Pod Insights Short History Of... Christopher Columbus About this episode The explorer, Christopher Columbus, is famous for reaching the Americas and opening up a new world to European pioneers. But though his determination and skills were second to none, he eventually fell out of favour at home and abroad, and was unwelcome even in the very colonies he’d founded. Contrary to popular misconception, Columbus never set foot in what is now the continental United States, and nor did he seek to prove that the Earth was round.
So, how did Columbus’ voyages change the world? What motivated a young man from Italy to endanger his life on behalf of the Spanish government? And how much responsibility can we put at the feet of one man for the suffering that colonialism brought to America’s indigenous people?
This is a Short History Of Christopher Columbus.
A Noiser Production. Written by Jo Furniss. With thanks to Douglas Hunter, author of several books about the history of exploration, including The Race to the New World.
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1:01 Speaker 02 It is the 24th of June, 1503.
1:05 Speaker 02 With waves crashing over his feet to sluice the deck, an Italian by the name of Cristoforo Colombo stands on the forecastle of a ship.
1:16 Speaker 02 He is the admiral of a fleet of four vessels, two of which have been lost. His entire remaining crew of 116 men is packed into the surviving caravals.
1:30 Speaker 02 After extreme weather along the coast of Central America, he is trying to limp back to safe harbor in the Caribbean in the damaged boats.
1:40 Speaker 02 This whole voyage has been a disaster, his most dangerous and his least profitable. And, at the age of 52, possibly also his last.
1:52 Speaker 02 Now the ship's mate emerges from a hatch and gestures for him to follow. There's something he needs to see.
2:00 Speaker 02 Colombo climbs down the creaking wooden steps and immediately sees the issue. Below, water is swilling about on the boards.
2:11 Speaker 02 A rat squeals as it leaps to a dry perch, and the mate points to the wooden planks of a hull that is pitted with holes bored out by shipworm. Even pumps cannot keep water out now. The caravel is at risk of sinking.
2:28 Speaker 02 They need to reach the Spanish enclave of Hispaniola Island, far to the northeast, but they're making little progress against strong currents.
2:38 Speaker 02 Then, there is a shout from the crow's nest. Colombo hurries up to the deck and sees it. Land, and just in time.
2:51 Speaker 02 But as they get a little closer, he recognizes the island. It's Jamaica. He's visited before and knows there is no Spanish settlement here, no chance of repairing the ships. If they land, they will be stranded.
3:08 Speaker 02 Even so, with the lives of his crew in peril, they have no choice but to go ashore.
3:14 Speaker 02 They approach the wide bay, and Colombo almost falls to the deck as the caravel grinds to an abrupt halt, its hull rising up on the sand.
3:26 Speaker 02 With the two vessels beached, leaning against one another like drunken sailors, Colombo jumps down to the shallow water and the men join him, splashing through the waves to the shore an arrow's distance away. Further along the bay, local fishermen shout in alarm. Children scream and run into the trees. But they're of little concern to Colombo, who has bigger things on his mind.
3:52 Speaker 02 For him, this is no paradise. It is a prison.
3:57 Speaker 02 Thirteen months after he left Spain, he has nothing to take home or any idea if he will ever get back there again. He is marooned, thousands of miles from safety, a castaway.
4:19 Speaker 02 The explorer, better known as Christopher Columbus, is famous for reaching the Americas and opening up a new world to European pioneers. His determination and skills were second to none. He eventually fell out of favor at home and abroad, his reputation for brutality making him unwelcome even in the colonies he founded.
4:42 Speaker 02 But Columbus never set foot in what is now the continental United States. He wasn't even looking for the uncharted continent. His mission was to discover a new route to Asia. Contrary to popular misconception, he also wasn't trying to prove that the Earth was round. This fact had been well-understood since ancient Greek times.
5:07 Speaker 02 So what motivated a young man from Italy to endanger his life on behalf of the Spanish government?
5:15 Speaker 02 How did his voyages change the world through the exchange of animals, crops, and disease?
5:22 Speaker 02 And how much responsibility can we put at the feet of one man for the suffering that colonialism brought to the indigenous people of the Americas?
5:31 Speaker 02 I'm John Hopkins from the Noiser Network. This is A Short History of Christopher Columbus.
5:45 Speaker 02 The origins of Christopher Columbus are disputed, but the widely-accepted version is that he is born Cristoforo Colombo in around 1451.
5:57 Speaker 02 His birthplace of Genoa, in what is now northwestern Italy, is a wealthy, independent city-state, a naval port and gateway to the Mediterranean.
6:08 Speaker 02 In the harbor, boats land from Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East, and sailors visit taverns, like the one Cristoforo's father owns at one point. It is a cultural and linguistic melting pot, where the young man picks up several languages, but he is drawn to the sea.
6:32 Speaker 02 By the age of fourteen, he is making fishing trips and soon lands a job with the Portuguese merchant navy. He travels widely throughout the Aegean, across to Africa, and north, as far as Ireland and even Iceland. Experiences the dangers of the ocean firsthand, nearly dying in a shipwreck in 1476. But Columbus is ambitious and undeterred.
