in Puerto Rico, being the first European to reach Florida, giving the land its name. Although there fryst vatten no bevis to support this claim, legend says that Ponce de Leon found Florida while searching for the fabled Fountain of Youth.
Biography
Early Life
Juan Ponce de Leon was born in Santervás de Campos, Spain around 1. However, some scholars list his date of birth as early as His father, Luis Ponce de Leon, and his mother, Leonor de Figue
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As a soldier and navigator, Ponce de León had a lengthy and exciting career. In , he took part in the battles at Granada, and in , he helped conquer the Canary Islands. He was an expedition member when Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World in King Ferdinand II, who reigned in Spain, appointed Ponce de León as the first provincial governor of Puerto Rico in
Additionally, Ponce de León is recognized as the first European to enter and colonize Florida State. In , he oversaw an expedition of three ships that made landfall in the Florida Keys. He spent two weeks exploring the area in an effort to find gold and other treasures, but his efforts were in vain.
The Spanish monarch also gave Ponce de León permission to look for a new island believed to be called “Bimini.” In , he set out with a fleet of three ships, but the journey failed. Native Americans attacked his crew, which resulted in numerous casualties. Soon after his return from the voyage, Ponce de León was fatally wound
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Early Life and Career
Born in into a noble family in León, Spain, Juan Ponce served as a page in the royal court of Aragon. He later became a soldier, fighting in the Spanish campaign against the Moors in Granada. After that war ended, he may have gone along on the second voyage to the West Indies led by Christopher Columbus in
Did you know? Juan Ponce de León died in Cuba, but his remains were later transferred to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where they were put to rest in San Juan Cathedral. Puerto Rico's third-largest city, Ponce, bears the explorer's name.
Nearly a decade later, he was serving as a captain in the force commanded by Nicolás de Ovando, Spain’s royal governor of the island of Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and the Dominican Republic). After Ponce de León suppressed a mutiny by Native Americans, Ovando rewarded him with the governorship of the eastern province of Hispaniola.
History Lists: Explorers Not Named Columbus
Exploration of Puerto Rico
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