Hernando de Soto
~1500–1542 · Spanish (Extremadura) · Age of Discovery / Spanish Conquest
Known for: Led the first European expedition through the American Southeast and discovered the Mississippi River
De Soto was a veteran conquistador who served under Pizarro in Peru, then led 600 men on a four-year expedition through modern-day Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Texas—the most extensive early European exploration of North America.
He was searching for gold and found none. He fought numerous bloody battles with indigenous peoples and was the first European to see the Mississippi River. He died of fever on the river's banks, and his men sank his body in the Mississippi to prevent indigenous peoples from discovering the 'immortal' man had died.
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