Vasco Núñez de Balboa

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Vasco Núñez de Balboa
Born c. 1475
Jerez de los Caballeros, Badajoz, Spain
Died January 1519 (aged c. 43–44)
Acla, Panama
Nationality Spanish
Occupation Maritime explorer for the Crown of Castile
Religion Roman Catholic Church
Spouse(s) María de Peñalosa

Vasco Núñez de Balboa (c. 1475 – around January 12–21, 1519[1]) was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He is best known for having crossed the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean in 1513, becoming the first European to lead an expedition to have seen or reached the Pacific from the New World.


Early life

Balboa was born in Jerez de los Caballeros, Spain. He was a descendant of the lord mason of the castle of Balboa, which is located in northwestern Spain. His mother was the Lady de Badajoz, and his father was the hidalgo (nobleman), Nuño Arias de Balboa. Little is known of his early childhood except that he was the third of four boys in his family. During his adolescence, he served as a page and squire to Don Pedro de Portocarrero, lord of Moguer.

Early career

Spanish colonization of the Americas
Inter caetera
Pacific Northwest
Aztec Empire
Inca Empire
Christopher Columbus
Alonso de Ojeda
Diego de Almagro
Pedro de Alvarado
Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar
Sebastián de Belalcázar
Francisco Vásquez de Coronado
Hernán Cortés
Luis de Carabajal y Cueva
Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada
Juan Ponce de León
Francisco de Montejo
Pánfilo de Narváez
Juan de Oñate
Francisco de Orellana
Francisco Pizarro
Hernando de Soto
Pedro de Valdivia
Juan Pardo
Tristán de Luna y Arellano
Vasco Núñez de Balboa

In 1500, motivated by his master after the news of Christopher Columbus' voyages to the New World became known, he decided to embark on his first voyage to the Americas, along with Juan de la Cosa, on Rodrigo de Bastidas' expedition. Bastidas had a license to bring back treasure for the king and queen, while keeping four-fifths for himself, under a policy known as the Quinto Real, or "royal fifth."[citation needed] In 1501, he crossed the Caribbean coasts from the east of Panama, along the Colombian coast, through the Gulf of Urabá toward Cabo de la Vela. The expedition continued to explore the north east of South America, until they realized they did not have enough men and sailed to Hispaniola.

With his share of the earnings from this campaign, Balboa settled in Hispaniola in 1505, where he resided for several years as a planter and pig farmer. He was not successful in this enterprise, however, and ended up in debt. Finally, he was forced to abandon life on the island.


In 1509, wishing to escape his creditors in Santo Domingo, Balboa set sail as a stowaway, hiding inside a barrel together with his dog Leoncico,[2] in the expedition commanded by the Alcalde Mayor[3] of Nueva Andalucía, Martín Fernández de Enciso, whose mission it was to aid Alonso de Ojeda, his superior. De Ojeda, together with seventy men, had founded the settlement of San Sebastián de Urabá in Nueva Andalucía, on the location where the city of Cartagena de Indias would later be built. However, the settlers encountered numerous warlike natives living in the area, who used poisoned weapons, and de Ojeda was injured in the leg. A short time later, de Ojeda sailed for Hispaniola, leaving the colony under the supervision of Francisco Pizarro, who, at that time, was only a soldier waiting for Enciso's expedition to arrive. De Ojeda asked Pizarro to leave some men in the settlement for fifty days and, if no help arrived at the end of that time, to use all possible means to get back to Hispaniola.

Before the expedition arrived at San Sebastián de Urabá, Fernández de Enciso discovered Balboa aboard the ship, and threatened to leave him at the first uninhabited island they encountered; he later thought better of this and decided that Balboa's knowledge of that region, which he had explored eight years before, would be of great utility. This, in addition to the crew's pleas for his life, left Fernández de Enciso with no choice but to spare Balboa and keep him aboard. Moreover, both agreed on removing de Nicuesa as governor of Veragua.


The founding of Santa María



Mayor of Santa María

The victory of the Spanish over the natives and the founding of Santa María la Antigua del Darién, now located in a relatively calm region, earned Balboa authority and respect among his companions. They were increasingly hostile toward Alcalde Mayor Fernández de Enciso, whom they considered a greedy despot because of the restrictions he imposed on their appropriation of the natives' gold.

Balboa took advantage of the situation, acting as the spokesman for the disgruntled settlers. He removed Fernández de Enciso from the position of alcalde mayor, using the following legal manoeuvre: de Enciso was now controlling an area in Veragua, to the west of the Gulf of Urabá; since he was substituting for Alonso de Ojeda, his mandate was illegitimate, because the governor of Veragua was Diego de Nicuesa, not de Ojeda; therefore, Fernández de Enciso should be deposed and arrested. After de Enciso's ouster, a more open government was established and a municipal council was elected (the first in the Americas). Two alcaldes [4] were appointed: Martín Samudio and Vasco Núñez de Balboa.

