In the Conquistadors series, Michael Wood sails back a millennium to a time when the Americas were new and Spain was a superpower, a nation of crusading adventures whose quest for gold, land and souls destroyed ancient civilizations and created the modern globe. This site augments the film using rare collections of eyewitness testimonials, native pictograms, and 16th Century engravings to recreate the experience of four conquistadors: Hernan Cortes, Francisco Pizarro, Francisco de Orellana and Cabeza de Vaca.

In Search of El Dorado

Early in 1541, a rumor swept Quito that beyond the mountains, there lay a land, a land of gold. The ruler of this land was so rich he covered himself with gold dust, he was El Dorado, the golden Man. This site section covers the quest of Francisco de Orellana to find this land and the myth of El Dorado throughout the centuries.

All the World is Human

Cabeza de Vaca was shipwrecked off the coast of Texas in 1528 and lived with Indians for eight years. Upon his return to Spain, he wrote a book about his experience. This site interactive map allows viewers to trace his journey.