Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar

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For the Spanish painter, see Diego Velázquez.

Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar (1465, Cuéllar, Spain – ca. June 12, 1524, Santiago de Cuba) was a Spanish conquistador. He conquered and governed Cuba for Spain.

Diego Velázquez's house in Santiago de Cuba

Diego Velázquez was born in Cuéllar, in the Segovia region of Spain. He first visited the New World with the crew of Christopher Columbus in 1493. He settled in Hispaniola, then was active in leading the conquest of Cuba in 1511 under orders from Diego Columbus. He founded a number of new Spanish settlements and cities on the island, most notably Santiago de Cuba in 1514 and Havana in 1515.

Velázquez was appointed governor of Cuba. However he convoked a general cabildo (council) which duly authorized to deal directly with Spain and remove authority from Columbus, his nominal superior. It was a precedent that would come back to haunt him with the Mexican adventures. Noting the weakness of the Indians Velázquez authorized the importation of black slaves in 1513. He authorized various expeditions to explore lands further west, including the 1517 Francisco Hernández de Córdoba expedition to Yucatán (see: Spanish Conquest of Yucatán). In 1518 he was made the 1st Adelantado (Governor-General) of Cuba with jurisdiction over the former Governship of the Indies. He initially backed Hernán Cortés's famous expedition to Mexico, but when Cortés tried to seize and claim Mexico for himself, Velázquez charged Cortés with exceeding his authority and ordered Pánfilo de Narváez to arrest him. Narvaez's troops were defeated by Cortés in a surprise attack and the survivors were persuaded to join Cortés. Thus Velázquez saw none of the riches which came from Mexico. A further attempt to obtain redress in Spain led a bitter loss to the Cortés faction. Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar died in Santiago de Cuba in 1524. The Indies were therefore subjected to the Viceroyalty of New Spain.