Columbus' Letter to Isabella and Fernidand
On the 14th of March, 1493, Christopher Columbus composed a letter to Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon in regards to his first voyage. In his letter, Columbus claims to have discovered and taken possession of a series of Islands, located on the Indian Ocean, thirty-three days after his departure from Cadiz. Columbus goes on to describe the islands, one of which being Hispaniola, exaggerating their size and riches and suggesting that China lies nearby. Columbus presents the islands in a way that makes them seem suitable for the colonization yet to come. “The convenience and excellence of harbors in this island, and the abundance of the rivers, so in dispensable to the health of man, surpass anything that would be believed by one who had no seen it.” The letter quotes, “…where I discovered many islands, thickly people, of which I took possession without resistance…” Throughout the letter, Columbus emphasizes the natives’ characteristics as being timid and fearful; he declares that he and his crew did not cause these qualities rather that they were naturally that way. Columbus states, “..on the contrary, I gave to all I approached whatever articles I had about me..” Columbus established a giving relationship with the Indians in order to placate them; Columbus hoped to turn the natives into Christians and he thought that in the future they might be willing to gather and send any abundance of items and goods they had to Europe. Overall, Columbus had a respectable opinion of the natives; he saw them as of very clear understanding having gotten an extremely clear description of surrounding territory. “I did not find, as some of us expected, cannibals amongst them, but on the contrary, men of great deference and kindness.” Columbus provided a lack of physical description of the natives. He describes their smooth, straight hair and how they are not black, like the Ethiopians. He also included that they did not wear any clothing, with the only exception