7:00 Speaker 02 Douglas Santa is the author of several books about the history of exploration, including "The Race to the New World."
7:08 Speaker 03 There's a lot of stories, barnacles, that I'd sort of get attached to Columbus even as a lifetime. We know he came from Genova. And I think the real mysteries are how did he get as far up the chain as he did? His father was a woolcarter. They were pretty modest people. But we know he climbed a pretty steep ladder and a pretty tall ladder. We just don't know how he did it.
7:35 Speaker 02 At the age of 25, Columbus moves to Lisbon in Portugal, where he studies navigation, astronomy, mathematics, and cartography. He discovers the writings of Marco Polo, the Venetian explorer who traveled to Asia in the previous century. Columbus's younger brother Bartholomew joins him and qualifies as a mapmaker. The pair are then inspired and look west in the same way that Marco Polo once looked east. What might be out there, beyond the Atlantic?
8:09 Speaker 02 Classical literature tells stories of mythical islands over the horizon. But for practical information, we can look to the Viking sagas.
8:20 Speaker 02 They tell us how Viking sailors like Gleif Erikson reached the northern shores of the Americas around the year 1000, 500 years before Columbus.
8:32 Speaker 02 Some historians believe Columbus could have heard tales about these voyages when he briefly visited Iceland in the winter of 1477, but we can never know for sure.
8:44 Speaker 02 What we do know is that in the 1470s, Columbus gets hold of a letter sent by the Italian cartographer Paolo Toscanelli to the king of Portugal. It offers a detailed account of a possible route to what was then called the Indies, an umbrella term for the area of Asia that we now know as the Indian subcontinent, China, Southeast Asia, and even Japan. It also contains a map.
9:11 Speaker 03 So there was this letter by Paolo Toscanelli in the 1470s that basically laid out what Columbus wanted to do, which was sail west. And you were going to get to these semi-mythical places. The monarchs and the merchants know that there's stuff to be had and money to be made in what they called the Indies. And everybody knew the world was a sphere. That wasn't anything controversial. And if you know what a sphere looks like, you know that if you just sail in one direction, you'll go all the way around inside and you'll come back where you started. So it wasn't much of a concept to say, "Well, if we know we want to go to the east, but if we just sail west, we're going to run into it sooner or later." Problem was, how long was it going to take? And could you find people to do it with you?
9:59 Speaker 02 Goods from the Indies, such as silks and spices, are highly valued. But the lucrative transport of goods is dominated by Muslim kingdoms, especially the Ottoman Empire, who control the overland routes. Meanwhile, the Venetians control access to the east via the Levant, or Middle Eastern sea ways.
10:20 Speaker 02 With so much restriction on access to the east, Columbus hopes there could be plenty of potential investors keen on an alternative route. But the fundraising campaign will prove to be an odyssey of its own. It will take 10 years to raise the finances necessary for an expedition.
10:39 Speaker 02 In the meantime, he marries a Portuguese noblewoman. And around 1480, they have a son, Diego.
10:47 Speaker 02 His wife dies a few years later. And Columbus has a second child, Ferdinand, from a new relationship.
10:55 Speaker 02 But he spends little time with the family as he travels widely to raise funds for his voyage.
11:05 Speaker 02 His brother, Bartholomew, the mapmaker, goes to northern Europe to lobby monarchs and rich merchants, but fails to persuade Charles VIII of France or Henry VII of England. For his part, Columbus seeks sponsors closer to home. Firstly, he presents a proposal to John II of Portugal, but when he's turned down, he seeks funding in Venice and Genoa, and there is also Spain. As it stands, the Portuguese have a monopoly on exploration along the coast of Africa, which means the Spanish are not allowed to sail any further south than the Canary Islands.
11:48 Speaker 02 So, given the other limits on passage east, the Spanish are locked out. An opportunity to head west, therefore, might be just the solution. The problem is that the two Spanish monarchs, King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castile, are caught up in a lengthy and costly war. The final phase of the so-called Reconquista, the war to reclaim Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Iberia, has been raging for a decade. But when the Islamic emirate of Granada finally surrenders in January 1492, Columbus seizes his moment.
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15:29 Speaker 02 It is January the 2nd, 1492. Columbus, now aged forty, stands among a cheering crowd.
15:39 Speaker 02 They are gathered outside the rose-red walls of a fortress known as the Alhambra Palace. The citadel dominates Granada in southern Spain, a region that has long been ruled by Muslims. But today, it is back in Christian hands for the first time in centuries.
15:58 Speaker 02 The war is at an end, after a relentless series of military campaigns finally forced the Sultan to surrender.
16:07 Speaker 02 Today, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella are arriving to triumphantly take the last piece in their puzzle of a unified Spain.
16:18 Speaker 02 As Columbus waits to see what will happen next, music starts up.
