I am writing a book about exploration of South America in the mid-1500s. (I am author of two books about the Amazon rainforest.)

My current research includes the typical weaponry and armor of a conquistador such as swords, morions, the arequebus, daggers and lance and so on. I want to ensure that any description I craft for readers is 100% accurate to our present knowledge.

I'd appreciate any resources or any information (books, websites, etc.) that would help me provide detailed descriptions. For example, what kind of sword or dagger would a conquistador wear? And if the rapier, for example, what kind of hilt would be typical of the early- to mid-1500s? What would be the cost of provisioning a soldier with a full complement of weaponry? Ideally, the information would be specific to South America, but any reference related to Spain would be most helpful.

I really need excruciating detail, which is lacking on Wikipedia and easy-to-find websites. Most important is that era. I really can't use any info much later than 1570.

Also, I am trying to reconstruct a duel between two Spanish officers of the time. I'd love some guidance on how I might do this. Can I rely on modern descriptions of dueling techniques, or are there contemporary descriptions that would be more authentic?

Your most available introduction in English is likely
Peterson, H.L., ARMS & ARMOR IN COLONIAL AMERICA 1526-1783, Bramhall House, New York, NY, 1956

Calvert's old work may provide some insight as well.
https://archive.org/details/spanisharmsarmou00calvuoft


Muster Rolls from the North American Coronado expedition exist.
http://www.oakknoll.com/pages/books/89865/mus...e-coronado
http://mysite.verizon.net/calderonscompany/coromuster.html

A simple site search for "conquistador" brings up a number of threads worth review, for example:
http://www.myArmoury.com/talk/viewtopic.php?t=21883

Achille Marozzo's 1536 and 1538 publications should give a fair amount of information on "current" martial arts practices, if not dueling, per se.
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Please keep in mind Portuguese involvement in Brazil, and German exploration in Venezuela, before relying solely on Spanish documents. Some regional or national differences exist, like the Portuguese "crab" or "testicles" hilt.
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EDIT TO ADD: Since you mentioned it, the common comb morion, although stereotypically used to portray conquistadors, was not in use in the early to mid 1500s.

You will find some info here: http://www.myArmoury.com/feature_armies_spanish.html

Sallets, kettle hats, early burgonets for most folks: Armets and close helms for the high and mighty

Thank you everyone, for your help! I also thought the morion was de rigeur. Why is it that we see it so widely depicted if it was not widely used?

The forerunner of the morion was a form of kettle hat with the brim turned down rather than up, often worn with a bevor

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to the OP
you might wanna look at the evolution of the morion,

as for why it was so widely associated is likely because the tales of the spanish gold was partly spread around the time of francis drake, the spanish armada and queen Elizabeth the 1st, in the early 17th, late 16th centuries, where the morion WAS a VERY popular helmet type for pretty much everyone
i also believe that the spanish might have been a bit slower to change armaments and adope the late 17th century models so the image of them with morions might have stuck a bit longer..

and to nathan, that type of helmet was known as a cabacete and was a distinctly spanish and portuguese type of helmet

[quote} and to nathan, that type of helmet was known as a cabacete and was a distinctly spanish and portuguese type of helmet[/quote]

lol, yes I'm fully aware of that, I'm actually putting together a Spanish kit of the early 1500's right now.( but I have only managed to get the Barbote type bevor and the rodela and sword so far.)

To the OP, also crossbows and some halberds were used and only a very few firearms were actually being carried while sword and shield armed troops made up the bulk.(armed with broader cut and trust swords rather than what modern people would think of as a rapier.)

Another excellent source is "Small Arms of the Spanish Treasure Fleets" by Noel Wells. Heavily illustrated with good artifact photographs.

Use this site's search function and search for "conquistador". You'll find many threads that will be of use.

These are wonderful insights and so helpful. My reference also includes a "lance". I normally think of this as the classic jousting lance. But this reference is to a foot soldier's weaponry, so that kind of lance would be a bit cumbersome! Would the type of lance be more like a pike (without the axe)?

"Lance" and "spear" were largely interchangeable terms until we started ascribing more specific meanings to them. So "lance" here could mean anything from a relatively short spear to a full-sized pike (though mind that "pike" was also commonly used for shorter spears as well!). Do you happen to know the original untranslated word for this "lance?"

Good question. I will see if I can find out...

Hello
Would chainmail have been used by the conquistadors,or was it too hot and heavy for the jungle?

Thanks in advance

I haven't been able to get a translation of Coronado's muster rolls, but I have read that many conquistadors on his expedition were listed as carrying "armas de la tierra," or "arms of the country," which were supposed to be weapons and armor from Mexico.

Now, I'm not sure if any of the men in the muster roll who were listed by name with their equipment were part of the big force of Mexican allies that joined Coronado, but when I think of Mexican arms and armor of the time, I think of things like the tepoztopilli, the macuahuitl, and the ichcahuipilli. Certainly the ichcahuipilli was very popular with the Spanish in the Americas at the time, but would Spanish conquistadors really be going on an expedition armed with Mexican obsidian weapons? Or might "arms of the country" mean steel arms made in Mexico?

There's a work by Richard Flint called "Armas de la Tierra: The Mexican Indian Component of Coronado. Expedition Material Culture," whose title seems to suggest that they were Mexican equipment, but I can't access it.

Here you go, Michael.

http://books.google.com/books?id=w2ESAiWaZkcC...mp;f=false

The most familiar weapons of a conquistador were blunderbusses, muskets, halberds, arquebuses and of course, rapiers.