MYTHBUSTERS: SHOWING THE MAN…EXPOSING THE MYTHS

Columbus on the History Channel

In fourteen hundred ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean blue… So what was happening 500 years ago in the year 1492 in Europe? The Spanish Inquisition was happening. Beginning in Spain in 1480 the Inquisition was a response to early Protestants like Wycliffe and Hus, Jewish attempts to convert believers, and the Moorish occupation of Spain. On March 31, 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella demanded that all heretics be expelled from Spain. The edict especially targeted the 800,000 Jews who had never converted, and gave them four months to pack up and get out. The Jews who were forced to renounce Judaism and embrace Catholicism were known as "Conversos," or converts. There were also those who pretended conversion, practicing Catholicism outwardly while covertly practicing Judaism, the so-called "Marranos," or swine.

The Inquisition Cont’d Cruel Punishments: During the inquisition people who were suspected of heresy depending on the crime, faced severe punishment. The most merciful punishment was being hanged. Other punishments ranged from cutting off criminals’ heads, arms, legs, hands, or feet to being burned at the stake in front of large audiences.

Myth 1. Round Earth Discoverer Myth: Columbus was first to think that the Earth was round, all others thought Earth was flat (Began in Washington Irving’s biography of Columbus in 1828) Truth: There is evidence that this was known by the Egyptians thousands of years ago and also more evidence provided by Greek mathematician Pythagoras in the 6 th century B.C.E.

Science vs. the Church Galileo Galilei was summoned before the Roman Inquisition in 1632 to explain his public defense of the Copernican system, earlier deemed heretical by the church. He was condemned to perpetual house arrest and silence on the issue. Trials like Galileo’s shows the conflict between scientific reason/free speech and the Catholic church. Philosopher Giordano Bruno wasn’t as lucky as Galileo; he was burned at the stake for his radical ideas about the possibility of an infinite universe with multiple worlds.

The Church’s Views on the Scientific Revolution

Myth 2. He was the first to sail to the New World Myth: Sea exploration began with Europeans in the 1400’s… Fact: There is evidence of many other cultures exploring the world by ship before Columbus’s time. Evidence that Egyptians and Phoenicians sailed around Africa in 600 B.C.E. Accounts of two Native Americans shipwrecked in Holland in 60 B.C.E. The Viking expeditions to Greenland, Iceland around 1000 Indigenous peoples living in Americas when Columbus landed.

Myth 2 Continued... Altogether, Columbus sailed on four voyages to the new world. The first voyage, Columbus reached an unknown Caribbean Island in October 1492 which he named Hispanola. (Modern day Haiti) Each subsequent voyage were to islands in the Caribbean or what was then called the West Indies.

Myth 2 continued… Strong evidence that West Africans arrived in Mexico as early as 900 B.C. exists in the presence of Olmec heads. 17 Olmec heads made of basalt each standing approx 3 meters tall are all along the eastern coast of Mexico dated around 900 B.C. When Columbus reached Haiti, the Natives had spear points made of guanine (identical to a material made by West Africans) of which they told Columbus they had received from black traders Traces of diseases common in Africa have been detected in corpses in Brazil, dating before Columbus These rock heads are called Olmec heads and are located in Mexico

So apparently Columbus was NOT the first to discover America!  How can you really discover something that is already populated and owned by people??

A Life in Controversy: Other Theories on Christopher Columbus Facts about life are very uncertain Historians debate that Columbus might been originally Jewish but converted to Christianity He is said to have been born in Genoa, Italy but some historians suggest he may have been from Portugal Could not write in Italian In his last will and testament he asked for one tenth of his wealth to be given to poor Jews in Lisbon After asking other countries like his own native country Italy to sponsor his voyage and being denied, Columbus finally received the financial backing from King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel of Spain for a voyage. Yet during this time period Ferdinand and Isabella were hosting the Inquisition which openly targeted Jews. Based on this information many suspect Columbus might have secretly been Marranos.

Myth 3. Columbus went in search of spices Columbus upon arrival immediately began searching for gold and personal exploits. When Columbus could not locate gold, he created a tribute system. Every three months, every person of 14 years old or upward had to pay so much gold dust or 25 pounds of cotton. If the native did so, he received a brass or copper token to wear around his neck. If an indigenous person was found without the medallion he was punished.  In 1501, Columbus sent slaves from Haiti to Spain. Even more were made slaves for colonists in Haiti.  Slavery was not uncommon during this time. Many Native Americans had slaves, as did Africans, and Europeans. However, this did cause other countries to become interested in capturing the American indigenous people to sell for slavery.

Although Columbus viewed the Natives favorably, his motives for them were not October 12, 1492: They ought to make good and skilled servants, for they repeat very quickly what we say to them. I think they can easily be made Christians, for they seem to have no religion. If it pleases Our Lord, I will take six of them to your Highness when I depart. Columbus first read to the Natives what was called the Requirement, a document that all Spaniards read after landing on an island, justifying their later treatment of these people: I implore you to recognize the Church as a lady and in the name of the Pope take the King as lord of this land and obey his mandates. If you do not do it, I tell you that with the help of God I will enter powerfully against you all. I will make way everywhere and every way that I can…The deaths and injuries that you will receive from here on will be your own fault and not that of his majesty nor of the gentlemen that accompany me.

Reality of Columbus’ Voyage to the New World… In Haiti, the indigenous population before Columbus arrived was 8,000,000 By 1555, the indigenous population was gone. Reasons: Disease from the Europeans (Smallpox); Indians forced into hard labor in mines rather than in fields to grow their foods; Many of the indigenous people committed suicide because of poor condition.

 Tonight : Read primary source document on the Wikispace by Bartolome De Las Casas. (This must be done outside of class because the activity & your grade will be based on this reading)  Tomorrow: We will go over the effects of Columbus’s “discovery” of America.

References /70387/The-Spanish-Inquisition controversy