Person

Gil González Dávila

c. 1480–1526 · 16th century

Gil González Dávila was a Spanish conquistador who led the first Spanish expedition into what is now Costa Rica and Nicaragua in 1522–1523. He met the chiefs of Nicoya and Nicarao, who accepted baptism, and gathered much gold. Later conflicts with rival Spanish captains over control of Nicaragua and Honduras ended with his return to Spain.

Gil González Dávila
Image: Unknown author, subject died in 1526 · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 2 state histories

Chiefdom of NicoyaNicarao chiefdom

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Gil González Dávila. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gil-gonzalez-davila
MLA
“Gil González Dávila.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gil-gonzalez-davila. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Gil González Dávila.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gil-gonzalez-davila.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Gil González Dávila’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/gil-gonzalez-davila (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