16:24 Speaker 02 A procession approaches, and the noise of the crowd only intensifies when they catch a glimpse of the monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, riding through the dusty streets, where only days ago it was too dangerous for Catholics to tread.
16:39 Speaker 02 They pause at the city gates, which creak and crash open.
16:45 Speaker 02 There is a carnival atmosphere, as the Spanish infantry soldiers, high-stepping cavalry horses, and clergy march into the citadel.
16:54 Speaker 02 And then, high on the Camaro's Tower, the tallest part of the Alhambra, a flag bearing the Islamic crescent drops.
17:04 Speaker 02 It is a poignant moment, and the crowd falls silent. In its place, a bright, white flag appears, jerking and snapping as it is hauled aloft. It catches the wind and streams into view. All of Spain is once again under Catholic control.
17:29 Speaker 02 With the end of the reconquista, the monarchs are no longer hemorrhaging funds into war, but they do need to restock their coffers.
17:38 Speaker 02 Just days after the handover at the Alhambra Palace, Columbus secures an audience with Isabella to make a fresh appeal. "You need income," he tells her. "Pay for me to sail west, and I'll find you a backdoor into the Indies."
17:53 Speaker 03 He was a very persistent salesman. It's not just like he needs cash and he needs boats, but he wants privileges. That's a really clear part of his negotiations. He wants rights that, once he finds things on the other side, not only rights for himself, but he wants hereditary rights for his family. So, he got what he wanted, but he really pushed hard to get those things. So, Isabelle in the end does grant him the rights. There's the myth that she pawned her jewels. It's a nice story, but really what happens is that those funds came from properties of Jews who were kicked out of Spain as of May 1, 1492. So, they either had to leave the country or they had to convert to Christianity by July.
18:36 Speaker 03 So, you know, that's one of the darker corners of how this thing came together, is that Jewish property, you know, gave it to the crown, the crown then used it to put this voyage together for Columbus. But really, it does come down to this basic Toscanelli idea. Go west. Columbus himself thought, maybe a week past the canaries when you're gonna get there? It's a lot longer than that.
19:05 Speaker 02 On the morning of the 3rd of August, 1492, three ships set sail from Palos de la Frontera in Andalucia in southern Spain.
19:15 Speaker 02 Leading the way is a carac called the Santa Maria. Columbus is commander of the fleet and its navigator. There are also two caravels called the Pinta and the Nina, captained by the Pinthon brothers, Martin Alonso and Vicente Yanef. But Columbus's own brother, Bartholomew, was unable to return from his fundraising efforts in northern Europe.
19:41 Speaker 02 The fleet passes, without fanfare, down the Rio Tinto and out into the open sea beyond. The plan is to sail to the Canary Islands, then pick up trade winds that will carry the ships west into the Atlantic. And beyond that are the lands whose names are only known from myth and legend.
20:02 Speaker 03 There was the Isle of Seven Cities, there was Antilla, that's how we got the lesser Antilles, stuck on the maps in the Caribbean eventually. There was Sepango, which was Japan. So, I don't think there was a question that if you just went west, you were going to get to these places. The problem was, how long was it going to take? Because it really depended on how big you think the world is.
20:26 Speaker 02 There are many medieval texts that claim the Earth is comprised of six parts land to one part water. And if there's that much more earth than ocean, surely they'll see some soon.
20:40 Speaker 02 But as the days pass, and there is no sign of land, the crews of three ships start to doubt their commander.
20:49 Speaker 03 Columbus either by naivety or deliberately kind of underplayed the distance. Probably made it about 25% shorter than it really was. And you have to remember too, that at the time, there was a lot of sailing going on in Europe because of trade. But sailors generally weren't out of stited land for more than, like five days would be a lot. Spain to the Canaries was about five days. But everything else was coastal sailing. So the idea of just heading off into emptiness and going and going and going and going was a little bit daunting.
21:23 Speaker 02 Days turn to weeks. Columbus keeps two sets of logs in his cabin on the Santa Maria. One is the real log, recording the vast distance his calculations tell him they have already traveled. The other log is the one he shares, a reading based on an alternative set of measurements that suggest they are not as far from home as his men believe. While the crew is afraid of being lost at sea, Columbus fears that the men will stage a mutiny if they learn the truth.
21:56 Speaker 03 Columbus was a pretty dodgy guy, you know, he kept his logs to himself. But he knows they're out there somewhere. He's not very far and he's gonna get there. And he's kind of monkeying with the geography and his reportage of where he really is. Because he had to kind of keep them on side.
22:12 Speaker 02 Then Martin Alanthopinthon spots a flock of birds flying south. Surely, he argues, following them would lead the sailors to whatever foreign shore the birds go to roost. So the fleet changes course and sails on.
22:33 Speaker 02 After ten long weeks at sea, they are now desperate for land. What meat they have left is rotten, and the hard-tack biscuits they rely upon are full of maggots. Despite the hopeful signs of birds in the sky and floating rafts of palm leaves in the water, the men have had enough. A mutiny is threatened. But Columbus manages to negotiate his way out of it. Two more days, he promises, and will be there. The fleet heads southwest, and Columbus preys for a sighting.
