Michael Fitzgerald > Recent Status Updates

So, as it turns out, by the 1520s, the New World discovery, especially for Spain, was about bringing galleons loaded with gold and silver back to Spain to finance its wars. This story gets sadder and sadder.

So, as it turns out, by the 1520s, the New World discovery, especially for Spain, was about bringing galleons loaded with gold and silver back to Spain to finance its wars. This story gets sadder and sadder.

Now the story of the Spanish exploration of the New World begins, a tragic tale of greed and the destruction of the Mayan Civilization.

Now we get to the crux of the matter: it was Rodrigo Borgia, a Spaniard who bought his way into the papacy, took the name Alexander VI, and then issued the Papal Bull dividing the world north-south so Portugal "got" Africa and Brazil and Spain got America. The bull included the note that it was "pleasing to God that Barbarian nations be conquered and converted to the Roman church.

I was surprised to learn how much internecine strife, scandal, calumny, and even warfare with Christians killing Christians concerning who was going to rule most of the land, but they were united in their shared hatred of "the barbarians" i.e. the Muslims, whose last stronghold was Granada. Also amazing to read that Isabella and Ferdinand were basically teenagers when this was going on.

I was surprised to learn how much internecine strife, scandal, calumny, and even warfare with Christians killing Christians concerning who was going to rule most of the land, but they were united in their shared hatred of "the barbarians" i.e. the Muslims, whose last stronghold was Granada. Also amazing to read that Isabella and Ferdinand were basically teenagers when this was going on.