Marcos de Niza

Marcos de Niza, OFM (or Marco da Nizza; c. 1495 – 25 March 1558) was a Savoyard missionary and Franciscan friar from the County of Nice.[1] He is credited with being the first European in what is now the State of Arizona in the United States.[2] He is most known for his conquests and rumored sight of the legendary rumored place, Seven Cities of Cibola. His report, written after viewing the Seven Cities of Cibola brought much attention and fame to Marcos de Niza, that it sparked the interest of the viceroy Antonio de Mendoza.[3] This led to the appointee of another expedition for Marcos de Niza but this time he would be accompanied by the legendary conquistador, Francisco Vázquez de Coronado.[3]

For the school in Tempe, Arizona, see Marcos de Niza High School.
Fray har

Marcos de Niza (Maharrco da Nizza)

OFM
TitleProvincial of the province of the Holy Gospel
Personal
Bornc. 1495
Died25 March 1558(1558-03-25) (aged 62–63)
Known forFirst European in what is now the State of Arizona
OrderFranciscan
Senior posting
PredecessorAntonio de Ciudad Rodrigo
SuccessorFrancisco de Soto

Background and early career

Almost nothing is known about the background of Marcos de Niza. He was born around 1495 and, as his name indicates, he was from the city of Nice which was then part of the Duchy of Savoy. Savoy was historically associated with Italy but many French lived there and contemporaries of Fray Marcos wrote that he was "French by nationality".[4][5]

When he joined the Franciscan order in Nice, he followed custom and became known by his first name and place of origin. In French he would have been called Frère Marc de Nice but in the service of Spain he came known as Fray Marcos de Niza.[6] His surname is unknown.[5]

In 1530 Marcos travelled to Spain and then went on to the Americas. The details of his early travels in the New World are unclear. He may have first landed in Nicaragua but then soon joined Pizarro for the conquest of the Incas. According to Bartolomé de las Casas, Marcos later testified to many Spanish atrocities he had witnessed in Peru. He also worked in Guatemala and accompanied Pedro de Alvarado to Ecuador. Documents show that he was back in Guatemala by 1536 where he testified in a trial involving Alvarado. Meanwhile, his superiors must have been pleased with his work for he progressed through the ecclesiastical hierarchy from comisario to custodio and then provincia of the Mexican province.[5][7]

In 1537, Marcos wrote to Archbishop Juan de Zumárraga in Mexico City to complain about the atrocities he had witnessed in Peru. Zumárraga requested his presence in Mexico City and suggested that Marcos write a report to the king in an effort to prevent further cruelties. There is no record of such a letter being written.[7]

First expedition
Monument along the expedition path followed by Marcos de Niza

For years rumors had circulated of wealthy civilizations to the north of Mexico. In 1536 Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and his three companions reached to Mexico City as the only survivors of the Narváez expedition. Their account included references to possible cities in the north where great wealth might be found.[8]

Inspired by these reports, Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza decided to send a small reconnaissance expedition northward in hopes of confirming the rumors. When the three surviving Spaniards from the Narváez expedition declined to lead the effort, Mendoza appointed Marcos as the leader and ordered Estevanico, the African slave who was the fourth companion of the survivors, to serve as a guide.[9][10]

It is believed another rationale for the expedition was the belief that Mexico was still an island and that they would find the ocean to the north or northwest.[10]

Signature of letters and reports

They ventured north in search of the long lost cities in 1538.[11][5] Honorato fell ill shortly into the expedition and had to turn back.[10] As the two remaining explorers ventured into the unknown, they came across a city called Vacapa.[10] While in Vacapa, Marcos de Niza sent Estevan ahead to scout the route.[12] Estevan soon sent word and reported that he had spoken to a group of natives who informed him of the existence of a northern trade center.[11][10] The name of the place given was Cibola.[13] Marcos de Niza then ventured further to catch up to Estevan.[10] Along the path, Marcos de Niza picked up of group of native "admirers" who accompanied him on his journey to Cibola. These companions reinforced the idea that a great city was ahead of them. [10] But after some days, a few members of Estevan's party came back barely alive and bloodied, with news of Estevan and others being killed.[10][5][12] Instead of risking his life and forfeiting the opportunity to report the information, Marcos decided not to go into the city of Cibola but to get close enough to view it. He described viewing the beautiful city of Cibola from a distance on a ridge. He described it as "bigger than the size of Mexico".[14][10][13][11]

