Guzmán, Nuño de [key], d. 1544, Spanish conquistador. After serving as governor of Panuco in NE Mexico, he became president of the first audiencia of New Spain (1528). His notorious rule brought an outcry from the colonists; in 1530 the audiencia was excommunicated by Bishop Zumárraga. Meanwhile, Guzmán left Mexico City (Dec., 1529), conquered Nueva Galicia, and was responsible for the founding of Culiacán and Guadalajara. He blocked several expeditions sent out by Cortés, his bitter rival. Guzmán's conquest was, however, not very productive. He stirred up trouble with the native people and with his own men. Superseded in the governorship, he was imprisoned (1536–38); he then returned to Spain, where he died in obscurity.
See study by D. E. Chipman (1966).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Mexican History: Biographies
