Diego de Montega

Diego de Montega
Portrait of Diego de Montega, 1839
Born	Diego de Montega (1591-07-23)23 July 1591 Vallejos, Iberic Empire
Died	26 September 1645(1645-09-26) (aged 54) Santa Borbones, Pecario
Other names	"La Guia"
Occupation	Navigator, soldier, explorer, administrator of the Kingdom of Pecario
Spouse(s)	Inès Patanqui

Diego de Montega (1581–1639) was a Stillian conquistador best known for his expeditions that led to the Iberic conquest of the Tuachec Empire. Born in Vallejo, in the Iberic Empire, to a poor family, Montega quickly rose through the ranks in the Iberic military to eventually be appointed Gran Comandante. During the chaos that led to the fall of the empire, Montega followed Admiral Esteban Deiargon in The Gran Viatge. He parted ways with Deiargon's fleet in 1616 after the failure to establish an initial colony in northwestern Alharu.

He landed on the shores of Pecario on February 25, 1630, after a long and tumultuous journey (his fleet was reduced by about half). Montega founded the first Iberic colony in Mesothalassa, Puerto Montega. After a series of maneuvers, Montega captured the Tuachec Emperor Pomatec IV at the Battle of Tawantinsuyo in 1631. A ransom for the emperor's release was demanded, and Pomatec IV filled an entire room with gold, but Montega still had him executed in 1633. He founded Santa Borbones in 1633 on the site of the former Tuachec capital, Tualcacán. Montega eventually fell victim to a political conspiracy and was assassinated in 1645.

Quotes

Diego de Montega reciting his famous speech for his men after their arrival

It is said in Chronicles of the New Wurld, written by Christiano Davegga in 1630, that Montega, upon landing on the shores of Pecario on February 25, 1630, is believed to have said to his exhausted men, in order to invigorate them:

Amigos, behind me, the Empire! Ahead of us, our own! I'd rather be poor here than rich over there! Fear not, bold as we are, we will build something a thousand times more beautiful than what we left behind. Those who trust, follow me!