Background
Francisco Hernández de Córdoba was born in 1467 in Spain.
Francisco Hernández de Córdoba was born in 1467 in Spain.
Diego de Velázquez, the conqueror and first governor of Cuba, gave Fernández command of a slaving and trading expedition which sailed from Havana in 1517. The pilot, Anton de Alaminos--who had sailed on Columbus' fourth voyage--seems to have persuaded Fernández to search for land believed to lie west of Cuba. The fleet accordingly sailed west, but after clearing Cape San Antonio was driven before a northeast gale until land was sighted at or near Cape Catoche.
Near the Cape they found the large Mayan town of Ecab and landed there, but reembarked after a brush with the local people. Fernández then sailed along the north coast of Yucatán, turned south into the Gulf of Mexico, and followed the west coast of the peninsula for some distance.
His people landed at Campeche, where their reception, though unenthusiastic, was civil, and at Champotón, the chief town of the Couohe Mayas, where they were attacked in such numbers that they suffered serious losses. Fernández was seriously wounded; in consequence the fleet returned to Cuba, where he died shortly afterwards of his wounds. His report, however, reached Governor Velázquez. It was the first intelligence received by Spaniards of the Mayan civilization on the mainland.
