CSEC Caribbean History STUDY NOTES THEME 1 UNIT 1 — THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE CARIBBEAN AND THE AMERICAS (AMERINDIANS) UNIT 2 —- THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE CARIBBEAN CARIBS/KALINAGOS UNIT 3 - THE MAYAS UNIT 4 - THE AGE OF DISCOVERY UNIT 5 — TRADE WINDS IN THE CARIBBEAN UNIT 6 - COLUMBUS’ VOYAGES UNIT 7 - THE TREATY OF TORDESILLAS UNIT 8 — THE SPANISH AMERICAN EMPIRE UNIT 9 — SIXTEENTH CENTURY RIVALRY THEME 2 UNIT 1 - THE DUTCH IN THE CARIBBEAN UNIT 2 — THE RISE OF KING SUGAR UNIT 3 - WEST AFRICAN SOCIETIES UNIT 4 - THE AFRICAN SLAVE TRADE UNIT 5 - SLAVERY IN BELIZE UNIT 6 — THE EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY PLANTATIONTHEME 3 UNIT 1 - SLAVE CONTROL IN THE WEST INDIES UNIT 2 — RESISTANCE AND REVOLT THEME 4 UNIT 1 - MOVEMENTS TOWARDS EMANCIPATION THEME 5 UNIT 1 — IMMIGRATION: COMING OF THE CHINESE, EUROPEANS, INDIANS AND AFRICANS UNIT 2 - ESTABLISHMENT OF PEASANTRY UNIT 3 - THE FREE VILLAGE MOVEMENT UNIT 4 - CROWN COLONY GOVERNMENT THEME 6 UNIT 1 —- CARIBBEAN ECONOMY 1875 - 1985 UNIT 2 —- CARICOM THEME 7 UNIT 1 — THE UNITED STATES IN THE CARIBBEAN 1776 — 1865 UNIT 2 — THE CUBAN REVOLUTIONTHEME 8 UNIT 1 - CARIBBEAN POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT UP TO 1985 THEME 9 UNIT 1 - CARIBBEAN SOCIETY 1900 - 1985 UNIT 2 - TRADE UNIONS IN THE BRITISH CARIBBEAN UNIT 3 - ASPECTS OF SOCIAL LIFE UNIT 4 — RELIGIOUS GROUPS wTHEME 1 UNIT 1 - THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE CARIBBEAN AND THE AMERICAS (AMERINDIANS) Tainos The first people to see the Spaniards’ arrival in the New World were a brown-skinned people we call the Tainos. Fishermen in their canoes, cultivators clearing land, boys snaring birds, all gazed with wonder at the strange ships whose great square sails resembled the wings of some enormous bird. Also watching was the grave and stately cacique, whose feathered cape, showed him to be their leader. These people were of medium height, plump in build, and had straight black hair which they usually wore long and often decorated with parrot feathers. Their foreheads were fiat and sloping, for like Maya, mothers bound their babies’ heads between two boards in order to create this shape, which they found beautiful. All wondered about the tall, fair-skinned strangers, curious to know who they were, and what they wanted from the inhabitants of these tiny tropical islands. For over fourteen hundred years the Indians had inhabited the mountainous and fertile islands of the Caribbean. At about the time of Jesus’ birth they had left their original homes in Venezuela and had sailed up the Antilles, leaving groups to settle on each island in turn. Eventually they reached the Greater Antilles, and made their largest settlements on the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica. There, they lived an untroubled life, fearing nothing but drought and hurricane, and sudden Kalinagos/Caribs raids.Carib migrations South America Caribbean Sea cena aeRICa Tainos and Kalinagos areas of the Caribbean The Tainos lived in small scattered villages, sometimes near the sea, sometimes on a hill a few miles from the sea. Here they were ruled by their judge, and their cacique, or chief, who was their law- maker, their judge, and their chief priest. Like the halach uinich of 5the Maya, the cacique inherited his position and was greatly respected by his tribe, whom he ruled with gentleness, courtesy, and firmness, for all villagers had to obey his commands. If he left no heir, the eldest son of his eldest sister would become cacique. The Tainos/Arawaks had few laws, however. They owned most things in common except personal possessions like stone tools, clay pot and canoes. The greatest crime among them was theft, for which the penalty was death by impalement — being pierced with a sharpened stick and left to die. The cacique's main duties were to organize the work of the village. This was done on a cooperative basis, with everyone sharing in the work to provide the tribe's needs. The cacique decided when the fields should be planted, and when new ones should be cleared. The mitaynos, or nobles, supervised the work while the commoners cleared the bush, or cut down the trees. The cacique also decided whether or not to attack a neighboring tribe, for the Tainos were not always peaceful. Above all, he led his people in the many festivals and religious ceremonies. The cacique- leader of his community Because of his importance, the cacique had many privileges. As with other Indians of the Americas, he was given part of the harvest for himself and his family. Special cassava cakes were made for him. His house, or bohio, was built by the village men, and was larger than that of the others though, like theirs, it had of wattle with a thatched roof. The cacique and his family wore ornaments of gold and copper alloy called guanine, for gold was a sign of rank among them, and his wives’ skirts were longer than those of the other women, for length of skirt was also a mark of high rank. His canoe, made by the village men, was the largest in the village, and the only one to be painted, and when he travelled by land, he was carried on a litter, while his son was carried on servants’ shoulders. At his death, the cacique was either bumt in his own hut or buried in a cave or a grave. f buried in a grave, a mound was built to mark the spot. As with many tribes at this level of development, the Tainos also buried two or more of the favourite wives of the cacique with him. They were provided with a calabash of water and a portion of cassava. This was to help feed them on their journey to Coyaba, where they would continue to serve their husband.Seated on his duho, or ceremonial stool, the cacique made an impressive figure as he performed his official duties. The duho was carved out of one piece of wood or stone, in the shape of an animal with short legs, and was often decorated with eyes and ears of gold. Standing in a circle around him, the mitaynos and commoners listened respectfully to his decisions, and hastened to obey his orders, for as priest as well as ruler, the Tainos believed that their cacique spoke for the gods, who spoke to him through the zemis. A duho - the cacique's ceremonial stool Gods and spirit wors The Taino zemis were idols made if many different kinds of material — wood, bone, stone, or even cotton-which were felt to contain the forces of nature or the spirits of the ancestors. Each family had its own zemi which it prized highly, and some families kept the bones of dead ancestors in a basket for use as zemi. The cacique’s zemi were felt to be more powerful than anyone else's and this was one way in which he held his power, for the people felt that the zemis controlled everything-sickness, weather, crops, even peace and war- and that only the cacique and other priests could speak with them.Even though the ordinary people could not converse with the zemis, each home had its own zemi in a place of honour on a small table. A bowl of snuff (cahoba) or powdered tobacco, was placed before it, and when the person wished to pray he placed the cahoba on the zemi's flat-topped head, and inhaled from it, through his nostrils, from a Y-shaped cane tube. He often rubbed the zemi with cassava, to feed it, for the Tainos felt that if their zemi went hungry they themselves would fall ill. A cotton Zemi Because they depended upon the zemis’ advice before taking important decisions, the Tainos / Arawaks placed much importance on religious ceremonies. The cacique announced the day on which a ceremony was to take place, and when the conch shell was blown all the village assembled, wearing their finery. Their bodies were carefully washed, and were painted red and white and black. The men wore their feathered cloaks, and the women decorated their arms and legs with shells and coral When all were assembled, the entire village formed a procession, with the cacique at its head, playing a wooden gong. He led them to. the sacred hut on the outskirts