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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;silentnviolent, post: 1548708, member: 8797&quot;]This is so full of misinformation I don&#039;t know where to start. Here goes:</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;.....the Santa Maria was wrecked on a reef off the coast of Hispaniola. With the help of some islanders, Columbus&#039; men salvaged what they could and built the settlement Villa de la Navidad (&quot;Christmas Town&quot;) with lumber from the ship. Thirty-nine men stayed behind to occupy the settlement. Convinced his exploration had reached Asia, he set sail for home with the two remaining ships.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Subsequent Voyages</p><p><br /></p><p>Returning to Spain in 1493, Columbus gave a glowing, somewhat exaggerated report and was warmly received by the royal court. That same year he took to the seas on his second expedition and explored more islands in the Caribbean Ocean. Upon arrival at Hispaniola, Columbus and his crew discovered the Navidad settlement had been destroyed with all the sailors massacred. Spurning the wishes of the queen, who found slavery offensive, Columbus established a forced labor policy over the native population to rebuild the settlement and explore for gold, believing it would prove to be profitable. His efforts produced small amounts of gold and great hatred among the native population. Before returning to Spain, Columbus left his brothers Bartholomew and Diego to govern the settlement on Hispaniola and sailed briefly around the larger Caribbean islands further convincing himself he had discovered the outer islands of China.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;Unfortunately, conditions at the Hispaniola settlement had deteriorated to the point of near-mutiny with settlers claiming they had been misled by Columbus&#039; claims of riches and complaining about the poor management of his brothers. The Spanish Crown sent a royal official who arrested Columbus and stripped him of his authority. He returned to Spain in chains to face the royal court. The charges were later dropped but Columbus lost his titles as governor of the Indies and for a time, much of the riches made during his voyages.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>&quot;Convincing King Ferdinand that one more voyage would bring the abundant riches promised, Columbus went on what would be his last voyage in 1502, traveling along the eastern coast of Central America in an unsuccessful search for a route to the Indian Ocean. A storm wrecked one of his ships stranding the captain and his sailors on the island of Cuba. During this time, local islanders, tired of the Spaniards poor treatment and obsession with gold, refused to give them food. <b>In a spark of inspiration, Columbus consulted an almanac and devised a plan &quot;punish&quot; the islanders by taking away the moon. On February 29, 1504, a lunar eclipse alarmed the natives enough to re-established trade with the Spaniards.</b> A rescue party finally arrived, sent by the royal governor of Hispaniola in July and Columbus and his men were taken back to Spain in November of 1504&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>And the death count?&nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;The Exchange also brought new diseases to both hemispheres, thought the effects were greatest in the Americas. Small pox from the Old World decimated millions of the Native American population to mere fractions of their original numbers. This more than any other factor made for European domination of the Americas&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>Above info from: <a href="http://www.biography.com/people/christopher-columbus-9254209?page=3" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.biography.com/people/christopher-columbus-9254209?page=3" rel="nofollow">http://www.biography.com/people/christopher-columbus-9254209?page=3</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Also, about his arrest:&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; &quot;In 1500 he was sent to Santo Domingo by Ferdinand and Isabella with the full powers of a royal commissioner and chief justice.</p><p><br /></p><p>When Bobadilla landed and discovered that Columbus had hanged five Spaniards, he became so furious that he immediately ordered the arrest of Columbus’ brother, Diego (in charge of the Spanish settlement in Columbus’ absence), impounded Columbus’ papers, and took possession of the town of Santo Domingo. Shortly thereafter, Columbus voluntarily gave himself up and was immediately placed in irons and sent back to Spain by Bobadilla.</p><p><br /></p><p>Failing to restore order in Santo Domingo, Bobadilla was ordered back to Spain by the monarchs, while Columbus was given back all the honours and titles taken from him after his arrest. On the return voyage to Spain, a hurricane destroyed Bobadilla’s fleet off the coast of Hispaniola, and all were lost.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>From: <a href="http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70747/Francisco-de-Bobadilla" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70747/Francisco-de-Bobadilla" rel="nofollow">http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70747/Francisco-de-Bobadilla</a></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>So you see. The natives and the Europeans got along well at first. Columbus left 39 men to settle the colony, and came back to find them all slaughtered. 39 men that he completed a harrowing journey across an uncharted and unexplored ocean, defying the advisors of kings and queens across Europe. So he took control. Then, Mr. Authority (Bobadilla) thought he could do a better job. <i>That&#039;s</i> why he was arrested. Here&#039;s the shocker... Since Bobadilla failed miserably, <i>he</i> was ordered back. Perhaps &quot;research&quot; entails more than one newspaper reporter&#039;s slanted view.&nbsp;&nbsp; BTW, you left out the part about &quot;filling people with boiling soap&quot; which I find highly unlikely that they even <i>had</i> any soap, let alone would use what little they <i>may have had</i> as a weapon rather than, uh,&nbsp; SOAP!&nbsp;&nbsp; :rollling:[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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