My Departure

February 18, 1519

I always knew that Velàzquez was a man who was interested in America, but I never knew to what extent. When he confronted me about the importance of this voyage, I knew immediately that he was not kidding around. Although I had to pour a lot of my own money into this expedition. As soon as I had gotten 300 men to join my cause, his jealousy got the best of him. He immediately did everything in his power to have me stopped and arrested. Some of the workers in the local harbors were kind enough to let me dock my ships there. After the entire fiasco we were ready to set sail. And on the day the expedition finally left Cuba with around 500 soldiers and 100 seamen, as well as 16 horses and enough heavy guns for one trip.