23:17 Speaker 02 Then, with the deadline nearly expired, the shout he has been desperate to hear goes up. The island they approach is low-lying and sandy, with trees tumbling into the water. In a natural harbor, Columbus goes ashore with a small entourage, carrying weapons and a flag. On the beach, they plunge into the sand a pole with a white banner adorned with a red and gold crown. For the first time in history, a European Christian flag flies in the Americas.
24:03 Speaker 02 Columbus nomea a ilha San Salvador, o que significa "Senhor", e faz contato com os habitantes locais. Não há registro da reunião do ponto de vista do povo lucariano nativo, mas parece que eles estão contentes de interagir com os europeus e, presumivelmente, ajudar os homens comidas a encontrar comida e água fresca. Mas Columbus deve estar perguntando: "Isso é o fábrica dos indias?"
24:33 Speaker 02 O nome local para o lugar é Guanahani, mas isso não significa nada para os europeus que não têm mapas desta área. A pergunta de onde eles realmente estão nunca foi respondida definitivamente, embora seja agora acreditado que o ponto de partida é uma das ilhas menores da Bahamas. Como as Américas não aparecem no seu mapa, parece a Columbus que eles navegaram através do único mar desmanchado e chegaram no lado mais longe da Ásia. Eles concluem que San Salvador é uma das pequenas pontas do arco-íris desenhado por Toscanelli.
25:15 Speaker 02 Columbus declara que ele alcançou as Indias, e o povo local, portanto, é indianos. E é por isso que até hoje, partes do Caribe são conhecidas como as Indias do Oeste.
25:29 Speaker 03 Na verdade, toda a sua vida, ele nunca admitia que não tinha chegado às Indias. Isso tem de ser uma das grandes conquistas da história. É como ir à lua e atingir Marte, você sabe? E dizer: "Não, realmente, eu estou na lua. Não se importem com a cobre preta, nós estamos na lua, pessoal". Mas uma vez que você chegou a um lugar que realmente não era as Indias, você tinha que descobrir o que fazer com isso. Onde está o prazo? Como se tornou, eventualmente, massas de mercados de ferro que saíram das Américas, que iria criar um grande prazo para a Espanha, mas também uma inflação em Europa. Havia consequências grandes para isso, mas inicialmente, era: "Bom, nós chegamos lá, e onde estamos?"
26:09 Speaker 02 Dois dias depois, Columbus pede despedida ao povo de San Salvador e navega.
26:17 Speaker 02 His ships spend months exploring the Caribbean. On December the 6th, they land in a bay that Columbus calls San Nicolas, the northwestern tip of a much bigger island he names Hispaniola. But the local people, the Taino, have already given their home a name. It is "land of mountains," or in their language, "Haiti." It is now better known as Haiti. Again, there is no record of what the Taino people make of the travelers from across the ocean. But Columbus meets a chieftain called Guacanagari, from whom he purchases gold jewelry.
26:54 Speaker 02 But he also tries to force the Taino to take him to the source of their gold, and kidnaps some locals to take back to Europe.
27:03 Speaker 02 Then, on Christmas Day 1492, the Santa Maria runs aground on a reef.
27:10 Speaker 02 Though the loss of the flagship is a disaster, Columbus orders the salvage of the timber to build shelters on a spot on the north shore called La Navidad, or Christmas. They're substantial enough for a settlement. So when he departs for Europe, 39 men from his crew remain behind to maintain the first Spanish outpost in the Americas.
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29:01 Speaker 04 You know, it's the time of the year when I'm always on the lookout for fresh fall options for my wardrobe. And I think I just found my new favorite sweater at Quince. It's the Cotton Fisherman Crew. It's relaxed, it's cozy, but yet still polished. It's one of those versatile pieces you can wear everywhere, to the office, out running errands, or a night out with friends. And as we head into the holiday season, this is definitely one I'll be adding to others on my list. See, Quince focuses on high quality staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, 14 karat gold, and Italian leather. All timeless versatile pieces that feel special to unwrap and become everyday favorites long after the holidays. Their cashmere sweaters start at just $60, and the lineup doesn't stop there. They have premium down jackets, wool outerwear, and cashmere accessories.
29:46 Speaker 04 Everything you and your loved ones need to stay warm and look put together all season long. And when it comes to gifting, Quince has a lot more than clothing. Think fine jewelry, leather bags, hotel quality bedding, chef grade cookware, and five star luggage. Basically, plenty of ways to find something special for everyone on your list. So give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app exclusive offers or go to quince.com and get free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. It's now available in Canada and the UK too. And when Quince asks where you heard about them, let them know what short history of. It's the best way to support the show.
30:24 Speaker 02 In January 1493, Columbus sets off for home in the two caravels belonging to the Pinthon Brothers.
