Pedro Madruga and Cristobal Colon
(Two Brief Studies on Historical Narcissism)
The Fourth edition Text Revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is the handbook used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental disorders. All ten disorders must show "enduring pattern(s) of inner experience and behavior that are specifically rigid and deep-seated to bring a person into repeated conflicts with his or her social and occupational environment. (Narcissistic Personality Disorder) The manual states that the dysfunctional patterns must be regarded as nonconfoming or deviant by the person's culture, and cause significant pain and/or difficulties in relationships and occupational performance." (Ibid)
To arrive at a diagnosis of a personality disorder the patient must exhibit problematic behaviors in two, or more of the following areas:
1) "perception and interpretation of the self and other people.
2) 'intensity and duration of feelings and their appropriateness to situations.
3) 'relationships with others.
4) 'ability to control impulses."
Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) is defined as a "pattern of grandiosity" (Ibid), generally manifested on the part of the patient, with "exaggerated claims to talents, importance and specialness." (Ibid) These symptoms can occur either in the patient's private fantasies, or outward behavior" (Ibid), and include the "need for constant admiration from others" (Ibid,) and a lack of empathy. (Ibid)
The origins of the term, "narcissist," is the ancient Greek legend of Echo and Narcissus.
The following diagnostic criteria are used to arrive at a diagnosis of NPD, according to DSM-IV-TR, the American diagnostic manual. To obtain a diagnosis of NPD, an individual must fit at least five of the following patterns of behavior.
1) "He or she has a grandiose sense of self-importance (exaggerates accomplishments and demands to be considered superior without real evidence of achievement).
2) 'He or she lives in a dreamworld of exceptional success, power, beauty, genius, or 'perfect' love.
3) 'He or she thinks of him-herself as 'special' or privileged, and that he or she can only be understood by other special or high-status people.
4) 'He or she demands excessive amounts of praise or admiration from others.
5) 'He or she feels entitled to automatic deference, compliance, or favorable treatment from others.
6) 'He or she is exploitative towards others and takes advantage of them.
7) 'He or she lacks empathy and does not recognize or identify with others' feelings.
8) 'He or she is frequently envious of others or thinks that they are envious of him or her.
9) 'He or she 'has an attitude' or frequently acts in haughty or arrogant ways."
At present, clinicians believe that all personality disorders begin in adolescence or early adulthood. Children seldom receive a diagnosis of NPD. Doctors believe children's personalities undergo a number of changes until they are in their late teens. (Ibid)
This study will analyze the personality of Pedro Madruga and Christopher Columbus, with the intent to illustrate that both personalities show consistant, and parallel patterns of behavior that would warrant a diagnosis of NPD using the guidelines provided by the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. (Fourth Edition Text Revision)
There are two theories about the nature and origin of NPD, at present. One maintains that it is a form of arrested development, while the other one argues that it is a "young child's defense against psychological pain." (Ibid) The pioneer in this field of study was Freud, who maintained that all infants experience a phase of "primary" and "secondary" narcissism in which "they assume that they are the center of the universe." (Ibid) As children grow they are forced to recognize, through experience, that they are not able to control their parents or caregivers. In fact, the opposite is true. At this stage, under normal circumstances, young children give up their fantasies of omnipotence, and are able to form emotional bonds with their parents or caregivers. Secondary narcissism, according to Freudian theory, occurs when infants fail to invest their emotions in their parents, redirecting them back to themselves. Secondary narcissism, according to Freud, develops around the age of three, during the pre-Oedipal phase. It is for this reason that Freud thought narcisssism was difficult to treat later in life--its onset begins in early childhood.
Kohut rejected some of Freud's ideas about the id, ego, and superego. He developed the theory of the tripartite self, or three-part self.(Heinz Kohut, Wikipedia) Kohut essentially believed that narcissism allows a person to suppress their feelings of low self-esteem. In his view, the self-aggrandizing of a narcissist is what allows him or her to counterbalance her or his feelings of inadequacy. Central to Kohut's theory is the need to "identify and idealize 'the competence of admired figures.'" (Ibid) A child's self-worth, he maintained, must be 'mirrored' back to the child through empathy and proper caregiving, to allow them to develop their own soothing mechanisms. (Ibid)
Otto Kernberg was the founder of Transference-Focused Psychotherapy. Kernberg's ideas rely on a "self" consisting of an "intrapsychic" structure of multiple representions. (Otto Kernberg, Wikipedia) Kernberg acknowledged three types of narcissism: normal infantile narcissism, normal adult narcissism, and pathological narcissism. Kohut and Kernberg did not agree in their conceptualizations regarding the relationship between Narcissistic and Borderline personalities, normal versus pathological narcissism. They also differed in their ideas about narcissistic idealization and the grandiose self, as well as the psychoanalytic technique and narcissistic transference." (Ibid) Kernberg's ideas support a somewhat more realistic self, which integrates both good and bad self-images. In his view, Normal Adult Narcissism is experienced by individuals that have established a normal level of self-esteem, based on his system of representations. This is, according to Kernberg, a self whose superego is fully developed and individualized. Kernberg's theory posits that a child has the capacity of regulate self-esteem "through gratifications related to the age, which include, or imply, a normal infantile system of values, demands, and prohibitions." (Ibid)
Kernberg believes that NPD differs from Normal Adult Narcissim and from regression to Normal Infantile Narcissism. (Ibid) He attributes this type of character disorder to pathological object relationships. The pathological structure of NPD, in his view, "presents defences against early self and object images, which are libidinally or aggressively invested." (Ibid)
Not much is known about Columbus's early childhood in Genoa, where he allegedly lived an uneventful life, until he found his way to Lagos, Portugal, not so far away from the doorstep of Prince Henry the Navigator. Columbus, we are all told, was bound for Northern Europe and the British Isles, in a convoy of Genoese merchant vessels. He floated on an oar to Lagos, after the convoy was attacked by thirteen French and Portuguese ships commanded by French corsair de Casanove. Prior to this event, Columbus's voyages were not extensive. They were restricted to locations close to Italy, in the Mediterranean, including one trip to Chios, financed by the Spinola family, "allies of the Fregosos, who were his father's patrons in Genoa. (Dor-Ner, Columbus and the Age of Discovery)
On the other hand, the entire life (until the day he vanished) of Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior (Pedro Madruga) has been the subject of many published studies in Spain since he was an important figure in the history of Galicia, a result of his participation in the Irmandino rebellion there, an event that took place before Columbus's first voyage to the Americas. As mentioned in Part II of this study, Philippot maintains that Pedro Madruga and Columbus were actually one and the same. Likewise, according to the Philippot thesis, Pedro Madruga studied navigation in Portugal, and was a navigator for a period of 23 years, the same number of years Columbus spent at sea, according to what appears written in his Diary.
Those who support the Galician thesis assert that the man who later presented himself before the Catholic Kings spoke and behaved as if he were Portuguese. It is probable that, during that period of time, the Galician dialect was practically indistinguishable from the Portuguese spoken in Portugal.
Although the thesis of a Galician Columbus first earned respectability as a result of the eighteen documents presented to the Royal Geographic Society and the Academy of History in Madrid by historian and graphologist Celso Garcia de la Riega, Philippot is not the only author that expanded it through research. Constantino Horta y Pardo, a very qualified researcher, and author of "La verdadera cuna de Colon" developed a thesis of a Columbus that is slightly different from Philippot's thesis.
Horta y Pardo's thesis, published in 1911, maintains that the Colon family of Poio, Pontevedra, were relatives of Columbus as well. However, in his view, Domingo Colon was Columbus's father. His mother, he asserts, was Susana Fonterosa, also a native of Pontevedra. The name, Fonterosa, appears several times in the civil records of Pontevedra. Two Fonterosa men, according to the records, were named Jacob. One Jacob was called, "el Viejo" (Jacob, "the Old One")and the other, Jacob, "el Benjamin" (Jacob, the "Benjamin") Celso Garcia de la Riega (and Horta y Pardo) concluded that the Fonterosas were Jewish conversos. Likewise, other researchers affirm that members of the Colon family are buried in a Jewish cemetery in Galicia, and that their tombstones are labelled accordingly. Horta y Pardo asserts that Celso Garcia de la Riega was partial to this interpretation, adding that due to the persecution and injustices perpetrated on Spanish Jewish conversos, Columbus may have found it advisable to hide his origins, a speculation that makes a lot of sense. Other researchers have also noted that the first voyage of Columbus departed from Palos in early August 1492, only seven months after the fall of Granada, an event that precipitated an exodus of Jews that fled to Morocco and Gibraltar, fearing forced conversions by the Inquisitors, as well as other forms of harassment and persecution. The events just described have led some researchers who are partial to this thesis to speculate that Columbus was also trying to leave Spain for the same reasons.
The Catholic Kings signed an Edict of Expulsion on March 31, 1492, giving Jews a period of four months to leave Spain. Although the initial voyage to the Americas departed from Palos on August 2, all passengers and crew went aboard all three ships on July 31 and remained there, in the still waters of the port, until two days had elapsed past the date which coincides with the end of the four month period granted by the Edict of Expulsion. Once aboard, for whatever reason, they were not technically on Spanish land.
Regardless of its appeal to logic, the Garcia de la Riega/Horta y Pardo thesis faces one major problem, namely insufficient documentation. The theory is based on the speculations of the Marquis of Dosfuentes, who surmises that Domingo Colon and Benjamin Fonterosa promoted a marriage between the two families based on their friendship and mutual business association linked to the Archbishop of Santiago.
If, on the other hand, de la Riega and Horta y Pardo are correct, it would be rational to assume that Columbus's entire life may have been directed toward concealing his true identity. According to Kernberg's theory of narcissism, consistent attempts to deny one's identity can contribute to the development of NPD.
Likewise, if the Philippot version is accurate, and the Colons of Pontevedra have Jewish origins, Pedro Madruga would have also been Jewish, in addition to "illegitimate." Therefore, it would also be reasonable to assume Pedro Madruga's predicament may have been even more complex than the one faced by Cristobal Colon Fonterosa, the Garcia de la Riega/Horta y Pardo "candidate," whose name and last names are a "perfect match."
Without a doubt, at present, the Philippot thesis is the most documented of the two. In fact, a statement in Horta y Pardo's theory can be cited to support Philippot's thesis. Horta y Pardo maintains that Diego, Columbus's son with Felipa Muniz de Perestrello, the woman Columbus allegedly married in Portugal, could not be Diego's mother. Horta y Prado noted that neither Diego nor Columbus paid "for a humble burial" (Horta y Prado, La verdadera cuna de Cristobal Colon) for her, in spite of their wealth, honors, and prestige, "they did not take 'her remains to Santo Domingo, or dedicated prayers to her soul, or mentioned her at all in their writings.'" (Ibid) Such omissions of protocol, religious or otherwise, do seem inconceivable.
Pedro Madruga married Teresa de Tavora in Portugal during the second phase of the Irmandino Rebellion (1467-1469). According to a brief biography of his life, published by the City of Pontevedra, he had seven children with her. One of them was named Diego, and another one Fernando. In addition, in a Galician geneaology website, the pertinent generation of Sotomaior lists four other children born out of wedlock that could only be attributed to Pedro Madruga. Alvar Paez was the only "legitimate" son of Fernan Eanes and Pedro Madruga's half-brother. Alvar died childless. (Xenealogia, Casa de Soutomaior)
The Tavoras were an influential family in Portugal, and the biography describes the marriage as "adventageous" for Madruga. It also states that his union with Teresa marked the beginning of Madruga's ties with politics and the feudal lords during the Irmandino rebellion. During the course of that conflict, Madruga earned a folk hero's reputation. Some Galicians called him "our King," others still perceive him as a sort of Robin Hood, albeit in reverse.
