Alonso Valiente
Encyclopedia
Alonso Valiente was a Spanish
conqueror. He was Hernan Cortés
' cousin
and secretary
. He was one of the first governors (Alguacil Mayor) of Mexico City
. He was also the first encomendero of Tecamachalco
, and he contributed to found Puebla de los Ángeles, where he also served as mayor
.
with Cristóbal Colón
's (Christopher Colombus') last expedition to the continent. He arrived in Santo Domingo
in 1508 with Don Diego Colón
. Valiente was one of the conquerors of Higüey
in today's Dominican Republic
and Borinquen (named by Cristóbal Colón San Juan Bautista) in what is now known as Puerto Rico
. He remained there from 1509 to 1521. He, his household, and sixty Spaniards he provisioned, arrived in Mexico City, only four months after the Spanish capture of the city. Valiente participated in the conquest of Michoacán
and Pánuco
. In 1524 he was also a part of Cortés' expedition to Las Hibueras in today's Honduras
. This is evident in the appointment of Bernal Díaz as a captain, a document that was signed by Alonso Valiente. There, Valiente helped to conquer the three islands of Guanaja
, in the coast of North Honduras. The inhabitants of these islands told that the crew of a vessel coming from today's Cuba
had captured and enslaved more than sixty people. Probably being faithful to the Laws of Burgos, Cortés then ordered Valiente and others to go and rescue these people. He gave him a brigantine
and the best artillery that was available. Valiente's expedition did not manage to capture the slavers. However they learned that the ship was originally sent from Santo Domingo
with other purposes, but the captain changed plans during the mission, realizing that he could capture slaves and make a profit. Alonso
Valiente is also one of the discoverers of the Old Bahama Channel
. Valiente also participated in the conquest of Chametla in Nueva Galicia
.
Valiente held a number of appointive offices in addition to acting as secretary to his relative Hernán Cortés
. His service is recounted in his coat of arms citation of 26 November 1547. In the 1520s Valiente was considered a vecino
of both Medellin (Spain)
, Veracruz
and Mexico City
simultaneously. By 1547 he was a citizen of both Mexico City
and Puebla
, which he contributed to found.
.
Juana de Mancilla is remembered from accounts of her punishment in Mexico city, when she was suspected of sorcery. This suspicion arose when she was urged to marry another man by the colonial factor, fearing that Valiente and all of the participants in one of Cortés' expeditions had died. But Mancilla claimed to be certain that Valiente and everyone in the expedition were alive. Therefore she remained faithful to Valiente. Because of that, the factor ordered to whip her, having interpreted her faith as sorcery. Later, the colonial factor got news which certified that Valiente and all of the other conquerors were indeed alive. When the factor understood that he had made a mistake, he issued an apology and decided to ask every gentleman in the colony to ride their horses in the streets, to honor Juana de Mancilla. From then on, she was known as Doña Señora Juana de Mancilla.
Cortés granted Valiente the encomienda
of Tecamachalco
in 1523. This property was valued in 3.300 pesos
in 1560. Valiente lived in Mexico City from 1526 to 1542. In 1527 he was also registered as a resident of Medellin (Spain). He was the attorney of the conquerors Luis Ponce the León and Alonso de Ávila. He was also a resident and the mayor of Puebla
from 1542 to 1555. He is also known to have owned land in Oaxtepec
.
Valiente built houses near the Concepción Convent in México. These houses were owned by Francisco de Peralta in 1558. This year, Alonso Valiente was also referred to the Holy Inquisition for having said that mere fornication was not a mortal sin.
He was present in the marriage of Juan Jaramillo and Doña Marina, and was a witness in the marriage of María Jaramillo and Luis de Quesada in 1546.
Together with Juan Altamirano, Alonso Valiente stayed in Mexico during Cortés' first trip to Spain. Both Altamirano and Valiente functioned as Hernan Cortés' legal representatives during his absence from Mexico.
Alonso Valiente had a second wife named Melchora de Aberrucia, with whom he had no children. He lived with her in what is now the city of Puebla
, becoming one of the city's founders and first governors.
