Diego Velazquez (1475-1552) was a Spanish conquistador who served as the Governor of Cuba and Viceroy of New Spain from 1511 until his death in 1552.
Biography[]
Diego Velazquez de Cuellar was born in Cuellar, Spain in 1475. Velazquez originally took part in Christofo Colombo's second expedition to the New World and in 1511 became the Viceroy of New Spain, a nation that he built almost single-handedly. He founded Santiago in 1514 and Havana in 1515, and authorized Hernan Cortes' invasion of Mexico in 1518. From 1521 onwards, Cortes fought a series of wars against the Aztec Empire and other Indian tribes in the region, and Velazquez was eager to send more troops for the conquest of Mexico. However, Cortes took power for himself in 1526 when he made Mexico the new capital of New Spain, isolating Velazquez on an island that would take years to reach by sea. Velazquez's attempt to punish Cortes failed; the force sent to arrest Cortes was ambushed and defected to the conquistador's cause. Velazquez died in 1552, and his son Pedro Velazquez succeeded him as the new Viceroy.
Family[]
He married Castellana Velazquez and had many children:
- Pedro Velazquez (born 1498)
- Ruy Guteres (born 1500, adopted)
- Carlos Velazquez (born 1541)