The Spaniards in Florida

There are several accounts of the sad fate which befel the followers of Ribault, the massacre of whom has been perpetuated by the memorial name given to its scene, "the bloody river of Matanzas," the ebb and flow of whose recurring tides for three hundred years have failed to wash out the record of blood which has associated this massacre of the Huguenots with the darkest scenes of earth's history. In consequence of the rank and number of the victims, the event produced various and somewhat contradictory accounts; but all stamped with a seal of reprobation and execration the act and the actors, without reference to creed or nationality. Challeux relates instances of cruel barbarity added to the atrocity of slaughter itself; and others, it appears, had given other versions, all in different degree pointing the finger of historic justice to mark and commemorate the crime against humanity.

The Spanish historian, Barcia, aims to counteract this general condemnation, of which in his own language he says, "These calumnies, repeated in so many quarters, have sullied the fame of the Adelantado, being exaggerated by the heretics, and consented to by the Catholics, so that even the Father Felix Briot, in his annals, says that he caused them to be killed contrary to the faith which he had given them; which is altogether a falsehood, for the Adelantado did not give his word, nor would he when asked give it, to spare their lives, although they were willing to pay him for doing so; nor in the capture of Fort Caroline did he do more than has been related; and such is the account given by Doctor Salis de las Meras, brother-in-law to Donna Maria de Salis, wife of the Adelantado, who was present, and who, relating the punishment of the heretics, and the manner in which it was accomplished, says, —

"'The Adelantado occupied himself in fortifying his settlement at St. Augustine, as well as he could, to defend it from the French fleet if they should attack it. Upon the following day some Indians came and by signs informed them that four leagues distant there were a large number of Christians, who were unable to cross an arm of the sea or strait, which is a river upon the inner side of an inlet, which they were obliged to cross in order to come to St. Augustine. The Adelantado sent thither forty soldiers about dusk, and arrived about midnight near the inlet, where he commanded a halt until morning, and leaving his soldiers concealed, he ascended a tree to see what was the state of matters. He discovered many persons on the other side of the river, and their standards; and to prevent their passing over, he directed his men to exhibit themselves towards the shore, so that it might be supposed that he had with him a large force; and when they were discovered, a French soldier swam over, and said that the persons beyond the river were Frenchmen, that they had been wrecked in a storm, but had all saved their lives. The Adelantado asked what French they were? He answered, that they were two hundred of the people under command of Jean Ribault, Viceroy and Captain General of this country for the king of the French. He asked again, if they were Catholics or Lutherans? It was replied that they were all Lutherans, of the new religion; all of which was previously well known to the Adelantado, when he encountered their fleet with his vessels; and the women and children whom he had spared when he took their fort, had also so informed him; and he had found in the fort when he took it, six trunks filled with books, well bound and gilt; all of which were of the new sect, and from which they did not say mass, but preached their Lutheran doctrines every evening; all of which books he directed to be burnt, not sparing a single one.

"'The Adelantado then asked him why he had come over? He said he had been sent over by his Captain, to see what people they were. The General asked if he wished to return. He said, "Yes, but he desired to know what people they were." This man spoke very plainly, for he was a Gascon of San Juan de Suz. "Then tell him," said the Adelantado, "that it is the Viceroy and Captain General of this country for the king, Don Philip; and that his name is Pedro Menendez, and that he is here with some of his soldiery to ascertain what people those were, for he had been informed the day before that they were there, and the hour at which they came."

"'The French soldier went over with his message, and immediately returned, saying "that if they would pledge faith to his captain and to four other gentlemen, they would like to come and treat with him;" and they desired the loan of a boat, which the General had directed to bring some provisions to the river. The General instructed the messenger to say to his captain, "that he might come over securely under the pledge of his word," and then sent over for them the boat; and they crossed over. The Adelantado received them very well, with only ten of his followers; the others he directed to stay some distance off among some bushes, so that their number might appear to be greater than it was. One of the Frenchmen announced himself as captain of these people; and that in a great storm they had lost four galleons, and other vessels of the king of France, within a distance of twenty leagues of each other; and that these were the people from on board of one ship, and that they desired they would let them have a boat for this arm of the sea, and for another four leagues hence, which was at St. Augustine; that they desired to go to a fort which they held twenty leagues from there. It was the same fort which Menendez had taken. The Adelantado asked them "if they were Catholics or Lutherans?" He replied "that they were all of the New Religion." Then the Adelantado said to them, "Gentlemen, your fort is taken and its people destroyed, except the women, and children under fifteen years of age; and that you may be assured of this, among the soldiers who are here there are many things, and also there are here two Frenchmen whom I have brought with me, who said they were Catholics. Sit down here and eat, and I will send the two Frenchmen to you, as also the things which some of my soldiers have taken from the fort, in order that you may be satisfied.