Carlos Barros, a professor of social history at the University of Santiago de Compostela, and an important chronicler of the Irmandino Rebellion, refers to Pedro Madruga as the "prototype of a bad knight." (Barros, Como vive el modelo caballeresco de la hidalguia Gallega bajo medieval: los pazos de Proben) The "model" knight, Barros asserts, had a need to be "socially efficient." (Ibid) To achieve that goal, the errant knights found inspiration in "literary works, narratives, poetry, chilvalry books, and nobiliary treatises," (Ibid) as portrayed in Cervantes's Don Quixote, a satire inspired by this supercilious state of affairs. Marimar Anzano, a reviewer of Philippot's work, states that, at age seven, young Cristobal was named Pedro Alvarez, after Don Pedro Alvarez, 10th Lord of the House of Soutomaior and Fornelos, Fernan Eanes's father.
By all accounts, Fernan Eanes behaved well toward his son, but only as far as his legal rights and obligations were concerned. He enrolled him in the Dominican Convent of Tui, because it was customary (until not so long ago)to enroll, "a pupilo," or boarding school style, in today's world, all children of nobles born out of wedlock (unless they were sent abroad, or otherwise concealed from public view). Thereafter, the convent students were expected to become clerics. (Anzano, La Identidad de Cristobal Colon) However, young Pedro would have none of it. He left the convent when he was sixteen or seventeen years old. He returned home to live with his father, a shipbuilder, who was active in other maritime enterprises. Pedro Madruga's post convent years were spent next to the King of Portugal, "a great friend of his father." It was there he became interested in war affairs. (Ibid) Perhaps while there, he also had a chance practice the art of self-reinvention, away from Pontevedra, where his true identity was known to others. Therefore, it can be reasonably assumed that young Pedro, in spite of his extreme diligence, did not find much time to instruct himself in the ways and duties of knighthood, as mentioned above. Likewise, Fernan Eanes could not have been a devoted role model to his "natural" son. It is believed that Fernan Eanes was opposed to the idea of having a "bastard" as the final heir to his estate, or "House." (Pedro Madruga)
As a result, it can also be speculated that, at any given moment, during his formative years, the "very subtle" (manoso) and "wise," Pedro Madruga became aware of his father's rejection; of having to live in the shadow of his "legitimate" brother Alvar Paez, the highly respected Major Admiral of the Sea, who had been groomed to be their father's successor since the day he was born.
Perhaps Pedro's compulsions and obsessions were misguided attempts to earn his father's love and admiration; to become someone "he was not," for the sake of acceptance. Those efforts may have lasted a lifetime, and are quite evident if Philippot's thesis is correct. Cristobal Colon returned from the second trip to the Americas wearing a Franciscan habit, and it has been cited many times that he was wearing one when he was buried. There are some who view those actions as a publicity stunt. Perhaps he did convert, or was already a Friar before departing on the first trip, a notion that, if true, would devastate the Franciscan assertion to the effect that forced conversions were not planned ahead of departure, because not a single Franciscan was included in the crew and passenger list. It is certain that one passenger's occupation was listed as "goldsmith," Cristobal Caro.
There is no need to reconstruct the entanglements of the Irmandino Wars in great detail to allow one to analyze the mental state and actions of Pedro Madruga during his involvement in the conflict. The first conflict erupted in 1431, therefore he could not have been an active participant due to his early age. Madruga was born in 1432, a fact that Philippot would not been able to "change," because it is documented in civil records, and history books. Columbus, "according to testimony from his contemporaries," (Vidas Paralelas) was born born between 1430 and 1436. This will acquire significance later on, below.
A young child's psyche can be deeply affected by war, even in the absence of his or her active participation, and certainly if his or her parents participate in it, or if the family suffers while it is taking place. In the case of Madruga, his participation in the Irmandino Rebellion began quite a bit later, when his aunt, the strident Teresa de Zuniga, ("....their aunt did not get along with her loved ones due to the insanities she committed..") was in need of help, after another nephew, Sancho de Ulloa, refused to assist her. (Pedro Madruga) The particulars of her request are not worth reviewing at this time. What is worth noting is that Pedro jumped at the opportunity to aid a damsel in distress (an important tenet of Galician chilvalry, as we shall soon see), who was in need of taking possession of Rivadavia castle in the name of her son Bernardino Sarmiento, who was not yet of age. Pedro's initial performance hardly differs from other incidents provoked by Columbus in the New World:
"...he ordered some killed, and the feet of others chopped off. Others were arrested. And he arrested the Abbot of San Croyo, and he brought him around the town of Rivadavia mounted on a ass, and with a wreath of garlic [used to keep away evil spirits] wrapped around his neck." (Ibid)
The first conflict, The Irmandade Fusquenlla, occurred in 1431, in the lands belonging to the Andrades. Nuno Freire de Andrade "El Malo," literally "The Bad One" was cruel to his vassals. A revolt that began in Puentedeume and Betanzos spread through Lugo, Mondonedo, and as far as Santiago de Compostela. The Great Irmandina War began between 1467 and 1469. It became a civil war. (Revuelta Irmandina) Some historians still view it as an extension of the Irmandade Fusquenlla. Others maintain that it was provoked by bandits and outlaws that were protected by the feudal lords. The alleged desperados were "men for hire" or mercenaries (some called them "the third state") and they were accused of assaulting "seculars and clerics to steal their property, rob churches, cattle and evil actions that, due to the absence of a monarch, or the temporary government, remained unpunished." (Ibid) In other words, the Kingdom of Galicia in the mid XV century was a medieval version of what is known today as a rogue state.
A more sober evaluation of the conflicts is the one offered by historian Carlos Barros. He believes that myths are not compatible with historical truth. (Barros, Mitos de la histografia galleguista) Likewise, to arrive at an accurate reconstruction of events, Barros is willing to review Galician myths with a dispassionate eye, including the myth of Pedro Madruga as a Robin Hood in reverse.
In his essay, Como vive el modelo caballeresco la hidalguia gallega bajo medieval: los pazos de Proben (The Way of Life of the Knightly Galician Model During Early Medieval Times: The Manor Houses of Proben) (Pun intended, the protagonist's last name, Pazos de Proben, means, literally, "Manor Houses of Proben.")
Barros asserts that "war is the occupation that defines the knightly model, or archetype best, because it provides meaning and a moral framework to the nobility as a social class." (Ibid) It is a model that allows the knight to manifest the most prized attributes of the "hidalguia," or nobility. The military model considers bravery a special virtue. Other qualities owe their existence to it, such as loyalty, fame, and honor," (Ibid) qualities that are also prized by narcissists.
Barros equates, in a subtle way, the tenets of Galician knighthood with religious mantras. The principal one was "it is better to die with honour than to live dishonorably." (Ibid) Cowardice was the most despised of all attributes to a knight. To be "the first one to attack a fort," (Ibid) was a cardinal rule. The vassals of the feudal lords also had rules that made clear the gestalt of Galician knighthood and the Irmandino Rebellion. The vassals, who were commoners and unskilled workers "largely imitated the knightly model. But did not react to to the same arguments." (Ibid) Barros sums up the apprenticeship of a knight by stating that the entire procedure culminated with psychological training to know, "at the hour of truth, that there was no other choice than to opt for 'death with honor.'" (Ibid) Pedro Madruga, on the other hand, could not know that the following words, uttered by him, would also become a mantra to all those who still mention it whenever they wish to encapsulate his perception of his "self" and other people. (Problematic Behavior No.1) (Narcissistic Personality Disorder)
"For the whole of Galicia, my House is enough." Pedro Madruga
(Bibliografia de Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior)
"His House" was self-created when, in 1475, King Alonso V, of Portugal, granted him the title "and rights," (Ibid) of Count of Camina; a title that neither Fernan Eanes nor his "legitimate heir" Alvar Paez de Soutomaior, the great Admiral, ever held before; a title that gave him almost exclusive dominion over the entire southeast province of Galicia, where the people called him "our King." It was also a title "in accordance with his hegemonic pretensions." Not all the nobles were pleased with these developments. While some of them favored a union with Portugal, for reasons already stated, others were content remaining a part of Castile. The most enlightened among the errant knights favored some sort of autonomy within Portugal, but without severing ties with Castile, or in today's jargon, "having one's cake and eating it too."
The saga of the defense of the castle of Tenorio by the de Proben knights, against the forces of Pedro Madruga, is the subject of Barros's paper. The siege of Tenorio castle lasted for five months, a fact that underscores the pertinence of the events about to be narrated within the context of this psychological profile. The "intensity and duration of feelings and their appropiateness to situations," (Narcissistic Personality Disorder), or problematic behavior number two (to meet NPD diagnosis), as it applies to Pedro Madruga's personality, should become entirely clear as we proceed. The first one, "perception and interpretation of the self and other people," (Ibid) has already been addressed, and will gain increasing importance as this tale unfolds. The reconstruction of the events that follow was written by Barros, but inspired by Juan de Ocampo, who narrated them first. They clearly show that most, if not all the participanting knights, vassals, and unskilled workers, knew intimate details about Madruga's life, including his "illegitimacy." They all viewed him as an "arriviste," a member of the "new nobility," and a "bastard." Ocampo calls him an outright "prototype of a bad knight," (Barros, como vive...) in spite of having a modicum of sympathy for him.
The events were provoked when Pedro was the leader of the "Portuguese Band," (Ibid) in Galicia, during the rebellion. His actions, narrated below, suggest that Pedro Madruga already wanted his own kingdom. Tenorio castle was "defended by Gomez de Proben until his death, during the war of the Catholic Kings against Portugal," (Ibid) surely a source of displeasure to Her Majesty, [Isabel the Catholic of Castile] since she could only view the actions of Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, during this incident, as an act of treason while the conflict endured, and certainly thereafter.
Moscoso and Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior were, according to the author, the instigators. Barros states that "middle nobles" (Ibid) brought about peace by "exchanging the great lords that led the regiments, Moscoso and Soutomaior, the originators of the problem, with other captains." (Ibid) Jacome Pazos de Proben was appointed as the leader of the Tuy-Orense regiment had been led, up to then, by Pedro Madruga.
Tuy was an important location for the Soutomaiors, the place, or one of the places, where the Soutomaiors led important affairs. It was the place where Pedro received his early education; where he learned Latin from the Dominican monks while he lived with them in the monastery. The place where Alvar Paez, the "recognized" and "legitimate heir" of the House, his half-brother, conducted his those great interests mentioned earlier with extreme competence. The Philippot thesis maintains that Pedro Madruga was born in 1432, a date that, if not perfectly documented with civil or geneaology records, can be deduced to a low margin of error, by virtue of the fact that many events of his life are recorded in the history of Galicia. If born in 1432, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior would have been 44 years old when following events took place. It has been reported in the Spanish media that the investigation of the remains (of Columbus) in Seville, belong to a man who died when he was in late sixties, or perhaps even 70 years old. This theory is compatible with Washington Irving's theory, of Columbus's age, and it is shared by Bernal, a friend and guest of Columbus, who was a priest. (Horta y Pardo, La verdadera cuna de Cristobal Colon) On the other hand, if Columbus was born in 1451, as mainstream history suggests, the he would have been only fifty-five years old at the time of his death. Nevertheless, Philippot asserts the Admiral's remains are buried in Santo Domingo.
Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior is described by Barros as "the eternal enemy" of the Pazos de Proben House. Such a threatening situation, or gestalt (to Pedro), would be described in present day therapy jargon as "the potential loss of NS, or narcissistic supply." The loss of narcissistic supply, even when imagined, anticipated or, even worse, brought about by real circumstances, can throw a confirmed, or pathological narcissist, into a tailspin. Our friend Pedro was no exception. The diminishment of self-importance represents a lethal blow to a narcissist's fragile ego. (See first item of nine NPD diagnostic criteria, the most important one of all.)
Barros cites that the events about to be described are based on the narration of nobleman Juan Rodriguez de Padron, a direct witness of the deed, as reconstructed from Ocampo's work.
At some point during the struggle, Pedro Madruga demolished the castle, and detained the family of Gomez Pazos. Pedro said that "he would order to have all of them hanged, unless Gomez Pazos surrendered the castle, and placed himself in his hands." (Ibid) Gomez Pazos responded, "under no circumstances would he surrender the castle..." (Ibid), adding several mantras of Galician knighthood, including an allusion to the customary swearing ceremony that pertained to that specific possibility.
