Juan Ponce de León
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Marquess Juan Ponce de León |
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| 1st, 3rd & 7th Governor of Puerto Rico | |
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In office 1508–1509 |
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| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Juan Cerón |
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In office 1510–1511 |
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| Preceded by | Juan Cerón |
| Succeeded by | Juan Cerón |
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In office 1515–1519 |
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| Preceded by | Cristóbal de Mendoza |
| Succeeded by | Sánchez Velázquez / Antonio de la Gama |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1474 Santervás de Campos, Castile |
| Died | July 1521 (aged c. 47) Havana, Cuba |
| Nationality | Castilian, later Spanish |
| Spouse(s) | Leonor Ponce de León |
| Relations | Juana Ponce de León (daughter) Juan Ponce de León II (grandson) Juan Ponce de León y Loayza (great-grandson) |
| Profession | Explorer |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Signature |  |
Juan Ponce de León (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈxwan ˈponθe ðe leˈon]; 1474 – July 1521) was a Spanish explorer and conquistador. He became the first Governor of Puerto Rico by appointment of the Spanish crown. He led the first known European expedition to La Florida, which he named during his first voyage to the area in 1513. Though in popular culture, he was supposedly searching for the Fountain of Youth, there is no contemporary evidence to support the story, which is likely a myth.
Ponce de León returned to southwest Florida in 1521 to lead the first large-scale attempt to establish a Spanish colony in what is now the continental United States. However, the native Calusa people fiercely resisted the incursion, and de León was seriously wounded in a skirmish. The colonization attempt was abandoned, and its leader died from his wounds soon after returning to Cuba. He was interred in Puerto Rico, and his tomb is located inside of the Cathedral of San Juan Bautista in San Juan.
Juan Ponce de León was born in the village of Santervás de Campos in the northern part of what is now the Spanish province of Valladolid. Although early historians placed his birth in 1460, and this date has been used traditionally, more recent evidence shows he was likely born in 1474. The surname Ponce de León dates from the 13th century. The Ponce de León lineage began with Ponce Vélaz de Cabrera, descendant of count Bermudo Núñez, and Sancha Ponce de Cabrera, daughter of Ponce Giraldo de Cabrera. Before October 1235, a son of Ponce Vela de Cabrera and his wife Teresa Rodríguez Girón named Pedro Ponce de Cabrera married Aldonza Alfonso, an illegitimate daughter of King Alfonso IX of León. The descendants of this marriage added the "de León" to their patronymic and were known henceforth as the Ponce de León.
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