{"id":316,"date":"2012-10-04T17:32:01","date_gmt":"2012-10-04T21:32:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/guidedhistory\/?page_id=316"},"modified":"2012-11-28T14:25:37","modified_gmt":"2012-11-28T18:25:37","slug":"michael-mell","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bu.edu\/guidedhistory\/historians-craft\/michael-mell\/","title":{"rendered":"Calamities: The Narvaez Expedition’s Tale of Discovery and Tragedy"},"content":{"rendered":"
Michael Mell<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The 1525 Salviati Planisphere shows the Spanish view of the Americas at the time of the Narvaez Expedition.<\/span>
\n________________________________________________________<\/p>\n

Introduction<\/strong><\/big><\/h2>\n

In 1528, a Spanish expedition with over 300 men led by the seasoned,\u00a0one-eyed Panfilo de Narvaez, landed in the area near\u00a0Tampa Bay. The ambitious expectations of the expeditionary force, to claim vast riches for their king and to save native\u00a0souls \u00a0for their Lord, rivaled the Cortez conquest in scope. But eight years later, only four\u00a0survivors would wander out of the wilderness, naked and wretched, near\u00a0the Gulf of California. Without an ounce of gold, they could only\u00a0offer their majesty \u201cnews never heard before\u201d of the years they\u00a0wandered \u201clost and naked \u00a0through many and strange lands.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shortly after\u00a0emerging from the wilderness, the four survivors of the Narvaez\u00a0expedition traveled to Tenochtitlan (Mexico City) where they\u00a0prepared the so-called Joint Report for presentation to the emperor. The\u00a0Joint Report is unfortunately lost to history. However, several primary sources related to the Joint Report survive including: a detailed account by Cabeza de Vaca, one of the four survivors; and a transcription of the Joint Report by Oviedo, a contemporaneous historian.<\/p>\n

The 16th century world of the survivors\u2019 and the native peoples they encountered is illuminated by examining the expedition’s story. \u00a0Hundreds of different Native groups inhabited North America, some as different from each other as they were from the invading Caballeros, with widely varied languages, customs and physical appearance. \u00a0As the expeditionaries struggled across the continent, they interacted with dozens of Native peoples —\u00a0attacked by some, enslaved for years by others, and finally,\u00a0worshiped\u00a0as healers by many. \u00a0 The primary sources provide first hand accounts of the customs and beliefs of these Native groups. \u00a0The section of this research guide named “Native American Peoples – In Context” provides additional sources for understanding the Native peoples encountered by the expedition.<\/p>\n

From the distance of five centuries, the mindset of the caballero can seem impenetrable to the modern reader – they are known for unimaginable brutality and \u00a0a tough, almost inhuman\u00a0perseverance. To get at their mindset requires us to ask how they saw themselves. \u00a0And understanding the caballeros through their own eyes involves, not only examining the survivor’s account of the expedition but also, studying \u00a0the background of their militaristic ilk, the books they read, the letters they wrote, and the historical context of their time. \u00a0The “Spanish Caballeros – In Context” section of this research guide provides sources for this examination.<\/p>\n

________________________________________________________<\/span><\/p>\n

Primary Sources<\/strong><\/big><\/h2>\n

There are three primary sources directly connected to the Narvaez expedition.<\/p>\n