De Soto’s expedition eventually encountered much larger resistance in other parts of the Southeast.

The Battle of Mabila, in present-day Alabama, became one of the bloodiest encounters of the expedition.

The exact numbers reported by Spanish chroniclers are debated, but the scale of the fighting was enormous.

This matters to the Capachequi story because it demonstrates what could happen when Native communities refused to submit.

The Spanish could win battles.

But they could also suffer serious losses.

The expedition was never simply an unstoppable machine.