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'''Tristán de Luna y Arellano''' ([[1519]] – [[1571]]) was a Spanish conquistador of the 16th century. Born in Aragon, he came to New Spain in about 1530, and was sent on an expedition to conquer Florida in 1559. In August of that year, he established an ephemeral colony at modern-day [[Pensacola, Florida|Pensacola]] that became the first European settlement within the continental boundaries of the United States.
During his years in Mexico, de Luna served with Francisco Vásquez de Coronado on his expedition to the Seven Cities of Cíbola and crushed an Indian rebellion in Oaxaca. He was chosen by [[Luis de Velasco]], viceroy of New Spain, to establish a settlement on the Gulf Coast of what is now the United States and clear an overland trade route to Santa Elena (on Tybee Island, Georgia), where another outpost would be founded. To this end he was given thirteen ships and more than 1,500 soldiers and settlers. De Luna, however, proved an incompetent leader, and the expedition was plagued by disaster.
