For many centuries, Christians had lived in Spain. Then, in A.D. 711, people from Africa called Moors conquered much of the area.

Christians wanted to regain their land, though. They began a series of wars called the Reconquista, or re-conquest of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain & Portugal).

In 1492, they finished this work. They drove the last of the Moors out of Spain and welcomed new lands to conquer.

After the Spaniards took back control of Spain they started to look for ways to increase their wealth.

In 1492 a Spaniard named Christopher Columbus was able to convince the King & Queen of Spain to sponsor his exploration.

His goal was to reach India and China by sailing west across the Atlantic Ocean.

Instead, his ship landed on an island in the Caribbean Sea. He had reached a land that Europeans had not known about before – the Americas.

He returned to Spain with gold. He also brought back some indigenous, or native, people.

The voyage of Columbus excited the Spanish. The King and Queen paid for more explorers to the Americas. These Spanish soldiers were called Conquistadors, or conquerors. They came to the New World for Gold, God, and Glory.

Spain was mainly there for GOLD.

Spain brutally dominated the Americas, wiping out 98% of Natives through the spreading of germs and violence.

A Spanish legend added to their desire to conquer. The story said that there were seven cities built of gold somewhere in the new land. The conquistadors hoped to find the seven cities in the Americas.

In 1519, Spain granted 11 ships and more than 500 soldiers to explore the interior of what is now known as Mexico.

Once he landed he quickly became friends with and traded with the native people there. They told Cortés about the Aztec Indians who ruled over all the other people in the area.

In August 1519 Cortés began a journey inland toward the Aztec capital Tenochtitlán.

Believing that Cortés was an Aztec god, the Aztec king Motecuhzoma II welcomed him into the city. Cortés took advantage of this to kidnap Motecuhzoma II and take control of the Aztec empire.

He claimed for Spain all the land the Aztecs ruled. King Charles I of Spain was pleased with Cortés's work and made him governor of the new territory.

On June 2, 1519, Alvarez de Pineda arrived in North America when he entered a large bay with a sizable Native American settlement on one shore. Pineda continued his journey westward and one of the regions he explored and mapped was the area around Corpus Christi Bay in what is now Texas, entering the bay on the feast day of Corpus Christi (hence the name).

He created a map of the Texas Coast, the first known document of Texas history and was the first map of the Gulf Coast region of the United States. This map would help future Spanish Explorers when they would attempt to establish Colonies in Texas.

In 1527, Cabeza de Vaca set sail on an expedition to build a colony in what is today Florida. When they tried to sail to Mexico to find safety, a hurricane hit. Cabeza de Vaca was shipwrecked off the Texas coast.

For six years the survivors lived among the Karankawa tribe of Eastern Texas. Cabeza de Vaca was put to work as a trader and at times, he also served as a Shaman (healer).

Cabeza de Vaca had learned much about Native Americans since his shipwreck. He urged Spanish settlers and explorers to treat native people more fairly.

Cabeza de Vaca also began to write down stories he had heard from Native Americans about Cíbola (SEE•buh•luh), the seven legendary cities of gold, and about the native wildlife of Texas (especiall the buffalo).

Spanish explorers had seen much of Texas and learned about the land and the Native Americans there.

However, Spain did not find gold or silver in North America.

Disappointed, Spanish explorers lost interest in Texas and Spain left it alone for almost 100 years...until...

Other European countries also wanted some of the wealth that Spain had found in the Americas.

The French wanted to find gold and other wealth in North America just as Spain did.

They hoped to find a water route to Asia through North America called the Northwest Passage.

They started colonies and settled along the lakes and rivers of Canada.

They did not find any gold, but they did set up a trade in furs that brought some riches.

French explorer who was searching for the Mississippi River but ended up in Matagorda Bay.

In 1685 he established Fort St. Louis in Texas.

He traded and interacted peacefully with most Natives.

Eventually La Salle's men carried out a mutiny. A mutiny is a revolt by soldiers against their leader. La Salle was murdered by his own men in 1687.

Later, Native Americans attacked Fort St. Louis, taking five captives and killing the rest of the French soldiers and settlers.

The French colony of Ft. St. Louis failed.

Even so, Spanish officials were alarmed. Spain feared that the French would try to control the area [which included Texas]. They wanted to keep the area as part of their own Spanish empire.

When the Spanish set out to find Fort St. Louis, they didn’t know that it had already been destroyed by Native Americans and deserted by the French.

Spain decided to set up permanent settlements in Texas to keep other countries off of their territory.