of the village, and there he and the priests entered to pray. First they tickled their throats with swallow- sticks to make themselves vomit, and so prove to the zemis that no impurity remained within them. After this they each smoked the smouldering cahoba, drawing deep breaths until they lost consciousness. It was then that the zemis were supposed to speak to them. 8The Tainos/Arawaks believed in many gods, whom the zemis represented. The most important of these were the God of the Sky and the Goddess of the Earth, from whom all living things had descended. They had a legend to explain the creation of man, which told how in the beginning all humans, and the sun, were kept in a cave and let out only occasionally. One day, however, the guardian of the cave forgot to close the opening and they all escaped. The men and women went to different islands, and for his carelessness the guardian was tured into a stone. In addition to the gods of sky and earth, the Arawaks/Tainos believed in a God of the Moon, which they thought was the sun's twin brother. They also believed in spirits called opia, which tried to enter their bodies at night. For this reason they ventured out at night only in groups, and protected themselves by wearing zemis round their necks or on their foreheads. Festivals, games and everyday life: Many festivals marked the Tainos/Arawak year, some religious and some not. For example, the naming of a baby was a time of rejoicing, as the Tainos felt a child without a name would meet with great misfortune. The wedding of a cacique, and the inauguration of a new cacique were times of festivity. So was harvest time, or the retum of a victorious war party. During these festivities the emphasis was on dancing and singing to the music of drums, reed pipes and wooden gongs. in Hispaniola and Puerto Rico festivities were often marked, as throughout much of South America, by a ball game. The ball court was an important part of the village, with the caciques’ bohio built alongside it. The ball court was similar to the one at Chichén Itzé, and the game played was also similar. There were sometimes as many as twenty players on a side, using a ball made from the roots of certain herbs which were boiled to give a black sticky substance. The ball had to be knocked over a line on the opponents’ side using any part of the body except the hands. It could not touch the ground or be knocked outside the ball court, else that team lost a point. The game was usually organized by the cacique, who watched it from a seat of honour on the sidelines.The everyday activities of the Tainos centred around providing food and shelter. As we saw in Chapter 4, the women did the planting. They were also responsible for preparing the food. Since the main food of the Tainos was cassava, which is poisonous in its natural state, preparing it required very great care. First the root was grated on a grater until it formed a paste. This was put into a wicker tube, one end of which was hung from a branch, while a weight was attached to the other end. This caused the tube to contract, and force the wicker. The paste which remained was left to dry and then pounded into flour using a stone mortar and pestle. The flour was formed into flat cakes and baked on a clay griddle until the cakes were hard and dry. In this way they could keep it for some time. In some islands, in addition to cassava cakes the women made a kind of com bread with green corn whose kemels they crushed. But the tastiest dish of all was pepperpot ‘ecsciqu' cheat bot The cacique's house — his bohio. While the women were busy with their other work, the pepperpot was left to simmer on the fire. Into a large clay pot were put cassava juice, from which the poison had been extracted, and beans, peanuts, potato, and some meat, perhaps iguana, or turtle, or yellow snake, and pepper. The family was fed three times a day, and as some pepperpot was removed more ingredients were added so that the delicious soup was ready. 10As a change, the family might be given meat or fish, which had been smoked for about twelve hours over a slow fire to preserve it. This might be served with cassareep, a sauce of cassava juice, salt and pepper. Pineapple, guava, mammee apple, and star apple added to the meal, and sometimes a Kind of beer was drunk. Ametate or grindstone. Meantime, while the women were busy with these activities, the men were also going about their share of the work. In Chapter 3 we learnt something of how they caught fish and meat for the family. In addition to this, they had to make the canoes from which they fished, and to build their own and the cacique’s home, as well as making all their stone tools. Canoes were dug out and shaped from large cedar or silk cotton trees. To our eyes they would have looked quite awkward because they were square at both ends. Some of these canoes might have been as long as 80 ft, and the Arawaks could travel great distances in them, paddling from island to island to barter goods since they do not seem to have used sails. Manioc, Pepper, stools, pottery, carved stone objects, and especially gold were among the things they exchanged. Some places specialized in certain commodities. For example, Hispaniola was renowned for its gold, and Gonave, an island on the west coast of Hispaniola was noted for its woodwork. Trinidadian Arawaks traded extensively with the mainland for gold Taino housing Making the houses was another of the men's task. Some of these were very large, like those in Trinidad, which were bell-shaped, and housed about a hundred people. In all Arawak settlements several families shared one house, which was called a caneye. It was round, and made of wattle with a thatched roof. Sometimes it had windows, but not always, and there was almost never a smokehole. ulHowever, these houses were very sturdily built especially since they had to withstand hurricanes. Wooden posts were placed firmly in the ground to form a circle about five paces apart and laced together with withes and grass. Transverse beams, as shown in the diagram, were tied to the top of the posts, and a pole placed in the centre of the structure. The centre pole and the transverse beams were then connected with thin poles, and these were covered with grass or palm leaves to form a conical roof. The cacique’s house (bohio) was often larger than the ordinary caneye, and was rectangular in sharpe These Taino houses were cool, rainproof and windproof and need never be replaced if they were well built. Except for the zemi, and the hammogks, and some clay pots with holes in their rims which were hung from the roof out of the reach of ants, there was no furniture in the Taino home. Raiders and warriors Finally, the Taino men, lke all the Indians, were also warriors when necessary. Although the Tainos were not a warlike people, hey sometimes made raids on others’ villages, and those in Trinidad were especially warlike. These fought with poisoned arrows as the Kalinagos did, unlike the other Taino tribes who used no bows and arrows but depended instead upon spears and clubs. They painted their bodies red before a raid, and went into battle under their elected war chief, carrying their round or square-shaped shields. Despite their own raids, the Tainos feared those made on them by the Kalinagos. They did not know, when they saw fair-skinned strangers off their shores, that these would be a much more dangerous enemy than the Kalinagos had ever been 12UNIT 2 —- THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLE OF THE CARIBBEAN CARIBS/ KALINAGOS As we leat in Chapter 5, the Tainos had every reason to fear the Kalinagos, for the Kalinagos continually raided Taino islands in the hope of getting food and slaves. However, to those whom they regarded as friends, the Kalinagos were a hospitable people, who graciously welcomed visitors to their islands. On the shores near their villages, which were built on the windward side of the island to guard against surprise attack, the Kalinagos posted sentries whose duty