Honduras

From Mw

Christopher Columbus landed on mainland Honduras near modern Trujillo in 1502, giving the country its name (which means depths) in reference to the deep water off the coast. Spaniard Hernán Cortés arrived in 1524. Some local tribes and nations continued to fight the Spanish invaders through the late 1530s; one native defender, Lempira, was leader of the Lenca people, and is now considered a national hero whom the currency is named after. As the Spanish began founding settlements along the coast, Honduras came under the control of the Captaincy General of Guatemala. The spaniards developed mining activity and sugar plantations.The indians were enslaved to work for the spaniards.The cities of Comayagua and Tegucigalpa developed as early mining centers.The indian population decresaed dramatically because of the diseases brought by the europeans , the hard work-conditions and their resistance-war against the invaders.So the spaniards began to ship black slaves from Africa to replace the indians.