by Andrew Rowen | Mar 17, 2023 | New York City
Columbus’s letter to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of October 15, 1495 (first available in 1985, as discussed in the post of February 25) reveals that he felt Chief Caonabó’s capture was essential to “Española’s” conquest. He reported that Caonabó was “truly the...
by Andrew Rowen | Mar 5, 2023 | New York City
Columbus’s letter to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of October 15, 1495 (first available in 1985, as discussed in prior post), reports that, after parleying with Chief Guarionex, “I went to Santo Tomás to capture certain principal caciques of the Cibao because they...
by Andrew Rowen | Feb 25, 2023 | New York City
Ships bearing the 550 Taíno captives departed Isabela on February 24, 1495, bound for Cádiz, Spain (see prior post). As depicted in Columbus and Caonabó, four key events then occurred on “Española,” from late February through March 1495: Columbus and Chief Guarionex...
by Andrew Rowen | Feb 1, 2023 | New York City
After relieving Fort Magdalena from Guatiguaná’s siege, by early February 1495 (528 years ago) Columbus’s soldiers commenced a series of raids throughout the Yaque River valley to capture Guatiguaná and warriors in retribution. Guatiguaná was located and seized and,...
by Andrew Rowen | Jan 7, 2023 | New York City
Fort Magdalena’s construction in December 1494 triggered Chief Caonabó’s decision to go to war. As depicted in Columbus and Caonabó, in January 1495 (528 years ago), he led warriors of his alliance to destroy Fort Santo Tomás, whose garrison then was commanded by...
by Andrew Rowen | Dec 1, 2022 | New York City
In early December 1494 (528 years ago), the Hieronymite friar Ramón Pané and the Franciscan friars Juan Leudelle and Juan de Tisín began preaching Christianity in the river valley surrounding the newly established Fort Magdalena. They soon kindled interest in the...