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| − | + | The '''Luna expedition''' was a [[1559]] Spanish venture led by [[Tristán de Luna y Arellano]] that established an ephemeral colony on [[Pensacola Bay]], near the [[barrancas]] on modern-day [[NAS Pensacola]]. Most of the encampment's supplies were still loaded on the ships a month later when a [[September 19]] [[Hurricane of 1559|hurricane]] wrecked most of the fleet. | |
| − | The '''Luna expedition''' was a [[1559]] Spanish venture led by [[Tristán de Luna y Arellano]] that established an ephemeral colony on [[Pensacola Bay]], near the [[ | ||
It was the first colonization attempt in what is now the continental United States, leading to the tourism slogan "[[America's First Settlement]]." However, [[Wikipedia:List of North American cities by year of foundation|other North American settlements]] in modern-day Mexico and Canada preceded the 1559 Luna expedition, as did the Spanish presence on Puerto Rico, now a U.S. territory. After the Pensacola colony was abandoned, the French established [[Wikipedia:Fort Caroline|Fort Caroline]] in [[1564]] on Florida's east coast, on the site of latter day [[Wikipedia:Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]]. In [[1565]] the Spanish destroyed Fort Caroline and established [[Wikipedia:St. Augustine, Florida|St. Augustine]], which became the oldest continually inhabited city within the continental United States. | It was the first colonization attempt in what is now the continental United States, leading to the tourism slogan "[[America's First Settlement]]." However, [[Wikipedia:List of North American cities by year of foundation|other North American settlements]] in modern-day Mexico and Canada preceded the 1559 Luna expedition, as did the Spanish presence on Puerto Rico, now a U.S. territory. After the Pensacola colony was abandoned, the French established [[Wikipedia:Fort Caroline|Fort Caroline]] in [[1564]] on Florida's east coast, on the site of latter day [[Wikipedia:Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]]. In [[1565]] the Spanish destroyed Fort Caroline and established [[Wikipedia:St. Augustine, Florida|St. Augustine]], which became the oldest continually inhabited city within the continental United States. | ||
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==Landing & hurricane== | ==Landing & hurricane== | ||
| − | De Luna was given thirteen ships and more than 1,500 soldiers and settlers, under six captains of cavalry and six of infantry. They | + | De Luna was given thirteen ships and more than 1,500 soldiers and settlers, under six captains of cavalry and six of infantry. They arrived in the bay on [[August 14]] and made landfall on [[August 15]]. It is believed that their encampment was on or near the [[Barrancas de Santo Tomé]], the site of several later fortifications, on the grounds of modern-day [[Naval Air Station Pensacola]]. |
| − | + | De Luna dispatched the factor Luis Daza with a galleon back to [[Wikipedia:Veracruz, Veracruz|Vera Cruz]] to announce his safe arrival. He fitted two other vessels to sail to Spain, awaiting the return of two exploring parties. With much of the colony's stores still on the ships, de Luna sent several exploring parties inland to scout the area; they returned after three weeks having found only one Indian town. | |
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| − | De Luna dispatched the factor Luis Daza with a galleon back to Vera Cruz to announce his safe arrival. He fitted two other vessels to sail to Spain, awaiting the return of two exploring parties. With much of the colony's stores still on the ships, de Luna sent several exploring parties inland to scout the area; they returned after three weeks having found only one Indian town. | ||
Before they could unload the vessels, on the night of [[September 19]], a [[Hurricane of 1559|hurricane]] (with [[storm surge]]) swept through and destroyed most of the ships and cargo: five ships, a galleon and a bark, pushing one caravel and its cargo into a grove inland. | Before they could unload the vessels, on the night of [[September 19]], a [[Hurricane of 1559|hurricane]] (with [[storm surge]]) swept through and destroyed most of the ships and cargo: five ships, a galleon and a bark, pushing one caravel and its cargo into a grove inland. | ||
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==Aftermath== | ==Aftermath== | ||
| − | With the colony in serious danger, | + | With the colony in serious danger, most of the men traveled up the [[Alabama River]] to the village of [[Nanipacana]] (Nanipacna or Ninicapua), which they had found abandoned; they renamed the town "Santa Cruz" and moved in for several months. Back in Mexico, the Viceroy sent two relief ships in November, promising additional aid in the spring. |
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| − | + | The relief got the colony through the winter, but the supplies expected in the spring had not arrived by September. De Luna ordered the remainder of his force to march to the large native town of Coca, but the men mutinied. Bloodshed was averted by the settlement's missionaries, but soon after, [[Wikipedia:Ángel de Villafañe|Ángel de Villafañe]] arrived in Pensacola Bay and offered to take all who wished to leave on an expedition to [[Wikipedia:Cuba|Cuba]] and Santa Elena. De Luna relented and agreed to leave, eventually moving back to Mexico, where he died in 1571. The Pensacola colony was inhabited for several more months by Captain Biedma and a detachment of fifty men who Villafañe had left there, in case further orders arrived from Viceroy Velasco. | |
| − | When they sailed away, the area was not populated again by Europeans until [[1698]], when | + | When they sailed away, the area was not populated again by Europeans until [[1698]], when Spanish forces under [[Andrés de Arriola]] established the [[Presidio Santa María de Galve]]. |
{{sectstub}} | {{sectstub}} | ||
==Commemoration== | ==Commemoration== | ||
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In the mid-20th century, Pensacola residents began to recognize and celebrate the historical significance of the Luna expedition. | In the mid-20th century, Pensacola residents began to recognize and celebrate the historical significance of the Luna expedition. | ||
