by Steve Kenny
explorer stood in the sand on Christmas morning, legs apart, eyes askance, he saw nothing but his flagship, the 100-ton, 100-foot-long Santa Maria, lying on its side in the shallow waters a mere 2 miles from the shore. The contrary winds chilled Columbus' heart. With 2 crews totalling 80 men, and only one ship, the 70-foot Nina, Columbus had no choice but to leave nearly 50 men on the island, while he went back to Spain for more supplies, ships, and men. He ordered all supplies removed from the wreckage of the Santa Maria, and all wood stripped from her to build a fortress for protection. From this wood, the Villa de la Navidad was built; a hastily-cobbled together fortress that would end up offering absolutely no protection for the men that would be left behind.
He left on the island on January 16th, 1492, and caught Martin Pinzon on the 18th of January. Pinzon had on board four naked native men and two naked young girls, whom Columbus thought Pinzon was going to enslave. Columbus ordered the six to be clothed and returned to their island, because, "...honor and favor must be shown to the people, since their is so much gold on this island and such good lands and so much spice."
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When Columbus returned, nearly six months later, with 14 fresh ships and 1,400 men, he found that the Arawak had killed every last man that he had left behind. The undisciplined men, who had come with Columbus with hopes so high and God and Glory in their hearts, took to raping the Arawak women, plundering their villages, and incurring their wrath soon after Columbus left. Christopher Columbus' son recorded that they had taken to "committing a thousand excesses, for which they were mortally hated by the Indians."
Pinzon would try to beat Columbus to Spain and steal his glory, but would be found out, and die disgraced the same year. Columbus would return to the New World three more times; the third trip ending with him brought back to Spain in chains, after being judged as having hanged too many men.
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