Vasco Nunez De Balboa
Balboa was born in 1475 in the city of Jerez De Caballeros in Spain. Very little is known about his early life.
He was from a poor family and left Spain in his mid-20s for adventure in the New World.
He was from a poor family and left Spain in his mid-20s for adventure in the New World.
Explorer and conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa helped establish the town of Darién on the Isthmus of Panama and became interim governor. In 1513 he led the first European expedition to the Pacific Ocean, but news of the discovery arrived after the king had sent Pedro Arias de Ávila to serve as the new governor of Darién. Ávila, reportedly jealous of Balboa, had him beheaded for treason in 1519.