Hernán Venegas Carrillo

Personal life

Venegas Carrillo was born in Córdoba, Andalusia, around 1513. His parents were Diego Ruiz Venegas Manosalvas and Inés Venegas. This was one of the first mestizo marriages conducted in the New Kingdom of Granada. With her Venegas Carrillo had four children: María, Alonso, Isabel and Fernán Venegas. After the death of his Muisca wife, Venegas Carrillo married Juana Ponce de León and had eight more children with her: Maria, Alonso, Pedro, Luis, Francisco, Juana, Isabel and Inés Venegas Ponce de León. Alonso, his son with Magdalena de Guatavita, killed fellow conquistador Gonzalo García Zorro in a duel in 1566. Conquistador Pedro Fernández de Valenzuela was his cousin.

Biography

Hernán Venegas Carrillo embarked on a ship sailing from Seville, Spain to the New World, probably in 1533, in the company of Juan del Junco. He was one of the conquistadors who participated in the expedition from Santa Marta on the Caribbean coast to the Muisca Confederation on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense.

In 1541, Venegas Carrillo received ownership of the encomiendas of Guatavita, Gachetá, Chipaleque, Pausa, Tuala, Tuaquira, Suba, Tocancipá, Gachancipá, Gachacá, Unta, Turmequé and Itencipá.

On March 20, 1544, Venegas Carrillo founded the town of Tocaima. He had been sent east by Alonso Luis de Lugo. Tocaima became one of the richest cities in the New Kingdom of Granada.

In 1547, Venegas Carrillo was sent to Spain and returned the next year.

Honours A school founded in 1958 in Tocaima is named after Hernán Venegas Carrillo.