The Conquistador's Journey

Being one of four survivors out of a crew of 250 on the expedition Cabeza de Vaca was a part of, was not a walk in the park. Cabeza was on a ship setting sail for the New World, in 1527, when his ship was blown off course and landed him in Galveston Island, Texas. The Native Americans living in Galveston eventually became his slave owners for two years before he escaped. He encountered many obstacles including starvation, thirst, unfamiliarity, slavery, etc. He endured all of these over a course of seven years, before he made it out alive. The question that remains is, how did Cabeza de Vaca survive all of this? Cabeza survived, because he was very resourceful, he had the advantage of being able to

Cabeza de Vaca survived because of his success as a healer. “With a knife that I had, I opened his chest to that place…. I inserted the knife point, and with great difficulty, at last I pulled it out.” (Doc. C) “And this cure gave us a very great reputation among them throughout the whole land.” (Doc. C) “Cabeza and his crew members cured those who were sick and (the Spaniards) killed those who were well.” (Doc. D) All of these statements have to do with him being a success as a healer, either what he did to help them or what his effect was on other Native Americans.

Vaca and Cardenas were both Europeans who held positions of high status in the Spanish army. During their expeditions, both men interacted with Native American groups that were able to assist them along their travels. Even with the help of the Indians, their journeys were still difficult and long.  The reason for this is because of geographical and weather conditions. Furthermore, the scarcity of food and water also affected the length of the journey and those who were traveling. Yet, with all these difficulties, Vaca and Cardenas were both able to find what they were looking for.

On the surface, Cabeza de Vaca persistently tries to confirm his allegiance to his monarch throughout his writings. He wants to be viewed as a worthy and patriotically sound individual by his monarch and society. Cabeza de Vaca strives to showcase how even though his journeys are immensely more rugged than that of his counterparts he can still have success and achieve his goal (44). He is ultimately trying to show how he is furthering the social and cultural domestication of Native American tribes, and therefore; furthering the reaches of the crown. For example, following several stints of hard labor Cabeza de Vaca finds himself bleeding from the objects he has been transporting during his tasks. Cabeza de Vaca the states, “My only solace

“Since the survivors were held by different tribes or groups they were often separated. The next year at the time of the gathering of the tribes to eat prickly pears the four (Castillo, Dorantes, Estebanico, and Cabeza de Vaca) made their escape. (sjsu.edu). “During their escape, other tribes that they met along the way aided them and helped them. They escaped at the time when the tribes were going to pick pears, so food was not a problem at this time.” (sjsu.edu). “The Spaniards decided to build rafts and leave Florida by the sea.” (tshaonline.org). “Each raft was loaded with fewer than fifty men, and rose only six inches above the water. They had to sail their rafts as closely to the shore as possible in case something were to happen. They left on September 22, 1528, and all was going well until they crossed what is now the Mississippi River. Thrown off course by the strong winds, the five rafts eventually landed off the coast of Texas. (tshaonline.org). “By the spring of 1529, only thirteen Spaniards and an African slave were still alive, along with Cabeza de Vaca. Some of the men thought that he was dead because he had been gone for so long. Twelve of the fourteen men had headed towards the coast of Mexico.” (tshaonline.org). “They finally landed at a place that they named the Island of Misfortune, somewhere around what is now Galveston, Texas. Cabeza de Vaca and his men lived out on the island with the Karankawa Indians from 1529 to 1534, and were eventually separated due to a state of semi-slavery.”(americanjourneys.org). After Cabeza de Vaca and his men were separated from the Indians, he used his self-teaching skills and taught himself how to become a healer, or a doctor. “He explored all along the coast of East Texas, hoping to find a way into Mexico and explore some Spanish colonies. In 1534, the other survivors, Alfonso de Castillo, Andres Dorantes, and Estevan or Estebanico and

If you shipwreck forced you to survive facing many forces like native americans and thousand mile walks would you make it ? .In 1527 Cabeza and his crew set sail with his large crew to explore the new world. But unsuspectedly all that changed when he landed in florida, and lost their ships. Their only option was to travel to west and hope to make it back to Mexico City. When the crew reached texas most of his crew was dead. The native americans made them slaves. After escaping and meeting more indian groups he met back up with other three that survived crew mates and slipped away and walked back to Mexico city.( background essay).Cabeza de vaca survived because of his survival skills, his success as a healer, and his respect for the natives.

