Have you ever wondered what it would be like to travel America without anything but three partners and your feet? Well that's what Cabezas did and he went through extremely tough tasks. In 1527 five Spanish ships left a port in Seville He escaped from Indians, he was stranded on Galveston island after being in a raft with his fellow castaways, and after that, escaping Indians again and walking to Mexico. Most people would ask how Cabeza survived, and if they did I would tell them that Cabeza De Vaca survived because of his wilderness skills, success as a healer, and his respect for Indians. One of the key reasons Cabeza survived was because of his wilderness skills. Cabeza had great wilderness skills and great stamina for walking long distances.
According to (http://americanaejournal.hu/vol4no2/gomez-galisteo), in 1527 a Spanish soldier Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was appionted treasurer to expedition of Panfilo de Narvaez to Florida. Cabeza de Vaca had many duties to fulfill but particularly he was given the task to write an official report to inform Emperor Charles V of the goals, achievements, and circumstances of the journey. During the expedition there was a fault that consisted of the travelers getting lost and losing contact with their ships, and only Cabeza de Vaca and three other members returned to Spanish territory a decade later. One of his reports back to Charles V was Cabeza de Vaca’s experiences living amid the Native Americans for six years and a half. Apparently, in
The fact that the textbook decided to expound on the details of Pizarro and Peru that were happening around the same period of time rather than the accounts of Cabeza de Vaca proves the necessity of primary sources and the advantage they have in further understanding the past. During the 1930s, Cabeza documented his journey across the American Southwest. In his documentation, he describes the environments and lifestyles of the many Natives he came across to. These Natives aided Cabeza and his companions in throughout their expedition with food in exchange for their skills in treating the sick. For the most part, it is understood that he and his friends were treated really well by the Indians stating that the women of one of the tribes “…brought many mats, with which they built us houses, one for each of us and those attached to him.” It was interesting to know how the explorer’s group would continue to grow as the journey continued. Cabeza and his companions met up with people who would “tender all they possessed” and immediately follow them after being “depraved of their belongings.” As the traveling became gruesome with lack of food and rugged mountains, only the strong continued to guide. It was at this point when Cabeza had reached a landmark in his expedition; his fellow traveler Castillo “had found permanent houses, inhabited, the people of which ate beans and squashes, and that he had also seen maize.” After settling on a stable land with permanent homes and crops, Cabeza shifted his focus in searching for Christians which successfully did so. This entire story highlights the unique elements behind the the many explorations to the New World. Cabeza’s expedition contributed to the Spanish Conquest and encouraged other Spanish explorers to embark on a search for
Cabeza survived, because he was very resourceful, he had the advantage of being able to communicate with those he encountered, and he was
Cabeza De Vacaśsurvival was a mystery among others or was it ? In the spring of 1527 five spanish ships set sail for the New world one of them was holding a man named Cabeza De Vaca.After waiting for winter to stop Panfilo De Narvaez (The leader of the expedition) hopelessly confused made accidental landfall near modern day tampa bay,Florida After 2 difficult months,Narvaez and his men arrived at Apalache Bay and only new he had to travel west to get to mexico and told the men to melt guns down into tools to build 5 rafts that could hold fifty men and one of the five rafts was led by Cabeza. Some wondered how Cabeza survived when he came back from his horrible trip and I have three of many to tell you abou. Cabezaś survival was attributed by having faith in god, the ability to be trusted by indians,and being able to heal the indians.
How did Cabeza survive being shipwrecked, being alone, and enslaved? Being resourceful and finding ways to manage thirst and hunger under terrible conditions. Having communication skills to talk to the indians to befriend them and luck, lots of luck. That is how he did
Also Cabeza had high respect for the natives. He became friends with his captives and did not act like was better than any of them.( document B) He learned many different languages so he could communicate to the other Indians this gained him respect and helped him stay alive. He cured the Indians and did what they asked him to do so they would trust him with harder tasks (document
“A Land So Strange” is a book any history enthusiast would enjoy. Beautifully written by Andres Resendez he is able to show the epic journey of Cabeza de Vaca through a book. Cabeza de Vaca a Spaniard scholar who shipwrecked in Florida in 1528 with a group of about 300 Spanish men, explorers, and slaves who accompanied him along the way. Having hopes to claim and settle in Florida but unexpectedly consistent events; like nature, natives, and loss of navigation turned their mission into an unexpected journey. Andres Resendez wonderfully words these unexpected events with a pleasant amount of detail that any reader could picture the journey of eight years of challenges leaving only four survivors Cabeza de Vaca, two other Spaniards, and an African slave who ended up wanting to just go back home. Regardless of these events he is considered one of the best explorers who survived the unimaginable and lead even with the lack of supplies and men to get their way back home. The journey was humbling by the fact he had to survive with what was around him and pushed through because of his curiosity to know more. This book is informative and practical because the author was able to illustrate his words that created a story based upon facts and understanding of the main characters experience that allowed one to see the passion Cabeza de Vaca in his expedition.
