Christopher Columbus: Hero or Villain?

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the actions of Christopher Columbus and reveals his underlying motivations. It is demonstrated that the demands he made were outrageous and he sailed only out of greed. He deceived his crew and manipulated the King and Queen of Castile in a desperate attempt for wealth and glory. It looks at how Columbus' incredible brutality toward the natives not only set a pattern for future contacts between Europeans and Indians but finally outraged the authorities in Spain to the point where he was brought home in chains.

From the Paper:

"In the spring of 1486 Columbus brought his plan of a westward voyage to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Castile. Instead of immediately approving his proposition, they appointed a special commission to carefully study his proposals. The commission took four years to make its report and during that time Columbus unsuccessfully took his plan to England and Portugal. When the Spanish commission gave its report, it too condemned his proposed expedition as impractical. Ferdinand and Isabella were too preoccupied with the conquest of the Muslim kingdom of Granada and had no time for voyages into the unknown. Despite all this, they hinted that it might be worth trying again in a few months."

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