If you image yourself riding on a boat to set sail for new land and riches and you get thrown off path well that is what happened to Cabeza and his crew. The narvaez expedition sailed in 1527 until 1532 they went on this expedition because they wanted to set sail for new world. After the expedition the ships were carried off course in the gulf of mexico to what is today called Tampa, Florida. Cabezas rafts were blown ashore to Galveston Island and Indians captured him and he was slave for two years (background essay). How did Cabeza de vaca survive? Cabeza de vaca survived because of his success as a healer, survival skills, and his respect for the native americans.

One of the skills he used to survive was having wilderness skills. According to Document B it states that he used his wilderness skills to find food and use whatever was available. “Cabeza ate what was available, including berries, mollusks, rats, roots, lizards, snakes, and spiders”. This helped him because if he was by himself he new how to get through without dying. If he didn’t have wilderness skills then he wouldn't know what to eat, make a fire, or other things like that.

Would you be able to survive in the desert terrain, being shipwrecked on a island in the middle of nowhere or escape from indians and walk to mexico city and live to tell the tale? Cabeza de Vaca survived against all odds making it to mexico city after 8 treacherous years after being shipwrecked on an island, captured by indians, starved by the indians and walking alone in the desert for years. How was he able to survive in the new world? There are three main reasons; his survival skills, mutual respect with the Indian tribes and being the best healer in New Spain.

Cabeza de Vaca. Stranded, disoriented, and hungry, had to walk four hundred miles down a coast to the closest Spanish outpost. Cabeza de Vaca also had to cross a river nearly two hundred miles and didn’t know how to swim. And this wasn’t the only deranged scenario Cabeza de Vaca went through. According to Document A, Cabeza de Vaca and three hundred other men set sail in 1527 to colonize settlements on the Coast of Mexico. They were shipwrecked and was one of four other survivors by the time they got to the coast of Mexico. Cabeza de Vaca survived by being a healer, respecting Native Americans, and utilizing his wilderness skills.

When a person is starving, or drowning, standing on the brink of death, they are desperate. But what keeps them alive? It’s their will to survive. In the year of 1528, Cabeza de Vaca, one of the only four survivors of the original Narvaez expedition shipwrecked onto an island. This island was inhabited by Indians, and after two years of being their slave, de Vaca escaped and eventually walked all the way to Mexico City.

Have you ever had to lead a crew to an unknown territory and make it out alive? Cabeza de Vaca set sail to the New World in 1527 with 300 men by his side. Unfortunately, 300 dropped down to 4 after they shipwrecked on modern day Galveston Island. How did Cabeza de Vaca survive? Although he had many disadvantages, Cabeza de Vaca was able to survive because he had survival skills, he was considered a shaman, and was respected and by the Indians.

Imagine trying to survive being in the wild, with only a couple of crew members, and some unfriendly Indians. After Narvaez landed in Tampa Bay, Florida he ordered men to make rafts, and Cabeza was one of the leaders for the rafts. Finally the moment came when Cabeza and his crew members raft landed where historians believe is now day Galveston Island, Texas. Cabeza De Vaca survived because of his success as a healer, his respect for the Native Americans, and his survival and wilderness skills.

Most people believe that if you are lost it’s a navigational issue, but Solnit goes into depth in this chapter on what it means to be lost. Solnit gives examples of two people who were considered lost by people they ponce knew. Spanish conquistador Cabeza De Vaca was sent to explore uncharted land. Unfortunately, most of them that accompanied him died. He was found and fed by Native Americans, but later on he was put to work as a slave to the tribe. Solnit states “He was pared back to nothing, no language, no clothes, no weapons, no power”. (Solnit 68). Cabela and his men were slaves for multiple tribes. Fellow conquistadors later found him, but he was unrecognizable to them. Cabela De Vaca was viewed as a savage. Any shred of himself had been lost.

Cabeza de Vaca, a conquistador, shipwreck in the Island of Bad Luck. A year later on 4 out of the 250 men survive having nothing but each other. After many year of being a slave, working endlessly and never eating, he wanted quits. Him and 3 other survivors went to Mexico City to escape this nightmare. So how did Cabeza survive his journey? With god by his side and the hope of living was not the only reason why he survive, some main reasons why he survived was by his wilderness skill being amazing, he was considered a shaman to the Indians, and his ability to use his communication skills.