"'The Adelantado having spoken thus, directed food to be given to them, and sent the two Frenchmen to them, and many things which the soldiers had brought from the fort, that they might see them, and then retired himself, to eat with his own people; and an hour afterwards, when he saw that the French had eaten, he went where they were and asked if they were satisfied of the truth of what he had told them. They said they were, and desired that for a consideration, he should give them vessels and ships' stores, that they might return to France. The Adelantado answered, "that he would do so with great pleasure if they were good Catholics, or if he had the ships for them; but he had not the vessels, having sent two to St. Matteo (Ft. Caroline), the one to take the artillery they had captured, and the French women and children, to St. Domingo, and to obtain provisions. The other had to go upon business of his Majesty to other parts.

"'The French captain replied, "that he should grant to all, their lives, and that they should remain with him until they could obtain shipping for France, since they were not at war, and the kings of Spain and of France were brothers and friends." The Adelantado said, "that was true, and Catholics and friends he would favor, believing that he would serve both kings in doing so; but as to themselves, being of the new sect, he held them for enemies, and he would wage war upon them even to blood and to fire; and that he would pursue them with all cruelty wherever he should encounter them, in whatever sea or land where he should be viceroy or captain general for his king; and that he would go and plant the holy faith in this land, that the Indians might be enlightened and be brought to the knowledge of the Holy Catholic Faith of Jesus Christ our Saviour, as taught and announced by the Roman Church. That if they wished to surrender their standards and their arms, and throw themselves upon his mercy, they might do so, for he would do with them what God should of his grace direct; or, they could do as they might deem proper; that other treaty or friendship they should not have from him." The French captain replied, that he could not then conclude any other matter with the Adelantado. He went over in the boat, saying, that he went to relate what had passed, and to agree upon what should be done, and within two hours he would return with an answer. The Adelantado said, "They could do as seemed best to them, and he would wait for them." Two hours passed, when the same French captain returned, with those who had accompanied him previously, and said to the General, "that there were many people of family, and nobles among them, and that they would give fifty thousand ducats, of ransom, if he would spare all their lives." He answered, "that although he was a poor soldier, he could not be governed by selfish interests, and if he were to be merciful and lenient, he desired to be so without the suspicion of other motives." The French captain returned to urge the matter. "Do not deceive yourselves," said the Adelantado, "for if Heaven were to join to earth, I would do no otherwise than I have said." The French officer then going towards where his people stood, said, that in accordance with that understanding he would return shortly with an answer; and within half an hour he returned and placed in the boat, the standards, seventy arquebuses, twenty pistols, a quantity of swords and shields, and some helmets and breast-plates; and the captain came to where the General stood, and said that all the French force there submitted themselves to his clemency, and surrendered to him their standards and their arms. The Adelantado then directed twenty soldiers to go in the boat and bring the French, ten by ten. The river was narrow and easy to pass, and he directed Diego Flores de Valdes, Admiral of the Fleet, to receive the standards and the arms, and to go in the boat and see that the soldiers did not maltreat them. The Adelantado then withdrew from the shore, about two bow shots, behind a hillock of sand, within a copse of bushes, where the persons who came in the boat which brought over the French, could not see; and then said to the French captain and the other eight Frenchmen who were there with him, "Gentlemen, I have but few men with me, and they are not very effective, and you are numerous; and, going unrestrained, it would be an easy thing to take satisfaction upon our men for those whom we destroyed when we took the fort; and thus it is necessary that you should march with hands tied behind, a distance of four leagues from here where I have my camp." The French replied "that they would do so;" and they had their hands tied strongly behind their backs with the match ropes of the soldiers; and the ten who came in the boat did not see those who had their hands tied, until they came up to the same place; for it was so arranged, in order that the French who had not passed the river, should not understand what was being done, and might not be offended, and thus were tied two hundred and eight Frenchmen. Of whom the Adelantado asked that if any among them were Catholics, they should declare it. Eight said that they were Catholics, and were separated from the others and placed in a boat, that they might go by the river to St. Augustine; and all the rest replied "that they were of the new religion, and held themselves to be very good Christians; that this was their faith and no other." The Adelantado then gave the order to march with them, having first given them meat and drink, as each ten arrived, before being tied, which was done before the succeeding ten arrived; and he directed one of his captains who marched with the vanguard, that at a certain distance from there he would observe a mark made by a lance, which he carried in his hand, which would be in a sandy place that they would be obliged to pass in going on their way towards the fort of St. Augustine, and that there the prisoners should all be destroyed; and he gave the one in command of the rearguard the same orders; and it was done accordingly; when, leaving there all of the dead, they returned the same night before dawn, to the fort at St. Augustine, although it was already sundown when the men were killed.'"11

Such is the second part of this sad and bloody tragedy; which took place at the Matanzas Inlet, about eighteen miles south of the city of St. Augustine, and at the southerly end of Anastasia Island. The account we have given, it must be borne in mind, is that of De Solis, the brother-in-law and apologist of Menendez; but even under his extenuating hand the conduct of Menendez was that of one deaf to the voice of humanity, and exulting in cold-blooded treachery, dealing in vague generalities intended to deceive, while affording a shallow apology for the actor. A massacre in cold blood of poor shipwrecked, famished men, prisoners yielding themselves to an expected clemency, tied up like sheep, and butchered by poignard blows from behind, shocked alike the moral sense of all to whom the tale without regard to faith or flag.

