- Pascual de Andagoya
Pascual de Andagoya (1495-1548) was a Spanish
Basque conquistador . He was born in the village of Andagoya, in the valley ofCuartango , (Álava ), inSpain .As often happened at the time, Andagoya left as an explorer of the
New World at a very young age of 19, onApril 11 ,1514 , under the command ofPedro Arias de Ávila . The expedition left carrying an army of over 2,000 in 22 ships, with the objective of colonizingCentral America .The career of Andagoya commenced in
Panama , whose capital he founded in 1519 with 400 settlers. Later he moved south towards theColombia n coast, until he reached San Juan, where he took charge as governor. This was when he learned of the existence of theInca Empire , in the distant territory called "Birú", or "Pirú". In 1522 he attempted a conquest, but it ended in miserable failure.With his health deteriorating, he returned to Panama and spread word of his discoveries, in particular the existence of a land of enormous riches of
gold andsilver , namely, Peru. In 1524Francisco Pizarro , in association with the soldierDiego de Almagro and the priestHernando de Luque , mounted an expedition.Andagoya was rewarded in 1539 by
Carlos I with the post of Representative of the Indians, which he performed with brutal zeal. In 1540 he proclaimed himself governor ofPopayán , which he held until 1542, when the legitimate governorSebastián de Belalcázar relieved him under pressure. Andagoya died in Cuzco onJuly 18 ,1548 .
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