Shortly after this, a flotilla led by Rodrigo Enrique de Colmenares arrived in Santa María. His objective was to find de Nicuesa, who was also facing some difficulties in the north of Panamá. When de Colmenares learned about the recent events, he convinced the town's settlers that they should submit to the authority of de Nicuesa, since their land was under his jurisdiction. Enrique de Colmenares invited two representatives, to be named by the local government, to travel with his flotilla and offer de Nicuesa authority over the city. The two representatives were Diego de Albites and Diego del Corral.

Governor of Veragua

Enrique de Colmenares found de Nicuesa near the town of Nombre de Dios, badly wounded and with few men remaining, on account of a skirmish with local natives. After his rescue, Governor de Nicuesa heard about Balboa's exploits, the chieftain Cémaco's bounty, and Santa María's prosperity. He vowed that he would punish Balboa as soon as he gained control of the city, since he regarded his actions as a challenge to his authority in Veragua.




Balboa setting his dogs upon Indian practitioners of homosexuality (1594) engraving from the New York Public Library. The rendering was by the Flemish Protestant artist Theodor de Bry.





Balboa's travel route to the South Sea, 1513


European discovery of the Pacific Ocean

The unexpected news of a new kingdom, rich in gold, was received by Balboa with great interest. He returned to Santa María at the beginning of 1513 to recruit more men from Hispaniola. It was there that he learned that Fernández de Enciso had told the colonial authorities what had happened at Santa María. After seeing that there would be no assistance from Hispaniola, Balboa sent Enrique de Colmenares directly to Spain to look for help.

While the expedition to the South Sea (the name at the time of the Pacific Ocean) was being organized in Santa María, some explorers travelled ten leagues (around 50 km or 30 miles) up the Atrato River toward the interior, but came back empty-handed. Balboa's request for men and supplies had been denied: Enciso's case was by then widely known in the Spanish court. Therefore, Balboa had no choice but to carry out his expedition with the few resources that he had on hand in Santa María.

Balboa claiming possession of the South Sea

Using information given by various friendly caciques, Balboa started his journey across the Isthmus of Panama on September 1, 1513, together with 190 Spaniards, a few native guides, and a pack of dogs. Using a small brigantine and ten native canoes, they sailed along the coast and made landfall in cacique Careta's territory. On September 6, the expedition continued, now reinforced with 1,000 of Careta's men, and entered cacique Ponca's land. Ponca had reorganized and attacked, but he was defeated and forced to ally himself with Balboa. After a few days, and with several of Ponca's men, the expedition entered the dense jungle on September 20, and, with some difficulty, arrived four days later in the lands of cacique Torecha, who ruled in the village of Cuarecuá. In this village, a fierce battle took place, during which Torecha was defeated and killed in battle. His followers decided to join the expedition. However, the group was by then exhausted and several men were badly wounded, so many decided to stay in Cuarecuá to regain their strength.


Possession and conquest of the South Sea





From there, he crossed the lands of Ponca and Careta, to finally arrive in Santa María on January 19, 1514, with a treasure in cotton goods, more than 100,000 castellanos worth of gold, to say nothing of the pearls. All this, however, did not compare to the magnitude of the "discovery" of the South Sea on behalf of Spain. Balboa commanded Pedro de Arbolancha to set sail for Spain with news of this "discovery". He also sent one fifth of the treasure to the king, as the law required.

Disputes with Pedro Arias



Pedrarias was accompanied on this expedition by Gaspar de Espinosa, who held the office of alcalde mayor; the very same Martín Fernández de Enciso whom Balboa had forced into exile, now as Chief Constable (Alguacil Mayor);[6] the royal officer and chronicler Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo; as well as several captains, among them Juan de Ayora, Pedrarias' lieutenant. There were also several clerics, most notably the Franciscan friar Juan de Quevedo, appointed bishop of Santa María. There were also women among the travellers, among them Isabel de Bobadilla, Pedrarias' wife. More than 500 men died from starvation or due to the inclemencies of the weather soon after reaching Darién. Fernández de Oviedo was to note that knights covered in silk and brocade, who distinguished themselves valiantly in the Italian Wars, would die, consumed by hunger and fever, due to the nature of the tropical jungle.

Balboa received Pedrarias and his representatives in July 1514 and accepted resignedly his replacement as governor and mayor. The settlers, however, did not like the change and some were planning to take up arms against Pedrarias, even as Balboa showed respect to the new colonial authorities.

As soon as Pedrarias took charge, Gaspar de Espinosa had Balboa arrested and tried "in absentia", sentencing him to pay reparations to Fernández de Enciso and others. He was, however, found innocent of the charge of murdering de Nicuesa, so he was freed shortly afterwards.