CHAPTER VIII.

FATE OF RIBAULT AND HIS FOLLOWERS – BLOODY MASSACRE AT MATANZAS – 1565

The first detachment of the French whom Menendez met and so utterly destroyed, constituted the complement of a single vessel, which had been thrown ashore at a more northerly point than the others. All these vessels were wrecked between Mosquito Inlet and Matanzas.

Of the fate of the main detachment, under Ribault in person, we have the following account, as related by the same apologist, the chaplain De Solis:

"On the next day following the return of the Adelantado at St. Augustine, the same Indians who came before returned, and said that 'a great many more Christians were at the same part of the river as the others had been.' The Adelantado concluded that it must be Jean Ribault, the General of the Lutherans at sea and on land, whom they called the Viceroy of this country for the king of France. He immediately went, with one hundred and fifty men in good order, and reached the place where he had lodged the first time, at about midnight; and at dawn he pushed forward to the river, with his men drawn out, and when it was daylight, he saw, two bow-shots from the other bank of the river, many persons, and a raft made to cross over the people, at the place where the Adelantado stood. But immediately, when the French saw the Adelantado and his people, they took arms, and displayed a royal standard and two standards of companies, sounding fifes and drums, in very good order, and showing a front of battle to the Adelantado; who, having ordered his men to sit down and take their breakfast, so that they made no demonstration of any change, he himself walked up and down the shore, with his admiral and two other captains, paying no attention to the movement and demonstration of battle of the French; so that they observing this, halted and the fifes and the drums ceased, while with a bugle note they unfurled the white flag of peace, which was returned by the Adelantado. A Frenchman placed himself upon the raft, and cried with a loud voice that he wished to cross over, but that owing to the force of the current he could not bring the raft over, and desired an Indian canoe which was there to be sent over. The Adelantado said he could swim over for it, under pledge of his word. A French sailor immediately came over, but the General would not permit him to speak with him, but directed him to take the canoe, and go and tell his captain, that inasmuch as he called for a conference, if he desired anything he should send over some one to communicate with him. The same sailor immediately came with a gentleman, who said he was the sergeant major of Jean Ribault, Viceroy and Captain General of this land for the king of France, and that he had sent him to say, that they had been wrecked with their fleet in a great storm, and that he had with him three hundred and fifty French; that they wished to go to a fort which they held, twenty leagues from there; that they wished the favor of boats, to pass this river, and the other, four leagues further on, and that he desired to know if they were Spaniards, and under what leader they served.

"The Adelantado answered him, that they were Spaniards, and that the captain under whom they served was the person now addressing him, and was called Pedro Menendez. That he should tell his General that the fort which he held twenty leagues from there had been taken by him, and he had destroyed all the French, and the rest who had come with the fleet, because they were badly governed; and then, passing thence to where the dead bodies of the Frenchmen whom he had killed still lay unburied, pointed them out to him and said, therefore he could not permit them to pass the river to their fort.

"The sergeant, with an unmoved countenance, and without any appearance of uneasiness on account of what the Adelantado had said, replied, that if he would have the goodness to send a gentleman of his party, to say to the French general, that they might negotiate with safety, the people were much exhausted, and the general would come over in a boat which was there. The Adelantado replied, 'Farewell, comrade, and bear the answer which they shall give you; and if your general desires to come and treat with me, I give my word that he shall come and return securely, with four or six of his people whom he may select for his advisors, that he may do whatever he may conclude to be best.'

"The French gentleman then departed with this message. Within half an hour he returned to accept the assurance the Adelantado had given, and to obtain the boat; which the Adelantado was unwilling to let him have, but said he could use the canoe, which was safe, and the strait was narrow; and he again went back with this message.

