Nueva Cadiz
Nueva Cádiz was one of the first Spanish cities in America, today the remains are a national memorial of Venezuela .
The place is located in a bay on the northeast coast of Cubagua Island . This island is 16 km off the mainland and south of the larger Isla Margarita .
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In 1498 Christopher Columbus reached the island, which has been famous for its oyster beds and its wealth of pearls since ancient times . As early as 1500 Spanish pearl seekers set up a camp they named Santiago de Cubagua . Many Indians enslaved by the Spaniards lost their lives searching for pearls under inhumane working conditions.
Cristóbal Guerra built the city "La Villa de la Nueva Cádiz" here in 1526/28 as the first Spanish city in Venezuela and one of the first in America. The place synonymous with the oppression by the Hispanic conquistadores in South America .
From 1531 the pearl deposits were exhausted, in the following years fishing gained in importance.
The city had a population of 1,000 to 1,500 when it was destroyed by an earthquake or tidal wave in 1541 .
Since 1979 the ruins have been protected as a National Monument of Venezuela.
Coordinates: 10 ° 49 ′ N , 64 ° 10 ′ W
Individual evidence
- ↑ Archived copy ( memento of the original dated November 30, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Venezuela By Leonard Victor Dalton
- ↑ Universidad Nueva Esparta ( Memento of the original from January 15, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