it was to warn of any approaching canoes. When warning was given, the Kalinago men swiftly paddled out in their own canoes to leam their intentions. If they were peaceful, they were escorted to shore with great ceremony, and led immediately to the village carbet, or taboiii, which was the men's house, and the most important building. At the carbet they were greeted by the captain of the village, and names were exchanged. After this, they were taken to the nearby stream where they were able to wash, and then taken to a clean hut where were invited to rest on a new amais, a kind of bed Meantime, the women hurried to prepare a feast. The Kalinagos ate a great quantity of sea food and pepper, but they ate neither salt nor pig nor turtle, for they thought these foods would make them stupid. Nor did they eat much fat. Sometimes they made a soup from agouti bones and other leftovers which they seasoned with pepper sauce, cassava flour and oysters; sometimes they ate grilled fish which they cooked slowly on a wooden grid, served with a sauce called couii, and eaten with sweet potato and yam. Their favourite dish, however, was a stew made with crab and cassava, and seasoned with taumalin sauce. This was made with lemon juice, pepper, and the green meat of the crab near the shell. With this they drank a kind of cassava beer called ouicou, which was very intoxicating. When the guests had eaten their fill they were entertained with singing and dancing to the music of reed pipes, drums and whistles. The guests were welcome to stay as long as they liked, and, when at last they decided to leave, they were loaded with gifts of all sorts, and entreated to stay longer. During this long visit, the Kalinagos’ guest would have had many opportunities to observe how their hosts lived, and what kind of people they were. They would have described the Kalinagos as a brown- skinned people who flattened their foreheads, and usually went naked, 13,with a loin-cloth for women, decorating their bodies with a dye called roucou. This was made from vegetable dye and oil which the Kalinagos felt toughened their skin and protected them from insect bites. They would have discovered, too, that the Kalinagos were a cleanly people, who always built their villages beside a stream so that they could wash daily Many men among the Kalinagos were maimed, but instead of being pitied, these men were respected, for it was honourable among them to have suffered wounds in battle. Only beards were considered a deformity, and these were plucked out. Although the Kalinagos wore no clothing, they decorated themselves in many ways. We have read in Chapter 5 of the caracoli which the warriors wore. Women wore bracelets, called rassada, on their arms and legs, and men sometimes wore necklaces made of their enemies’ teeth, strung on cotton. Both men and women wore bracelets and necklaces of amber, shell, agouti teeth, seeds, and coral, and bored holes in their lips and ear lobes into which they inserted smooth fishbones and other ornaments. Around their necks, also, were worn small idols representing the powerful and frightening maboya, of whom we shall learn shortly. For very special occasions the men wore feathered cloaks and head-dresses of heron or macaw feathers, and at all times they took great care of their long hair which, as with the Tainos, it was the women's duty to comb and oil daily. Most Kalinago boys were trained as warriors, but a small group was trained for an equally important position, that of priest, or boyez. When a boy was to be trained as a boyez, he was apprenticed for several years to an older priest. During this time he frequently had to fast, and to abstain from eating meat. Then the boy had to undergo an initiation ceremony as severe as that of a warrior. If he passed through this initiation successfully, his teacher took him to the carbet where fruit, cassava and ouicou were sacrificed to the priest's maboya. The priest sang and smoked, inviting his maboya to enter the carbet. When at last the maboya was thought to have come, the boyez asked him to provide a special maboya for the apprentice. If the maboya agreed, the young man became a fully-fledged boyez, with his own personal maboya to help him perform his duties. Since most of the boyez duties had to do with overcoming evil spirits, the maboya was the most important of the Kalinago idols. They felt that each person had his own maboya, and that all evils, whether sickness, 14defeat in battle, or even death, came as a result of a spell put on them by an enemy mayboya. When a person was ill, for instance, the boyez was called in to defeat the maboya’s evil spell. First the house was thoroughly cleaned, and gifts of cassava, ouicou and first fruits were laid on a table, or matoutou, for the mabya. The matoutou was placed at one end of the room, and stools for each member of the family were placed at the other end. When it was dark, the boyez entered and began his incantations, addressed to the patient's good god, for the Kalinagos believed that everyone had his own good god, as well as a mabya. Then he struck the ground three times with his left foot. Then he put lighted tobacco into his mouth and blew the smoke upwards four or five times. After this he rubbed a leaf in his hands and scattered the powder on the patient's body. Finally he prescribed a mixture of herbs to be given, and warmed the family to take strong revenge against the mabya which had caused the sickness. Unfortunately, the patient often died in spite of the treatment. In that case, the boyez explained, a stronger revenge was necessary. Meantime, all if he had man’s relatives examined the body to see if he had died by sorcery. After this, the body was carefully washed and painted red, and the hair was combed and oiled. Then it was placed on a stool in a grave dug inside the carbet. For ten days, the relatives would bring food and water to the graveside, and build a fire around it so that the corpse would not get cold. After ten days the grave was filled in, and the dead man’s house completed, there was dancing over it, and as a sign of mourning the relatives cut their hair. Later, a feast was held over the grave, and often the dead man's house, especially if he was a chief, was burnt down Kalinago houses were large (60 ft. * 20 ft.) and rectangular in shape. In addition to hammocks, Kalinagos sometimes slept on an amais which consisted of a piece of cotton folded at both ends and hung from the roof. The hammocks had a small packet of ash placed at each end, which it was thought would make them last longer. Other furniture included stools made from red or yellow wood, highly polished, and a table made from latanier rushes. In every home was found an idol of the family's mabya. At night homes were lighted by candles made of a sweet smelling gum. Outside, the Kalinagos built a small storehouse in which they kept their warclubs, their household utensils, their stone tools, and extra beds and hammocks. Drawn up on the beach near the village were the Kalinagos’ all- important canoes, which might be up to 20 ft. long. Like the Tainos, the 13Kalinagos made these out of tree trunks. The trunk was charred, then hollowed with stone axes and left to season, after which it was buried in moist sand. Bars were placed across the opening to force out the sides, and were left in place until the wood had thoroughly dried and hardened. Then triangular boards were wedged at the bow and stern so that water could not enter the boat, and the sides were raised by fastening sticks bound with fibres and coated with gum to the upper edges. If this type of canoe overtumed it did not sink, but instead could be righted by the paddlers and then vigorously rocked to splash out the water. The rest of the water was bailed out with calabashes. Some of these canoes had cabins in the centre in which the women lived when the family was traveling from one island to another. Piragas were larger than the ordinary canoes. These were not dug- outs, but built with planks. Some