Battle of Aguere
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Aguere, or Battle of San Cristóbal de La Laguna, was fought between forces of the Crown of Castile
, led by the Adelantado
(military governor) Alonso Fernández de Lugo
, and the natives of Tenerife
, called Guanches
. The battle took place November 14–15, 1494.
Fernández de Lugo had suffered defeat by Guanche forces at the First Battle of Acentejo
. The Battle of Aguere was a Castilian victory; whereas in the First Battle of Acentejo the Guanches had been favored by their knowledge of the mountainous terrain, in this engagement, the native forces found themselves at a disadvantage on the plain of Aguere.
The Battle of Aguere was later followed by the decisive Second Battle of Acentejo
more than a month later, which resulted in the complete Castilian conquest of Tenerife.
After the First Battle of Acentejo, Alonso Fernández de Lugo returned to Gran Canaria
, practically without troops, as the Castilian forces had suffered between 1,000 and 2,000 casualties at the First Battle of Acentejo. At Gran Canaria, Fernández de Lugo established contact with the merchants Francisco de Palomar, Nicolás de Angelote, Guillermo del Blanco and Mateo Viña in order to seek financial support for his planned conquest of Tenerife.
The group enlisted the aid of Juan Alfonso Pérez de Guzmán, the Duke of Medina Sidonia, who contributed 600 soldiers and 30 horsemen, veterans of the conquest of Granada
. (Béthencourt Alfonso cites, however, 670 foot soldiers and 80 horsemen). 500 Castilian soldiers were added to this force, a group that included survivors of the First Battle of Acentejo and a small contingent sent by Doña Inés Peraza, a noblewoman of Lanzarote
.
Fernández de Lugo also had the support of Ferdinand and Isabella, who had given him ten more months to complete his conquest of the Canaries. During this time of regrouping, he also captured many slaves in Gran Canaria.
The Castilian force embarked from Gran Canaria in November in 6 caravels and about a dozen smaller ships, and headed towards the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
. The total force numbered about 1,200 men, with a small company of knights and some artillery
–a force comparable in size to that which was defeated at Acentejo, but much more experienced and better trained and prepared.
The expedition, which Lugo had also funded with the sale of all of his properties, had landed at Santa Cruz, where he built two towers on the spot where he had constructed his first fort before his prior defeat.
After fortifying Santa Cruz, the Castilian marched on November 13–14 towards La Cuesta, a strategic high point to which the forces ascended to San Cristóbal de La Laguna from the coast.
The Castilians maintained Santa Cruz as their base of operations, with their fleet waiting there in case of a defeat.
In terms of strategy, the tableland of San Cristóbal de La Laguna was of vital importance to the conquest of the island. The path to reach the tableland from the coast, the path of La Cuesta, in those days was covered by thick vegetation that included Canarian pine, broom
, beech
, heather
, palm trees, dragos
, savin
and other species, and so the accession up the hill was a dangerous undertaking.
Fernández de Lugo garrisoned Santa Cruz to prevent a surprise attack. Meanwhile, the Guanches, alerted by inhabitants on the coast, gathered their forces. The mencey (the native term for a king) Bencomo
sent emissaries to the other menceys, and gathered about 2,000 warriors at La Cuesta before the Castilians had reached that point.
Bencomo sent two spies to observe the strength and size of the Castilian forces. However, the spies were discovered by the Castilians, and Bencomo could not benefit from any intelligence regarding the enemy forces. This gave the Castilians an early advantage, although they suffered from the disadvantage of advancing up a difficult height surrounded by Guanche warriors. However, having garrisoned Santa Cruz, Fernández de Lugo decided to take a risk in advancing this way, while Bencomo did not have sufficient forces to cover a possible retreat or defeat.
Fernández de Lugo was able to determine the movements of the Guanche forces thanks to their campfires, and ordered the advance of his 70 horsemen and 1,000 soldiers up La Cuesta under the cover of darkness, gaining the highest point of La Cuesta without being seen by the enemy.
