Not So Sent From Heaven

Not so Heavenly In 1492 the Indies were first discovered, a year later the Spaniards were sent to settle the land, later called Hispaniola. This island was perhaps the most densely populated in the world with native people called Indians. The Indians were so gullible, they believed the Spaniards were Gods sent from heaven, and because they would do anything for their masters, Indians gave into the Spaniards. Spain’s conquest of the Americas was an outright tragedy because of the way they judged the Indians on their beliefs, by abusing their power and slaughtering millions of innocent people, and shattering Native American culture. The meeting with Catholic Spaniards and non-Christian Native Americans made the Spaniards believe that their culture was higher powered. Christopher Columbus was sent out by King Ferdinand and Queen Elizabeth to conquer the Islands and Continents in the ocean. Because of India being sucked into “harmful religions,” it was also Columbus’ job to see how their switch to Holy Faith might be accepted. When the admiral finally arrived many people of the island gathered around the ships. Columbus felt that these natives needed to be freed from their culture and the Spaniards would be able to do it without forcing them. The Indians would trade what little, inexpensive things they had very willingly. Columbus figured that they were very poor saying, “All of them go around as naked as their mothers bore them.” (9) The natives were called ignorant for not knowing what a sword was or that it’d cut them. Since they didn’t carry weapons, they weren’t familiar with them. Columbus quickly assumed that they’d be “good and intelligent servants,” because they’d repeat what the Spaniards were saying very quickly. He also believed that because the Indians didn’t have a religion of their own, they’d convert to Christianity in no time. One of Columbus’ main goals for himself was to find gold, and once he noticed that the natives wore little pieces he made them tell him where it was located. “They are people, says the Admiral, quite lacking in evil and not warlike.” (11) These Indians believed that Columbus and his seamen where Gods sent from the heavens, so they served them as they thought they should. The conflict between the different cultures of the Spaniards and the Indians quickly began, leading the Spanish to abuse their power and to the massacre of many natives. Hispaniola, once known as the most heavily populated island, was were the Spanish had settled. These people were said to be “the most humble, patient, and peaceable, holding no grudges, free from embroilments, neither excitable nor quarrelsome.” (12) And because they were viewed as weak and complaisant, the Spanish knew these natives would not be able to handle heavy labor and would end up dying of sickness. Bartolomé de Las Casas described the Spaniards as “ravening wild beasts, wolves, tigers, or lions that had been starved for many days.” (12) He says that the entire time the Spaniards were there they behaved the same way, terrorizing and breaking down the native people. An island that once had three million citizens was down to a couple hundred. North from Cuba and Hispaniola were numerous islands that were the healthiest lands in the world where more than five hundred thousand people lived. After the Spaniards invaded, they left the islands completely deserted. Everyone was either killed or sold as slaves in Hispaniola. De Las Casas claims, “In the forty years that have passed, with the infernal actions of the Christians, there have been unjustly slain more than twelve million men, women, and children.” (13) The Christian’s reasoning for killing so many people was ultimately because they wanted all the gold and riches in a quick amount of time. These Christians began ill-using the women and children of the town, by eating the food they provided. They’d eat in one day the amount that would feed three houses, each filled with ten people, for a month. The Spaniards were blatant, making a powerful ruler of the island watch his wife being raped. They’d dismember women and children’s bodies as if they were just any animal. No one was spared. The natives realized that these men they once viewed as angels and Gods, were not sent from the heavens. Finally, the Spaniards managed to destroy the Native American culture. Once they left Hispaniola, the Spaniards made their way to Xoloco where Motecuhzoma, the Aztec king, greeted them. Motecuhzoma had showered the men in the finest gifts. The king treated his guests like royalty. Once taken to the Royal House the Spaniards kept Motecuhzoma under guard. They questioned him about his town’s resources and reserves and then they demanded the gold. Motecuhzoma took them to Teucalco, the treasure house, where the men completely stripped the feathers from gold shields, gathered all the gold, and set the rest on fire. The Spaniards then robbed Motecuhzoma of all his personal valuables. The Aztecs begged the king to hold the fiesta of Huitzilopotchtli, which made the Spaniards curious to see the celebration. The day of the celebration, people filed into a patio to dance the Dance of the Serpant. Just as the party was reaching its peak the Spaniards attacked on a quick urge. They blocked off everything so no one could escape. “They attacked all the celebrants, stabbing them, spearing them…Others beheaded, or split into pieces.” (13) They dismantled everyone who hid or tried to escape, and they ended up imprisoning Motecuhzoma. The way Columbus felt about the Indians being gullible and easily pursued into being servants, in what way the Spaniards abused their power and almost completely wiped out a population, and how they also invaded a city and destroyed their land and culture, proves that Spain’s conquest was an outright tragedy.