Barros states that historians Padron and Ocampo suggest the new Count, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, "employs barbaric methods, not knightly ones, like those of the Moors of Tarifa." (Ibid) Pazos de Proben's response to Madruga's threat supports this suggestion. He told the Count that the "only type of Count's fame he could earn by killing four innocent people, using barbaric methods, would be a loser's fame." (Ibid) Pedro Madruga, first Count of Camina, retreated without taking action, no doubt wishing to avoid further losses in the area of self-importance, once again.
A similar situation took place when Pedro gathered nobles at the Castle of Sobroso. The hidalgos, or lesser nobles of Garcia Sarmiento, the defending knight, were placed in front of their leader. Madruga tells them, "see your Lord, if you do not give me the House, I will chop off his head." (Ibid) The threats were not carried out, but not because the count "lacked courage, or had scruples," (Ibid) as will be demonstrated later on.
Many important events took place in Tenorio Castle after the Count declined to hang the members of the de Proben family. A "traitor" (Ibid) allowed the Count to enter the castle one night. Up until that night, the forces of Pazos de Proben were able to resist the assailants in combat while they awaited the assistance of friendly knights and the Kings. "Figueroa, Garcia Sarmiento, Tristan de Montenegro, and Valladares," (Ibid) all knights of important lineages, with people from Pontevedra, Vigo, and Sobroso, gathered 3,000 men to liberate Tenorio, but 68 foreign arcabuceros of Soutomaior defeated them with firearms that "had never been seen in Galicia before." (Ibid)
The history of the Irmandino Rebellion is filled with similar anecdotes about Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, First Count of Camina; anecdotes that demonstrate the contradictory nature of the Count. Often he is also portrayed as a coward, on the basis that it was his practice to hide in the middle of the regiment wearing disguises to avoid injury of detection. Perhaps the "cunning" and "wise" Count already knew that he would be more valuable to his forces, and the King of Portugal, alive, instead of dying with honor, as the code of knighthood required. Pedro's actions demonstrate that his behavior was similar to the vassals in that he also engaged in imitative behavior, but he did not "react to the same argument as the nobles." (Barros, Como vive...) But then again, why would he? Why would he "act" and perhaps also "react" in the same manner as a commoner or vassal?
Pedro was not a "legitimate" Soutomaior heir. Like all the other children of nobles born out of wedlock, or deemed "defective" in any other way, he had to be locked away, all, or most of the time--at the convent, or away, in Portugal, or at sea, or at Sagres, where another one of his father's friends (the Director), could help him change his identity; anywhere his presence, or existence, could be denied. Perhaps he was sent also to Genoa, at a time when Italy was much farther away from being unified than Spain, but where Spain had a lot of influence; where the idea of being an active participant of The House might never enter his head; where he could be distracted; where the idea of mentioning he was a Soutomaior, if it did ever enter his head, could only be told to people who didn't care, or wouldn't believe him, or couldn't take advantage. For the reasons just explained, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior became Pedro Madruga, (Peter, "the early riser," literally) a very diligent and intelligent boy who owned roosters, and used them as alarm clocks, to help him get up at dawn, creating extra working hours in the day, to impress Fernan Eanes, hoping to earn his love and approval one day, an event that never took place. Pedro Madruga never had an opportunity to sharpen his Galician knighthood, or leadership skills. When the idea of turning him into a priest failed, he became interested in the family business, but Alvar was his father's legitimate heir, and representative in the family affairs. Young Pedrito was probably cajoled into taking up his interests away from home. Wherever he was sent, he also learned something about war, and sophisticated weaponry. Whatever he learned about chivalry, he learned from his adversaries, as an active participant, in fact a leader, in the theater of war.
The incident mentioned above indicates that his adversaries knew all of this, and often took advantage of Pedro, attempting to shame him into doing the "right thing," according to "knightly" rules.
Shame is a familiar emotion to those who suffer from NPD. It is an emotion that, as some clinicians assert, is sought repeatedly by the narcissist, an attempt to recreate past traumas, in their minds, or otherwise, with the goal of sorting out effects brought about by the NPD syndrome. Most professionals believe this is hard, if not impossible to achieve, without outside help once the patient is older, or after it has become a pathological condition.
Before killing Gomez Pazos, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior demolished the castle, a feat reserved for nobles, but only "at the hour of truth," when the defending knight had to claim defeat, or death with honor, and only as a last resort. Pedro demolished the castle to "eliminate the possibility that another knightly scion from the de Proben clan, would dare repeat the valiant deed of his father, Diego." (Ibid) That is the conclusion reached by Barros Ocampo, and many others.
In the end, Her Majesty, and one of her allies, Teresa de Tavora, Pedro's wife, had the last word.
Bartolome de las Casas viewed Columbus as the "Bearer of Christ," while, on one occasion, Columbus is cited as saying he was an envoy of the House of David. Upon becoming an Admiral, Columbus wrote a letter to King Juan in which he stated that he was not the only Admiral in his family. His name, in that instance, still remained unknown, or unknowable:
"Let them give me any name they want; in the end David, a very prudent king, was a shepherd and was later named King of Jerusalem, I am the servant of that same Lord that took David to that state." (Cristobal Colon y el Enigma de su Origen)
Perhaps Columbus was already delusional, but most authors and historians use those citations to attempt to determine if he was Christian or Jewish. If Philippot, is correct, he was both. Why not concentrate on the meaning of that schism, instead, using it to "prove" he was confused, disturbed, and suffering from extreme emotional pain? They would conclude Pedro Madruga/Cristobal Colon, wanted to please his father even after Fernan was dead. Some have already claimed he was an adept when it came to thinking about the future, as exemplified by the motives that led him to destroy the Tenorio castle, to prevent any other knight of the lineage to defend it again.
As the siege came to an end, the unthinkable took place. After the head of Pazos de Proben was dead, he killed Gomez and Fernando. He beheaded them, an unthinkable act, according to the Galician Chivalry Codes. The knights portrayed in, "The Lives of Saints," were "men and women who were beheaded, stoned, and burned," (Ibid) They were martyrs and saints. The Lives of Saints was a guide to perfect Galician Knighthood, as was the crucifixion of Christ, the death of the Son of God, and the holy martyrs. The knights were also ardent students of the chivalry codes of Ali, the cousin of Muhammad, who many claim invented the system of chivalry. (Hitti, History of the Arabs) It must not be forgotten that Spain was under Arabic rule for up to 800 years, and during the period of time these events were taking place, Granada was still under Arabic Rule. Christians, Moslems, and Jews lived side by side there, many of them concentrating on scholarly pursuits that were much more interesting, such as translating the works of Plato into Arabic, and assigning their translation into Latin to others, a task that fell on the shoulders of the Christian clergy, and were later translated by those who read Latin. The expulsion of both groups could be considered as an act of self-mutilation, in regard to intellectual matters. Previously Spain was regarded as important center of learning, because of its diversity. As soon as the "discovery" was initiated. Intellectual matters were controlled by the Church.
All the knights of Galicia viewed hanging "...as a symbol of the exercise of high justice both in criminal and civil cases..." (Barros, como vive...) The knights also had a media campaign of their own design, also created for material reasons as Barros points out: "The economic well-being of the House or Manor Houses was conditioned by public fame, accumulated through inheritance. (Ibid) The chilvalry code insisted that the defeated [or conquered] must not be beheaded or hanged (...), even after death." (Ibid)
There is no doubt that Pedro Madruga understood one of the basic rules of knighthood, namely the avenging of damsels in distress, as shown by the event that led to Pedro Madruga's involvement in the Irmandino Rebellion, including the Siege of Pazos de Proben, where he displayed comparable actions to those Columbus practiced in The New World, as cited in countless, history books, chronicles, and narratives, though there is a dearth of published material, questioning where, or how, he learned to commit such atrocities, the same ones that were committed by the Porquerones of the Goan Inquisition and other places in India. The Goa Inquisition lasted for two and a half centuries. One of the worst perpetrators was Francis Xavier, another "Bearer of Christ," as his name [Xavier] indicates. During the Goa Inquisition "heretics were burned, temples were razed and churches were placed upon them as the Spaniards did, in the New World, and in Spain after the Reconquest. (The Ethics of Proselytizing) Furthermore, the amputation of limbs, and tongues as punishment is often cited in many old, and new Columbian chronicles.
Thus it has been shown that Madruga lived in a dreamworld of success, power and genius, the second diagnostic criteria for "the clinician to make a NPD diagnosis." (Narcissistic Personality Disorder)
Whether or not Madruga was able to control his impulses, yet another problematic pattern of behavior, to meet the diagnosis of NPD, the last of the problematic behaviors to be addressed, would be arguable at this point in the analysis, but not later, if Madruga and Columbus are one and the same, as will be argued in the next section of this study.
Madruga refrained, at first, from carrying out his threats to cut off people's heads, or hang them, but in the end he did not. After regrouping, he returned with arcabuces,(eng. arquebuses), a primitive version of rifles. His actions could have been premeditated.
The relationship with his wife, Teresa de Tavora, brought about his ultimate demise in Galicia. The first signs of discord between the couple took place as a result of her involvement with Her Majesty to dispose her husband of his titles and House, granting them to his son, an event Madruga could not emotionally overcome, particularly after his final defeat in the Irmandino Rebellion.
An enraged Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior called out to his old allies to recover his House. He found himself all alone. Suddenly, he perceived himself as impotent to challenge the Crown of Castile/Aragon. He had been ousted by the Crown and replaced by his own son.
Criteria number eight, (envy) may be arguable, but not discarded as a possibility, as it could be related to the following incident, if Madruga and Columbus are one and the same. Columbus's denial of the recompense that was rightfully deserved by another one, the one who first saw land, could also be seen as the response of a jealous narcissist. If not, the only other rational alternative, would be to qualify it as an attempt to increase his self-importance. In that case, criteria number 3 applies. Without question, the Pazos de Proben incident demonstrates he felt entitled to deference, compliance, or favorable treatment from others, in accordance to criteria number five. Certainly, he lacked empathy, as shown by the beheading of his foes, and the amputation of their feet. (Criteria number seven) Criteria number nine is exemplified by his motto, "For all of Galicia my House is enough," or sufficient, or plenty. Likewise this is evident by the way he issued orders. Thus, so far, six diagnostic criteria, required to make a diagnosis of NPD have been demonstrated. Existence of envy, in his case, may have been well disguised, "with a well packaged exterior means that they often develop an attractive and persuasive social manner." (Narcissistic Personality Disorder) Many chroniclers, including Bartolome de las Casas, have cited his charm, or the lovely side of his personality. Without it, becomes very difficult for narcissists to maintain survival levels of narcissistic supply, ususally obtained from their unsuspecting victims.
Did Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior die of two infected carbuncles, or at the the hands of the Porquerones of Proinao, who entered the convent and "threw the garrote at his neck," (Pedro Madruga) as some speculate? Perhaps, as Aponte points out, it was a bit of both. Others suggest his visit to Alba de Tormes (Salamanca) was to negotiate (with the aid the Duke of Alba,as an intermediary between him and the Crown) the restitution of his House. One source (Pedro Madruga, Wikipedia) cites that the Duke waited for the right moment, when the Kings visited Alba de Tormes, to ask forgiveness for Pedro. Some suggest those nobles "may have been" his relatives, failing to cite the following:
"Catholic and very high and very powerful King and Lord
'Your highness, due to your mercy, you placed the Admiral of the Indies, my nephew, in my house, marrying him with Dona Maria de Toledo, my niece, a mercy that I regarded very highly when Your Highness ordered to do so, and now..."