-covered area called Aguere by the natives included Las Mercedes, parts of present-day San Cristóbal de La Laguna
, Ortigal, and other bordering regions.
Bencomo reorganized his forces and with 5,000 men rushed to what are now the outskirts of San Cristóbal, intending to cut off the Castilians. However, before the Guanche forces could do this, Fernández de Lugo’s army had already appeared before them.
The Guanche center was commanded by Bencomo, the right flank by Acaymo, mencey of Tacoronte; and the left flank by Tinguaro
.
The Castilian army extended from the present-day hermitage
of Gracia, which was selected by Fernández de Lugo due to its height, dominating the plain, to the positions on the field taken by Bencomo’s contingent of troops. Based on this information, Buenaventura Bonnet believes that the battle took place in the area now known as Barrio del Timple, Barrio Nuevo or Viña Nava, and the Urbanización de la Verdellada.
Fernández de Lugo's forces included natives from the other Canary Islands, including the Christianized Guanche prince of Gran Canaria
, Fernando Guanarteme
; Fernando's brother Maninidra
; Gomerans
, Palmeros
, and Guanches from the Christianized menceyato or kingdom of Güimar
.http://www.canalboinc.org/modules/news/print.php?storyid=33
The battle began with an assault by the Guanche troops, who were armed with traditional weapons like the banote or banot (a lance whose point was hardened by fire). They had no shields or armor, and wore the tamarco, a sheep or goat skin used for protection and warmth. The Guanche forces also hurled rocks.
The Castilian vanguard consisted of harquebusiers and crossbowmen who mowed the attacking Guanche ranks with their projectiles. The Castilian pikemen and horsemen then attacked the Guanches who were fleeing the crossbow and harquebus fire. This first engagement lasted several hours, and consisted of continual frontal attacks by Bencomo’s forces.
The flat terrain of the plain of Aguere benefited the Castilians, and Bencomo’s troops began to waver, suffering from a disorderly retreat, especially when the Guanche allies of the Castilians under Fernando de Guanarteme, arriving from Santa Cruz, began to arrive on the field of battle. The Castilian cavalry wreaked terrible losses on the Guanche forces. Miguel de Unamuno
compared Fernández de Lugo’s cavalry charge with the military actions of Hernán Cortés
in Mexico: “And then into the fray entered the horse, that monster that always put so much fear into the poor Indians... The result of those battles was always inevitable... Bencomo and his troops had to abandon the field of La Laguna.”
Tinguaro, injured in battle, continued to defend himself against seven horsemen as he retreated up the peak of San Roque. However, at the height of San Roque, a Castilian soldier named Martín Buendía was waiting for him on a cliff. Buendía had arrived on the field of battle separately from the rest of the Castilian troops, and had walked from Santa Cruz via the ravines of Santos and Drago.
Tinguaro, badly hurt and weakened by the loss of blood, spoke to Buendía in the Guanche language
, informing the Castilian of his status as a prince. Buendía, ignoring Tinguaro's entreaty, ran the Guanche through with a pike.
However, some historians contradict this account. Francisco P. De Luka writes, in the magazine Awañac (no. 1, 2004, pp. 124–125), that on November 14, 1494, Bencomo, not Tinguaro, was killed by Buendía. Francisco P. De Luka writes that on the slopes of San Roque in Laguna, Bencomo, armed with a lance, fought against ten Castilian soldiers, and that one Pedro Martín Buendía mortally wounded Bencomo with a pike. Tinguaro was injured in the fight at San Roque as well, but died two days later at Taoro.
As it happened, the body of the fallen Guanche prince was so badly disfigured that when the Castilians translated
it to Santa Cruz and made inquiries amongst the Guanche prisoners, the Guanches were unable to determine whether the body was that of Tinguaro or Bencomo.
