Rodrigo de Bastidas

Rodrigo de Bastidas
Rodrigo de Bastidas
Born	~1465 Triana, Sevilla, Andalusia
Died	28 July 1527 Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
Cause of death	Homicide
Burial place	Cathedral of Santa María la Menor, Santo Domingo
Monuments	Santa Marta
Nationality	Andalusian
Occupation	Conquistador
Years active	1493-1527
Employer	Spanish Crown
Known for	Discoverer of Panama Founder of Santa Marta, Colombia
Children	Rodrigo de Bastidas y Rodriguez de Romera (son) Isabel de Bastidas y Rodríguez de Romera (daughter)
Parent(s)	Rodrigo de la Bastida (father)

Rodrigo de Bastidas (Triana, Seville, Andalusia, ca. 1465 – Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, 28 July 1527) was a Spanish conquistador and explorer who mapped the northern coast of South America, discovered Panama, and founded the city of Santa Marta.

Rodrigo de Bastidas was a well-to-do notary from the town of Triana, Seville, a suburb of Seville. He was born around 1465 and his father was named Rodrigo de la Bastida. Rodrigo de Bastidas married Isabel Rodríguez de Romera Tamaris and the couple got two children; son Rodrigo de Bastidas y Rodriguez de Romera and daughter Isabel de Bastidas y Rodríguez de Romera.

After sailing with Christopher Columbus during his second voyage to the New World in 1493, De Bastidas petitioned the Spanish Crown to start his own quest to be financed totally with his own money. In exchange for granting De Bastidas the right to explore various territories in the New World, the Crown required him to give them one fourth of the net profits he would acquire. The King and Queen issued a charter that is still preserved in the National Archives in Spain. He sailed to the New World from Cádiz in October 1499 with two ships; the San Antón and the Santa Maria de Gracia. He was accompanied on this voyage by Juan de la Cosa and Vasco Núñez de Balboa.

At the South American coast he sailed westward from Cabo de la Vela, Colombia, in an attempt to explore the coastline of the Caribbean basin. He discovered the mouth of a river he named the Magdalena River and the Gulf of Urabá on the Panamanian/Colombian coast. He reached La Punta de Manzanillo on Panama's upper Caribbean coast before having to abandon his effort. He is acknowledged to be the first European to have claimed that part of the isthmus, and therefore is credited with the discovery of Panama which includes the San Blas region of the indigenous Kuna. However, the poor condition of his ships, caused by shipworm that ate the wooden hull, forced him to turn back and head to Santo Domingo to effect repairs. Despite repeated repairs, the ships eventually sank in port at Jacaragua, leaving most of the indigenous slaves to drown, while some gold and pearls were saved. De Bastidas was forced to return overland to Santo Domingo, trading trinkets for food and supplies with Taino natives along the way. On arrival in Santo Domingo he was placed under arrest by Governor Fransico de Bobadilla, and sent back to Spain for allegedly trading with the indigenous people without permission. He was acquitted of these charges by the Spanish Crown, and rewarded with a pension. He returned to Santo Domingo with his family, and became "rich in cattle, at one time possessing 8000 head". In 1504 he undertook another expedition to Tierra Firme, raiding 600 slaves for sale in Hispaniola.