were 40 ft. long, and could carry 50 men. They had a raised and pointed bow and a maboya was painted on the ster to frighten away the enemy. Sometimes for additional decoration, a barbecued human arm was also fastened to the stern. The Kalinagos had great respect for the ocean over which they so frequently traveled, and they took great care not to offend the spirits of the water for fear they would be harmed. They would eat no crab nor lizard while they were at sea, nor drink any water, for fear the spirits would be displeased and prevent them from reaching land. If they were carrying fresh water in the canoe, they took care not to spill any into the sea, as it might cause a storm. On the other hand, if they had to sail over a place where Kalinagos had drowned, they were careful to throw food into the water, so that the drowned men would not reach up to the boat and capsize it. When they were approaching land, they made sure not to call its name, nor to point to it, in case any evil spirit was watching and tried to prevent their getting ashore. Because the Kalinagos depended upon their boats for their raiding and their food, the owner of a large canoe, or a piraga, was an important man. In time of war one of these piraga owners was chosen as ‘admiral of the fleet’ to command all the boats taking part in the raid. The ouboutou, or Great Captain, however, who was the commander in chief of all the warriors, was elected for life. He was because of his prowess on battle and his great strength, and was treated with great respect. The ouboutou was always accompanied by attendants, and everyone remained silent while he spoke. If any seemed lacking in respect, the attendants had the right to strike him. The ouboutou decided when the men would be called to the carbet to plan a raid. He decided also who 16should be attacked, and how the raid should be conducted, and when it would take place. He chose the commanders of the canoes and piragas. When the raid was over, and the men returned victorious, the ouboutou presided over the victory celebrations, during which everyone who had Killed a farmers. They learnt to make and fire clay pots. The Taino chief was allowed to take his name as a mark of honour. It was during this celebration that the Taino women who had been captured were given as wives to the bravest warriors. Caracolis were distributed to the young men who had distinguished themselves in the battle, and these warriors were highly prized as husbands. The ouboutou were the most important men among the Kalinagos, but they also had lesser governors for their villages, who ruled in times of peace. These men were called tiubutuli hauthe, and were the heads of families, for each family lived in its own village. Like the Taino cacique, the tinbutuli hauthe supervised the fishing and cultivating, but he had very little authority beyond this. The Kalinagos disliked taking orders, and in fact they had very few laws. If anyone did injury to a Kalinago, the injured man was expected to take his own revenge without any interference from the rest of the tribe. He could even kill the person who had very few laws. In fact, anyone who did not avenge himself when he was wronged was despised by his tribesmen as a weakling, In every way boys were more highly regarded than girl among the Kalinagos. This was because the Kalinagos were warriors and lived mainly by warfare, which was a male occupation. Although the women sometimes accompanied the men on expeditions, and guarded the boats while the men were fighting, their main duty was to serve their husbands. Women lived in their own houses with their children until the boys were four or five years old, when they were taken by their fathers to live in the carbet with the men. Ata son's birth there was a special ceremony during which the father was cut with agouti teeth and expected to bear the pain without flinching so that his son would grow up to be brave. The boy was periodically rubbed with the fat of slaughtered Tainos so that he might absorb their courage, and then, as we saw in chapter 5, came the great moment when he underwent the initiation ceremony which changed him from a boy toa man, and a warrior. Now he had a new name, and was taught the war language. Now, if he was brave and hardy, he was considered a true Kalinago. But no Matter how brave the Kalinago warriors were, their bows and arrows were to prove no match for the guns of the Spaniards. 7BORON OGMHIACE Part Two: The NewcomersUNIT 3 - THE MAYAS For many centuries the jungles of Guatemala hid a mystery. For more than nearly two hundred years thick vegetation hid enormous stone palaces and temples. Then in 1773, explorers stumbled across what seemed to be the ruins of a great building. When they Gleared the bush they found the remnants of a huge stone ruin. Other explorers and archaeologists followed, and little by little more temples and other stone buildings were discovered beneath the jungle vegetation. These are remnants of a great Maya civilization The earliest Maya lived as long ago as 2000 B.C. in a jungle region known as El Peten. For nearly three thousand years, from 2000 B.C. until about A.D. 900, they slowly learnt the arts of civilization They became constructed great stone building like the ones the explorers found, and on the walls of some of these buildings they painted murals which tell us a good deal about their lives. They had, for example, developed a calendar as accurate as the Egyptians’. ‘As we saw in Chapter |, when men became farmers, the priests- astronomers who could foretell the changes of weather and season became parson of importance and power. This was true of the Maya priests, and, as we shall see later, it was also true for the Aztec and the Inca. Similarly, the Maya and the Aztec Indians, like the Egyptians, built tremendous stone pyramids, although the Indian pyramid had a flat top, while those of Egypt were pointed. In about A.D. 900 however, these cities were abandoned for some unknown reason. The inhabitants migrated to the flat, riverless limestoned Yucatan peninsula. There they built new cities like Uxmal, Mayapan, and Chichén ltz4, and there they were living when the Spaniards came. We know a great deal about the Maya since AD. 900, for many of their buildings and status still stand, and the Spaniards wrote about what they saw and learnt from these people whom they conquered. 19The pyramid of Kukulcan at Chichén itzé . The temple is at the top of the pyramid. 20celina ata ne finan ampecie i a _| chiapas ‘The Land of the Mayas sites are shown on this map, but many more lie in unexploded jungle and forest. The Influence of Religion ‘We know, for example, that religion played a very great part in the life of the Maya people. Their priests played an important part in many activities, and almost all their great buildings were devoted to religious purposes. For this reason we call Maya cities ‘temple cities’, for their outstanding buildings were the temples they built on top of the high flat- topped pyramids. 