30:31 Speaker 02 He hasn't found mountains of gold and instant riches, but he has some novelties to take home and a promise of plentiful profits to come.
30:44 Speaker 03 Explorers aren't out there to fill in the geography for the sake of the science of geography. They're there to seize the main chance. When Columbus first sees people in the Bahamas, it's very telling that his first comments are, "They look intelligent and they'd make good slaves." "We can grow sugar here." "We need slaves." "We can enslave the people here." We're in the middle of conquering... They're busy finishing the conquest of the Canary Islands. And he's tied to the people in the conquest of the Canary Islands. In fact, Berardi, a slaver, is the guy he borrows the money from to charter the Santa Maria for himself. And that's another consequence of the fact that it was someone from Portugal or Spain that came to the world first, because it was a slaving world in the Mediterranean.
31:29 Speaker 03 This was a slaving society, and they had no compunction about enslaving people and using slave labor.
31:41 Speaker 02 On this return leg, the ships encounter the worst storm of the entire voyage. But eventually, two months after leaving the Caribbean, Columbus reaches Spain and rushes to Barcelona to present himself to the king and queen. In letters that he sends ahead, he tells of how he reached the Indies and describes Hispaniola as a magnificent island off the coast of China.
32:08 Speaker 02 In the centuries that follow, Columbus's name will become synonymous with the voyage that forever connects Europe and the Americas. But in 1493, it is not immediately clear who will take the glory for the so-called discovery.
32:24 Speaker 03 Columbus had the rights, so there's no question. He's the guy whose name is signed to the papers. So he has the blessings of the Spanish crown. The most interesting rival he has at that time really is Martin Alonso Pinzon. He is with his brother, the guys that bring in the Nina and the Pinta. But you also get a lot of people saying Pinzon actually is the one that made them go all the way, that Columbus wanted to turn back. And Pinzon said, "No, no, no, we're gonna keep going. It's Pinzon. I don't think it's Cundecita who sees the flock of birds and says, 'Let's go that away.'" For a few days, Pinzon has the chart that they're using, and Columbus has to take it back for them on the crossing. And then they get separated in a storm on the way back. And then you're aware that there's this race home, because whoever gets there first is gonna tell the story of what really happened.
33:11 Speaker 03 Martin Alonso Pinzon dies a few days after getting home. And if Pinzon had lived, we would have had a whole different perspective on the voyage.
33:19 Speaker 02 Martin Alonso Pinzon probably dies of syphilis, a disease believed to have originated in the Americas and introduced to Europe as a result of the voyages of Columbus. Pinzon has no immunity to the new strain of bacteria and quickly succumbs, just as millions of indigenous Americans will do in the years to come from the many diseases that spread in the other direction.
33:51 Speaker 02 With Pinzon out of the way, Columbus is warmly welcomed home. He is named governor of the Indies, and in return, he presents Queen Isabella with a sample of gold and the Taino people that he kidnapped. He shows off the other souvenirs too, things never seen before in Europe: a pineapple, tobacco, a turkey. But contrary to popular belief, Columbus doesn't bring back the first potatoes. These aren't discovered by Europeans until 1532. But his best gift is the news that there is an abundance of gold, fertile land, and a local population ready to convert to Catholicism.
34:34 Speaker 02 By deeming the so-called "new world", Terra Nullis, or "empty land", the Europeans justified seizure without recognizing the sovereignty of indigenous people.
34:47 Speaker 03 I know "discover" is something we put in quotation marks, but I think "discover" is still a valid concept within a culture itself. In Europe, they didn't know this place existed. So because people live there doesn't mean it's empty. That's valid. Terra Nullis is offensive. But nobody had a concept of this place. So there is a process of discovery, naturally. And they discovered a lot of resources. They were completely alien to Europe. He's impressed them enough with whatever he has to say, "We've got to get them back there right away. We've got to get a trading center built." And it's serious. It's seventeen vessels and over a thousand people go to set up the center. They really believe they're right on the edge of something big.
35:26 Speaker 02 In September 1493, Columbus set sail west again, this time with his brothers beside him.
35:39 Speaker 02 His fleet now comprises seventeen vessels, with a crew including soldiers, priests, craftsmen, and farmers. The mission this time is not to explore, but to colonize.
35:53 Speaker 02 It takes only twenty days to cross the Atlantic. But when Columbus returns to the settlement at La Navidad, he finds that it has been burned to the ground and the Spaniards are missing or dead.
36:08 Speaker 02 Confronting a local chieftain, Columbus learns that the Spanish had forcibly kidnapped Taino women and made them serve at La Navidad. So the Taino massacred the foreigners to free them.
36:23 Speaker 02 Cutting his losses, Columbus abandons La Navidad and sails to Cuba, which he believes is a peninsula of Cathay, or China. Hispaniola, he concludes, must be Sepanga, or Japan. There, Spanish explorers find gold and force local people to work in the mines.
36:44 Speaker 02 Naturally, they fight back and the Spanish resort to brutal punishments, including mutilation and execution.