In any case, Fernández de Lugo had the body decapitated. The head of the Guanche prince was placed on a pike and Fernández de Lugo ordered it to be taken to the enemy camp. The Guanches of Acentejo received the head to honor it in a funeral ceremony; a retinue, which included Tinguaro’s wife Guajara, traveled to the kingdom of Taoro for this ceremony.
In one last and final stand, the reduced Guanche forces, led by an injured Bencomo, tried to reach the heights of La Laguna, but they were cut to pieces by the Castilian cavalry. The cavalry was followed by the Castilian pikemen and rodeleros
("shield bearers"), who were equipped with steel shields or buckler
s known as rodela and sword
s (usually of the side-sword
type). One of these rodeleros killed Bencomo, and hundreds of Guanche warriors also fell at this time. The Guanche survivors headed towards Taoro, and the next day elected Bencomo’s son Bentor as their new king.
Some historians doubt that the death of Bencomo occurred at this time, but most historians base the fact that he died at this time on the testimony of witnesses such as Margarita Guanarteme, who declared in 1526 that in the battle, “they killed the Great King who was called King Venitomo [sic] of Taoro..."
In terms of Guanche casualties, Marín y Cubas cites 2,600, while Viana has a lower figure: 1,700 casualties. Figures on Castilian casualties are held as being between 30 and 55 dead and dozens of injured.
Guanche casualties are said to have been so high that it caused an epidemic
, which is also said to have forced Fernández de Lugo to move towards Acentejo.
. Bentor would commit suicide, throwing himself off the cliff of Tigaiga.
Crown of Castile
The Crown of Castile was a medieval and modern state in the Iberian Peninsula that formed in 1230 as a result of the third and definitive union of the crowns and parliaments of the kingdoms of Castile and León upon the accession of the then King Ferdinand III of Castile to the vacant Leonese throne...
, led by the Adelantado
Adelantado
Adelantado was a military title held by some Spanish conquistadores of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries.Adelantados were granted directly by the Monarch the right to become governors and justices of a specific region, which they charged with conquering, in exchange for funding and organizing the...
(military governor) Alonso Fernández de Lugo
Alonso Fernández de Lugo
Javier Alonso Luis Fernández de Lugo was a Spanish military man, conquistador, city founder, and administrator. He conquered the islands of La Palma and Tenerife for the Castilian Crown; they were the last of the Canary Islands to be conquered by Europeans. He was also the founder of the towns...
, and the natives of Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
, called Guanches
Guanches
Guanches is the name given to the aboriginal Berber inhabitants of the Canary Islands. It is believed that they migrated to the archipelago sometime between 1000 BCE and 100 BCE or perhaps earlier...
. The battle took place November 14–15, 1494.
Fernández de Lugo had suffered defeat by Guanche forces at the First Battle of Acentejo
First Battle of Acentejo
The First Battle of Acentejo took place on the island of Tenerife between the Guanches and an alliance of Spaniards, other Europeans, and associated natives , on May 31, 1494, during the Spanish conquest of this island...
. The Battle of Aguere was a Castilian victory; whereas in the First Battle of Acentejo the Guanches had been favored by their knowledge of the mountainous terrain, in this engagement, the native forces found themselves at a disadvantage on the plain of Aguere.
The Battle of Aguere was later followed by the decisive Second Battle of Acentejo
Second Battle of Acentejo
The Second Battle of Acentejo was a battle that took place on December 25, 1494, between the invading Spanish forces and the natives of the island of Tenerife, known as Guanches...
more than a month later, which resulted in the complete Castilian conquest of Tenerife.
Preparations
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands, with a population of 838,397 which constitutes approximately 40% of the population of the archipelago...
, practically without troops, as the Castilian forces had suffered between 1,000 and 2,000 casualties at the First Battle of Acentejo. At Gran Canaria, Fernández de Lugo established contact with the merchants Francisco de Palomar, Nicolás de Angelote, Guillermo del Blanco and Mateo Viña in order to seek financial support for his planned conquest of Tenerife.
