Florida’s Forgotten Colony

This chapter tells the story of the ill-fated colonization attempt by Tristán de Luna to settle La Florida on the Gulf and Atlantic coasts for the Kingdom of Spain. Based on archival documentation, the history relates how 1,500 settlers and soldiers voyaged from Mexico to Pensacola with royal orders to build townsites, farm the land, and defend the new colony. This epic effort became doomed when, shortly after their arrival, the immigrants were struck by a hurricane that destroyed their supplies and foodstuffs. Despite several relief voyages and efforts to resettle elsewhere, the colony collapsed and became a forgotten chapter in Latin American history.