Francisco Vázquez de Coronado was born in 1510 in Salamanca, Spain. As a child, he grew up in a noble family, which provided him with education and the opportunity to engage in the cultural and social activities of his time. His early life was likely shaped by the values of chivalry and exploration that were prevalent during the Age of Discovery.
Growing up in a family of nobility, Coronado would have been exposed to the tales of brave explorers and the promise of new lands and wealth across the ocean. It’s believed that his childhood experiences and education instilled in him a sense of adventure and ambition, sowing the seeds for his future explorations in the New World. We see this later when he became one of the first European explorers to lead an expedition into present-day southwestern United States in search of the mythical Seven Cities of Gold.
While specific details about his childhood activities are scarce, it is clear that the privileges of his upbringing and the cultural environment of Spain during his youth heavily influenced his later pursuits in life.