36:52 Speaker 02 Columbus uses the same methods, ordering violent retribution against both locals and any Spanish who get out of hand.
37:01 Speaker 02 He also starts to ship captured indigenous people back to Europe to labor in Spain.
37:11 Speaker 03 It's on that second voyage that things really start to get sideways. They ship back 400 people as slaves. Half of them probably die on the way home. There are just horrifying eyewitness letters of women dropping their babies in panic and just running into the forest to get away from the Spanish who are coming after them. Plus, he's indebted to slavers. He borrowed the money for the Santa Maria from Barardi, who was a slaver. So he's lost a ship for first time out. And he probably brought these people home to try to settle some debts. You just get this sense on this second voyage that it just becomes this free-for-all of expeditions into the hinterlands, looking for gold, shaking down people, terrorizing people. And Columbus trying to build a trading station
37:56 Speaker 03 for which there's no need. All the while, Columbus is trying to keep alive this idea that we really are just around the corner from where all the money is. But just because you have a geographic idea that you can sail that way and get somewhere, are you the right guy to run the show? Are you the right guy, once you get there, to oversee the colonization, oversee the trading center, do all those things? And the Columbus record, frankly, isn't very good.
38:31 Speaker 02 March 1496, Columbus once again heads home, leaving his brother Bartholomew to stay and run the colony with a third Columbus sibling, Diego. When Christopher arrives back in Europe, his star is on the wane. He has failed to produce the promised riches, and Isabella is not impressed by reports of brutality and enslavement.
38:55 Speaker 02 She declares that the people of these newly colonized lands will not be treated as slaves because they are her subjects.
39:04 Speaker 02 This is at a time when Africans are being enslaved too. But the difference for the queen is that Spain hasn't colonized their African homelands, so they are not her citizens. Columbus is ordered to take the captives home.
39:23 Speaker 02 There is now a long wait of four years before Columbus's third voyage. In that time, another explorer, called John Cabot, sets off from Bristol in England to cross the northern wastes of the Atlantic.
39:37 Speaker 02 When he makes landfall in what he calls Newfoundland in North America, he claims the land on behalf of the English king Henry VII. A year after that historic moment, Columbus sets sail again to the south of the continent in a much depleted fleet of six ships. This time, he also reaches the mainland, landing on the coast of what is now Venezuela, but doesn't find treasure or a strait leading to Asia. Back in the Spanish enclave of Hispaniola, he is increasingly unpopular. Both Columbus and his brothers antagonize the settlers as well as the locals. Soon, tensions come to a head.
40:28 Speaker 02 It is August of the year 1500. A caravel docks at Santa Domingo on Hispaniola, and a harbor bell rings to call stevedores to unload it.
40:39 Speaker 02 Now, a man with a neat, pointed beard comes down the gangplank and makes his way along the quay, sweating in his formal, Spanish jacket and ruff. This is Francisco de Bobadilla, a court official who has been sent across the Atlantic by the king and queen to investigate worrying reports about the state of governance in their colonies, and, if necessary, to arrest the governor, Christopher Columbus.
41:07 Speaker 02 His attention is drawn to a gibbet that stands on the waterside, from which swing the bodies of five men.
41:15 Speaker 02 Judging by their attire, they are Spaniards. Why has Columbus hanged his own men? The sight confirms what Bobadilla feared: evidence of chaos and brutality.
41:32 Speaker 02 The official is taken straight to the home of Columbus, one of the only stone buildings in the town. He is shown inside by an armed guard, but finds that both the governor and his brother Bartholomew are elsewhere on the island. It's of no matter to Babadiah though, who takes the opportunity to settle himself behind the desk in Columbus's office.
41:56 Speaker 02 He is leafing through papers when the third Columbus brother, Diego, arrives.
42:03 Speaker 02 Rising to his feet, Babadiah orders Diego to release any other Spaniards who might be imprisoned in the fortified tower that serves as the town's jail. When Diego refuses, Babadiah whistles for a guard, and Diego himself is dragged away to the prison.
42:23 Speaker 02 The visitor returns to Columbus's correspondence, but word of his arrival is spread around the small settlement, and a stream of fellow Spaniards now arrive at the residence, keen to give evidence about Columbus. Some are friends, some are enemies.
42:39 Speaker 02 Babadiah hears that Columbus has taken slaves, stolen goods, kept for himself valuables that should have been sent home to his monarchs. He is said to have given the best roles and land to his own brothers, cut off the ears and noses of people who worked too slowly, and made women parade naked through the town. Babadiah notes all the accusations, but it's not long before he comes to a decision.
43:06 Speaker 02 Columbus has got to go.
43:09 Speaker 02 There is a loud knock, and a guard announces that the governor has been spotted on his way back to town. Babadiah rushes to his horse. They gallop to the outskirts of the port, where they intercept Columbus.
43:22 Speaker 02 He is manhandled by the guards from his horse, then clapped in chains and marched to the quayside.
