Seven Cities of Cibola

Introduction Hi! I’m Miss Holly. Today we will be talking about the Seven Cities of Cibola and the Pueblo Native Americans.

Also known as The Seven Cities of Gold, this myth led to several expeditions in the 16th century.

Francisco Vásquez de Coronado organized an expedition to the Southwest in 1540 mainly because of Friar Marcos de Niza.

A friar is a member of a men's Roman Catholic group who is poor and studies or teaches about Christianity.

Friar Marcos claimed to have come within sight of large towns rich in precious stones, gold, and silver.

This exaggerated promise of wealth stimulated interest in the further exploration of northern New Spain.

Spanish explorer Francisco Vazquez de Coronado began his ill-fated quest in 1541 to find the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola.

The expedition, which included hundreds of soldiers and Native American guides,

…lasted two years and crossed some 6,400 kilometers.

In the end, no cities of gold were found, and Coronado returned empty-handed and in debt.

To be in debt is to owe someone money.

Explorers “discovered” the New World, but it is important to understand that native people had been living in the area for thousands of years, long before the arrival of European explorers.

The Pueblo Native Americans live in the Southwest region that the Spaniards explored, looking for the Seven Cities of Cibola.

The Pueblo people are made up of many different Native American tribes in the Southwest, such as the Hopi, Zuni.

The Pueblo people are known for their homes and buildings, which are made of stone or adobe, a type of reddish clay. 

The Pueblo people are farmers, growing corn, beans, squash, and cotton.

Though they live in a hot, dry area, the Pueblo have farmed successfully for hundreds of years because they found ways to divert streams and rivers to irrigate their crops.

The Pueblo lived peacefully for hundreds of years, but when the Spanish explorers arrived, the Pueblo’s way of life changed.

The explorers enslaved some of the Pueblo people, but many resisted and remained independent. 

 In 1860, Pueblo communities banded together to revolt.

 They succeeded in driving the Spanish away for a brief period of time.

Let’s listen to a reading of The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush Let’s listen to a reading of The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush. This legend could have been told by the Pueblo people. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyaifWkUWr0

Extension Activities… Don’t forget! First, write down two – three things that you learned from the lesson that you thought was useful or interesting. Then, on the hand-out, fill in the missing words to the song “Seven Cities of Gold” by the band Rush. You can listen to the song at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Vzfg0Wlm6k

See you next time! Good bye!

References Debt. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.learnersdictionary.com/search/debt Drye, W. (2012). Seven Cities of Cibola Legend Lures Conquistadors. Retrieved from http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/archaeology/seven-cities-of-cibola/ Friar. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.learnersdictionary.com/search/friar Marcos de Niza. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/416536/Marcos-de-Niza Pueblo. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.brainpopjr.com/socialstudies/nativeamericans/pueblo/grownups.weml Seven Cities of Gold – myth. (2012). Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Cities_of_Gold_(myth)