"Immediately Jean Ribault came over, whom the Adelantado received very well, with other eight gentleman, who had come with him. They were all gentlemen of rank and position. He gave them a collation, and would have given them food if they had desired. Jean Ribault with much humility, thanked him for his kind reception, and said that to raise their spirits, much depressed by the sad news of the death of their comrades, they would partake only of the wine and condiments, and did not wish anything else to eat. Then after eating, Jean Ribault said, 'that he saw that those his companions were dead, and that he could not be mistaken if he desired to be.' Then the Adelantado directed the soldiers to bring each one whatever he had taken from the fort; and he saw so many things that he knew for certain that it was taken: although he knew this before, yet he could not wholly believe it, because among his men there was a Frenchman by name of Barbero, of those whom the Adelantado had ordered to be destroyed with the rest, and was left for dead with the others, having with the first thrust he received fallen down and made as though he were dead, and when they left there he had passed over by swimming, to Ribault; and this Barbero held it for certain that the Adelantado had deceived them in saying that the fort was taken, it not being so; and thus until now he had supposed. The Adelantado said that in order with more certainty to believe this and satisfy himself, he might converse apart with the two Frenchmen who were present, to satisfy him better; which he did.

"Immediately Jean Ribault came towards the Adelantado and said, 'it was certain that all which he had told him was true; but that what had happened to him, might have happened to the Adelantado; and since their kings were brothers, and such great friends, the Adelantado should act towards him as a friend, and give him ships and provisions, that he might return to France.'

"The Adelantado replied in the same manner that he had done to the other Frenchmen, as to what he would do; and that taking it or leaving it, Jean Ribault could obtain nothing further from the Adelantado. Jean Ribault then said that he would go and give an account of matters to his people, for he had among them many of noble blood; and would return or send an answer as to what he would do.

"Three hours afterwards, Jean Ribault returned in the canoe, and said, 'that there were different opinions among his people; that while some were willing to yield themselves to his clemency, others were not.' The Adelantado replied 'that it mattered but little to him whether they all came, or a part, or none at all; that they should do as it pleased them, and he would act with the same liberty.' Jean Ribault said to him, 'that the half of the people who were willing to yield themselves to his clemency, would pay him a ransom of more than 100,000 ducats; and the other half were able to pay more, for there were among them persons of wealth and large incomes, who had desired to establish estates in this country.' The Adelantado answered him, 'It would grieve me much to lose so great and rich a ransom, under the necessity I am under for such aid, to carry forward the conquest and settlement of this land, in the name of my king, as is my duty, and to plant here the Holy Evangel.' Jean Ribault considered from this, that with the amount they could all give, he might be induced to spare his own life and that of all the others who were with him, and that they might be able to pay more than 200,000 ducats; and he said to the Adelantado, 'that he would return with his answer to his people; that as it was late, he would take it as a favor if he would be willing to wait until the following day, when, he would bring their reply as to what they would conclude to do.' The Adelantado said, 'Yes, that he would wait.' Jean Ribault then went back to his people, it being already sunset. In the morning, he returned with the canoe, and surrendered to the Adelantado two royal standards – the one that of the king of France, the other that of the Admiral (Coligny), – and the standards of the company, and a sword, dagger, and helmet, gilded very beautifully; and also a shield, a pistol, and a commission given him under the high admiral of France, to assure to him his title and possessions.

"He then said to him, 'that but one hundred and fifty of the three hundred and fifty whom he had with him were willing to yield to his clemency, and that the others had withdrawn during the night; and that they might take the boat and bring those who were willing to come over, and their arms.' The Adelantado immediately directed the captain, Diego Flores Valdes, Admiral of the fleet, that he should bring them over as he had done the others, ten by ten; and the Adelantado, taking Jean Ribault behind the sand hills, among the bushes where the others had their hands tied behind them, he said to these and all the others as he had done before, that they had four leagues to go after night, and that he could not permit them to go unbound; and after they were all tied, he asked if they were Catholics or Lutherans, or if any of them desired to make confession.

"Jean Ribault replied, 'that all who were there were of the new religion,' and he then began to repeat the psalm, 'Domine! Memento! Mei;' and having finished, he said, 'that from dust they came and to dust they must return, and that in twenty years, more or less, he must render his final account; that the Adelantado might do with them as he chose.' The Adelantado then ordered all to be killed, in the same order and at the same mark, as had been done to the others. He spared only the fifers, drummers, and trumpeters, and four others who said that they were Catholics, in all, sixteen persons." "Todos los demas fueron degallados," – "all the rest were slaughtered," is the sententious summary lay which Padre de Solis announced the close of the sad career of the gray-haired veteran, the brave soldier, the Admiral Jean Ribault, and his companions.12

At some point on the thickly-wooded shores of the Island of Anastasio, or beneath the shifting mounds of sand which mark its shores, may still lie the bones of some of the three hundred and fifty who, spared from destruction by the tempest, and escaping the perils of the sea and of the savage, fell victims to the vindictive rancor and blind rage of one than whom history recalls none more cruel, or less humane. But while their bones, scattered on earth and sea, unhonored and unburied, were lost to human sight, the tale of their destruction and sad fate, scattered in like manner over the whole world, has raised to their memory through sympathy with their fate, a memorial which will endure as long as the pages of history.