List: First 10 Spanish Settlements in the Americas

  

     The Spanish Empire, at its peak was one of the largest empires in the history. The concept of colonization began when Spain conquered the Canary Islands between 1406 and 1496. But the real achievement of the Spain was the riches of Americas.

     We all know the colonization of the Americas was due to Christopher Columbus’ voyage across the Atlantic. After the news spread, Spain took advantage of this real quick and established its dominance over the New World. Here is the list of first 10 settlements Spain found in Americas.

Mapwork by Info Spreads

La Navidad

Christopher Columbus landing in America with the Piuzon Brothers bearing flags and crosses, 1492. Original Artwork: By D Puebla (1832 - 1904). 

credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

     During Columbus’ first voyage (1492), one of his ships, Santa Maria ran aground near the northern coast of Hispaniola. With no room for the sailors, Columbus was forced to find a new place for them which led to the First European Settlement in the Americas, La Navidad. The wooden planks of Santa Maria were used to build a small fort. They struck a deal with the local Guacanagari chieftain.

With a lot of new areas to be discovered, Columbus left the settlement leaving behind some of his sailors to mine the gold in the region. When he returned in 1493, he saw the settlement burned to ground and all of his men were killed. It was later revealed by a tribesman that the sailors mistreated the locals which led to their massacre. But it was sometimes neglected to be a real settlement.

La Isabela

La Isabela Bay archaeological park, the remains of the colonial settlement. 

credit: Jon Spaull / Getty Images

     After the massacre at the La Navidad settlement, Columbus began a new town La Isabela east from the previous settlement. The main objective of Columbus’ second voyage was to build a stronghold for the Spanish invasion further into the new land.

     One of the main reasons why he chose to go with La Isabela was the rumors of precious metals along the northern coast of the Hispaniola Island. But he failed to find such metals and ultimately the settlement was abandoned in 1500. The loss of indigenous population due to the European diseases to which they had no immunity against and the rude hurricanes were also considered as the real reasons.

Concepcion de La Vega

credit: Enmanuel perez

     In 1494, Columbus built a fort near the location of modern La Vega as a stronghold to guard the gold mined in the interior of the island. The settlement began to grow around the fort. It became the first successful Spanish settlement in the Americas. Around 1508, large deposits of gold were found near the settlement.

     By the end of 1510, it was the most important European settlement in the entire hemisphere. But the town was destroyed by an earthquake around 1562. Later, survivors from the settlement moved to the current location of the city.

Santo Domingo

credit: Europcar

     In 1496, Bartholomew Columbus, brother of Christopher Columbus found a new settlement on the Southern Coast of Hispaniola near the banks of Ozano River. It was initially names as La Nueva Isabela which was later renamed as Santo Domingo, making it the oldest surviving European city in Americas. It was also the first Spanish capital in the region.

     In 1502, it was destroyed and rebuilt on the opposite bank of the river. The city became the stronghold that Columbus was sent to begin. A lot of expeditions to conquer the interior Americas were initiated from this city. It was also the first place to witness the slave uprising in 1522.

     The settlement changed hands a lot of time. In 1586, English privateer, Francis Drake captured it for ransom. It was again attacked by English in 1655 but the settlement was defended. Various Spanish privateers based from Santo Domingo sacked slave ships and British merchants ships during the war between the two countries.

     It was ceded to France in 1795 and regained in 1809. Later in 1821, the independent nation of Republic of Spanish Haiti was formed with Santo Domingo as its capital. That didn’t end well as the dictator struck a deal with Spain to annex it again in 1861. In 1865, again the country revolted against the Spanish forces and drove them of the island.

Caparra

     In 1508, Ponce de Leon found the Spanish settlement in Caparra known amongst Spanish settlers as “La Ciudad de Puerto Rico”. They decided on this site because it was close to fresh water springs and gold mines. Most of the town buildings were constructed of wood. But Ponce de Leon’s residence was more of a fortress, so it was made from rock.

     It didn’t take too long before they realized that this location was not as ideal as first envisioned. It was not close enough to the coast. In 1521, the settlement was completely moved to the new location. It was named Villa de Puerto Rico which later became San Juan.

Sevilla la Nueva

     In 1503, Columbus and his crew were marooned in a small bay on the northern coast of Jamaica for a year due to severe damage to their ships. Later they were rescued by the Spanish people from Hispaniola. Later in 1509, Juan de Esquivel with 80 citizens landed in the bay and developed a settlement which they named Sevilla la Nueva.

     It became the first Spanish capital in Jamaica and third one in the Americas after Santo Domingo and Caparra. It was located near a mangrove swamp and was difficult to move around. So it was moved to a safer location in 1518. Few of the people remained in the original location until 1554 when they were killed by French pirates.

Nombre de Dios

Illustration of an imagined Nombre de Dios, from Peter Schenk's 1672 Hecatompolis
credit: wikimedia commons

     The settlement of Nombre de Dios was started by Diego de Nicuesa in 1510. It became the most important port on the mainland between 1540 and 1580. It was the major port were the Spanish Treasure Fleet used. But the port was surrounded by swamps making it difficult to fortify.

     After the conquest of Potosi in Bolivia, silver from the region was shipped to Panama and transferred to Nombre de Dios through a mule train where the treasure ships await to take them to Havana or Spain.

     In 1572, Francis Drake sacked the port and a year later captured the Treasure carrying mule train. He again conquered the port in 1595 but left empty handed without knowing about the 5 million pesos waiting on the Pacific Coast.

     Later, the Spanish forces shifted the Treasure Fleet operations to Portobelo. The growth of Veracruz and Mexican silver discovery led to the port’s demise. In 1600 the port was abandoned by Spain. The town still exists making it the oldest continuously inhabited European settlement in the continental America.

Baracoa

credit: destination360

     

     In 1511, Diego Velozquez de Cuellar found built the town of Baracoa. It later became the first capital in Cuba between 1518 and 1522. Baracoa was a semicircular bay surrounded by mountains making it completely remote from rest of the island. This made it a safe place for the illegal trades and pirate attacks.

     In the late 17^th century, Spain built three forts Fuerte Matachin, Fuerte de la Punta and El Castillo de Seboruco to safeguard the city. This was also the place where French who escaped from the independence movements in Haiti reached first.

Bayama

credit: Rosa Arelys Berisson

     Bayama was also established by Diego Velozquez de Cuellar in 1513. It was an inland settlement making it safe from the terrors brought by the pirates. It was also on the banks of the Cauto River, making it a better trade location than the coastal Santiago. This made Bayama the most important town in the Cuban Island.

     During the floods of 1616, the Cauta River was blocked with trees and damaged ships. Yet due to the close location of the city of Manzanillo it continued its trade with Curacao, Jamaica and various other islands in the Caribbean. Bayama was also blessed with fine plantations making it a successful settlement.

Santiago

credit: wikimedia commons

     Santiago de Cuba was another settlement found under the leadership Diego Velozquez de Cuellar in 1514. It was destroyed by fire in 1516 but was soon rebuilt. This is the base where the expeditions to Mexico and Florida started. It later served as the capital of the Cuban colony between 1522 and 1589.

     Due to its coastal geography, it was often attacked. It was plundered by the French forces in 1553. The British forces sacked the city in 1603 and again in 1662. Santiago is the place where the Spanish Atlantic Fleet was destroyed by the US Forces during the Spanish American War. This was a pivotal moment as Spanish Forces surrendered after this incident.