Tejano History
Armada De Barlovento
Tejanos |
ARMADA DE BARLOVENTO. At the urging of Juan de Palafox, influential member of the Consejo de Indias, the Armada de las Islas de Barlovento y Seno Mexicano was authorized by the Spanish Crown about 1635. The name was abbreviated to Armada de Barlovento, or Windward Fleet. Its purpose was to police the sea lanes in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea to protect Spanish shipping and coastal settlements from foreign raiders. The armada's principal activities relating to Texas centered around the La Salle expedition, especially the search for La Salle's colony, and support of Domingo Terán de los Ríos in his entrada of 1691–92.
Full article on the Texas State Historical Association's Handbook of Texas Online