21These pyramids were made with a core of earth and rubble, covered with cut stone, and then cemented with mortar made by burning limestone rock. Narrow steps led up the steep sides to a dark windowless temple. The entrance to the temple was through a corbelled arch. Only the priests who performed the ceremonies could enter these temples. The worshippers remained outside, in the plazas or courtyards surrounding the sacred pyramids. From here they watched the rites, and took part by singing and dancing These gigantic stone buildings were made with the simplest tools, for the Maya, like all American Indians, knew nothing of metal tools. Fortunately, limestone is fairly soft, and can be cut and shaped with stone tools and with sand. The usual methods of quarrying stone was to drive wooden wedges into cracks in the rock and then wet them. As the wood swelled, the crack widened. Then the split stone was laboriously cut out with stone hammers and chisels. It has been estimated that it would have taken about 25,000 hours of work to quarry enough stone to build one of the great Maya pyramids. What type of religious beliefs inspired the Maya to build such impressive monuments? Like all the Indians of the Americas, they worshipped many gods. They believed that all of life was a struggle between good and evil, and that there were good and evil gods. ‘The good gods lived in thirteen heavens, and the evil ones lived in nine hells. Great warriors, and those who were killed in sacrifice, were sure of going to heaven. They believed in immortality, and to make sure that the dead would be able to enjoy the afterlife, they buried them with a maize drink, and the tools of their trade. We have already seen a picture of the Maya God of Com. This was Yum Kax. Other gods were also connected with agriculture: for instance, Chac, the God of Rain, and Pipil, the God of the Sun. Another god, Itzamma, the Giver of food and Light. Another important god was ‘one who was brought to them by the Toltecs. The Toltecs were a highly civilized people who lived in Mexico before the Aztecs. In about A.D. 987 they arrived in the Yucatan, where by this time the Maya had settled. Toltec religious ideas became mixed with those of the Maya, and the Toltecs god Quetzalcoat! became for the Maya Kukkican, or God of the Winds. He was pictured as a feathered serpent, with fangs bared in his snarling open mouth. But above all their gods, the Maya felt that there was one who was the invisible supreme creator. They called him Kunab Ku. There are no pictures of Kunab Ku because he was, as already said, invisible. But many of the other gods, especially aKukulean (and Chac, who was pictured with a long curved snout-like nose), were carved on their temples. The Maya as Mathematicians The Maya also built round observatories from which their priests could observe the movement of the stars and planets. Here they developed the calendars we have read about. Let us now take a closer look at the Maya calendar. This calendar was as acourate as the one we use today, but it was divided differently. Like us, the Maya had a 365-day year. This was called A haab, and consisted of eighteen months or uinals, each of twenty days, or kins. This gave 360 days. The five days left over at the end were called uayeb, and were considered and unlucky period. However, in addition to this calendar, the Maya had two others. One, which they called the tzolkin, was the sacred calendar by which they reckoned the special feasts of the gods. It had 260 days. The other, which was peculiar to the Maya, was called the /ong count. This was a method of reckoning time by counting every single day from the beginning of Maya history, and when they wanted to refer to a date in the long distant past, they simply counted back one day at a time to the beginning, which for them was around 3ill B.C. i I g 8 9 a piawG) ics a eat i 23The very complicated calendar invented by the Mayas. The wheel on the left shows the sacred year of 260 days; the wheel on the right shows part of the calendar year of 365 days. The Maya calendar year contained eighteen months of twenty days each, and an unlucky period of five days. Unlike us, the Maya did not reckon their time in centuries. They believed that time was a cycle, and that what happened once would be repeated. They counted time in two kinds of cycle: the katun (a period of 7,200 days — just short o f twenty years); and a longer fifty-two year cycle. Obviously the Maya had to have an accurate system of numbering to work out such a complicated and exact calendar. Their number system was based on the figure 20, and they called it ‘The Whole Man' because it used all the fingers and toes. They also discovered the importance of zero, which they used long before the Europeans learnt about it from India. Maya numbers were written in two ways, either as dots and dashes, or as profiles of heads. They counted from top to bottom Each number had its own symbol or picture, except for zero which could be written in many different ways, but was usually represented by a mollusk shell. The diagram will give you and idea of how they counted. The Maya had also developed writing. This was in the form of glyphs or pictures. These were sometimes carved on huge stone monuments called stelae, which commemorated important events. They were often erected at the end of the fifty-two year cycle. Some of these stelae were thirty-five feet high and weighed fifty tons. In addition, however, the Maya wrote books containing accounts of their history and legends. The earliest known book in the Americas was written by the Maya in AD. 890. The paper was made from inner bark and fiber of certain trees which was first soaked to remove the sap, then beaten to soften the fibres, and finally stretched so that each page measured 3°10 inches. The two end leaves were glued to wooden boards, and the books were folded together like a fan. As we might expect, the priest were the scribes who painted the glyphs, using brushing made of wild pig bristle Maya Government We can see, then, that the Maya were and advanced people. How were they governed and how did they live? They lived in independent city- states. Their society was strictly divided into rigid classes, each of 24which had its own rights and duties, even in such matters as clothing and personal adornment. The ruler of each city-state was the halach uinich - the ‘true man’ or ‘real man’. Unlike the ruler of the Aztec who elected, and the Lord Inca who was selected, the halach uinich was a hereditary ruler. The office descended from father to son, asin European monarchy. However, if the sons of the dead ruler were not fit to rule, one of his brothers became head of state. Failing this, some other suitable person from the ruler’s family was elected by a council of nobles. After the ruler and the nobles came the majority of the people who were farmers or artisans. But there also existed a curious group known as the ppolms, or merchants. These merchants played a special and important role. They had their own god, and lived according to their own laws. Moreover, they did not have to pay taxes or give any Personal service in agricultural labour or road building as the other commoners did. On the other hand, they performed a very important role in foreign affairs, and especially in war, fro they frequently acted as spices In addition to this, the ppolms made possible the exchange of goods between the various Maya cities. The Maya were the only American Indians who carried on trade by sea as well as by land, and there is evidence that their forty-foot long canoes had some contact with Cuba and Jamaica. What kinds of goods were traded? Salt was an important commodity and certain tribes had a monopoly of its trade. Brightly colour feathers, used in warriors’ head-dresses and as a mark of honour, were carried from the jungle cities to the sea-coast and highland peoples. Cotton for weaving Maya garments; cocoa, which formed the favourite drink; honey, wax, fish, flint, maize, precious stones for omaments, shells, gold-gods of all descriptions were carried by the ppolms. They used no money, but instead used cocoa beans as a means of exchange. A rabbit, for example, was sold for ten beans, a slave for hundred. Sometimes small copper bells, or red shells or strings were also used as a medium of exchange. The fi of the people The Maya also built great roadways called sacbeobs, to encourage trade between their various cities. Some of these roads were sixty miles long. Where necessary the sacbeobs were crossed by bridges 25made of logs and beams. In each village were people whose duty was to keep up a ‘travellers’ house’ in which wood, maize, and other provisions were always available. Maya men wore a simple cotton garment called an ex (pronounced eesh). This was a loincloth wound several times around the waist and passed between the legs. Over this they wore a mantle without sleeves. Sandals were tied to the feet with two thongs, and were called keuel. Women wore the kub — a simple dress