Cabeza de Vaca went through many things that gave him a new outlook. He was a slave and then considered to be a scared healer. On his return to Spain Cabeza de Vaca reported of the inhumane treatment of the natives. New laws about the treatment of natives were taken.
The book “A Land So Strange” by Andrés Reséndez basically illustrates 8 years of long odyssey from what is now Tampa, Florida to Mexico City on Cabeza de Vaca’s perspective. Cabaza de Vaca along with his companions named Andres Dorante, Alonso del Castillo, and Estebanico, are survivors of failed expedition to New World from Spain during 16th century. Unlike other members from the expedition, these four members found a way to live with native Indian tribes to survive. They were slaves of Indians and treated cruelly all the time. However, after long period of time of being slaves, they decided to make escape to Spanish territory. During their fugitive period, they had chance to help injured Indians. Their knowledge of certain medicine,
On June 17, 1527, Cabeza de Vaca set sail on the order to conquer and govern the lands from the Rio Grande to the cape of Florida. However, during his journey he encountered much devastation such as the wrecking of his ship which resulted in his separation from the majority of his Christian companions. Praying to God after every ordeal, Cabeza routinely sought after his Christian religion to guide him through his unexpected journey. While traveling through the interior of America, he also encountered many native tribes which inhabited the land. While most of the Spanish conquistadors in the sixteenth century spread their religion through warlike ways and rearranged societies
However, he then goes on to say how deeply moved they were, which is somewhat ironic. It's almost as if Cabeza de Vaca and his followers know that the Indians aren't truly unworthy creatures but they use what everybody already agrees upon to manipulate their supposed worthiness and justify their claims. He also goes on to explain the warrior-like tendencies of the Indians and how fierce and relentless they are. He describes them by saying, "whoever has to fight Indians must take great care not to let them think he is disheartened or that he covets what they own. In war they must be treated very harshly, for should they notice either fear or greed, as a people they know how to bide their time waiting for revenge and take courage from their enemies' fears. After using up all their arrows, they part, each going his own way, without attempting pursuit, although one side might have more men than the other. Such is their custom." (68) They have these customs that are very unnatural and are not normative behavior. Cabeza de Vaca refers to the customs of the Charruco Indians with great
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca and his companions, Andres Dorantes, Alonzo del Castillo Maldonado, and Estevan were the sole survivors of a four hundred men expedition. The group of them went about the friendly Indian tribes preforming miracles of healing, with the power of Christianity. At one time five sick persons were brought into the camp, and the Indians insisted that Castillo should cure them. At sunset he pronounced a blessing over the sick, and all the Christians united in a prayer to God, asking him to restore the sick to health, and on the following morning there was not a sick person among them. De Vaca and his companions reached the Pacific coast where the Indians, showed signs of civilization, living in houses covered with straw, wearing cotton clothes and dressed skins, with belts and ornaments of stone, and cultivating their fields, but had been driven therefrom by the brutal Spanish soldiery and had taken refuge in the mountains, de Vaca and his comrades, being regarded as emissaries from the Almighty, exercised such power over these untutored savages that, at their bidding, the Indians returned to their deserted habitations, and began again to cultivate their fields, the assurance being given them by de Vaca and his companions that henceforth they would
Cabeza de Vaca was originally part of the 600-man Narváez Expedition, and in the end was one of four survivors. The trip was highly disastrous, on the literal first page he tells how local inhabitants “seduced more than 140 of our men to the desert”#.
Cabeza de Vaca was known for his discovery of America. He documented his trek in America, as a lost traveler, exposed to unfamiliar territory, multiple hardships, and the native Indian tribes. His journal entry over his reencounters with the Christians is only a small record over his adventures on the whole Narvaez Expedition of 1528. The document was published in Spain, 1542, at a time when dispute over the mistreatment of natives in America in their colonization became a subject to resolve. His journal entry discusses his brief experience in an Indian tribe, the news he receives of nearby Spanish men penetrating the tribal communities, and the realization that the “Christians” were not a character he thought they were. Cabeza de Vaca sympathized the indigenous tribes and believed that they should not face the cruelty the Spanish settlers set in order to
Christopher Columbus and Cabeza de Vaca were both well experienced explorers of the New World. They both traveled to the New World to find out what was out there and if what they would find, could help them and their country. In the narratives, “Letter of Discovery” by Christopher Columbus and Castaways by Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, they exemplified the overall environment of the New World. Each explorer had quite the experience within the New World and interactions with the natives but they were not quite the same. Columbus’ journey consisted of learning about the new land and obtain resources to bring back to his country. Cabeza de Vaca also wanted to find resources and goods but mainly wanted to explore the land and try to understand if it was possible to create a society alongside the natives. As they went into the New World, they had found new discoveries but their purpose of the journey lead them down paths that would give off two different perspectives.