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Santa María de Belén
Santa María de Belén | |
|---|---|
Settlement | |
| Country | Panama |
| Founded | February 24, 1503 |
Santa María de Belén was the first Spanish settlement on the American mainland. It was located at the mouth of the Belén River, on the coast of the Governorate of Veragua in Panama.
It was founded on February 24, 1503, by Christopher Columbus. On his fourth voyage, with his ships already badly deteriorated, he decided to land at the mouth of a river that offered favorable conditions, and because it was January 6 (1503), he named it "Belén" (Bethlehem).
The Admiral wanted to establish a settlement there in order to secure control over the coasts of Veragua. He left his brother Bartolomé in charge of it, with some 80 men tasked with building the settlement. Meanwhile, Columbus would set out for Spain with three of the four ships to obtain reinforcements and carry on with the formal colonization.
At first, the Europeans managed to form a peace alliance with several Indigenous tribes, chiefly with that of King Quibián of Veragua, who had met with Columbus aboard one of his ships. After the Admiral's departure, however, the Indigenous people began to harass the Spanish settlers. This led Bartolomé to order the arrest of King Quibián and his entire family, in the hope that this would put an end to the attacks.
However, the Monarch managed to escape while they were being transported along the Veraguas River by throwing himself into the water from the canoe in which he was chained. His captors believed he had surely drowned. Against all odds, Quibián had reached land, and from there he persuaded the other neighboring tribes to launch a joint attack on the settlement of Santa María de Belén.
The Admiral's ships had already left the river and were anchored offshore, waiting for favorable winds and for the return of a boat that had been sent ashore to replenish their water supplies. Bartolomé had been receiving his final instructions, and when he returned to land he found the settlement under attack and was wounded in the fighting.
The squadron learned of the situation from a sailor who swam out to the ships and back. The crew then returned to land and picked up the surviving settlers, abandoning the settlement and then setting sail back to Spain.
External links
- Cristóbal Colón fundó Santa María de Belén (in Spanish)
- Video de Santa Maria de Belén A Lo Panameño (in Spanish)