. The slave had originally been acquired by the Portuguese in Northwestern Africa. Alonso took Juan to Spain and eventually allowed him to travel to South America, so that he could also try his chances as a conqueror. Juan Valiente first travelled to Perú from Guatemala, with Pedro de Alvarado
. He then joined Pedro de Almagro's company and finally Pedro de Valdivia
. Juan Valiente contributed to establish Santiago, Chile
. He is thus known in popular culture as one of the few African-conquerors in the New World. Juan Valiente lived as a free man in Chile
. He never got to pay for his freedom, although he tried to do so. Alonso Valiente insisted in recovering the money, but it became virtually impossible for Juan Valiente
to dispatch the payments to New Spain
. Juan Valiente finally died in Tucapel
, Chile
in 1553.
Alonso Valiente is also known for having been the first owner of La Casa del Conde (the count's house) in one of his encomienda
s in Tecamachalco
. Upon Alonso Valiente's death, the house was taken over by Valiente's widow and second wife, Melchora de Aberrucia. She remarried with Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
, a relative of Luis de Velasco
, the second Viceroy
of New Spain. Their son, Rodrigo de Vivero y Aberrucia
, became the first Count of the Valley of Orizaba. Since then, the house has been popularly known as La Casa del Conde (the count's house).
The Spanish
comic book
series of 1957 Capitán Valiente (the brave captain), illustrated by Manuel Gago García, with dialogues by Pedro Quesada, was loosely based on Alonso Valiente's character.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
conqueror. He was Hernan Cortés
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...
' cousin
Cousin
In kinship terminology, a cousin is a relative with whom one shares one or more common ancestors. The term is rarely used when referring to a relative in one's immediate family where there is a more specific term . The term "blood relative" can be used synonymously and establishes the existence of...
and secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
. He was one of the first governors (Alguacil Mayor) of Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
. He was also the first encomendero of Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco is a municipality in the state of Puebla, Mexico....
, and he contributed to found Puebla de los Ángeles, where he also served as mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
.
Conqueror
Alonso Valiente first traveled to the New WorldNew World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
with Cristóbal Colón
Cristobal Colon
Cristobal Colon may refer to:*Cristobal Colon, Spanish version of the name of the explorer Christopher Columbus*Spanish cruiser Cristobal Colon , a Spanish unprotected cruiser that foundered off Cuba in 1895...
's (Christopher Colombus') last expedition to the continent. He arrived in Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
in 1508 with Don Diego Colón
Diego Colón
Diego Columbus was the 2nd Admiral of the Indies, 2nd Viceroy of the Indies and 3rd Governor of the Indies. He was the firstborn son of Christopher Columbus and wife Filipa Moniz Perestrelo, and was born in 1479/1480 in Porto Santo, Portugal or 1474 in Lisbon, Portugal. He died February...
. Valiente was one of the conquerors of Higüey
Higüey
Higüey mey refer to:*Salvaleón de Higüey, a city also known as Higüey in the Dominican Republic*Higüey Province, see La Altagracia Province, Dominican Republic*Higuey Taíno...
in today's Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
and Borinquen (named by Cristóbal Colón San Juan Bautista) in what is now known as Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. He remained there from 1509 to 1521. He, his household, and sixty Spaniards he provisioned, arrived in Mexico City, only four months after the Spanish capture of the city. Valiente participated in the conquest of Michoacán
Michoacán
Michoacán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia...
and Pánuco
Pánuco (province)
The Province of Pánuco was a province of the Spanish colony of New Spain. It was probably discovered by Amerigo Vespucci in 1498, and later by Juan de Grijalva. It is located on the Mexican gulf coast centered around Santiestebán de Pánuco, from the river of Tuxpan and extending into the current...
. In 1524 he was also a part of Cortés' expedition to Las Hibueras in today's Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
. This is evident in the appointment of Bernal Díaz as a captain, a document that was signed by Alonso Valiente. There, Valiente helped to conquer the three islands of Guanaja
Guanaja
Guanaja is one of the Bay Islands of Honduras, and is in the Caribbean. It is about 70 km off the north coast of Honduras, and 12 km from the island of Roatan. One of the cays off Guanaja, also called Guanaja or Bonnaca or Low Cay , is near the main island, and contains most of the...
