De Soto Goes to War (CEC)

De Soto and Battle of Mabila

Chief Tuskaloosa

De Soto Goes to War

• What he found were the nations that had emerged from the collapse of the Mississippian culture. While their towns were impressive, they lacked anything of real value that the Spanish were seeking.
• When the natives fought back, the Spanish became ruthless.
• In the 1540 Battle of Mabila in present-day central Alabama, Tuskaloosa, a native leader, resisted the Spanish. In the ensuring battle, more than 2,500 Indians fell, as did more than 200 Spaniards.