JUAN DE GRIJALVA 

Born around 1489, Juan de Grijalva was a true adventurer and Spanish conquistador.  Heading to Hispaniola in 1508 and Cuba in 1511, Grijalva was actually one of the earliest explorers to reach the shores of Mexico, defeating the Aztecs and conquering the country.  In fact, the city of Rio Grijalva in Mexico was named after him.  In 1518, Grijalva sailed with 170 people to Cuba, which was written about in Bernal Diaz del Castillo’s book, along with many other accomplishments. 

Originating in Cuellar, Spain, Grijalva had an exciting life that left an important mark on history.  The governor of Cuba, which was Grijalva’s uncle Velasquez, had given him the command to sail four vessels to Yucatan in 1518 to explore what Fernandez de Cotdora had already discovered.  Although he battled with Indians where Cordova was defeated, he continued moving west close toward land.  As he advanced, Grijalva found the land to be populated and cultivated, which was later deemed by others as New Spain. 

Going deeper into the country, he finally ascended the River of Tabasco, moving further along the coastline.  Grijalva began trading with the people, learning he was indebted for his reception to powerful monarch orders known as Montezuma.  As Grijalva saw such rich countries, he felt inspired to take possession from them.  However, being restrained by orders coming down from Velasquez not to develop settlements, he still decided to send a vessel on to Cuba with information about his amazing discoveries and some of the precious metals had had collected during his travel. 

As Grijalva sailed further north, he decided to return to Havana, arriving in November.  Upon arrival, he noticed that a neighboring harbor was making preparations for yet another expedition. Thinking he had been given command to set sail again, Grijalva was surprised when Velasquez angrily approached him, upset that he had not planted colonies.  The new expedition was given to Cortes, another explorer instead of Grijalva.  After that, Grijalva made the decision to move to Nicaragua but unfortunately, when caught in an Indian uprising in Ulancha, he was killed.