43:30 Speaker 02 There are jeers and shouts as he reaches the water's edge and is unceremoniously loaded onto a ship.
43:37 Speaker 02 Columbus's last impression of the town he founded is the rejoicing of its people as he is removed from power.
43:54 Speaker 02 Back in Spain, he is put on trial for mismanagement and cruelty. Columbus argues that Bobadia trumped up the charges because he himself wanted to become governor of the Indies. Indeed, Bobadia is appointed to the position as soon as Columbus is out of the way. In the end, Columbus is cleared of the accusations, but his reputation is damaged and he loses his honorary titles.
44:21 Speaker 02 The profusion of conflicting accounts mean it's hard to create a clear picture of the man himself.
44:31 Speaker 03 We don't get to interrogate the people around him. We don't get to interrogate the indigenous allies he has or their enemies. Even in Columbus, we don't have his journals. We have an abstract of the journals. We have letters from people who were on the voyages. So you kind of have to sift through those and it's never easy in this historical vein to find that middle ground. What can we be definitive about?
44:54 Speaker 02 Remarkably, given Columbus's fall from grace, Queen Isabella grants funding for another voyage. But he is under strict instructions not to return to Hispaniola, where his presence is divisive. The focus is exploration. His goal now is to circumnavigate the world.
45:18 Speaker 04 You know, it's the time of the year when I'm always on the lookout for fresh fall options for my wardrobe. And I think I just found my new favorite sweater at Quince. It's the Cotton Fisherman Crew. It's relaxed, it's cozy, but yet still polished. It's one of those versatile pieces you can wear everywhere: to the office, out running errands, or a night out with friends. And as we head into the holiday season, this is definitely one I'll be adding to others on my list. See, Quince focuses on high-quality staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, 14-karat gold, and Italian leather. All timeless, versatile pieces that feel special to unwrap and become everyday favorites long after the holidays. Their cashmere sweaters start at just $60 and the lineup doesn't stop. They have premium down jackets, wool outerwear and cashmere accessories.
46:03 Speaker 04 Everything you and your loved ones need to stay warm and look put together all season long. And when it comes to gifting, Quince has a lot more than clothing. Think fine jewelry, leather bags, hotel quality bedding, chef-grade cookware and five-star luggage. Basically, plenty of ways to find something special for everyone on your list. So, give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers or go to quince.com and get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. It's now available in Canada and the UK too. And when Quince asks where you heard about them, let them know Short History of. It's the best way to support the show.
46:41 Speaker 00 Are you ever shopping online and suddenly a discount that helps you save pops up? It makes your day, sometimes even your week. Want that feeling month after month? Well, new customers who save by switching their home and auto insurance to Progressive save hundreds. Cue your happy dance. Get your quote today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and other insurers, not available in all states.
47:08 Speaker 02 Columbus sets sail from the Spanish port of Cadiz in May 1502, accompanied by his grown-up son, Diego, and Ferdinand, who is only 13.
47:21 Speaker 02 They reach the coast of Central America again, meeting a group of people who are probably Mayans sailing in a long canoe. The Americans introduce Columbus to his first taste of cocoa or chocolate. Further along the coast, he reaches Panama.
47:39 Speaker 02 Though locals tell him that he's only a few days' walk from another sea, he does not travel inland.
47:49 Speaker 02 If he had, he might have traversed the narrow Isthmus to discover the Pacific Ocean. Perhaps this sight would have finally proved that he was not in the Indies, but had put a new continent on the map.
48:03 Speaker 02 Instead, his fleet is hit by the worst storm he has ever encountered.
48:10 Speaker 02 He describes the sea as seething like a pot on a hot fire. They survive, but the boats are damaged and found to be riddled with shipworm. The foundering vessels limp on towards the safety of Hispaniola, but end up wrecked in Jamaica.
48:29 Speaker 02 Here, Columbus is a castaway for a year. He's only saved when one of his crew bravely paddles for four days in a canoe to raise the alarm in Hispaniola.
48:42 Speaker 02 Columbus sails back to Spain with his youngest son in 1504, and his extraordinary career comes to an ignominious close.
48:51 Speaker 02 But for the connection between Europe and the Americas, it is only the end of the beginning.
48:57 Speaker 03 It took kind of a roguish scheming guy to hold this group together and achieve something he had no intention of achieving. It was huge for the Americas because you have disease, you have cultural influences, you're going to have Catholicism and Christianity come in. Columbus getting there in 1412 is monumental as to what's going to happen in the economy of the world and, you know, the politics and the consequences for millions and millions and millions of people.
49:29 Speaker 02 His explorations are the first chapter in a long story of unprecedented change that impacts both sides of the Atlantic: trade, culture, animals, plants, germs.
49:43 Speaker 02 It becomes known as the Colombian Exchange, an explosive transfer of biology and ideas that is unprecedented in the history of the planet. But though the voyages will result in enormous wealth for Europe, the indigenous people of the Americas, they signal the commencement of waves of hardship, devastating epidemics, forced labor, and cultural disruption.
