ipl-logo

Research Paper On Juan Ponce De Leon

826 Words4 Pages

Juan Ponce de Leon: Spanish Explorer Juan Ponce de Leon was born in the year of 1460 and died in the year of 1521. He was born to very wealthy parents. He was born in Spain and died in Havana, Cuba. He played a very significant role in explorations, discoveries, and the colonization of America. Ponce de Leon was one of the most influential explorers and a great governor for Puerto Rico. Ponce de Leon was a Spanish explorer and the first governor of Puerto Rico. According to Minster, “Juan Ponce de Leon was born in Spain, in a small village. The name of the village was Santervás de Campos which is today called Providence of Valladolid” (2017). Young Ponce de Leon “joined the war to conquer Granada, the last Moorish state on the Oberian peninsula” …show more content…

Studies show that Juan “found large deposits of gold” (Exploring Florida, 2002). He had a loathing lust for gold. Shortly thereafter, he left the island of Borinquen. In 1508, Ponce de Leon returned as ordered by the king of Spain. He had been commanded to explore and colonize the island that he then renamed Puerto Rico. He governed this island for two years and became extremely wealthy during his term. He married a Spanish woman, Leonore and they had one son and two daughters. The king then named Christopher Columbus' son the new …show more content…

He felt as if his reputation had been tarnished. This occurred around the year 1511. Ponce de Leon then decided to take sail again heading north through the Bahamas to Florida in quest of new land and fortunes.
“Ponce de León is widely believed to have discovered Florida while searching for the Fountain of Youth. Though legends of vitality-restoring waters were known on both sides of the Atlantic long before Ponce de León, the story of his searching for it when he discovered Florida was not recorded until after his death” (New World Encyclopedia, 2008). It is still uncertain as to if Ponce de Leon was actually in search for the Fountain of Youth and this may never be discerned. What is certain is that he was absolutely in search of power and wealth. These are the things that motivated him to set sail

Open Document