History of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States de Oñate. In all, Spaniards probed half of today's lower 48 states before the first English colonization attempt (Roanoke Island, 1585). The Spanish didn't just explore, they settled, creating the first permanent European settlement in the continental United States, at St. Augustine, Florida in 1565. Santa Fe, New Mexico also predates Jamestown, Virginia (of Pocahontas fame, founded in 1607) and Plymouth Colony (of "Mayflower", Pilgrims and Thanksgiving fame). In 1566 Pedro Menendez established Fort San Felipe on Santa Elena- which is present day Parris Island near Beaufort South Carolina. The fort was part of the Spanish King’s ongoing effort to
The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru (1609), which was translated into French in 1633. In turn, John Dryden employed "The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru" as a source for his 1665 play "The Indian Emperour". The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru The Cruelty of the Spaniards in Peru was an innovative 1658 theatrical presentation, a hybrid entertainment or masque or "operatic show", written and produced by Sir William Davenant. The music was composed by Matthew Locke. The work was significant in the evolution of English opera and musical theatre, and also of English drama; Davenant brought into the public theatre the techniques of scenery