Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada

Timeline

1. 1536–1539Bogotá · CundinamarcaSetting out inland from Santa Marta in 1536, he led some eight hundred soldiers across the Andes, conquering the Chibcha kingdom of Sugamuxi, capturing Bogotá in 1538 and establishing a colonial foothold that became the core of the Viceroyalty of New Granada.
2. 1561–1570Bogotá · CundinamarcaIn the 1560s he consolidated colonial rule based in Bogotá, implementing the encomienda system, building towns and roads, mediating disputes among conquistador factions, and coordinating border and tribute matters with the neighboring Viceroyalty of Peru, maintaining order in the interior of New Granada.
3. 1569–1572Orinoco plains · Eastern LlanosIn 1569 he led an expedition east into the plains of the Orinoco basin in search of the legendary golden city of El Dorado; though he did not obtain the expected wealth, he expanded Spanish knowledge of eastern New Granada and the Venezuelan frontier and suppressed local indigenous resistance.