Diego Salcedo (soldier)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Diego Salcedo was a Spanish soldier who unwillingly became part of Puerto Rico's history with his death. Salcedo died on February 1511, during a trip to Puerto Rico, when Taíno Indians, under the command of Agueybana II (brother of the great Taino Cacique Agueybana) and the Cacique of Añasco Urayoán, drowned him to find out if people from Spain really were "Gods", as the Taínos believed.

Historically, two versions about how Salcedo was lured to his death have collided. Many books assert that the soldier had been told he'd be taken to a lake filled with Taíno women that he could have sex with, and, once there, he found not women, but men who then proceeded to drown him. The other version has Salcedo being offered a ride across a river by Taínos who carried him on their arms, and then drowned him and kept him for days, afraid he'd still be alive and until they were certain he was dead.

Many people see Salcedo as a fool for having accepted any of the offers. Others view him as an important link in the history between Puerto Rico and Spain.

After Salcedo's death, the Taíno Indians were encouraged to declare war on the Spaniards in Puerto Rico. But they suffered much more human loss than the Spaniards, due in part to the Spaniard's better weaponry and war expertise.

A local-legend tells of the ghost Indian woman, supposedly his lover, that still haunts the site of murder at present-day Añasco. This belief is exemplified by a verse in the town's anthem:

"La historia cuenta que aqui ahogaron a Salcedo y que en el salto una india de noche se ve"

Many historians believe that the story of Salcedo is just a legend made up to justify the attacking against the Taínos by putting them as criminals.