with a square neck. Beneath this they wore a light petticoat. They went barefoot. However, in addition to these simple garments the nobles wore a great deal of jewelry-ear and nose rings, brackets. Moreover, their garments and sandals, were dyed in many colours, and on ceremonial occasions the noblemen would decorate themselves with feathered headdresses made on wicker frames sometimes nearly as large as themselves. But only the ruler and outstanding warriors were permitted to use the gorgeously coloured feathers of the quetzal bird in their head-dresses. Around the year A.D. 800, there were more than three milion Mayas. They were short people, not much above five feet, but they were robust and strong. They were broad-headed, and as soon as a baby was born, his head was flattened still more by squeezing it gently between two boards. This, said the Maya, ‘gives us a noble air ... and besides, our heads are then better adopted to carry loads.” Maya, whose features were (and still are) very much like those of Mongolians, were also cross-eyed. This was regarded as a special mark of beauty and distinction, and mothers would hang a ball in front of, their children so that they would focus on it and so develop cross-eyes. Maya house were simple. Most were wattled and thatched, although the wealthier nobles might have built theirs of stone. Almost all homes however, consisted of one room; with neither windows nor doors. Instead, across the doorway was hung a curtain and small copper bells. Furniture was very sparse, usually just sleeping racks made of saplings laced with withes and covered with a grass mattress and cotton blankets. Cooking was done outside by the women and meals consisted usually of flat com bread (tortillas), made of meal ground in a metate or grinding stone, and baked on clay sheets. For a working man, twenty such tortillas might be eaten at one meal with pear. Wealthier people would perhaps add iguana or armadillo meat or fish. If they were very wealthy, or the occasion was very special, they might drink great quantities of cocoa which, as we have seen, was one of the ppolm’s most important items of trade. 26All this and more the Spaniards saw and marveled at when they first encountered the Maya. They described a sacred Ball Court at Chichén Itza which was 545 ft. long and 225 ft. wide. There the Maya played a ball game, called pok-a-tok, in which the players had to butt a solid rubber ball through hoops set thirty-five feet above the ground. They marveled at a country which provided no prisons and in which anyone who stole was punished by having to work off the value of his theft They noticed with respect the skill with which the Maya provided themselves with water in their dry peninsula, by damming and cementing ravines. They marveled, but they marveled, but they also conquered The Maya house, past and present. This type of house has varied very little in 2,000 years.UNIT 4 - THE AGE OF DISCOVERY The West Indian islands were discovered by an expedition searching for the mainland of Asia. During the fifteenth century Europeans became interested in finding a sea route to increase their trade with India and China, The pioneer country in search of a sea route was Portugal. Prince Henry the Navigator, who lived from 1934 — 1460 was convinced that there must be a sea route round the south of Africa to India. Special expeditions were sent along the coast south of Cape Nuri; each captain trying to push further than his predecessors and bring back charts and information. The Portuguese found they could trade along the coast exchanging horses and Venetial beads for gold and ivory. As exploration progressed, trading centres were set up, the main one in Arguin. Prince Henry's work was continued by John 1, king of Portugal who built a large trading centre (Elmina) on the Bight of Benin. The early explorers faced many navigational problems. Prince Henry and John Il employed Mathematicians and astronomers to seek solutions to these problems. At the end of the fifteenth century many geographical problems were still unsolved. Geographers agreed that the world was round and could be divided into 360 degrees. Factors that added exploration: The Renaissance ~ Rebirth of learning Rising demand for foreign goods in Europe Ship building — new designs in ships Improvement in Mathematics Map making FaeENe Technological Advances Specific developments included: 1. The ability to more accurately plot lines of latitude and longitude, sailors could now venture further afield without getting lost. 282. The invention of the magnetic compass. The magnetic compass is a device which is used for finding horizontal direction. The Arabs used lodestones (which contained magnet) in their compasses to find the magnetic north. The direction of the ship or a point of land could now be more accurately read off the compass. The compass comprised of the magnetic bar or needle which was placed atop a compass card. The compass card was a card marked off in a clockwise direction in 360 equal units or degrees. Zero degrees represented north, 90 degrees would be east, 180 degrees would be south and 270 degrees would be west. On the card these tour directions would be the four cardinal points. 3. Improvements in cartography. Originally navigators used inaccurate hand-drawn maps called ‘porfolani.’. Maps were no longer hand- drawn instead there were more accurate printed maps. 4. The development of the astrolabe, the cross-staff and the quadrant meant greater accuracy in direction. Quadrants were portable instruments which would be aligned to the meridian found on the compass. They were used to measure the distance that the ship traveled. This was done by measuring the change in altitude of the stars as ships moved from day to day. The astrolabe was a device which was also developed by the Arabs. it was used to measure distance and direction. This was done by calculating the angle of the stars in relation to the position of the ship. It was also used to measure the altitude of the sun, moon, stars and other planets. The astrolabe, like the quadrant was a portable instrument. A plumb line would be used to ensure that it was fixed. This was used on a rolling ship so as to obtain accurate reading. The readings taken off these instruments were accurately kept in log books. It meant that in the future sea captains could use them to plot the same route. This process assisted the improvements in cartography. The cross-staff consisted of a long staff with a perpendicular vane which slides back and forth upon it. The staff is marked with graduated measurements. The cross-staff had been in use since 29ancient times, but navigators improved on the cross-staff during the 15th and 16th century. Developments on the cross-staff were made so that now it could be used to measure the angles between the stars. Originally the staff had only one vane and it was very long. Therefore, it was difficult to use it to take accurate measurements on a rocking ship. Mariners added more vanes to the cross-staff in order to reduce the length of the staff to about 2 1/2 feet. The cross-staff was used to find the latitude by measuring the altitude of the Pole Star above the horizon New Designs in Ships Bigger ships were being built to meet the needs of carrying goods from Norther Europe to the Mediterranean. These larger ships were called carracks. Carracks were built with several decks. Instead of the clinker built ships, the wooden planks were fitted edge to edge instead of overlapping. This method of building ships was called caravel building. This method of ship-building allowed for lighter and more watertight ships. Carracks were steered by a rudder attached to the stem instead of by oars. Square sails were used to catch the full force of the wind. The Portuguese learned a lot from the Arabs. They copied designs from the Arabian ship known as babhla or baghlas. Baghlas had a triangular lateen sail. These sails could be adjusted to catch the wind in almost any direction. The caravel was a design of a type of ship which the Portuguese had borrowed from the Arabs. These caravels were used by the Portuguese as they explored the coasts of Africa. Caravels were built with lateen sails on three masts. The hull was long, low and narrow. A 30 metres long caravel would be about 5 or 10 metres wide. The earlier forms of caravels were not suitable for sailing far out into the ocean. There were improvements which were later made on these caravels. A combination of square and lateen sails were added. The square sails were added to catch the winds for speed while the lateen sails were adjusted to suit the direction in which the winds were blowing. 