Very frequently we imagine the Spanish explorer, pioneer, or conqueror as the archetype of a young man from a low social background who, eager for adventure, fame and fortune, embarks in search of a dream, feeling he has nothing to lose. Oftentimes, it was like that. Not in the case of Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón, who, according to some of his contemporaries, never wore a cuirass nor did he wield a sword. Lucas was, therefore, an atypical adventurer and, unfortunately for him and those who followed for him, very unlucky.
His American path had, in its beginnings, very little of discoverer and was more oriented to the care and growth of his patrimony. In fact, it wasn’t until 1520 when his greatest efforts were focused on expeditionary labor to become one of the protagonists of the Spanish expansion from the Caribbean bases.