(Letter of the Duke of Alba to the King our Lord)
Where are the remains of Pedro Madruga, that they too could be tested, by means of DNA, and compared with the DNA of Soutomaior descendants? In Seville, in Santo Domingo? In this manner, the matter could be put to rest. Judging by the contents of a number of blogs, a number of Soutomaior descendants are perfectly willing to have their DNA tested against the remains that are in Seville, or Santo Domingo.
Did Pedro Madruga reinvent himself, as Cristobal Colon, after his disappearance from Galicia, reverting to the use of his original given name? Part IV of this study will aim to show that, in the case of Columbus, further, and more aggravated consistent patterns of problematic behavior, and symptoms, are applicable, based on historical citations, and that they are consistent with necessary requirements to arrive at a diagnosis of NPD.
habanera
REFERENCES
Dor-Ner, Zvi. Columbus and the Age of Discovery. New York. William Morrow. 1991.
Hitti, Philip. History of the Arabs. From the Earliest Times to the Present. New York.St. Martin. Tenth Ed. 1985.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder. http://www.minddisorders.com/Kau-Nu/Narcissistic-personality-disorder.html
Heinz Kohut, Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_Kohut
Otto Kernberg. Wikipedia. http:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Kernberg
Barros, Carlos. Universidad de Santiago de Compostela. Como vive el modelo caballeresco la hidalguia gallega bajo medieval: los pazos de Proben. http://www.h-debate.com/cbarros/spanish/modelo.htm
Barros, Carlos. Universidad de Santiago de Compostela. Mitos de la histografia galleguista. http://www.h-debate.com/cbarros/spanish/mitos.htm
de Horta y Pardo, Constantino. La verdadera cuna de Cristobal Colon. http://www. cervantesvirtual.com
Pedro Madruga. Wikipedia. http://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_%C3%811varez_de_Soutomaior
Bibliografia de Pedro Madruga. Ayuntamiento de Soutomaior
http://www.soutomaior.com/pedro_madruga_cast.html
Anzano, Marimar. La identidad de Cristobal Colon. Comentario de Marimar Anzano sobre el libro de Alfonso Philippot. http:// www.democracia-real.org/html/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=417
Vidas Paralelas. Vida paralela entre Cristobal Colon y Pedro Madruga (Conde de Sotomayor) http://www.cristobal-colon.com/COLON/TESISGALLEGA/ALFONSOPHILIPPOT/vidaPa
Xenealoxia. Casa Soutomaior. http://www.xenealoxia.org/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=9256
Cristobal Colon y El Enigma de su Origen. http://74.52.200.226/~sefarad/lm/016/page13.html
Carta. Duque de Alba Para el Rey Nuestro Senor. http//www.cervantesvirtual.com
The Ethics of Proselytizing. Presented at the Cornell University Conference in Human Rights and Religion
http://www.infinityfoundation.com/ECIT
Friday, August 3, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
The Identity of Columbus (Part II)
In 1898 Celso Garcia de la Riega, a native of Pontevedra, Galicia, presented some manuscripts from the XV and XVI centuries before the members of the Geographic society of Madrid. The documents cited several seamen from Pontevedra whose last name was "de Colon." As a result of this discovery Garcia de la Riega published a book titled, Colon espanol, or Columbus, the Spaniard. Garcia de la Riega died two months after the book was published and, soon thereafter, Serrano Sanz alleged that the documents had been altered, or manipulated. It was not until 1964 that Professor Rodriguez Solano declared, "after an exhaustive investigation," (Colon era de Pontevedra) that the documents presented by Garcia de la Riega were free of falsification. (Ibid)
Likewise, Carlos Brant, who was born in Venezuela in 1875, had a similar theory. Brant wrote more than thirty books, and devoted time to study the life of Columbus while he lived in exile in Spain, Italy, Belgium, and the US, the result of the Gomez dictatorship. At the age of 49, Brant wrote, misterioso almirante, or, Mysterious Admiral, a book that dared to affirm that "Colon" was not the Admiral's real name. (Carlos Brant y el misterioso almirante que nos descubrio) Brant's observations in this respect can be supported by the observations of Las Casas, cited in Tzevetan Todorov's, The Conquest of America. The following citation seems to indicate that Bartolome de las Casas took this matter for granted, since the custom of changing one's name was commonplace in some circles. According to Rosina Serrano Diaz, D'Olwer, and others, the Franciscan practice of changing one's name persisted until recent years. Other mendicant orders of different religions still practice this rite. According to Serrano Diaz, "it was a general custom [for Franciscans] to change their names upon entering the order." Motolinia's case is a good example within this context. Serrano Diaz asserts a new first name should be taken, different from the one given at birth. In addition, as a last name, the practice was to take, as a last name, the name of a place belonging to friar's original birthplace. The advantage of that custom is "knowing with certainty, at the very least, the geographical location of a document." (Serrano Diaz, Sobre Tres Documentos de Aragoneses en Venezuela) Perhaps this procedure could be viewed as a precursor of today's zip-code system.
Bartolome de las Casas, a member of the Dominican order (a fact that should be kept in mind as we proceed) states that "the persons designated to serve (often a euphemism for members of the clergy) should receive names and surnames corresponding to the task entrusted to them." (Todorov, The Conquest of America)
In the Conquest of America, Todorov attempts to sort out the mystery surrounding Columbus's name, no doubt an important matter, to the Admiral who "seems to pay attention only to names, which in some respects are closely related to natural indices." (Ibid) Todorov also notes, the high degree of concern the Admiral attached to his name, since "he changes his orthography several times during his life."
"...But this illustrious man, renouncing the name established by custom, chose to be called Colon, restoring the ancient form less for this reason than it would seem because he was moved by the divine will which had elected him to achieve what his surname and given name signified. Divine providence habitually intends that the persons designated to serve should receive the given names and surnames corresponding to the task entrusted to them, as we see in many a place in the Scriptures; and the philosopher says in the chapter IV of his metaphysics, 'Names should accord with the qualities and uses of things.' This is why he was called Cristobal, which is to say Christum Ferens which means the bearer of Christ, and it was this that he often signed his name for in truth he was first to open the gates of the Ocean sea, in order to bear our Savior Jesus Christ over the waves to those remote lands and those realms hitherto unknown....His surname was Colon which means repopulator, a name befitting the man whose enterprise brought about the discovery of these people. These infinite numbers of souls who, thanks to the preaching of the Gospel...have proceeded and will every day proceed to populate the glorious city of Heaven.''
(Bartolome de las Casas, (Historia I and II), Todorov, The Conquest of America)
On the 11th of June, 1496, upon his return to Spain, at the end of his second voyage, Columbus disembarked in Cadiz, with the intention of propping up his image. He was wearing a Franciscan "sayal," or habit. The fact that Columbus viewed himself as a "savior" is evident in his own writings, including his Book of Prophecies, a compilation of Biblical texts that, according to some, indicate that Columbus felt he had been "chosen" to accomplish a historic mission. (Historiadores de Indias)
Brant also disagreed about Columbus's alleged place of birth, noting that Magallanes, Americo Vespucci, and other foreigners had to become naturalized Spanish citizens to obtain the title of Major Pilot, a requirement that Columbus was not asked to provide for himself while, at the same time, he was granted the titles of Viceroy and Major Admiral of the Sea Ocean, titles that were alleged to have been bequeathed to him before the actual "discovery." (Carlos Brant y el misterioso almirante que nos descubrio.)
The thesis of a Galician Columbus has been supported by a good number of Galician authors, historians and linguists, including the highly esteemed Countess Emilia Pardo Bazan. In 1961, Jose Mosqueira published, La cuna Gallega de Cristobal Colon. (The Galician Crib of Christopher Columbus.) In addition to citing the documents of Garcia de la Riega, Mosqueira, who was convinced of Columbus's Galician origin, came up with some startling conclusions, aided only by the use common sense and simple arithmetic:
1) The Genoese were the best cartographers and oceanographers during Columbus's era. (Supported by Menzies, 1421) Therefore, it would be absurd, or counterproductive to hide his true name, which, in any case would have been Colombo.
2) According to his biographers, Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451, and stayed with his parents until 1474. However, in an entry in his Diary (in Santo Domingo) Columbus states that he has "navigated for 23 years, without leaving the sea for any amount of time that is worth counting." If he entered Spain from Portugal, in 1484, and did not go out to sea until 1492, then those 23 years 'without leaving any amount of time that is worth counting" must be subtracted from 1484 to know the date when he began to navigate: 1461. He would have been ten years old. Therefore he could not have been in Genoa at his father's weaving establishment until 1474. Mosqueira determines from these calculations that either Columbus lied, or that two different people were involved. In addition, Mosqueira also feels Columbus was not telling the truth when he wrote, in his will (Mayorazgo), that he was born in Genoa. Some believe that the Mayorazgo might be a false document. If so, then those who support the Genoese thesis are left without the only document in which Columbus allegedly wrote that he was born in Genoa. ("Yo nacido en Genoa....")
3) The Admiral declared in 1505 that he lived in Portugal for fourteen years. If the Genoese Columbus first entered Portugal "clutching an oar," after the Cape St. Vincent shipwreck, leaving that country to enter Spain for the first time, how many years correspond to his stay in Portugal? Only eight. In that case, the Genoese could not be the Galician Columbus that entered Portugal in 1470.
[If Mosqueira is alluding to Pedro Madruga, the Galician man some believe was Christopher Columbus, the exact date for Madruga's entry into Portugal, according to Carlos Barros, author of Mitos de la histografia galleguista, might even be, at least, a year earlier. Barros states that Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, aka, Pedro Madruga, brought back troops from Portugal to squelch the Irmandino rebellion in 1469. His purpose was to achieve the unification of Castile and Portugal, viewed by some as a preferred alternative for Galicia for a variety of social and geographic reasons.
4) Why did Columbus fail to give a single one of his caravels a Genoese or Savonese name? Two of them were baptized "La Gallega," or "Gallego." The first, in his inital voyage, the second, shipwrecked in Santo Domingo in 1495, during the second voyage, the third one abandoned in Panama in April 1503.
[In The Conquest of America, Todorov points out (see above) that Columbus attaches a great deal of importance to names in general, and their associations: "Columbus is profoundly concerned with the choice of names for the virgin world before his eyes and in his own case, these names must be motivated. At the beginning we observe a kind of diagram. The chronological order of baptisms corresponds to the order of importance of the objects associated with these names..." (Todorov, The Conquest of Armerica) Wouldn't the same logic apply to such important objects as his own flagships?
5) Mosqueira wonders why Columbus did not follow Pinzon's example, that is arriving at the port of Bayona (Baiona, Pontevedra, Galicia), choosing instead to arrive to the port of Lisbon, known to have difficult access during winters because of its "bar". Mosqueira is not convinced that a tempest separated them. Instead, he feels that Columbus wished to avoid recognition by the citizens of Baiona, who, if Alfonso Philippot it correct in his thesis, would be reluctant to give him a triumphant welcome for reasons that will become increasingly obvious.
Alfonso Philippot Abeledo, who believes the remains of the Admiral are buried in Santo Domingo, is also a dedicated , knowledgeable, and qualified researcher that supports the Galician thesis. He was a Captain of the Merchant Marine, and author of a well documented book in the subject that is more than 600 pages in length. An outline of his thesis is available in the Internet.
Philippot's outline begins with a an old story that was told to all Galician children of this author's generation, either at home, or elsewhere. The story began with Porto Santo, not in Madeira, but in the Parish of San Salvador de Poio, in Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain. As Philippot accurately states, a "cruceiro" or cross monument, the ancient totem of aldeas, or small villages, in Galicia stood at the above location, facing a house known as Casa da Cruz, or the house where Columbus was born. An inscription at the bottom of the monument read, "Juan Colon, 1490." That inscription has been "filed" down, "according to Philippot. However, photographs taken by a known archaeologist in 1917, confirms the contents of the inscription. It must be noted that even well into the nineteen seventies, this area of Spain retained much of its rural flavor, and architectural changes of any sort were the exception, rather than the rule.