The group enlisted the aid of Juan Alfonso Pérez de Guzmán, the Duke of Medina Sidonia, who contributed 600 soldiers and 30 horsemen, veterans of the conquest of Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
. (Béthencourt Alfonso cites, however, 670 foot soldiers and 80 horsemen). 500 Castilian soldiers were added to this force, a group that included survivors of the First Battle of Acentejo and a small contingent sent by Doña Inés Peraza, a noblewoman of Lanzarote
Lanzarote
Lanzarote , a Spanish island, is the easternmost of the autonomous Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 125 km off the coast of Africa and 1,000 km from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering 845.9 km2, it stands as the fourth largest of the islands...
.
Fernández de Lugo also had the support of Ferdinand and Isabella, who had given him ten more months to complete his conquest of the Canaries. During this time of regrouping, he also captured many slaves in Gran Canaria.
The Castilian force embarked from Gran Canaria in November in 6 caravels and about a dozen smaller ships, and headed towards the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital , second-most populous city of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the 21st largest city in Spain, with a population of 222,417 in 2009...
. The total force numbered about 1,200 men, with a small company of knights and some artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
–a force comparable in size to that which was defeated at Acentejo, but much more experienced and better trained and prepared.
The Castilian advance
After fortifying Santa Cruz, the Castilian marched on November 13–14 towards La Cuesta, a strategic high point to which the forces ascended to San Cristóbal de La Laguna from the coast.
The Castilians maintained Santa Cruz as their base of operations, with their fleet waiting there in case of a defeat.
In terms of strategy, the tableland of San Cristóbal de La Laguna was of vital importance to the conquest of the island. The path to reach the tableland from the coast, the path of La Cuesta, in those days was covered by thick vegetation that included Canarian pine, broom
Broom (shrub)
Brooms are a group of evergreen, semi-evergreen, and deciduous shrubs in the subfamily Faboideae of the legume family Fabaceae, mainly in the three genera Chamaecytisus, Cytisus and Genista, but also in many other small genera . All genera in this group are from the tribe Genisteae...
, beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
, heather
Ericaceae
The Ericaceae, commonly known as the heath or heather family, is a group of mostly calcifuge flowering plants. The family is large, with roughly 4000 species spread across 126 genera, making it the 14th most speciose family of flowering plants...
, palm trees, dragos
Dracaena draco
Dracaena draco, the Canary Islands Dragon Tree or Drago isa subtropical Dragon Tree native to the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Madeira, and locally in western Morocco, and introduced to the Azores...
, savin
Juniperus sabina
Juniperus sabina is a species of juniper native to the mountains of central and southern Europe and western and central Asia, from Spain east to eastern Siberia, typically growing at altitudes of 1,000-3,300 m....
and other species, and so the accession up the hill was a dangerous undertaking.
Fernández de Lugo garrisoned Santa Cruz to prevent a surprise attack. Meanwhile, the Guanches, alerted by inhabitants on the coast, gathered their forces. The mencey (the native term for a king) Bencomo
Bencomo
Bencomo was mencey or king of Taoro, a Guanche menceyato on the island of Tenerife. He fought in the First Battle of Acentejo, a victory for the Guanches against the invading Castilians, after having refused the terms of Alonso Fernández de Lugo, but may have perished on the heights of San Roque...
sent emissaries to the other menceys, and gathered about 2,000 warriors at La Cuesta before the Castilians had reached that point.
Bencomo sent two spies to observe the strength and size of the Castilian forces. However, the spies were discovered by the Castilians, and Bencomo could not benefit from any intelligence regarding the enemy forces. This gave the Castilians an early advantage, although they suffered from the disadvantage of advancing up a difficult height surrounded by Guanche warriors. However, having garrisoned Santa Cruz, Fernández de Lugo decided to take a risk in advancing this way, while Bencomo did not have sufficient forces to cover a possible retreat or defeat.
