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Weslee Mok
Professor Rodriguez
History 7A
6 May 2017

Privileges and Prerogatives Granted by Their Catholic Majesties to Christopher Columbus: 1492

This official government document was signed by King Ferdinand and Queen Elizabeth,
delivered and reviewed by the royal secretary and councellors. Throughout the entire document,
Ferdinand and Elizabeth clearly state that Columbus will be gifted explicit rewards for his search
and conquests of new land; a promise of power and position for him and his future heirs to come.
They address him as someone who will not only lead the journey claiming these lands, but one
that stands in a powerful position, such as admiral or governor. Ferdinand and Elizabeth also
promise that any of these lands that Columbus discovers and conquers are under his jurisdiction
while he is doing so for his majesties. He is allowed to punish those that disobey or are labeled as
offenders, and is given the same amount of perks and salaries similar to that of High Admiral
of their kingdoms. Just from pure observation, I can assume that perhaps this was delivered to
Columbus because he might have needed some type of incentive to search the world for new
lands to conquer. Judging by the constant reminder to Columbus that he will be rewarded
handsomely for his efforts, and even the emphasis that his sons and future heirs will also be
given the same position and gifts, it is clear that Columbus was lead by greed during his
conquests, which shows through his actions that have been documented throughout history, his
horrid treatment of the natives from the lands he voyaged to a testament to that. Truthfully, it has
been quite a while since I have studied about Columbus, so there are gaps in my knowledge
about him, but I do recall him being depicted as a brave, talented explorer that discovered new
lands through his sheer desire to learn more about the world. However, I do not think of him as
the hero he has been described as, and this piece of evidence further proves how easily people
can lead around with their egos inflated because they were promised great power. This source
further proves my thoughts about Columbus and how it exposes his true nature, and that he was
given privileges he clearly took advantage of.

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/15th_century/colum.asp

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