50:10 Speaker 03 There's a lot of disease. Smallpox came to North America and it did kill crazy numbers of people in indigenous communities. I mean, the numbers are anywhere up to 90% because of disease alone. It's just a complete physical, cultural shock of these people coming in. In this, you know, the dark side of the exchange in the new world that their bodies had never, you know, encountered before and they were incapable of withstanding. It becomes this unstoppable force. It's inevitably going to take over these places and rule them on their terms.
50:43 Speaker 02 Columbus returns from his travels a sick man. In 1506, he succumbs to heart failure in the Spanish city of Valladolid. His remains prove to be as restless as the man himself. Almost 40 years after his death, Columbus's own wishes are carried out when his coffin is taken to Hispaniola, the island that today is divided between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. But while his life has long been commemorated with books, statues, and occasions like the North American National Holiday, Columbus Day, the more brutal aspects of his story have led many to shun the celebrations.
51:25 Speaker 02 Some prefer to mark Indigenous Peoples' Day, focused on the history, resilience, and achievements of Native Americans. Others argue that one individual cannot be either celebrated or condemned. Columbus was simply a cog in an imperial machine that meant exploration inevitably led to exploitation.
51:46 Speaker 03 It was going to happen. How it unfolded has huge consequences. So on the one hand, you say, well, you can't expect Columbus to be any different than the world he came from, and I think that's true. Everything came down to cash, I mean, as ruthlessly as we can put it. I mean, everybody was trying to make money out of something. That was entirely the mentality of the time. But we do value stepping back from it and saying, what were the indigenous consequences? What were the indigenous perspectives on these things? And we've listened a lot more and thought a lot harder about what the consequences were for people because we live with them today. You know, they're not just some little historical, you know, artifact. Because this happened, we're dealing with these things now because the way we let things unfold.
52:38 Speaker 02 There is no doubt that Columbus was a daring explorer who rose from lowly origins to hold sway over kings and queens. An adventurer who brought about irreversible change on both sides of the ocean. But his pursuit of his vision was ruthless.
52:55 Speaker 02 And though his success triggered an era of conquest and prosperity in Europe, it signaled the beginning of oppression and deprivation for millions. His legacy remains a subject of debate, one of ambition, consequence, and controversy.
53:13 Speaker 03 Columbus was a guy who succeeded through failure, but also succeeded through persistence, where others didn't. I think one of the remarkable things about the time is why weren't other people pushing this? Why were the courts of Portugal and Spain in particular, why were people hammering the doors down? You know, all wanting the rights to go west? Because obviously, if we did, we're gonna make a killing. It's Columbus that has to fight his way through this and, you know, wait for the Grenada occupation. You know, it is in hindsight pretty amazing that it was this, or hard as we know, it was this one guy who was just really determined. He takes this letter from Toscanelli in the 1470s and says, "This could work. You know, we should try this."
54:03 Speaker 02 Next time on Short History, we'll bring you part one of a two-part special on the Tudors.
54:11 Speaker 06 Their claim to the throne actually descended from an illegitimate line. Ultimately, they traced their descent from the sons of Edward III and in particular, John of Gaunt. But from John of Gaunt's affair with Catherine Swinford. So that's where the Tudor line came from, or the Tudor claim to the throne came from. So, yeah, it didn't bear close scrutiny.
54:39 Speaker 02 If you can't wait a week until the next episode, you can listen to it right away by subscribing to Noiser Plus. Head to www.noiser.com/subscriptions for more information.
54:50 Speaker 04 You know, it's the time of the year when I'm always on the lookout for fresh fall options for my wardrobe. And I think I just found my new favorite sweater at Quince. It's the Cotton Fisherman Crew. It's relaxed, it's cozy, but yet still polished. It's one of those versatile pieces you can wear everywhere, to the office, outrunning errands, or a night out with friends. And as we head into the holiday season, this is definitely one I'll be adding to others on my list. See, Quince focuses on high-quality staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, 14-karat gold, and Italian leather. All timeless, versatile pieces that feel special to unwrap and become everyday favorites long after the holidays. Their cashmere sweaters start at just $60, and the lineup doesn't stop there. They have premium down jackets, wool outerwear, and cashmere accessories.
55:35 Speaker 04 Everything you and your loved ones need to stay warm and look put together all season long. And when it comes to gifting, Quince has a lot more than clothing. Think fine jewelry, leather bags, hotel-quality bedding, chef-grade cookware, and five-star luggage. Basically, plenty of ways to find something special for everyone on your list. So give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers or go to quince.com and get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Still available in Canada and the UK, too. And when Quince asks where you heard about them, let them know what Short History of it's the best way to support the show.
56:13 Speaker 00 Are you ever shopping online and suddenly a discount that helps you save pops up? It makes your day, sometimes even your week. Want that feeling month after month? Well, new customers who save by switching their home and auto insurance to Progressive save hundreds. Cue your happy dance. Get your quote today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and other insurers not available in all states.
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