In 1541, deep in the South American jungle, a group of Spanish conquistadors concluded

that they probably weren't going to find El Dorado.

The expedition was led by Gonzalo Pizarro, the vice governor of Kito and the half-brother

of the famous Francisco Pizarro, conqueror of the Inca Empire.

After serving as vice governor for roughly a year, Gonzalo had been convinced that somewhere

to the east of Kito down the slopes of the Andes and in the vast jungle, there was a

fortune waiting to be discovered.

Rumors spoke of a so-called land of cinnamon somewhere in the South American interior, while

this valuable spice was certainly a motivator, tales of a golden city, presided over by a

king who covered himself in gold dust, El Umbre Dorado, or even more tempting.

So in February of 1541, Pizarro set out from Kito, the high altitude capital of what is

today modern Ecuador, with 220 Spanish men and roughly 4,000 indigenous guides and porters.

But the expedition very quickly proved to be a disaster.

When the party entered the rainforest on the eastern slope of the Andes, the Spaniards

quickly discovered that they were woefully unprepared for the journey ahead.

The jungle was treacherous, filled with venomous snakes, giant spiders, jaguars, and disease-carrying

mosquitoes.

The plate armor, favored by the conquistadors, was hot, cumbersome, and quite frankly, a

ridiculous choice for the humid jungle.

Not to mention the fact that many of the indigenous groups who called this region home interpreted

the Spanish expedition as an aggressive incursion into their sovereign territory.

And so they responded violently.

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