, in the coast of North Honduras. The inhabitants of these islands told that the crew of a vessel coming from today's Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
had captured and enslaved more than sixty people. Probably being faithful to the Laws of Burgos, Cortés then ordered Valiente and others to go and rescue these people. He gave him a brigantine
Brigantine
In sailing, a brigantine or hermaphrodite brig is a vessel with two masts, only the forward of which is square rigged.-Origins of the term:...
and the best artillery that was available. Valiente's expedition did not manage to capture the slavers. However they learned that the ship was originally sent from Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo
Santo Domingo, known officially as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city in the Dominican Republic. Its metropolitan population was 2,084,852 in 2003, and estimated at 3,294,385 in 2010. The city is located on the Caribbean Sea, at the mouth of the Ozama River...
with other purposes, but the captain changed plans during the mission, realizing that he could capture slaves and make a profit. Alonso
Valiente is also one of the discoverers of the Old Bahama Channel
Old Bahama Channel
The Old Bahama Channel is a strait off the northern coast of Cuba and the Sabana-Camagüey Archipelago and south of the Great Bahama Bank. It is approximately long and wide....
. Valiente also participated in the conquest of Chametla in Nueva Galicia
Nueva Galicia
El Nuevo Reino de Galicia or Nueva Galicia was an autonomous kingdom of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. It was named after Galicia in Spain...
.
Valiente held a number of appointive offices in addition to acting as secretary to his relative Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés
Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro, 1st Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca was a Spanish Conquistador who led an expedition that caused the fall of the Aztec Empire and brought large portions of mainland Mexico under the rule of the King of Castile in the early 16th century...
. His service is recounted in his coat of arms citation of 26 November 1547. In the 1520s Valiente was considered a vecino
Vecino
In Spanish-speaking areas, a vecino is nowadays a neighbor, or a resident of a place.In older times throughout the Spanish Empire, a person who has a house and home in a town or city and contributes to its expenses, not necessarily living near to the person referring to him; a local figure of some...
of both Medellin (Spain)
Medellín (Spain)
Medellín is a village in the province of Badajoz, Extremadura, Spain, notable as the birthplace of Hernán Cortés in 1485 and the site of the Battle of Medellín, during the Peninsular War...
, Veracruz
Veracruz
Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave , is one of the 31 states that, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided in 212 municipalities and its capital city is...
and Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
simultaneously. By 1547 he was a citizen of both Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
and Puebla
Puebla
Puebla officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 217 municipalities and its capital city is Puebla....
, which he contributed to found.
.
Family and life in the New World
Valiente arrived in Mexico with his first wife, Juana de Mancilla. Sources indicate that Valiente did not get a new wife until around 1555. However, there is no record about Mancilla's death or any other form of dissolution of the marriage. She is thought to have died during the 1550s.. Another popular theory is that Juana de Mancilla settled in what is now El Salvador, in land which had been granted to Alonso Valiente.Juana de Mancilla is remembered from accounts of her punishment in Mexico city, when she was suspected of sorcery. This suspicion arose when she was urged to marry another man by the colonial factor, fearing that Valiente and all of the participants in one of Cortés' expeditions had died. But Mancilla claimed to be certain that Valiente and everyone in the expedition were alive. Therefore she remained faithful to Valiente. Because of that, the factor ordered to whip her, having interpreted her faith as sorcery. Later, the colonial factor got news which certified that Valiente and all of the other conquerors were indeed alive. When the factor understood that he had made a mistake, he issued an apology and decided to ask every gentleman in the colony to ride their horses in the streets, to honor Juana de Mancilla. From then on, she was known as Doña Señora Juana de Mancilla.
Cortés granted Valiente the encomienda
Encomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
of Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco is a municipality in the state of Puebla, Mexico....
in 1523. This property was valued in 3.300 pesos
Pesos
Pesos may refer to** Peso, the currency, in plural form* Fenfluramine, by the trade name Pesos...
in 1560. Valiente lived in Mexico City from 1526 to 1542. In 1527 he was also registered as a resident of Medellin (Spain). He was the attorney of the conquerors Luis Ponce the León and Alonso de Ávila. He was also a resident and the mayor of Puebla
Puebla
Puebla officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 217 municipalities and its capital city is Puebla....
from 1542 to 1555. He is also known to have owned land in Oaxtepec
Oaxtepec
Oaxtepec is a town within the municipality of Yautepec in the northern part of the Mexican state of Morelos. Its main industry is tourism, mostly aimed at the inhabitants of nearby Mexico City, and the town possesses various aquatic resorts and hotels. The climate is tropical and the countryside...
.