Fernández de Lugo was able to determine the movements of the Guanche forces thanks to their campfires, and ordered the advance of his 70 horsemen and 1,000 soldiers up La Cuesta under the cover of darkness, gaining the highest point of La Cuesta without being seen by the enemy.
The battle
The next day the Guanche forces were surprised that the Castilians had ascended La Cuesta and were dominating the rising grounds in the midst of the plain of Aguere. The laurisilvaLaurisilva
Laurisilva or laurissilva is a subtropical forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterised by evergreen, glossy-leaved tree species that look alike with leaves of lauroide type...
-covered area called Aguere by the natives included Las Mercedes, parts of present-day San Cristóbal de La Laguna
San Cristóbal de la Laguna
San Cristóbal de La Laguna is a city and municipality in the northern part of the island of Tenerife in the Province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, on the Canary Islands . The city is third-most populous city of the archipelago and second-most populous city of the island. It is a suburban area of the...
, Ortigal, and other bordering regions.
Bencomo reorganized his forces and with 5,000 men rushed to what are now the outskirts of San Cristóbal, intending to cut off the Castilians. However, before the Guanche forces could do this, Fernández de Lugo’s army had already appeared before them.
The Guanche center was commanded by Bencomo, the right flank by Acaymo, mencey of Tacoronte; and the left flank by Tinguaro
Tinguaro
Tinguaro was a Guanche sigoñe of Tenerife, also known as Achimenchia Tinguaro. He was the in charge of the area known as Acentejo. Half-brother of the mencey Bencomo, Tinguaro led the Guanche forces to victory against the invading Castilians in the First Battle of Acentejo...
.
The Castilian army extended from the present-day hermitage
Hermitage (religious retreat)
Although today's meaning is usually a place where a hermit lives in seclusion from the world, hermitage was more commonly used to mean a settlement where a person or a group of people lived religiously, in seclusion.-Western Christian Tradition:...
of Gracia, which was selected by Fernández de Lugo due to its height, dominating the plain, to the positions on the field taken by Bencomo’s contingent of troops. Based on this information, Buenaventura Bonnet believes that the battle took place in the area now known as Barrio del Timple, Barrio Nuevo or Viña Nava, and the Urbanización de la Verdellada.
Fernández de Lugo's forces included natives from the other Canary Islands, including the Christianized Guanche prince of Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands, with a population of 838,397 which constitutes approximately 40% of the population of the archipelago...
, Fernando Guanarteme
Fernando Guanarteme
Fernando Guanarteme was a Guanche ally of the Spaniards who assisted them in their conquest of the Canary Islands during the late fifteenth century. He was originally from Gran Canaria...
; Fernando's brother Maninidra
Maninidra
Maninidra was a Guanche from Gran Canaria, brother of the Guanarteme Tenesor Semidan, later known as Fernando Guanarteme. Maninidra was the mastermind and executor of the destruction of the Spanish fort at Gando...
; Gomerans
La Gomera
La Gomera is one of Spain's Canary Islands, located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Africa. In area, it is the second-smallest of the seven main islands of this group.- Political organization :...
, Palmeros
La Palma
La Palma is the most north-westerly of the Canary Islands. La Palma has an area of 706 km2 making it the fifth largest of the seven main Canary Islands...
, and Guanches from the Christianized menceyato or kingdom of Güimar
Güímar
Güímar is the name of a municipality, town, and valley in the eastern part of the Spanish island of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, and part of Santa Cruz de Tenerife...
.http://www.canalboinc.org/modules/news/print.php?storyid=33
The battle began with an assault by the Guanche troops, who were armed with traditional weapons like the banote or banot (a lance whose point was hardened by fire). They had no shields or armor, and wore the tamarco, a sheep or goat skin used for protection and warmth. The Guanche forces also hurled rocks.
