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Quick Facts
- NAME: Vasco Núñez de Balboa
- OCCUPATION: Explorer
- BIRTH DATE: 1475
- DEATH DATE: January 12, 1519
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Jerez de los Caballeros, Extremadura, Castile, Spain
- PLACE OF DEATH: Acla, near Darién, Panama
- Full Name: Vasco Núñez de Balboa
- AKA: Vasco Balboa
- AKA: Balboa
Best Known For
Explorer and conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa became the first European to see the Pacific Ocean.
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Play NowVasco Núñez de Balboa. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 04:16, May 21, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350.
Vasco Núñez de Balboa. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350 [Accessed 21 May 2013].
"Vasco Núñez de Balboa." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 21 2013, 04:16 http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350.
"Vasco Núñez de Balboa," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350 [accessed May 21, 2013].
"Vasco Núñez de Balboa," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350 (accessed May 21, 2013).
Vasco Núñez de Balboa [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 21] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350.
Vasco Núñez de Balboa, http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350 (last visited May 21, 2013).
Vasco Núñez de Balboa. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/vasco-n%C3%BA%C3%B1ez-de-balboa-9196350. Accessed May 21, 2013.
Synopsis
Born in Spain in 1475, explorer and conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa helped establish the town of Darién on the Isthmus of Panama, becoming interim governor. In 1513, he led the first European expedition to the Pacific Ocean, but news of the discovery arrived after the king had sent Pedro Arias de Ávila to serve as the new governor of Darién. Ávila, reportedly jealous of Balboa, had him beheaded for treason in 1519.
Early Life and Exploration
Born in 1475 in Jerez de los Caballeros, in the province of Extremadura in Castile, Spain, Vasco Núñez de Balboa went on to become the first European to see the Pacific Ocean.
At a time when many people in Spain were seeking their fortunes in the New World, Balboa joined an expedition to South America. After exploring the coast of present-day Colombia, Balboa stayed on the island of Hispaniola (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic). While there, he got into debt and fled, hiding away on a ship headed for the fledgling colony of San Sebastian.
Once he arrived at the settlement, Balboa discovered that most of the colonists had been killed by nearby native peoples. He then convinced the remaining colonists to move to the western side of the Gulf of Uraba. They established the town of Darién on the Isthmus of Panama, which is a small strip land that connects Central America and South America. Balboa became the interim governor of the settlement.
Seeing the Pacific Ocean
In 1513, Balboa led an expedition from Darién to search for a new sea reportedly to the south and for gold. He hoped that if he was successful, he would win the favor of Ferdinand, the king of Spain. While he didn't find the precious metal, he did see the Pacific Ocean, and claimed it and all of its shores for Spain.
Death
The news of the discovery arrived after the king had sent Pedro Arias de Ávila to serve as the new governor of Darién. The new governor was reportedly jealous of Balboa and ordered him to be arrest on charges of treason. After a brief trial, Balboa was beheaded on January 12, 1519, in Acla, near Darién, Panama.
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