The earth and its inhabitants .. . the lands immediately south of Panama, although even this region wasknown to abound in the precious metals. But after the conquest of Peru a back-ward movement set in, resulting in the invasion of the Colombian plateaux ofTuquerres, Antioquia, and Cundinamarca bj bmds of adventurers starting, somefrom Venezuela, some from Ecuador. The coasthmds, however, were also visitedat an early date, and after a first disastrous expedition, made in l)08, from theshores of the Gulf of Uraba, the Spaniards had already gained a permanent footingon the Colombian seaboard in
The earth and its inhabitants .. . the lands immediately south of Panama, although even this region wasknown to abound in the precious metals. But after the conquest of Peru a back-ward movement set in, resulting in the invasion of the Colombian plateaux ofTuquerres, Antioquia, and Cundinamarca bj bmds of adventurers starting, somefrom Venezuela, some from Ecuador. The coasthmds, however, were also visitedat an early date, and after a first disastrous expedition, made in l)08, from theshores of the Gulf of Uraba, the Spaniards had already gained a permanent footingon the Colombian seaboard in l>2o, when they founded the city of Santa Marta,not far from the Xlagdalena delta, but the settlers were not numerous enough toextend their expeditions beyond the Sierra Nevada and surrounding valleys. Thus it happened that the first serious expedition, or rather plundering andmurderous campaign, in the interior, started not from the coast, but fromVenezuela in the year 1530. Armed with the mandate of Charles V., authorising C. OLD SPANISH FORTIFICATIONS AT PUEETO BELLO. CONQUEST OF COLOMBIA. 185 the adventurers to enslave all refractory natives, Ambrosius Alfinger aimed atnothing beyond the discovery of gold-mines, and the capture of rebelliousIndians to be sold at the slave-market of Coro. After crossing the Perijaamountains, west of the Maracaibo basin, he burst into the Upar Valley, plunderingand burning the habitations, slaying the old and infirm, kidnapping all themarketiible men and women, the mere report of his atrocities dispersing most ofthe tribes to the surrounding highlands. After these exploits he traversed theSierra de Tairona, reaching the banks of th^j Magdalena bj- devious tracks. Herehe pushed southwards down the Lebrija valley, crossing the Velez mountainswith the intention of returning to Venezuela by the paramos and interveningvalleys. But he never reached his destination ; overtaken by the Indians, heperished near Chinacota, between Pamplona and Cucuta
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectgeography, bookyear18
