Alonso de Ojeda
Alonso de Ojeda Alonso de Ojeda or (pronounced ocheda; * to 1466 in Cuenca, Castilla La Mancha, Spain, † 1515 or 1516 in Santo Domingo ) was a Spanish navigator and explorer.
Life
Ojeda was the scion of an impoverished noble family. He appeared as a Page in the service of the Duke of Medinaceli, Don Luis de Cerda, one of the earliest patrons of Christopher Columbus. He got through the patronage of the Bishop of Burgos and later Patriarch of the West Indies Juan Rodríguez de Fonseca, the chance to accompany Christopher Columbus on his second expedition to America. When uprisings of the indigenous Arawak be Ojeda made a ( dubious ) name, he returned to Spain in 1496 back. He is best known for the capture of the cacique Caonabo.
After Columbus had discovered on his third voyage to the rich pearl coast of Venezuela for the Spanish crown, Hojeda 1499 undertook together with two cartographers, the Basque Juan de la Cosa and the Florentine Amerigo Vespucci, a foray there. This time, he commanded three ships on his own account. They discovered the Gulf of Maracaibo and the Guajira Peninsula. About the Bahamas is returned with 232 stolen Indians to Spain. Two years later, Ojeda settled down as governor in Maracaibo and founded under the protection of four ships a branch. The continued resistance of the indigenous population and the lack of food drove the crew to mutiny. They sat Hojeda caught and went with him to Haiti to put him on trial. He was deported from there to Spain but acquitted in 1503.
In the course of this expedition Ojeda discovered the coast of Guyana in 1499, he landed in the Orinoco delta and in Trinidad and gave a navigable bay the name "Venezuela " ( little Venice ) because they reminded him of the bay of Venice. According to Ojeda's return to Hispaniola, there was friction with Christopher Columbus, as was offended in his discovery of these privileges.
1502 equipped Ojeda from another expedition, with whom he landed on the American continent. He founded the colony of Santa Cruz, but did not keep long. Blame for the failure was primarily due to the incompetence of his helpers and extreme cruelty towards the natives. Finally, Ojeda quarreled with his companions, they accused him of embezzling certain riches for the king. Ojeda returned as a prisoner to Spain, where he was being tried. Although he was ultimately acquitted of all charges, the process Ojeda ruined financially, also suffered from its reputation.
It succeeded Ojeda yet to return again to Hispaniola. Together with his former partner Juan de La Cosa, he tried to spread the idea of colonies on the American mainland between Cabo de Vela and the Gulf of Urabá. Ultimately, he was able to gain the support of the Spanish Government, and he began to equip his last expedition.
In 1505 he launched a new attempt and settled with the entire northern coast of South America borrow more in 1508 ( under the name of New Andalusia ), but had its ups no success. But already the landing on the American mainland proved a fiasco: Hostile locals rubbed on the Spaniards, they had to compete on the sea to escape. Ojeda was still not discouraged and started at another suitable place appears the colony of San Sebastián. When trying to get supplies for the small settlement, suffered shipwreck and Ojeda -ended his life in abject poverty in Santo Domingo. He died lonely.