|Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca|
Inspired by the stories of Cabeza de Vaca, who had survived in North America after becoming a castaway and just returned to Spain, in 1540, Hernando de Soto petitioned the King of Spain and was appointed governor of Cuba and granted the right to explore and colonize North America [refer to Part 1]. Cabeza de Vaca had originally gone to Florida with Panfilo de Narvaez in 1527. The King of Spain had granted Narvaez the right to explore and colonize Florida and de Vaca was his second in command.
|Panfilo de Narvaez|