It would not be an exaggeration to state that before televisions and amusement parks were created, the Cruceiro de Poio, and "the house where Colon was born" was a place of pilgrimage. A visit to the cross monument usually included conversations and polemics about local history, and geneaology. Philippot has dedicated a good portion of his life documenting the thesis of a Galician Columbus. He has come to the conclusion that the man called Pedro Madruga, a Galician folk hero of the XV century, and Columbus, are one and the same. To arrive at this conclusion he supports his thesis with data in the fields of linguistics, history, navigation, geography and anthropology. He also presents documents from the local government of the region, including records of court cases, births, deaths, marriage certificates, and so forth. It is no doubt, for this reason that his thesis about Columbus's identity has been called, "the best documented one of all." His conclusions have yet to be refuted by a single historian.
Juan Colon, the man whose name once appeared on the inscription mentioned above, is the first great-grandchild of Bartolome (!), the first Genoese that settled in Spain and Galicia around 1,380 A.D. and the grandfather of Cristobal's mother. It is for this reason that the Genoese ancestry of Columbus is not denied in Philippot's thesis of a Columbus born in Galicia. Philippot points out that the first, male Colon settlers were active in the commercial maritime guild of the area and that their ships were built in the Moureira neighborhood where he also states that the Santa Maria, La Gallega was built. The Santa Maria is, in fact, Pontevedra's patron saint. This observation should be taken into account, once again, in the context of Columbus's preoccupation with names and naming things, as cited by las Casas, Todorov, and others. Certainly, a psychological profile of the Admiral would be much easier to reconstruct knowing whether or not, Pedro Madruga and Columbus are one and the same.
Philippot's reconstruction of Columbus's ancestry is as follows. In 1440, Fernan Yanez (sp. "Eanes," in Galician, also the paternal last name of the Pinzon brothers, Martin Alonso, and Vicente) de Soutomaior, Count of Carminas died in 1440 in Valladolid, Spain. His only legitimate son, Alvar Paez de Soutomaior, was already dead. As a result, his heir became Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, known later as Pedro Madruga. Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior was the "natural son" of Fernan Eanes de Soutomaior and Constanca Colon, the granddaughter of the first Genoese who emigrated to Galicia, mentioned above. Constanca was already married (according to a 1435 document) with Juan Goncalves.
Because the laws at that time gave "natural" fathers the right to select the education of their children, and the the right "to grant them last names"(Tesis sobre colon gallego) the child born to Fernan and Constanca became Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, in memory of his grandfather. The name Cristobal Colon, given to him initially by his mother, (who also lived in Porto Santo, Pontevedra) was discarded. In Trinidad, a cape was named Cabo Casa da Crus, by Columbus.
As a child, Pedro Madruga received his education with the Dominican order where he was taught Latin, a language known by Columbus. Pedro Madruga's interest in navigation began at an early age. He travelled to Portugal to learn cosmography and navigation, and worked as a navigator for 23 years, the same number of years Columbus cites in his Diary.
It is known that Columbus had a son Diego, (who later married into the Duke of Alba's family), the product of his marriage with Felipa Muniz, and another son, Fernando, the product of an affair with Beatriz Enriquez. In a letter written to Diego (1504) Columbus made a reference to Diego's "ten siblings." Pedro Madruga had nine children with Teresa Tavora, Columbus one with Beatriz Enriquez. Nine plus one equals ten.
The Wikipedia describes Pedro Madruga as a "tireless and bellicose man of bastard origin that, against all odds rose to the highest echelons of the Soutomaior lineage." (Pedro Madruga) Hundreds of studies have been written about his life. His most bitter enemy was Alfonso II of Fonseca. However, Pedro Madruga was a staunch defender of the right of succession of Juana La Beltraneja, the contender to Isabel the Catholic for the Spanish crown. The description of Pedro Madruga's character provided below, written by Galician chronicler Vasco de Aponte, bears a striking resemblance to Columbus's personality:
"[Pedro] was very crafty, very subtle, very wise, and very knowledgeable in affairs of war, he was very sincere, and treated those close to him very well, and he was very cruel with his enemies, he ate much food that belonged to others, he was one of the most diligent workers in all of Spain, neither rain, nor snow, nor freezing weather, nor all the tempests in the world could stop him from doing his work, nor would he care to sleep outside in winter. Lack of linens did not stop him from sleeping on top of a table." (de Aponte, Pedro Madruga, Wikipedia)
The year 1468 marked the beginning of the second Irmandina Rebellion, near Tui, where Pedro Madruga was educated by members of the Dominican order. It was an event provoked when the Galician peasants rebelled against the ill treatment they received at the hands of the nobles, or "feudales." As a result, many Galician nobles found refuge in Portugal, after the loss of their lands. Pedro Madruga, along with other Galician nobles led a force against the insurgents. The forces of Madruga were the first ones to use firearms (arcabuzes) against their enemies in Spain. The insurgents were defeated, and the confiscated lands and estates were returned to the nobles.
The composers of a recent opera about the life of Pedro Madruga state that, "After the death of Enrique IV Madruga led a group of Galician noblemen that included the Portuguese King Alfonso V in a war that confronted the sister and the daughter of the deceased, Isabel the Catholic, and Juana la Beltraneja for the crown of Spain." (El compositor Rogelio Groba finaliza su quinta opera inspirada en la figura del noble gallego "Pedro Madruga.") La Beltraneja was accused of being the "natural" child of Beltran, the King's favorite, ergo, the name, Beltran ,attached to the suffix, " eja," implying, "worthlessness." Although no proof of such allegations was ever produced, Isabel crowned herself three days after the death of Henry IV, even though Juana La Beltraneja was recognized as the legitimate heiress to the throne by the Courts of Castile. Isabel triumphed in the end. La Beltraneja died in a convent.
An analysis of the events cited above clearly shows that Pedro Madruga could have easily been in Portugal at the same time Columbus proposed his voyage of King John II of Portugal. Furthermore, Pedro Madruga disappeared on the 11th of April of 1486. (Vidas Paralelas) His death, which allegedly occurred in Alba de Tormes, Salamanca, has been described as "shrowded in doubt and mystery." According to Carlos Barros (University of Santiago de Compostela), at that time Madruga engaged the efforts of the Duke of Alba to mediate in the "shameful fight in which Madruga was involved with his son for the ownership of the fort and estate of the Soutomaior family. Likewise, it must be noted that on the first of May, 1486, less than a month after Madruga's mysterious disappearence, Columbus proposed his voyage to the Catholic Kings of Spain.
Not much is known about the whereabouts of Pedro Madruga, or Columbus after 1487. On December of 1487, Columbus wrote a letter to John II from Seville, asking permission to return to Portugal. (Vidas Paralelas) Roughly around this time Zvi Dor-Ner and other chroniclers and historians place Columbus in Andalucia, where he visited the Franciscan convent in La Rabida, and where he met with Fray Antonio de Marchena. According to Dor-Ner, and others, the Duke of Medinaceli, wanted Columbus to "take the scheme to the man he thought was the likeliest sponsor in Andalucia, Don Enrique de Guzman, Duke of Medina Sidonia, the wealthiest man in Christian Spain and one of the highest ranking grandees in the Court of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella." Though the current Duchess of Medina Sidonia has stated that her ancestor never met Columbus, Dor-Ner states that the Duke "was intrigued by Columbus's plan. and that the Duke "...was himself a man with no small interest in maritime affairs, owning a shipyard near Palos, and having financed trading voyages across the coast of Africa in defiance of the 1480 Treaty of Alcacovas, which reserved that sphere of influence for the Portuguese." Dor-Ner asserts that "Medina Sidonia felt it prudent to clear his involvement with the king and the queen."(Zvi-Dor-Ner, Columbus and the Age of Discovery) Other historians contend that the port of Palos was owned by Medina Sidona at one time. When the Catholic Kings found it advisable to own shares in a port that was entirely, or partially, owned by the crown, it is believed they approached Medina Sidonia who refused to sell his shares of Palos. Another share-holder is said to have sold their shares to the Catholic Kings.
In a letter to the Archbishop of Toledo, dated the 9th of March, ostensibly written very soon after the return of Columbus, from his first trip, the Duque of Medinaceli states that Columbus was "detained" in "his house" [The Duke's house] for a period of two years. According to the letter, during those two years, Luis de la Cerda, Duke of Medinaceli, tried to "direct" Columbus in the service of Queen Isabel, Madruga's prior nemesis. The letter also states that Columbus intended to present his voyage plans to France.
"...pues yo no lo quise tentar y lo aderezaba para su servicio..."
Translation:
"...and I did not wish to tempt him and was directing him to Her Majesty's service..."
The verb "aderezar" in the context above means, "to direct." However, before signing off, the Duke uses stronger language. He begs the archbishop to appeal to Queen Isabel to allow him certain concessions to which he feels entitled, after having Columbus "detained" in "his house" for a period of two years while he "directed him," (or more than likely), "straighted him out." The verb "enderezar" as used by Medinaceli at the end of his letter, has 11 meanings. The first one is, to straighten out "something crooked." Other meanings are, "to right," "to put in order," "to correct." Only the sixth, and tenth meanings of "enderezar" mean"to direct." (The Langenscheidt New College Spanish Dictionary) If the Duke meant "direct" [Columbus] in the midst of claiming what is rightfully owed to him by virtue of having Columbus "detained," for two years in his house, while he "directed" him, or or "advised" him, he could have just written "aderezado" (a much "gentler sounding" word than, "enderezado") once again:
"...Suplico a vuestra Senoria me quisiera ayudar en ello, e ge lo suplique de mi parte, pues a mi cabsa y por yo detenerle en mi casa dos anos y haberle enderezado a su servicio, se ha hallado gran cosa como esta."
"....I beg his Lordship will be predisposed to help me and implore on my behalf since I had him detained in my house for two years and 'straightened him out' to the service of Her Highness..." If Pedro Madruga and Columbus are one and the same, the Duke of Medinaceli should be credited for accomplishing such a major transformation in record time.
In conclusion, the events described above show a man whose initial name, Cristobal Colon, was given to him by his mother, in Galicia, where she gave birth to him. That man was the "illegitimate" child of a Galician noble, Fernan Eanes of Soutomaior, Count of Caminas (ergo the assumption of Las Casas, about Colon's noble roots), and a woman born in Galicia, but of Genoese descent, named Constanca Colon. After Cristobal Colon, of Poio, Pontevedra, was given a new name, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, and increased access to power, he began to be known as Pedro Madruga. Galician historians assert Pedro Alvarez, (b. Cristobal Colon)de Soutomaior earned his name because his intense type of dilligence which would be classified today as an extreme version of "workaholism," if not downright compulsive addiction. It is also told that he was named, "Madruga" (early riser) because he had roosters that served him as alarm clocks. Madruga was adamant about not wasting a single moment of his life.
The lives of Madruga and Columbus are fraught with coincidences and paradoxes. Both were born around the same time, had the same number of acknowledged children, and shared many other interesting life parallels through 1487, the year of Madruga's "disappearance." Unfortunately, Madruga, (b. Cristobal Colon, Pontevedra, Galicia) was on the wrong side of the power struggle for the Spanish throne that eventually took the power away from La Beltraneja, the rightful heir to the Crown. Thus, if Madruga, (b. Cristobal Colon), and Columbus are one and the same, as the above evidence seems to suggest, that entity was put in contact with important people, merchants, nobles, and members of the clergy (in very high places), that provided him with enough support, and credibility to organize his trip, and to make a proposal to the Catholic Kings, on his behalf. Cristobal Colon had both political and personal reasons to suppress knowledge of his origins, and ongoing, complex reasons to promote his "new," ( but in reality, "old") name, Cristobal Colon , "Bearer" of Christ to colonies. Colon, from, Colono, means "A Colonist."
habanera
A)Todorov, Tzevetan. The Conquest of America. New York. Harper. 1992.
