JUAN PONCE DE LEON
Read to discover how juan search's for the fountain of youth
jordan andrews
NWR Series
Table Of Contents
pg-2: From Knight To Explorer.
pg-4: La Florida.
pg-5: The Beginning Of Florida And the End of Juan.
In the begining
Juan's care free child hood days did not last very long at all. He became a knight when he was 16. All boys at this time had to become knights. Due to a war that involved the moor's trying to take over Spain in 711. The Spaniards had been fighting for 100's of years to drive the moor's ( Muslims) out of Spain. The moor's ended up stuck. With only one strong-hold ( A strong holding base/fort) left so they surrendered (gave up). With the moor's in defeat the queen of Spain marched through the city of Granada in victory on a white horse symbolizing ( a symbol) nobility ( having the power of a king or queen or someone with power).
From Knight To Explorer
When they landed what they saw was horrific. The few people he had left on the island where all murdered by the natives, in a fight because the Spaniards had taken all the gold and money from the natives. All the Spaniards where either dead or hiding deep in the woods. It was not long before Columbus had enslaved them all and had them mining for gold. One native refused to mine and a Spaniard sent his dog on him killing the man. The natives killed many Spaniards in revenge. The rebellion was stopped when Juan Ponce de Leon captured the chief and stopped the rebellion.
For stopping the rebellion the king made him governor of Puerto Rico. Juan sailed to Puerto Rico immediately and he brought his family with him, so he could make the "first" colonies there and he brought many men with him knowing that there would be "savages" on the island. Whatever "savages" there were, soon where forced into the mines and about 1/2 of the gold found was sent back to Spain and the rest was kept by Juan and his family. By now it was 1508 and Queen Isabella had been dead for four years but Juan kept sending gold back to the king of Spain to keep him happy, but Diego Columbus showed and appointed a new governor of Puerto Rico.
La Florida
When the king heard of this land he also heard the legend (a story that can't be proven) of "fountain (a source of water) of youth ( being young)" so he had Juan search for these magic waters. Juan searched all through "la Florida" but these waters where never found and there was very little gold and glory (honor) to be found here so Juan went back to Spain to ask one request (asking for something) .
The beginning of Florida and End of Juan
Not long after that a huge rebellion (act against something) broke out and a huge rain of arrows fell. One of which hit Juan and mortally wounded him very badly and he had to sail to the place we now know as Cuba. Juan was placed in a hospital where he stayed for days. But each and every day his wound got worse and worse up until he died in 1521. His body is currently (at this moment) in San Juan cathedral (a church) .
works sited
Index
roaming- wandering.
ancestor- ancient relative.
kingdom- Castle and land.