Due to overpopulation in Santa María, Pedrarias called on several expeditionaries to search for new locations fit for settlement. Balboa requested of Pedrarias that he be allowed to explore the Dabaibe region, along the Atrato river, for there was a rumour of the existence of a temple filled with vast riches there. However, this expedition turned out to be a failure, leaving Balboa wounded due to constant attacks by the region's natives.

This setback, however, did not deter Balboa's ambitions of returning to explore the South Sea. Secretly, he arranged to recruit a contingent of men from Cuba. The ship carrying them berthed just outside Santa María, and its caretaker informed Balboa of their arrival, receiving in return 70 gold castellanos. Pedrarias, however, soon found out about the ship; furious, he had Balboa arrested, took away all his men and was planning to lock him up in a wooden cage. He was held back from doing this by Bishop de Quevedo, who appealed to him not to abuse his power on Balboa.

Luckily for Balboa, around that time the Spanish Crown would finally recognize his valuable services. The king bestowed on him the titles of "Adelantado[7] of the South Seas" and "Gobernador of Panama and Coiba". On top of this, the King instructed Pedrarias to show Balboa the greatest respect and to consult him on all matters pertaining the conquest and government of Castilla de Oro. Because of all this, Pedrarias was to release and exonerate Balboa, lifting all charges brought up against him in the matter of the clandestine recruitment of an expeditionary party.

Downfall and death

At that point, the rivalry between Balboa and Pedrarias ceased abruptly, due in large part to the intercession of Bishop de Quevedo and Isabel de Bobadilla, who arranged for Balboa's marriage to María de Peñalosa, one of Pedrarias' daughters, who was in Spain. Shortly thereafter, the bishop left for Spain and the marriage took place by proxy (they would never met because she was in Spain and Balboa would never return to his homeland). The friendship between Pedrarias and Balboa lasted barely two years, but in that time Balboa came to show great filial affection toward his father-in-law.

Execution of Balboa


In 1519, Balboa moved to Acla with 300 men and, using the manpower of the natives and African slaves, managed to gather the materials necessary to fashion new ships. He traveled up to the Rio Balsas (Balsas River), where he had four ships built. He travelled 74 km (46 mi) through the Pacific, surrounding the Pearl Islands and the coasts of Darién, up to Puerto Piñas, so named because of the large amounts of pineapples (piñas) he found there. He then returned to Acla, to continue the construction of sturdier ships.


Balboa's trial began in January, 1519, and on the fifteenth of that month,[citation needed] de Espinosa sentenced him to death by decapitation. Four of Balboa's friends, Fernando de Argüello, Luis Botello, Hernán Muñoz, and Andrés Valderrábano, accused as accomplices, were sentenced to the same fate. The sentence was to be carried out in Acla, to show that the conspiracy had its roots in that colony.




Monument of Vasco Núñez de Balboa in Panama City.


Although Balboa suffered a premature death, his actions and deeds are remembered by history as the first European to cross America. Several parks and avenues throughout Panama bear the name "Vasco Núñez de Balboa," and a number of monuments honour his "discovery" of the South Sea. The Panamanian currency is called the Balboa, and his likeness appears on the obverse of most Panamanian coins. His name is also attached to Panama City's main port, Balboa (the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal) and the Balboa District within Panamá Province to which the Pearl Islands that he discovered belong. In San Francisco, California, USA, Balboa's name appears among a row of avenues which are named after Spanish conquistadors and in a San Francisco neighborhood Balboa Park. There is also a large park (Balboa Park) adjacent to downtown San Diego, California which was named after Balboa in 1910.[8] Balboa's name is also honoured in Madrid with a street and an underground station.

One of the highest orders granted by the Panamanian government to distinguished and outstanding figures, foreign and domestic, is the Orden Vasco Núñez de Balboa, in various degrees, as established by Law 27 from 28 January 1933.

The lunar crater Balboa was named after him.

Balboa appears in the lyrics to The Great Nations of Europe by composer/singer Randy Newman.

Balboa 1-cent, 1913 issue

Vasco Nunez de Balboa was featured on the 1-cent denomination of the Panama-Pacific Exposition of 1913. The 1-cent Balboa paid the one-cent card rate, and it was used in combination with other denominations to meet large weight and foreign destinations. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing issued over 330 million of these to the public.[9]

See also



  1. ^ The dates 12 January, 15 January and 21 January appear in sources.
  2. ^ a b Lidz, Franz (September 2013). "Tracking Balboa". Smithsonian (Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution) 44 (5): 32–36. 
  4. ^ Alcalde: judge or quasi-judicial official
  5. ^ Gobernador: governor of a settled and 'pacified' territory
  6. ^ Alguacil: may be translated as constable, bailiff, or sheriff
  7. ^ Adelantado: governor of a territory that is still possibly experiencing hostilities; a position slightly lower than that of gobernador
  8. ^ Christman (1985), p. 33
  9. ^ Haimann, Alexander T., “1-cent Balboa”, Arago: people, postage & the post, National Postal Museum online, viewed April 18, 2014.

External links