B)Dor-Ner, Zvi. Columbus and the Age of Discovery. New York. Morrow. 1991
C) Menzies, Gavin. 1421. The Year China Discovered America. New York. Harper. 2004
D) Marga. Colon era de Pontevedra. El Segundo Viaje Colombino. Commentary of Work. Monserrat Leon Guerrero
http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/MuestraForo?obra=7779co&mentario=8441
D)Barros, Carlos. Mitos de la histografia galleguista. Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
http://www.h-debate.com/cbarros/spanish/mitos.htm
E) Rosina, Serrano Diaz. Sobre Tres Documentos de Aragoneses en Venezuela. Universidad de Zaragoza.
http://home.pages.at/resdi/Numeros/Numero2/Parte1_Art41.pdf
F) El gran viaje de Cristobal Colon.
http://www.hispamar.com/PAG_HISPAMAR/gran_viaje_de_cristobal_colon.htm
G) El compositor Rogelio Groba finaliza su quinta opera inspirada en la figura del noble gallego Pedro Madruga.
http://www.galespa.com.ar/groba_manrique_pedromadruga.htm
H) Pedro Madruga. Wikipedia
http://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_%C3%81lvarez_de_Soutomaior
I ) Tesis sobre colon gallego y de Pontevedra. Cristobal Colon Nacio en Galicia.
http://www.cristobal-colon.com/COLON/TESISGALLEGA/MARTHAGONZALEZ/MA
J ) de la Cerda, Luis, duque de Medinaceli. Carta del Duque de Medinaceli sobre el alojamiento que dio a Cristobal Colon. Biblioteca Virtual Cervantes
http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/SirveObras/80283841767695942754491/p000000
k) Historiadores de Indias.
http://www.spanisharts.com/books/literature/america.htm
Likewise, Carlos Brant, who was born in Venezuela in 1875, had a similar theory. Brant wrote more than thirty books, and devoted time to study the life of Columbus while he lived in exile in Spain, Italy, Belgium, and the US, the result of the Gomez dictatorship. At the age of 49, Brant wrote, misterioso almirante, or, Mysterious Admiral, a book that dared to affirm that "Colon" was not the Admiral's real name. (Carlos Brant y el misterioso almirante que nos descubrio) Brant's observations in this respect can be supported by the observations of Las Casas, cited in Tzevetan Todorov's, The Conquest of America. The following citation seems to indicate that Bartolome de las Casas took this matter for granted, since the custom of changing one's name was commonplace in some circles. According to Rosina Serrano Diaz, D'Olwer, and others, the Franciscan practice of changing one's name persisted until recent years. Other mendicant orders of different religions still practice this rite. According to Serrano Diaz, "it was a general custom [for Franciscans] to change their names upon entering the order." Motolinia's case is a good example within this context. Serrano Diaz asserts a new first name should be taken, different from the one given at birth. In addition, as a last name, the practice was to take, as a last name, the name of a place belonging to friar's original birthplace. The advantage of that custom is "knowing with certainty, at the very least, the geographical location of a document." (Serrano Diaz, Sobre Tres Documentos de Aragoneses en Venezuela) Perhaps this procedure could be viewed as a precursor of today's zip-code system.
Bartolome de las Casas, a member of the Dominican order (a fact that should be kept in mind as we proceed) states that "the persons designated to serve (often a euphemism for members of the clergy) should receive names and surnames corresponding to the task entrusted to them." (Todorov, The Conquest of America)
In the Conquest of America, Todorov attempts to sort out the mystery surrounding Columbus's name, no doubt an important matter, to the Admiral who "seems to pay attention only to names, which in some respects are closely related to natural indices." (Ibid) Todorov also notes, the high degree of concern the Admiral attached to his name, since "he changes his orthography several times during his life."
"...But this illustrious man, renouncing the name established by custom, chose to be called Colon, restoring the ancient form less for this reason than it would seem because he was moved by the divine will which had elected him to achieve what his surname and given name signified. Divine providence habitually intends that the persons designated to serve should receive the given names and surnames corresponding to the task entrusted to them, as we see in many a place in the Scriptures; and the philosopher says in the chapter IV of his metaphysics, 'Names should accord with the qualities and uses of things.' This is why he was called Cristobal, which is to say Christum Ferens which means the bearer of Christ, and it was this that he often signed his name for in truth he was first to open the gates of the Ocean sea, in order to bear our Savior Jesus Christ over the waves to those remote lands and those realms hitherto unknown....His surname was Colon which means repopulator, a name befitting the man whose enterprise brought about the discovery of these people. These infinite numbers of souls who, thanks to the preaching of the Gospel...have proceeded and will every day proceed to populate the glorious city of Heaven.''
(Bartolome de las Casas, (Historia I and II), Todorov, The Conquest of America)
On the 11th of June, 1496, upon his return to Spain, at the end of his second voyage, Columbus disembarked in Cadiz, with the intention of propping up his image. He was wearing a Franciscan "sayal," or habit. The fact that Columbus viewed himself as a "savior" is evident in his own writings, including his Book of Prophecies, a compilation of Biblical texts that, according to some, indicate that Columbus felt he had been "chosen" to accomplish a historic mission. (Historiadores de Indias)
Brant also disagreed about Columbus's alleged place of birth, noting that Magallanes, Americo Vespucci, and other foreigners had to become naturalized Spanish citizens to obtain the title of Major Pilot, a requirement that Columbus was not asked to provide for himself while, at the same time, he was granted the titles of Viceroy and Major Admiral of the Sea Ocean, titles that were alleged to have been bequeathed to him before the actual "discovery." (Carlos Brant y el misterioso almirante que nos descubrio.)
The thesis of a Galician Columbus has been supported by a good number of Galician authors, historians and linguists, including the highly esteemed Countess Emilia Pardo Bazan. In 1961, Jose Mosqueira published, La cuna Gallega de Cristobal Colon. (The Galician Crib of Christopher Columbus.) In addition to citing the documents of Garcia de la Riega, Mosqueira, who was convinced of Columbus's Galician origin, came up with some startling conclusions, aided only by the use common sense and simple arithmetic:
1) The Genoese were the best cartographers and oceanographers during Columbus's era. (Supported by Menzies, 1421) Therefore, it would be absurd, or counterproductive to hide his true name, which, in any case would have been Colombo.
2) According to his biographers, Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451, and stayed with his parents until 1474. However, in an entry in his Diary (in Santo Domingo) Columbus states that he has "navigated for 23 years, without leaving the sea for any amount of time that is worth counting." If he entered Spain from Portugal, in 1484, and did not go out to sea until 1492, then those 23 years 'without leaving any amount of time that is worth counting" must be subtracted from 1484 to know the date when he began to navigate: 1461. He would have been ten years old. Therefore he could not have been in Genoa at his father's weaving establishment until 1474. Mosqueira determines from these calculations that either Columbus lied, or that two different people were involved. In addition, Mosqueira also feels Columbus was not telling the truth when he wrote, in his will (Mayorazgo), that he was born in Genoa. Some believe that the Mayorazgo might be a false document. If so, then those who support the Genoese thesis are left without the only document in which Columbus allegedly wrote that he was born in Genoa. ("Yo nacido en Genoa....")
3) The Admiral declared in 1505 that he lived in Portugal for fourteen years. If the Genoese Columbus first entered Portugal "clutching an oar," after the Cape St. Vincent shipwreck, leaving that country to enter Spain for the first time, how many years correspond to his stay in Portugal? Only eight. In that case, the Genoese could not be the Galician Columbus that entered Portugal in 1470.
[If Mosqueira is alluding to Pedro Madruga, the Galician man some believe was Christopher Columbus, the exact date for Madruga's entry into Portugal, according to Carlos Barros, author of Mitos de la histografia galleguista, might even be, at least, a year earlier. Barros states that Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, aka, Pedro Madruga, brought back troops from Portugal to squelch the Irmandino rebellion in 1469. His purpose was to achieve the unification of Castile and Portugal, viewed by some as a preferred alternative for Galicia for a variety of social and geographic reasons.
4) Why did Columbus fail to give a single one of his caravels a Genoese or Savonese name? Two of them were baptized "La Gallega," or "Gallego." The first, in his inital voyage, the second, shipwrecked in Santo Domingo in 1495, during the second voyage, the third one abandoned in Panama in April 1503.
[In The Conquest of America, Todorov points out (see above) that Columbus attaches a great deal of importance to names in general, and their associations: "Columbus is profoundly concerned with the choice of names for the virgin world before his eyes and in his own case, these names must be motivated. At the beginning we observe a kind of diagram. The chronological order of baptisms corresponds to the order of importance of the objects associated with these names..." (Todorov, The Conquest of Armerica) Wouldn't the same logic apply to such important objects as his own flagships?
5) Mosqueira wonders why Columbus did not follow Pinzon's example, that is arriving at the port of Bayona (Baiona, Pontevedra, Galicia), choosing instead to arrive to the port of Lisbon, known to have difficult access during winters because of its "bar". Mosqueira is not convinced that a tempest separated them. Instead, he feels that Columbus wished to avoid recognition by the citizens of Baiona, who, if Alfonso Philippot it correct in his thesis, would be reluctant to give him a triumphant welcome for reasons that will become increasingly obvious.
Alfonso Philippot Abeledo, who believes the remains of the Admiral are buried in Santo Domingo, is also a dedicated , knowledgeable, and qualified researcher that supports the Galician thesis. He was a Captain of the Merchant Marine, and author of a well documented book in the subject that is more than 600 pages in length. An outline of his thesis is available in the Internet.
Philippot's outline begins with a an old story that was told to all Galician children of this author's generation, either at home, or elsewhere. The story began with Porto Santo, not in Madeira, but in the Parish of San Salvador de Poio, in Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain. As Philippot accurately states, a "cruceiro" or cross monument, the ancient totem of aldeas, or small villages, in Galicia stood at the above location, facing a house known as Casa da Cruz, or the house where Columbus was born. An inscription at the bottom of the monument read, "Juan Colon, 1490." That inscription has been "filed" down, "according to Philippot. However, photographs taken by a known archaeologist in 1917, confirms the contents of the inscription. It must be noted that even well into the nineteen seventies, this area of Spain retained much of its rural flavor, and architectural changes of any sort were the exception, rather than the rule.
It would not be an exaggeration to state that before televisions and amusement parks were created, the Cruceiro de Poio, and "the house where Colon was born" was a place of pilgrimage. A visit to the cross monument usually included conversations and polemics about local history, and geneaology. Philippot has dedicated a good portion of his life documenting the thesis of a Galician Columbus. He has come to the conclusion that the man called Pedro Madruga, a Galician folk hero of the XV century, and Columbus, are one and the same. To arrive at this conclusion he supports his thesis with data in the fields of linguistics, history, navigation, geography and anthropology. He also presents documents from the local government of the region, including records of court cases, births, deaths, marriage certificates, and so forth. It is no doubt, for this reason that his thesis about Columbus's identity has been called, "the best documented one of all." His conclusions have yet to be refuted by a single historian.
Juan Colon, the man whose name once appeared on the inscription mentioned above, is the first great-grandchild of Bartolome (!), the first Genoese that settled in Spain and Galicia around 1,380 A.D. and the grandfather of Cristobal's mother. It is for this reason that the Genoese ancestry of Columbus is not denied in Philippot's thesis of a Columbus born in Galicia. Philippot points out that the first, male Colon settlers were active in the commercial maritime guild of the area and that their ships were built in the Moureira neighborhood where he also states that the Santa Maria, La Gallega was built. The Santa Maria is, in fact, Pontevedra's patron saint. This observation should be taken into account, once again, in the context of Columbus's preoccupation with names and naming things, as cited by las Casas, Todorov, and others. Certainly, a psychological profile of the Admiral would be much easier to reconstruct knowing whether or not, Pedro Madruga and Columbus are one and the same.
Philippot's reconstruction of Columbus's ancestry is as follows. In 1440, Fernan Yanez (sp. "Eanes," in Galician, also the paternal last name of the Pinzon brothers, Martin Alonso, and Vicente) de Soutomaior, Count of Carminas died in 1440 in Valladolid, Spain. His only legitimate son, Alvar Paez de Soutomaior, was already dead. As a result, his heir became Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, known later as Pedro Madruga. Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior was the "natural son" of Fernan Eanes de Soutomaior and Constanca Colon, the granddaughter of the first Genoese who emigrated to Galicia, mentioned above. Constanca was already married (according to a 1435 document) with Juan Goncalves.