The Castilian vanguard consisted of harquebusiers and crossbowmen who mowed the attacking Guanche ranks with their projectiles. The Castilian pikemen and horsemen then attacked the Guanches who were fleeing the crossbow and harquebus fire. This first engagement lasted several hours, and consisted of continual frontal attacks by Bencomo’s forces.
The flat terrain of the plain of Aguere benefited the Castilians, and Bencomo’s troops began to waver, suffering from a disorderly retreat, especially when the Guanche allies of the Castilians under Fernando de Guanarteme, arriving from Santa Cruz, began to arrive on the field of battle. The Castilian cavalry wreaked terrible losses on the Guanche forces. Miguel de Unamuno
Miguel de Unamuno
Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo was a Spanish essayist, novelist, poet, playwright and philosopher.-Biography:...
compared Fernández de Lugo’s cavalry charge with the military actions of 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...
in Mexico: “And then into the fray entered the horse, that monster that always put so much fear into the poor Indians... The result of those battles was always inevitable... Bencomo and his troops had to abandon the field of La Laguna.”
Retreat of Guanche forces and Tinguaro's death
Bencomo, Acaymo, and Tinguaro were all badly injured. They ordered their forces to retreat towards Tacoronte. The Castilians attacked again, preventing an orderly Guanche retreat. At the end of the day, Bencomo ordered a retreat towards the peak of San Roque, a move that would prevent cavalry attacks and where his men could defend themselves more effectively.Tinguaro, injured in battle, continued to defend himself against seven horsemen as he retreated up the peak of San Roque. However, at the height of San Roque, a Castilian soldier named Martín Buendía was waiting for him on a cliff. Buendía had arrived on the field of battle separately from the rest of the Castilian troops, and had walked from Santa Cruz via the ravines of Santos and Drago.
Tinguaro, badly hurt and weakened by the loss of blood, spoke to Buendía in the Guanche language
Guanche language
Guanche is an extinct language that was spoken by the Guanches of the Canary Islands until the 16th or 17th century. It is only known today through a few sentences and individual words recorded by early travellers, supplemented by several placenames, as well as some words assimilated into the...
, informing the Castilian of his status as a prince. Buendía, ignoring Tinguaro's entreaty, ran the Guanche through with a pike.
However, some historians contradict this account. Francisco P. De Luka writes, in the magazine Awañac (no. 1, 2004, pp. 124–125), that on November 14, 1494, Bencomo, not Tinguaro, was killed by Buendía. Francisco P. De Luka writes that on the slopes of San Roque in Laguna, Bencomo, armed with a lance, fought against ten Castilian soldiers, and that one Pedro Martín Buendía mortally wounded Bencomo with a pike. Tinguaro was injured in the fight at San Roque as well, but died two days later at Taoro.
As it happened, the body of the fallen Guanche prince was so badly disfigured that when the Castilians translated
Translation (relics)
In Christianity, the translation of relics is the removal of holy objects from one locality to another ; usually only the movement of the remains of the saint's body would be treated so formally, with secondary relics such as items of clothing treated with less ceremony...
it to Santa Cruz and made inquiries amongst the Guanche prisoners, the Guanches were unable to determine whether the body was that of Tinguaro or Bencomo.
In any case, Fernández de Lugo had the body decapitated. The head of the Guanche prince was placed on a pike and Fernández de Lugo ordered it to be taken to the enemy camp. The Guanches of Acentejo received the head to honor it in a funeral ceremony; a retinue, which included Tinguaro’s wife Guajara, traveled to the kingdom of Taoro for this ceremony.
In one last and final stand, the reduced Guanche forces, led by an injured Bencomo, tried to reach the heights of La Laguna, but they were cut to pieces by the Castilian cavalry. The cavalry was followed by the Castilian pikemen and rodeleros
Rodeleros
Rodeleros , also called espadachines colloquially known as "Sword and Buckler Men" were Spanish troops in the early 16th century, equipped with steel shields or bucklers known as rodela and swords .Originally conceived as an Italian attempt to revive the legionary swordsman,...
