Panfilo de Narváez's infamy as a Conquistador began, in part, with the assistance of the Spanish aristocrat and Cuban official, Diego Velazquez. Hailing from the same region of Spain, the two relied on each other to grow rich from their adventures in the Caribbean. Narváez's military cunning and physical stature complemented the official's political and social connections. Together, they managed to quickly exploit and conquer Cuba's native population, and by 1515, the island was theirs.
The Spanish crown rewarded his sacrifice by granting Narváez the right to explore the southeastern Spanish borderlands, specifically Florida.


In 1520, after a failed economic partnership between Velazques and Hernan Cortez, the aristocrat called on his enforcer, Narváez, to arrest Cortez. This would become a very costly mission for Narváez, who lost three years of his life as Cortez's prisoner, as well as one eye. The Spanish crown rewarded his sacrifice by granting Narváez the right to explore the southeastern Spanish borderlands, specifically Florida.

This final, and ultimately fatal, expedition began on June 17, 1527, when he left Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain, for North America. After arriving at the island of Santo Domingo (present-day Haiti), over one hundred of his men abandoned his company in favor of the promising life style and benefits of the Caribbean island. This was a great blow to the Conquistador's pride, as earlier successes usually required Narváez to turn away volunteers. In addition, he had recently lost over sixty of his best men to a deadly Caribbean hurricane.

After Narváez secured supplies in Xagua (present-day Cienfeugos), he traveled toward Havana only to succumb to terrible storms and high winds that blew his vessel into the Gulf of Mexico and the western coast of Florida. Despite this misfortune, Narváez and his men believed that providence had finally arrived, for the indigenous people spoke proudly of the riches of nearby Apalachee. For over half a year, the company confused geographical locations, remained constantly lost, and endured wounds from native arrows before finally arriving at modern day Apalachee Bay.

Opting to return to the safety of the seas, Narváez's company set sail for Panuco, Mexico (present-day Tampico) on crudely constructed rafts. Narváez decided to separate his flotilla and let each individual raft's crew dictate its own fate. Additionally, he believed that it would be safer and more efficient to travel across the Gulf rather than negotiate the treacherous Florida coast line. This would prove to be a fateful choice, as his personal craft was swept out to sea and his body never recovered.

The few men that did survive this failed expedition and make it to Mexico -- Cabeza de Vaca, Andres Dornate, Alfonso Castillo, and the slave Estevanico -- later chronicled the Conquistador's final days. Their histories also tell the story of their own perils and hardships, which had only just begun.

Additionally, Juan Ortíz, left stranded by Narváez on the west coast of Florida near Tampa, was eventually rescued by Hernando de Soto. Ortíz helped de Soto communicate with the native population and provided chronicles of Florida's native populations and the de Soto expedition.