Christopher Columbus

WHY COLUMBUS SAILED [abridged]

An Interview with Carol Delaney in Columbia Magazine [2022]

In recent decades Columbus has become a figure of controversy, leaving conflicting opinions about his legacy. Carol Delaney, a cultural anthropologist and professor at Stanford University, set out to research Columbus. Columbia [magazine of the Knights of Columbus] spoke to Delaney about the fruits of her research, published in her book titled Columbus and the Quest for Jerusalem (Free Press, 2011).

Columbia: Did Columbus intend to evangelize the New World?

Delaney:  He was very much interested in evangelizing. He wrote against the idea that the natives could just be baptized and automatically become Christian. Rather, they really needed to be instructed about the Christian faith before being converted. He wrote to the pope requesting that good priests be sent to provide this instruction and even left money in his will for it…

Columbia: The popular view today is that Columbus is responsible for countless atrocities against the native peoples. Is this a fair assessment?

Delaney:  No, not at all. The late 20th century brought a lot of critique about him from the perspective of the natives, and Columbus has become a symbol for everything that went wrong. But the more I read of his own writings and that of his contemporaries, my understanding of him totally changed. His relations with the natives tended to be benign. He liked the natives and found them to be very intelligent. He also described them as “natural Christians” because they had no other “sect,” or false faith, and believed that they could easily become Christians if they had instruction. Columbus strictly told the crew not to do things like marauder or rape, and instead to treat the native people with respect. There are many examples in his writings where he gave instructions to this effect. Most of the time when injustices occurred, Columbus wasn’t even there. There were terrible diseases that got communicated to the natives, but he can’t be blamed for that. A lot of the crewmembers didn’t like all of the restrictions and rebelled. Columbus writes that the crew assumed that they could have slaves, that they could pick gold off of the trees, and that they didn’t have to work.

Columbia: What was Columbus’ view toward slavery?

Delaney:  Columbus never had any slaves, nor did he intend to get slaves when he went across the ocean…[Columbus] believed the natives would become subjects of the Spanish sovereigns. When they later met a different group of natives, whom they believed to be cannibals, Columbus’ brother sent some of these people to Europe after their second voyage. It was considered morally acceptable at that time to enslave people who acted against their nature, with the hope that they would become good Christians. Slavery was common, even among people in the Caribbean…

Columbia: What did you find most significant about Columbus’ own writings?

Delaney:  I read all of Columbus’ writings that are extant. Columbus’ original diary does not exist…Many of Columbus’ writings express respect for the natives and concern about his crew…I liked the tone of his letters and enjoyed reading them. His devotion to his sons comes across, and he took care of the women in his life, which really helped change my opinion of him.

Columbia:  In addition to his faith, what were some of Columbus’ notable personal qualities?

Delaney:  I think he was very patient. He waited more than 10 years before his first voyage came about. He really believed he could do it. He showed tremendous courage in going across the ocean in tiny wooden ships, with basically a compass to guide his way. Also, when the crew was grounded on Jamaica during the fourth voyage, Columbus kept trying to negotiate with the rebels and expressed forgiveness.