Coronado expedition

Marcos de Niza's expedition report spurred Mendoza to launch one of the biggest of all Spanish expeditions. It was led by Francisco Vázquez de Coronado.[12][14][10] Marcos de Niza accompanied Coronado and his army on the journey back to the rumored Cibola.[15] They ended up finding only a group of Zuni villages, not the Seven Cities of Cibola. At this time, Marcos de Niza was pronounced a liar and he was returned Mexico City.[14][11] Even though his report never mentioned gold, the Spanish and Coronado expected to find riches.[10]

Legacy and controversy
Forged inscription purported to have been left by Fray Marcos de Niza. Located in Pima Canyon near Phoenix, Arizona.[16]

After being scapegoated, Marcos de Niza went back to Mexico City, where he held a very high position within the Franciscans leadership.[14] He died in Mexico, City on March 25, 1558 due to persistent bad health.[14]

Controversy still follows Marcos de Niza. Scholars and historians have continued to analyze Marcos's story of his journey to Cibola to figure out what actually happened, developing many different theories questioning whether or not Marcos actually made it to or saw the city of Cibola. Some theories state that Marcos simply would not have had enough time to actually reach Cibola.[10] Another scholar came to the conclusion that he must have turned back way before he even came close to seeing the city based on the timeline and political complexities of exploration.[10] Yet others researchers and scholars believe he did reach the long lost city of Cibola.[10][14][5]

Petroglyph

In the 1920s Matthew E. Bellew announced the discovery of a petroglyph on his land near Phoenix that appeared to have been left by Marcos de Niza. The inscription, written in Spanish, translates to “Fray Marcos de Niza crowned all of New Mexico at his expense in the year of 1539.”[17][18] Most contemporary historians quickly called it a fraud, pointing out that the reference to "New Mexico" was an anachronism in 1539 and also noting that the expedition was not carried out "at his expense". One exception to the sceptics was historian and missionary Bonaventure Oblasser who cited the petroglyph to support his assertion that the expedition passed near Phoenix (most historians today believe that Marcos traveled through eastern Arizona along the San Pedro River).[18]

In 2009 an opportunity arose to apply new analytic techniques to test the age of the inscription. These tests confirmed the original suspicions of fraud, dating the petroglyph to sometime between the 1850s and the 1920s.[18][19]

References
  1. "Marcos de Niza | Spanish explorer". Encyclopedia Britannica.
  2. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Marcos de Niza". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  3. "TSHA | Niza, Marcos de". www.tshaonline.org. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  4. Bandelier, Adolph Francis Alphonse (1981). Adolph F. Bandelier's The discovery of New Mexico by the Franciscan monk Friar Marcos de Niza in 1539. Madeleine Turrell Rodack. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. ISBN 0-8165-0717-1.
  5. Nallino & Hartmann 2003.
  6. Bandelier 1981, p. 28.
  7. Bandelier 1981, pp. 29–30.
  8. Weber 1993, p. 45.
  9. Weber 1993, pp. 45–6.
  10. dhornisher (2010-10-15). "The Mysterious Journey of Friar Marcos de Niza". Planetary Science Institute. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  11. dhornisher (2010-10-15). "The Mysterious Journey of Friar Marcos de Niza". Planetary Science Institute. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  12. "Fray Marcos de Niza - Coronado National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  13. Deverell & Hyde (2018). Shaped by the West: A history of North America. In Shaped by the West: A history of North America. Oakland, CA: University of California Press. pp. 30–33.
  14. "TSHA | Niza, Marcos de". www.tshaonline.org. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  15. "Fray Marcos de Niza – Franciscan Priest – Legends of America". www.legendsofamerica.com. Retrieved 2021-05-07.
  16. Katharine Bartlett and Harold S. Colton A Note on the Marcos de Niza inscription near Phoenix, Arizona, Plateau, vol.12, n°4, p.53-59.
  17. "Fr Marcos de Niza Corona to Do el nuebo Mexico a su costa ano de 1539"
  18. Dorn 2012.
  19. Rodriguez 2014.

Bibliography
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.