30During the 1480s and 1490s, when Columbus undertook his voyages of exploration, a modified version of the caravel known as the caravel redonda had been developed. This was the main type of ocean going vessel in use at this time. The redonda combined masts and sails to suit the purpose of the voyage expected to be made by the vessels. The Santa Maria, Columbus’ flagship was a caravel redonda. Its sails were both lateen and square rigged with high bows and tall forecastle. During the period of discovery, much was not known about the need for accuracy in shipbuilding. There was not an understanding of the relationship between buoyancy and gravity ships tended to be very slow because they were being built with a very small ratio of length to breadth. The need to find a new route to the East Much trade was carried out between the Mediterranean region and Norther Europe. Ocean going ships were developed out of the need to facilitate this trade. There were serious difficulties being encountered by merchants and traders who traveled over land. These problems included the high taxation and the dangers posed by brigands. Trade by shipping was, in comparison, safer than overland trade although seafarers ran the risks of storms and the fear of being attacked by pirates. Ships also carried more cargo than caravans. Development in weaponry. Seamen were less afraid to venture out since they were able to protect themselves using better weapons. The Quest for Wealth. Expansion in trade fostered the growth of wealth within nations who ventured on these explorations. 31UNIT 5 —- TRADE WINDS IN THE CARIBBEAN Winds and Currents In the days of sail, winds and currents were of the utmost importance. In the fifteenth century when ocean voyaging was just beginning and ships were slow and clumsy, they played the greatest part in determining the routes of ships. Christopher Columbus and those who followed him soon found that there were certain fixed routes across the Atlantic, around the Caribbean and through the passages. Indeed the winds and currents on West Indian routes were so strong and constant that voyages in sailing ships in certain directions were impossible. The Trade Winds in the Atlantic The trade winds in the Atiantic have shaped the history of the West Indies. Their importance is so great that without them, Europe would have had no impact on the West Indies until the coming of steam and there would have been no African slave trade. Even today, the trade winds are important, for they are responsible for the weather, and thus the agriculture and tourism of the Caribbean. These trade winds are caused by the cool air from the North Pole blowing into the high pressure areas of the equator. They would blow from north to south but, as the earth rotates with the east leading the way, the winds are tured as they near the equator towards the west so that they are blowing in the tropics from east to west, or in other words, into the Caribbean. Therefore to sail west, sailors front Europe sailed south to the Canary Islands or as far as. the Cape Verde Islands to pick up the trade winds. These winds would carry them across the Atlantic to the Caribbean area at about five knots. They blew throughout the year in the latitude of the Canaries and were very reliable and, except for hurricanes, the trade winds form a belt of fair weather. Of course, the retum to Europe had to be made by a different route as the trade winds made a retum in the same latitudes impossible. The return to Europe was best made by leaving the Caribbean to the north and sailing up the east coast of North America until favourable 32westerly winds blew the ships back to Europe. These westerlies blew around latitude 40 degrees north. Currents in the Atlantic The currents followed roughly the same direction as the winds. In the Atlantic there are two currents which flow towards the Caribbean; the North Equatorial Current and the South Equatorial Current. The North flows from east to west and is met by the South which comes up from the east-south-east. They meet north of Tobago, a popular point of entry into the Caribbean. Leaving the Caribbean to the north, sailors could take advantage of the Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift, a warm sea current of favourable weather, to carry them hack to Europe. The Caribbean In the east, the Caribbean Sea begins at the arc of islands stretching from Trinidad to St Kitts. In the south, it is bordered by the mainland of South America. Central America is its western border. In the north-west, it is separated from the gulf of Mexico by a line drawn from the tip of the Yucatan peninsula to Cuba. The line of the Greater Antilles forms the northern border. The sea is over 900,000 square kilometres in area and it is divided into two parts, the East Caribbean and the Cayman Sea, by a shallow ledge running from Jamaica to Honduras. 33suosino pur sperm Pdr op =The Trade Winds in the Caribbean In the Caribbean the trade winds blow from the east at their strongest in February and March and at their weakest in August and September. Sometimes their direction is more east-northeast, or even north-east in some parts, but they are always from an easterly direction and reliable. In the days of sail, a voyage in the Caribbean had to be made from east to west. Ships from Europe and Africa entered the Caribbean by one of the passages between the eastem islands, e.g. between Dominica and Martinique which was very common, between Tobago and Grenada, and between Tobago and Trinidad, the so-called ‘Galleons’ Passage’. The ships would first call at the windward ports on the islands and mainland of South America, then the leeward ports and the Leeward Islands, calling at the Greater Antilles on their way westwards to the ports of Central America, before leaving the Caribbean by way of the Yucatan Channel. Then they would pass round the north of Cuba and homewards through the Florida Channel to pick up the Gulf Stream and the westerlies. For leaving the Caribbean, the Yucatan Channel was more favoured than the Windward or Mona Passages, but both of these could be used to leave via the north. It was very difficult, sometimes even impossible, to leave the Caribbean through the eastem islands because it involved tacking against the wind through narrow channels and then facing contrary winds in the Atlantic. The trade wind was a ‘foul wind’ for ships sailing the Caribbean from west to east and a difficult wind for other internal routes in the Caribbean. It was so steady and strong that it required a well-built ship to beat against it week after week. It took six or seven days to sail from Barbados to Jamaica, but five or six weeks, or even two months to make the return voyage. Barbados, the most easterly of the West Indian islands, had to be visited on the outward passage or not at all. Of course, this also had its advantages. Strategically Barbados was very well placed to launch attacks on the other islands and almost immune from being attacked herself. In 1781 a planned French attack on Barbados had to be abandoned because of the trade wind and St Kitts was attacked instead. In 1652 a royalist fleet under Prince Rupert could not save Barbados from the parliamentary fleet because it sailed past Barbados and was unable 35to beat back against the wind in time. The strategic importance of the Eastern Caribbean did not