Background
Hernando de Alarcón was probably born in Trujillo, Spain, about 1500.
Hernando de Alarcón was probably born in Trujillo, Spain, about 1500.
His ability as a navigator brought him to the attention of the viceroy of Mexico, Antonio de Mendoza; in 1540 Mendoza sent him with two ships to give naval support to Francisco Coronado's overland expedition, which was seeking the mythical Seven Cities, an El Dorado of the American Southwest. Alarcón was instructed to supply Coronado's men at specified ports along the way and to gain access by water to Cibola, the capital of the Seven Cities. In May 1540 Alarcón sailed from Acapulco, but, failing to establish contact with Coronado, he proceeded to the head of the Gulf of California and entered the Colorado River in August. With great difficulty his men portaged launches upstream as far as the junction of the Colorado and Gila rivers (the present site of Yuma, Ariz. ). Alarcón returned to his ships in September and shortly thereafter set out on a second attempt to reach Cibola, which took him again only as far as the Gila. Here he tried to get messages to Coronado but, realizing the futility of the attempt, returned to his ships and sailed back to Mexico, reaching Colima in November 1540. Melchior Díaz, one of Coronado's officers, later found dispatches from Alarcón and an inscription carved on a tree near the mouth of the Gila. AlarcónAlarcon wrote an account of his experiences which was first printed in Ramusio's Navigazioni e Viaggi.
(El Libro de buen amor, extensa composición de 1728 estrof...)
( The Treatise of Hernando Ruiz de Alarcón is one of the ...)
He is described as being adventurous, good-natured but vain about his appearance, liking to dress in fancy clothes. He was fond of pomp and ceremony, and wanted his food served on silver dishes.
