Juan de Onate

In the late fifteenth century, interest was rekindled in areas of what would later become the southwestern United States. The Spanish province of New Mexico was largely unexplored territory, and was even thought to extend to what is now Canada. In addition to the goal of converting the natives, Spanish authorities also held out hope that New Mexico might contain great natural resources and wealth like Cortes's Mexico, and that the new territory might still yield a strait that would open a sea route to Asia.

Juan de Onate was from a wealthy and aristocratic Spanish family; his father held a prestigious position in Mexico and Juan was born there. As a young man, Onate had led campaigns to pacify Indians near the northern outposts of Mexico, and in 1595 he was awarded the highly prized contract to colonize and explore...