Because the laws at that time gave "natural" fathers the right to select the education of their children, and the the right "to grant them last names"(Tesis sobre colon gallego) the child born to Fernan and Constanca became Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, in memory of his grandfather. The name Cristobal Colon, given to him initially by his mother, (who also lived in Porto Santo, Pontevedra) was discarded. In Trinidad, a cape was named Cabo Casa da Crus, by Columbus.
As a child, Pedro Madruga received his education with the Dominican order where he was taught Latin, a language known by Columbus. Pedro Madruga's interest in navigation began at an early age. He travelled to Portugal to learn cosmography and navigation, and worked as a navigator for 23 years, the same number of years Columbus cites in his Diary.
It is known that Columbus had a son Diego, (who later married into the Duke of Alba's family), the product of his marriage with Felipa Muniz, and another son, Fernando, the product of an affair with Beatriz Enriquez. In a letter written to Diego (1504) Columbus made a reference to Diego's "ten siblings." Pedro Madruga had nine children with Teresa Tavora, Columbus one with Beatriz Enriquez. Nine plus one equals ten.
The Wikipedia describes Pedro Madruga as a "tireless and bellicose man of bastard origin that, against all odds rose to the highest echelons of the Soutomaior lineage." (Pedro Madruga) Hundreds of studies have been written about his life. His most bitter enemy was Alfonso II of Fonseca. However, Pedro Madruga was a staunch defender of the right of succession of Juana La Beltraneja, the contender to Isabel the Catholic for the Spanish crown. The description of Pedro Madruga's character provided below, written by Galician chronicler Vasco de Aponte, bears a striking resemblance to Columbus's personality:
"[Pedro] was very crafty, very subtle, very wise, and very knowledgeable in affairs of war, he was very sincere, and treated those close to him very well, and he was very cruel with his enemies, he ate much food that belonged to others, he was one of the most diligent workers in all of Spain, neither rain, nor snow, nor freezing weather, nor all the tempests in the world could stop him from doing his work, nor would he care to sleep outside in winter. Lack of linens did not stop him from sleeping on top of a table." (de Aponte, Pedro Madruga, Wikipedia)
The year 1468 marked the beginning of the second Irmandina Rebellion, near Tui, where Pedro Madruga was educated by members of the Dominican order. It was an event provoked when the Galician peasants rebelled against the ill treatment they received at the hands of the nobles, or "feudales." As a result, many Galician nobles found refuge in Portugal, after the loss of their lands. Pedro Madruga, along with other Galician nobles led a force against the insurgents. The forces of Madruga were the first ones to use firearms (arcabuzes) against their enemies in Spain. The insurgents were defeated, and the confiscated lands and estates were returned to the nobles.
The composers of a recent opera about the life of Pedro Madruga state that, "After the death of Enrique IV Madruga led a group of Galician noblemen that included the Portuguese King Alfonso V in a war that confronted the sister and the daughter of the deceased, Isabel the Catholic, and Juana la Beltraneja for the crown of Spain." (El compositor Rogelio Groba finaliza su quinta opera inspirada en la figura del noble gallego "Pedro Madruga.") La Beltraneja was accused of being the "natural" child of Beltran, the King's favorite, ergo, the name, Beltran ,attached to the suffix, " eja," implying, "worthlessness." Although no proof of such allegations was ever produced, Isabel crowned herself three days after the death of Henry IV, even though Juana La Beltraneja was recognized as the legitimate heiress to the throne by the Courts of Castile. Isabel triumphed in the end. La Beltraneja died in a convent.
An analysis of the events cited above clearly shows that Pedro Madruga could have easily been in Portugal at the same time Columbus proposed his voyage of King John II of Portugal. Furthermore, Pedro Madruga disappeared on the 11th of April of 1486. (Vidas Paralelas) His death, which allegedly occurred in Alba de Tormes, Salamanca, has been described as "shrowded in doubt and mystery." According to Carlos Barros (University of Santiago de Compostela), at that time Madruga engaged the efforts of the Duke of Alba to mediate in the "shameful fight in which Madruga was involved with his son for the ownership of the fort and estate of the Soutomaior family. Likewise, it must be noted that on the first of May, 1486, less than a month after Madruga's mysterious disappearence, Columbus proposed his voyage to the Catholic Kings of Spain.
Not much is known about the whereabouts of Pedro Madruga, or Columbus after 1487. On December of 1487, Columbus wrote a letter to John II from Seville, asking permission to return to Portugal. (Vidas Paralelas) Roughly around this time Zvi Dor-Ner and other chroniclers and historians place Columbus in Andalucia, where he visited the Franciscan convent in La Rabida, and where he met with Fray Antonio de Marchena. According to Dor-Ner, and others, the Duke of Medinaceli, wanted Columbus to "take the scheme to the man he thought was the likeliest sponsor in Andalucia, Don Enrique de Guzman, Duke of Medina Sidonia, the wealthiest man in Christian Spain and one of the highest ranking grandees in the Court of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella." Though the current Duchess of Medina Sidonia has stated that her ancestor never met Columbus, Dor-Ner states that the Duke "was intrigued by Columbus's plan. and that the Duke "...was himself a man with no small interest in maritime affairs, owning a shipyard near Palos, and having financed trading voyages across the coast of Africa in defiance of the 1480 Treaty of Alcacovas, which reserved that sphere of influence for the Portuguese." Dor-Ner asserts that "Medina Sidonia felt it prudent to clear his involvement with the king and the queen."(Zvi-Dor-Ner, Columbus and the Age of Discovery) Other historians contend that the port of Palos was owned by Medina Sidona at one time. When the Catholic Kings found it advisable to own shares in a port that was entirely, or partially, owned by the crown, it is believed they approached Medina Sidonia who refused to sell his shares of Palos. Another share-holder is said to have sold their shares to the Catholic Kings.
In a letter to the Archbishop of Toledo, dated the 9th of March, ostensibly written very soon after the return of Columbus, from his first trip, the Duque of Medinaceli states that Columbus was "detained" in "his house" [The Duke's house] for a period of two years. According to the letter, during those two years, Luis de la Cerda, Duke of Medinaceli, tried to "direct" Columbus in the service of Queen Isabel, Madruga's prior nemesis. The letter also states that Columbus intended to present his voyage plans to France.
"...pues yo no lo quise tentar y lo aderezaba para su servicio..."
Translation:
"...and I did not wish to tempt him and was directing him to Her Majesty's service..."
The verb "aderezar" in the context above means, "to direct." However, before signing off, the Duke uses stronger language. He begs the archbishop to appeal to Queen Isabel to allow him certain concessions to which he feels entitled, after having Columbus "detained" in "his house" for a period of two years while he "directed him," (or more than likely), "straighted him out." The verb "enderezar" as used by Medinaceli at the end of his letter, has 11 meanings. The first one is, to straighten out "something crooked." Other meanings are, "to right," "to put in order," "to correct." Only the sixth, and tenth meanings of "enderezar" mean"to direct." (The Langenscheidt New College Spanish Dictionary) If the Duke meant "direct" [Columbus] in the midst of claiming what is rightfully owed to him by virtue of having Columbus "detained," for two years in his house, while he "directed" him, or or "advised" him, he could have just written "aderezado" (a much "gentler sounding" word than, "enderezado") once again:
"...Suplico a vuestra Senoria me quisiera ayudar en ello, e ge lo suplique de mi parte, pues a mi cabsa y por yo detenerle en mi casa dos anos y haberle enderezado a su servicio, se ha hallado gran cosa como esta."
"....I beg his Lordship will be predisposed to help me and implore on my behalf since I had him detained in my house for two years and 'straightened him out' to the service of Her Highness..." If Pedro Madruga and Columbus are one and the same, the Duke of Medinaceli should be credited for accomplishing such a major transformation in record time.
In conclusion, the events described above show a man whose initial name, Cristobal Colon, was given to him by his mother, in Galicia, where she gave birth to him. That man was the "illegitimate" child of a Galician noble, Fernan Eanes of Soutomaior, Count of Caminas (ergo the assumption of Las Casas, about Colon's noble roots), and a woman born in Galicia, but of Genoese descent, named Constanca Colon. After Cristobal Colon, of Poio, Pontevedra, was given a new name, Pedro Alvarez de Soutomaior, and increased access to power, he began to be known as Pedro Madruga. Galician historians assert Pedro Alvarez, (b. Cristobal Colon)de Soutomaior earned his name because his intense type of dilligence which would be classified today as an extreme version of "workaholism," if not downright compulsive addiction. It is also told that he was named, "Madruga" (early riser) because he had roosters that served him as alarm clocks. Madruga was adamant about not wasting a single moment of his life.
The lives of Madruga and Columbus are fraught with coincidences and paradoxes. Both were born around the same time, had the same number of acknowledged children, and shared many other interesting life parallels through 1487, the year of Madruga's "disappearance." Unfortunately, Madruga, (b. Cristobal Colon, Pontevedra, Galicia) was on the wrong side of the power struggle for the Spanish throne that eventually took the power away from La Beltraneja, the rightful heir to the Crown. Thus, if Madruga, (b. Cristobal Colon), and Columbus are one and the same, as the above evidence seems to suggest, that entity was put in contact with important people, merchants, nobles, and members of the clergy (in very high places), that provided him with enough support, and credibility to organize his trip, and to make a proposal to the Catholic Kings, on his behalf. Cristobal Colon had both political and personal reasons to suppress knowledge of his origins, and ongoing, complex reasons to promote his "new," ( but in reality, "old") name, Cristobal Colon , "Bearer" of Christ to colonies. Colon, from, Colono, means "A Colonist."
habanera
A)Todorov, Tzevetan. The Conquest of America. New York. Harper. 1992.
B)Dor-Ner, Zvi. Columbus and the Age of Discovery. New York. Morrow. 1991
C) Menzies, Gavin. 1421. The Year China Discovered America. New York. Harper. 2004
D) Marga. Colon era de Pontevedra. El Segundo Viaje Colombino. Commentary of Work. Monserrat Leon Guerrero
http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/MuestraForo?obra=7779co&mentario=8441
D)Barros, Carlos. Mitos de la histografia galleguista. Universidad de Santiago de Compostela.
http://www.h-debate.com/cbarros/spanish/mitos.htm
E) Rosina, Serrano Diaz. Sobre Tres Documentos de Aragoneses en Venezuela. Universidad de Zaragoza.
http://home.pages.at/resdi/Numeros/Numero2/Parte1_Art41.pdf
F) El gran viaje de Cristobal Colon.
http://www.hispamar.com/PAG_HISPAMAR/gran_viaje_de_cristobal_colon.htm
G) El compositor Rogelio Groba finaliza su quinta opera inspirada en la figura del noble gallego Pedro Madruga.
http://www.galespa.com.ar/groba_manrique_pedromadruga.htm
H) Pedro Madruga. Wikipedia
http://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_%C3%81lvarez_de_Soutomaior
I ) Tesis sobre colon gallego y de Pontevedra. Cristobal Colon Nacio en Galicia.
http://www.cristobal-colon.com/COLON/TESISGALLEGA/MARTHAGONZALEZ/MA
J ) de la Cerda, Luis, duque de Medinaceli. Carta del Duque de Medinaceli sobre el alojamiento que dio a Cristobal Colon. Biblioteca Virtual Cervantes
http://www.cervantesvirtual.com/servlet/SirveObras/80283841767695942754491/p000000
k) Historiadores de Indias.
http://www.spanisharts.com/books/literature/america.htm
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Wonderful Work
Hi Misha, Dulce and Lynette: I just want to tell you folks how proud I am of your work; The New World Blog is excellent and thought provoking! corky
Sunday, July 8, 2007
The Caddo People of the East Texas Red River Valley
Much of the information below was comprised from mining the wonderful site, Beyond Texas History, The Virtual Museum of Texas Cultural Heritage. University of Texas at Austin. Please check it out for a complete exhibit on the Caddo.
