Guarionex (

Taíno language Taíno is an Arawakan language formerly spoken widely by the Taíno people of the Caribbean. In its revived form, there exist several modern-day Taíno language variants including Hiwatahia-Taino and Tainonaiki. At the time of Spanish contact ...

: ''"The Brave Noble Lord"'') was a

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

cacique A cacique, sometimes spelled as cazique (; ; feminine form: ), was a tribal chieftain of the Taíno people, who were the Indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles at the time of European cont ...

from Maguá in the island of

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

at the time of the arrival of the Europeans to the Western Hemisphere in 1492. He was the son of cacique Guacanagarix, the great Taíno

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...

who had the

vision Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to: Perception Optical perception * Visual perception, the sense of sight * Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight * Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain und ...

of the coming of the ''Guamikena'' (White Men). Since 1494 the Spaniards had imposed heavy tributes on the Taino population of Hispaniola. In 1495, Taino led by

Caonabo Caonabo (died 1496) was a Taíno ''cacique'' (chieftain) of Hispaniola at the time of Christopher Columbus's arrival to the island. He was known for his fighting skills and his ferocity. He was married to Anacaona, who was the sister of another ...

raised up in arms but were crushed by

Bartholomew Columbus Bartholomew Columbus (; ; ; ; – 12 August 1514) was a Genoese explorer and the younger brother of Christopher Columbus. Biography Born in Genoa in the 1461, Bartholomew became a mapmaker in Lisbon, the principal center of cartography of the ...

. Guarionex then opted for accommodation and appeasement but by 1497 the situation had deteriorated further. Guarionex then sided with Spanish rebel Francisco Roldán and set out to attack the Spaniards. Columbus assembled his troops and attacked Guarionex's camp at night by surprise. The cacique was captured and his warriors dispersed. Guarionex was later released by Columbus and went back to his policy of appeasement. At one point he could not hold on to power and fled to the north of the island. The Spaniards captured him there and sent him in chains to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in 1502, but the ship sank during a storm. Lost was a fortune in gold said by

Bartolomé de las Casas Bartolomé de las Casas, Dominican Order, OP ( ; ); 11 November 1484 – 18 July 1566) was a Spanish clergyman, writer, and activist best known for his work as an historian and social reformer. He arrived in Hispaniola as a layman, then became ...

to be worth 3600

castilians Castilians () are the inhabitants of the historical region of Castile in central Spain. However, the boundaries of the region are disputed. Not all people in the regions of the medieval Kingdom of Castile or Crown of Castile think of themsel ...

. At some point he fled to Puerto Rico and was cacique of Otoa ( Utuado, Puerto Rico).

In popular media

Cacique Guariones is mentioned in a Puerto Rican

décima A décima is a ten-line stanza of poetry. The most popular form is called décima espinela after Vicente Espinel (1550–1624), a Spanish writer, poet, and musician from the Spanish Golden Age who used it extensively throughout his compositions. T ...

in the Journal of American Folk-lore volume 31, published in 1918.

References

Taíno leaders 16th-century indigenous people of the Americas 16th-century monarchs in North America Dominican Republic people of Taíno descent Haitian people of Taíno descent {{Haiti-bio-stub

In popular media

See also

References