influence the Spaniards because when they began to settle the Caribbean they had no rivals. They settled the Greater Antilles far to the leeward. When other European powers began to settle in the West Indies the Spaniards were no longer in a position to stop them. Thus the enemy settlements were to windward of the Spanish islands. De Toledo's attack on St. Kitts in 1629 was very difficult and turned out to be an isolated attack as the Spanish could not back it up with other raids to windward Currents in the Caribbean The currents flow in a clockwise direction round the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. As they enter the Caribbean in the same direction as the trade wind they make it doubly difficult to sail from west to east. They continue flowing westwards along the coast of South America and then tum northwards up the coast of Central America and out through the Yucatan Channel. They eventually flow out through the Florida Channel in the Guif Stream The currents in the Caribbean make some channels very difficult; for example, the Florida Channel, which was the most famous route for Spanish and other vessels bound for Europe, has a current of four knots flowing through it. The Anegada Passage also has difficult currents in it. Both these exits thus became popular places for pirates to lie in wait for ships in difficulties. Christopher Columbus and the race for the East The Portuguese continued their voyages down the coast of Africa and in 1487 Bartholomew Dias rounded the Cape of Good Hope. Then in 1498 Vasco da Gama reached India. The Spanish were worried that they were losing the race for the spice trade. Spain had become a united country by the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile in 1469. In 1475 Spain claimed the Canary Islands arid began to trespass on the Guinea Coast, challenging the Portuguese on their route to the East. 36UNIT 6 - COLUMBUS’ VOYAGES Christopher Columbus undertook these voyages in the belief that the world was round and that therefore he could still sail west and reach the East. He underestimated the circumference of the world and thought that he would come to Japan or China after sailing west some 3000 miles. He was ridiculed by some but persuaded Isabella of Castile to sponsor him. His ‘contract’ with Isabella gave him the title of ‘Viceroy’ of all the lands he discovered and a tenth share of their wealth. All the lands would belong to the House of Castile and be settled by Castilians only. Columbus made four voyages, the first of which is the most famous. He sailed in three ships, the Santa Maria, his flagship and the Pinta and Nina. Altogether there were about ninety crews. He sailed from Palos and made his first landfall on 3 August 1492 in the Canary Islands establishing the route to the west. After sailing for over eight weeks he came to land at San Salvador in the Bahamas. He thought he had reached an outlying island of the East and spent two weeks looking for Japan before landing on Cuba at the end of the month. The primitiveness of the people he met, among other things, should have told him that he had not found the East. He left a colony, ‘La Navidad’, on Hispaniola, the first European settlement in the New World. He sailed for Spain in January 1493. Ferdinand and Isabella were pleased with Columbus and began making preparations for another voyage. They urged Pope Alexander VI to demarcate the discoveries of Portugal and Spain Columbus's second voyage showed that he was a better navigator than administrator. The colony of La Navidad had been destroyed and his new colony of ‘Isabella’ was not well sited. lll-treatment of the Arawaks began and Caribs were enslaved. The Spaniards mutinied because they found so little gold and were expected to do manual labour. Massacres of Arawaks followed and the forced labour systems began. However, Hispaniola was established as the centre of the Spanish Empire in the Indies and Columbus's brother, Bartholomew, founded the capital of Santo Domingo By the third voyage Ferdinand and Isabella began to regret having given Columbus such wide powers. Columbus faced two rebellions in Hispaniola, one from the cacique, Guarionex, and the other from a 37Spaniard, Francisco Raldon. Reports of these troubles went back to Isabella and Bocadilla was sent out to arrest Columbus. Columbus obstinately claimed that he had discovered the East although by this time most others doubted him. With greatly reduced powers and commanded not to visit Hispaniola, Columbus was allowed to make a fourth voyage. He went beyond the islands to Central America trying to find a passage through to the East. He failed to do so and in spite of his orders he ran foul of Ovando who had been sent as Governor of Hispaniola. In the year of his return Columbus lost his best supporter, Isabella. He was discredited by contemporaries and allowed to die in relative poverty and obscurity in 1506. Notes 1 Columbus was Genoese. 2 He studied Portuguese navigation and cartography at Lisbon. 3 He tried to sail for Portugal but his ideas were not accepted. 4 He sailed for Spain because Isabella of Castile was willing to risk a relatively small outlay in order to beat the Portuguese to the East. 5 Columbus made four voyages for Spain: first 1492—93 in which he reached the Bahamas in the West Indies and established a colony in Hispaniola; the second, 1493—96, in which he explored the coasts of Hispaniola, Cuba and Jamaica and failed as a colonial administrator; the third, 1498—1500, in which he reached the coast of South America at the mouth of the Orinoco and was sent home in chains from Hispaniola; and the fourth, 1502—4, in which he explored the coast of Honduras and Panama and still protested that he had reached Asia. 6 He was a great captain who used the winds and currents of the Atlantic and Caribbean and charted the Caribbean accurately by the standards of the day. 387 His initial good intentions towards the natives soon turned to harshness and great cruelty. 8 He gave the New World to Spain but did not receive his just rewards and acknowledgement from his contemporaries. | C23) « Map 1.9: The voyages of Christopher Columbus 39UNIT 7 - THE TREATY OF TORDESILLAS The Portuguese (Bartholomew Dias) had rounded the Cape of Good Hope in 1487. At the time of Columbus's first voyage in 1492 the Portuguese were in the middle of a ten-year respite in their voyages of exploration. However, it did seem as if the Portuguese had found a way round Africa to the East. When Columbus claimed that he had reached the East by sailing west, both Portugal and Spain were claiming the East. Clearly a decision had to be made about these conflicting claims, The matter was put to the arbitration of the Pope as Head of the Roman Catholic Church to which all European countries belonged at that time. The Pope, Alexander VI, simply divided the world into two halves with a line from the North Pole to the South Pole, 100 leagues to the west of the Cape Verde Islands. The Portuguese were to keep to the east of this line and the Spanish to the west. Both countries could claim any lands in their sphere not already claimed by another Christian prince. The Pope's decision pleased Ferdinand and Isabella because it limited the Portuguese in the Atlantic. King John Il of Portugal wanted more room for his voyages round Africa and was unlikely to keep to the decision. The representatives of Portugal and Spain met in Tordesillas in Spain in 1494 and maintained the division of the world into two spheres but they moved the line of demarcation further west to 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Thus the Portuguese would find the eastern part of Brazil in their sphere following Cabral's discovery of 1500. Pope Julius II reaffirmed the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1506. Notes 1 The Portuguese were exploring a sea route round Africa to the East. 2 Columbus, believing the world to be round, was sailing west to claim the East for Spain. 3 In 1493 both countries claimed the East. 40