("shield bearers"), who were equipped with steel shields or buckler
Buckler
A buckler is a small shield, 15 to 45 cm in diameter, gripped in the fist; it was generally used as a companion weapon in hand-to-hand combat during the Medieval and Renaissance, as its size made it poor protection against missile weapons but useful in deflecting the blow of...
s known as rodela and sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s (usually of the side-sword
Side-sword
The spada da lato or "side-sword" is the Italian term for the type of sword popular during the late 16th century, corresponding to the Spanish espada ropera....
type). One of these rodeleros killed Bencomo, and hundreds of Guanche warriors also fell at this time. The Guanche survivors headed towards Taoro, and the next day elected Bencomo’s son Bentor as their new king.
Some historians doubt that the death of Bencomo occurred at this time, but most historians base the fact that he died at this time on the testimony of witnesses such as Margarita Guanarteme, who declared in 1526 that in the battle, “they killed the Great King who was called King Venitomo [sic] of Taoro..."
In terms of Guanche casualties, Marín y Cubas cites 2,600, while Viana has a lower figure: 1,700 casualties. Figures on Castilian casualties are held as being between 30 and 55 dead and dozens of injured.
Guanche casualties are said to have been so high that it caused an epidemic
Epidemic
In epidemiology, an epidemic , occurs when new cases of a certain disease, in a given human population, and during a given period, substantially exceed what is expected based on recent experience...
, which is also said to have forced Fernández de Lugo to move towards Acentejo.
After the battle
By the end of the year, Fernández de Lugo would penetrate the north of the island at Taoro, where some 6,000 Guanches waiting for him at Acentejo. Fernández de Lugo would decisively defeat these forces at the Second Battle of AcentejoSecond Battle of Acentejo
The Second Battle of Acentejo was a battle that took place on December 25, 1494, between the invading Spanish forces and the natives of the island of Tenerife, known as Guanches...
. Bentor would commit suicide, throwing himself off the cliff of Tigaiga.
Further reading
- Viera y Clavijo, Noticias de la Historia General de las Islas canarias. Goya ediciones, 4 volúmenes, Tenerife.
- Rodríguez Moure, J: Tenesor Semidan, o Don Fernando Guanarteme, Imprenta y librería de M. Curbelo, La Laguna, 1922.
- Espinosa, Alonso (fray). Historia de Nuestra Señora de Candelaria, Goya ediciones, Tenerife.
- Buenaventura Bonnet, La Batalla de La Laguna y la muerte de Tinguaro. Estudio Hermenéutica Histórica. Comisión provincial de Monumentos Históricos de Canarias, Tenerife, 1916.
- Abreu y Galindo, J. de, Historia de la conquista de las siete islas de Canarias, en A. Cioranescu (ed) Goya ediciones, Tenerife, 1977 ISBN 84-400-3645-0.
- Bethencourt Alfonso, J: Historia del Pueblo Guanche II Lemus editor, La Laguna, 1997.
- Berthelot, Sabino. Etnografía y Anales de la Conquista de Las Islas Canarias. Ed. Goya. Santa Cruz de Tenerife. 1978. ISBN 84-85437-00-4.
- Blanco, Joaquín. Breve Noticia Histórica de las Islas Canarias. Ed. Rueda. Madrid 1983. ISBN 84-7207-029-8.
- Acosta, José Juan; Rodríguez Lorenzo, Félix; L. Quintero, Carmelo Padrón, Conquista y Colonización. Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Centro de la Cultura Popular Canaria, 1988.
- VV.AA. Historia de Canarias. Vol. I Ed. Prensa Ibérica. Valencia 1991. ISBN 84-87657-10-9.