Valiente built houses near the Concepción Convent in México. These houses were owned by Francisco de Peralta in 1558. This year, Alonso Valiente was also referred to the Holy Inquisition for having said that mere fornication was not a mortal sin.
He was present in the marriage of Juan Jaramillo and Doña Marina, and was a witness in the marriage of María Jaramillo and Luis de Quesada in 1546.
Together with Juan Altamirano, Alonso Valiente stayed in Mexico during Cortés' first trip to Spain. Both Altamirano and Valiente functioned as Hernan Cortés' legal representatives during his absence from Mexico.
Alonso Valiente had a second wife named Melchora de Aberrucia, with whom he had no children. He lived with her in what is now the city of Puebla
Puebla
Puebla officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Puebla is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 217 municipalities and its capital city is Puebla....
, becoming one of the city's founders and first governors.
Popular culture
Alonso Valiente is also known to have purchased a slave, who was baptized and received the Christian name of Juan ValienteJuan valiente
Juan Valiente , Spanish black conquistador.As many black conquistadors like Juan Garrido and Sebastián Toral in Mexico, Juan Bardales in Honduras and Panama, or Juan Beltrán , Valiente was born with another name in Western Africa till 1505 and arrived as slave to Mexico, where was bought by a...
. The slave had originally been acquired by the Portuguese in Northwestern Africa. Alonso took Juan to Spain and eventually allowed him to travel to South America, so that he could also try his chances as a conqueror. Juan Valiente first travelled to Perú from Guatemala, with Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado
Pedro de Alvarado y Contreras was a Spanish conquistador and governor of Guatemala. He participated in the conquest of Cuba, in Juan de Grijalva's exploration of the coasts of Yucatan and the Gulf of Mexico, and in the conquest of Mexico led by Hernan Cortes...
. He then joined Pedro de Almagro's company and finally Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro de Valdivia
Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva was a Spanish conquistador and the first royal governor of Chile. After serving with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was sent to South America in 1534, where he served as lieutenant under Francisco Pizarro in Peru, acting as his second in command...
. Juan Valiente contributed to establish Santiago, Chile
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
. He is thus known in popular culture as one of the few African-conquerors in the New World. Juan Valiente lived as a free man in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. He never got to pay for his freedom, although he tried to do so. Alonso Valiente insisted in recovering the money, but it became virtually impossible for Juan Valiente
Juan valiente
Juan Valiente , Spanish black conquistador.As many black conquistadors like Juan Garrido and Sebastián Toral in Mexico, Juan Bardales in Honduras and Panama, or Juan Beltrán , Valiente was born with another name in Western Africa till 1505 and arrived as slave to Mexico, where was bought by a...
to dispatch the payments to New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
. Juan Valiente finally died in Tucapel
Tucapel
Tucapel is a town and commune in the Arauco Province, Biobío Region, Chile. It was once a region of Araucanía named for the Tucapel River. The name of the region derived from the rehue and aillarehue of the Moluche people of the area between the Lebu and the Lleulleu Rivers, who were famed for...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
in 1553.
Alonso Valiente is also known for having been the first owner of La Casa del Conde (the count's house) in one of his encomienda
Encomienda
The encomienda was a system that was employed mainly by the Spanish crown during the colonization of the Americas to regulate Native American labor....
s in Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco
Tecamachalco is a municipality in the state of Puebla, Mexico....
. Upon Alonso Valiente's death, the house was taken over by Valiente's widow and second wife, Melchora de Aberrucia. She remarried with Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco was a Spanish colonial officer from New Spain. In 1563 he married Melchora de Aberrucia, who was Alonso Valiente's widow, and thereby disposed the encomienda of Tecamachalco...
, a relative of Luis de Velasco
Luis de Velasco
Luís de Velasco was the second viceroy of New Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the mid-sixteenth century....
, the second Viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
of New Spain. Their son, Rodrigo de Vivero y Aberrucia
Rodrigo de Vivero y Aberrucia
Rodrigo de Vivero y Aberrucia, 1st Count of Valle de Orizaba was a Spanish noble who served as the 13th governor and captain-general of the Philippines from 1608 to 1609...
, became the first Count of the Valley of Orizaba. Since then, the house has been popularly known as La Casa del Conde (the count's house).
The Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series of 1957 Capitán Valiente (the brave captain), illustrated by Manuel Gago García, with dialogues by Pedro Quesada, was loosely based on Alonso Valiente's character.