Kadohadacho (later shortened to Caddo), were the advanced civilization of peoples inhabiting the Red River region of East Texas. The loose-knit province or kingdom(1) was composed of about two dozen tribes. They inhabited modern day Marion, Grimes, Madison, and Walker Counties, to the North and East of today's Houston, Texas.
Despite their collapse before Texas became a state, they were the most important of the state's natives in their level of cultural development, advanced techniques and tools, and success in agriculture...It is probable that they were a part of the Mississippi Pattern, an advanced and vigorous Caribbean people who migrated by sea and established themselves along the Gulf Coast sometimes before A.D. 500. In this new land, the transplanted culture was highly successful, the people multiplied, and spread, in time, to the Trinity River in Texas on the west, and the Atlantic on the east.(2)
Citations 1-4: The Caddo Indians by Anne Ford. Archeology and Anthropology of the Americas.
As the westernmost expression of the larger Mississippian cultural tradition, the Caddo culture emerged around A.D. 800. With strong oral traditions, easily as relevant and powerful as our own written Western history, the Caddo have handed down their peoples' story. Unfortunately, much of this oral history has been terminated by the "catastrophic losses of life forced upon the Caddo by the invasion of America by Europeans. [However,] there are surviving bits of early Caddo history preserved in the traditions maintained by Caddo peoples today, in early Spanish and French accounts, and in later written histories as well as in the oral traditions recorded by ethnographers and folklorists."(6) These sources are important clues to the culture of the Caddo, and provide a limited glimpse into their past, going back approximately 300 hundred years, a short time in Caddo history.
"Studies of the Caddoan languages suggest that ancestors of the Caddo and the ancestors of the Plains Caddoans (Wichita, Kichai, Pawnee, and Arikira) split from a common ancestor (ancestral group) in the distant past, at least 3,000 years ago and probably even earlier. The Caddo cultural tradition as recognized now by archeologists begins about 1200 years ago (A.D. 800)."(7) 12,000-13,500 years ago very mobile hunter-gather peoples inhabited the area that became the Caddo Homeland. These early Paleoindain era peoples who emerged at the end of the Pleistocene era (the last ice age) may even have been pre-dated by earlier in habitants, but scholars have debated their impact.(8)
Distinctive styles of dart points made my early hunters, and which archeologists have named Dalton and Sam Patrice, categorize the first of many Archaic cultures in the Southeastern United States. The Archaic period spans approximately 7500 years (from about 8000 B.C.-1000-500 B.C.). During this period, there was a gradual shift from very mobile hunting cultures, to more settled groups reliant on gathering wild plants, small games and taking advantage of aquatic resources.(9) Although this broad definition of the culture of the era remains true, scholars now believe this era was also responsible for cultural development once thought to belong to "the succeeding Woodland era. For example, permanent or semi-permanent village settlements, pottery, horticulture (gardening), artificial earthen mounds, and extensive, long-distant trade of exotic materials all appeared during Archaic times in various places in the Southeast."(10)
Dalton and San Patrice styles of arrow points divide the peoples of this area into two separate cultures that were essentially developing populations along-side each other in the region. "Within the Caddo Homeland, evidence of Dalton culture is found mainly to the north, while that of San Patrice is mainly to the south."(11) The contrasting geographic distribution of this archeological evidence "may reflect an early split between ethnic/linguistic groups."(12) Later Caddo speaking peoples are categorized among the San Patrice due to the distribution of these points.
Although societies that have been categorized as seemingly advanced cultures that developed during the Archaic period hundreds of miles from the Caddo area, advanced cultural development was also taking place in the Caddo Homeland of the lower Mississippi Valley. "In what is today northeastern Louisiana, Archaic peoples began building large earthen mounds as early as 4,000 B.C."(13) These mounds were used as platforms for the inhabitants of the region, and not as burial mounds. There are 11 mounds in Watson Brake near Monroe, Louisiana, ranging in size from 1-8 meters tall and "connected by ridges to form an oval enclosure over...261 meters across."(14) The hunter-gatherers that lived in the area took advantage of the "local swampy environments rich in aquatic life including fish, fowl, and beast."(15)
Massive earthworks have also been found in roughly the region (if only a few hundred miles due East), dating from 1700 B.C., at the site of what is today Poverty Point National Monument in northeastern Louisiana. Included at this amazing Archaic era site is "a huge bird-shaped mound more than 21 meters high and 216 meters in length and a unique C-shaped array of raised berms arranged into six concentric and nested rings that are nearly three-quarters of a mile across (3,950 feet or 1.2 km)"(16) This delta-like complex overlooking the Mississippi floodplain is one of the most important archeological sites in North America, and parallels on the time-line the building of the pyramids in Egypt.
Poverty Point is thought by many experts to have been the center of a precocious society with far-flung trade connections as indicated by the finding of many artifacts made of exotic or non-local stone (some coming from sources hundreds of miles away). These exotic items may have been sent to Poverty Point in exchange for shell beads and ornaments, produced at Poverty Point and at linked sites on the Gulf coast. For reasons yet unclear Poverty Point culture had declined by 1000 B.C. and left no obvious successor.(17)
Image above, artist illustration of Poverty Point from Poverty Point Earthworks: Evolutionary Milstones of the Americas
There is archeological evidence to connect the peoples that built the massive earthworks with the later Archaic era Caddos, primarily quartz from the Ouachita Mountains: evidence of a long distance trade relationship shared with the later Caddo and the Poverty Point builders. But the Late Archaic peoples in the Caddo Homeland had smaller societies and did not have close ties with the Eastern Woodlands.
Radiocarbon dating of domesticated squash and bottle gourds has shed new light on early plant domestication and horticulture, putting these developments earlier than previously thought (5000 years ago), shattering "the traditional notion that the Archaic cultures of the Eastern U.S. were purely hunters and gatherers. Clearly, Archaic peoples were experimenting with plant cultivation and probably all sorts of other manipulations of the natural environment like selective clearing, spreading desirable plants to new areas, and so on. Archeologists are now reevaluating existing ideas about Archaic life."(18)
Although little is known of the Late Archaic period (roughly 2000-500/200 B.C.) and the Caddo Homeland, evidence of dart-point styles reveals that societies in the Caddo Homeland "persisted longer than elsewhere in the Eastern Woodlands."(19) Evidence of "black middens" or kitchen "dumps" as it were, begin to be seen in this era, from the north side of the Ouachita Mountains and also in the Great Bend area of the Red River. These waste mounds are clues that settlements became more permanent and there was less mobility amongst these hunting and gathering peoples, and a favoring of sites most suitable for habitation.
The extensive use of local stones to make tools also points to a lessening of trade and resourcefulness in finding local (if inferior) materials with which to fashion tools (dart points, knives, and wood-working tools). Dependence on a wide variety of mammals, fish, birds, seeds, nuts, berries, and roots continues to be supportive of the hunter-gatherer nature of these Late Archaic peoples. In the Cypress Creek basin in northeast Texas evidence has also been found for the use of roots such as scurfy pea, prairie turnip, and breadroot. "Preparing tubers for eating is a labor-intensive process. They had to be located, dug up, baked or boiled, and then dried (or eaten immediately). The two advantages of tubers are that they are available when nothing else is and that they can be dried and stored for later use."(20)
This evidence gives us a sketch of the Caddo Homeland. People settled down into localized territories, used local resources. This also suggests that the regional population as relatively high, not offering the option to relocate due to neighboring groups. During this time, it is generally thought, the ancestors of the Caddo settled into what became the homeland of the later Caddo peoples.
Woodland Period
Woodland period is a time of specific cultural developments and the crystallization of Caddo cultural tradition(21). Woodland culture is roughly dated from between 1000 B.C.-1000 A.D. and is characterized by specific cultural developments, including increased settled village life, spread of pottery, building of burial mounds, "the establishment of extensive long-distance trade networks (or the expansion of existing ones)"(22), rise of elaborate ritual practices, cultivation of plants (gardening), "and the rise of societies led by hereditary leaders"(23). The patterns for these developments were begun in the Archaic period. The timing of these developments is not exact across the region, so "we will stick primarily to what is known about the Caddo area and the adjacent lower Mississippi Valley." (24)
Because of its geographic location on the southwestern edge of the Eastern Woodlands, where many of the developments above took place (closer to the Mississippi River Valley), "the Caddo Homeland was a cultural frontier of sorts"(25). Yet the Caddo developed pottery styles as early as 800 A.D. that rivaled the more "advanced" at an earlier date than the Mississippian settlements works of 1000 A.D.
Woodland Developments
The first part summarizes the chronological sequence of Woodland developments in the nearby lower Mississippi Valley with discussion of certain related developments in the Caddo area. The second part reviews the specific Woodland-period cultures from which Caddo culture developed. During this period agriculture became increasingly important and, ca. 700 A.D., the atlatl and dart were replaced with the bow and arrow. The construction of planned villages and civic and ritual centers also were characteristics of this period. These "mound centers" featured flat-topped mounds arranged around and open plaza. Ceramic technology (pottery) also developed during this time, and generally we see "the transformation from small egalitarian groups of mobile hunters and gatherers to larger, ranked societies who depended on agriculture....[and occupied the] Caddo 'heartland'—the Red River Valley at and below the Great Bend."(25)
Until roughly 800 A.D., developments in the Caddo Homeland shadow the cultural developments in the Lower Mississippi River Valley (east), but now we see the emergence of a distinct Caddo culture arising from the Late Woodland period.
Emerging Caddo (approximately 800-1000-1200 A.D.)
"The Mississippian world was a mosaic of cultural traditions sharing overlapping themes including maize agriculture, settled life, elaborate ritual life, ranked societies, mound-building, ancestor veneration, ritual/political centers, long-distance exchange, warfare, competition, effective methods of food gathering, hunting, processing, and storage, and sophisticated craft production. Such themes were shared mainly through the exchange of ideas and things from group to group rather than through migration."(26)
With lack of concrete evidence and few radiocarbon dates relating to the Caddo, much is left to inference, and many of the sites excavated are burial sites which give insight into burial practices but little information on everyday Caddo life. The George C. Davis site in east Texas has been a site of extensive scientific investigation. "The site consists of a village and a ritual center marked by three earthen mounds...The Crenshaw site on the west side of the Red River in Miller County, Arkansas (and, more generally, the Great Bend area) is a prime candidate as one of the key places where the Caddo cultural tradition developed."(27) Beginning with roughly 600-900 A.D., the site was used as a burial ground and ceremonial center. Some of the mass burials and rituals which took place here were unknown elsewhere in the Caddo Homelands. "Sometime after A.D. 900 people with a recognizable Caddo culture began using the Crenshaw site as a ceremonial center, adding some bizarre twists of their own."(28) Yaws and skulls were found in these sites, presumably with the bodies deposited elsewhere, as well as mass graves, yet there is nothing similar in practice in the historic accounts of the Caddo area.
A final example of fascinating but unique early Caddo behavior at the Crenshaw site is a set of features dubbed the 'Antler Temple' and an associated refuse pile containing the antlers and frontal skull sections of over 1000 white-tailed deer...[the site may date] to early Caddo times and might have been the residence of a shaman or priest, similar to the Hasinai fire temples documented in early Spanish accounts...While the Antler Temple seems to represent an early example of ritual practices still present among historic Caddo groups some 700 years later, it is still unique among known Caddo.(29)
The Middle Caddo period (A.D. 1200-1400)
The society of the Caddo appears to have been in flux during this time period. There is evidence of economic and settlement changes and also an increase in experimentation in pottery styles. The pottery found during this period exhibits a sense of individualism and creativity, and as such, is often difficult to categorize compared to the more standard ceramic styles associated with other periods.
A shift to farmstead life and corn farming may be supportive of the types of settlements see during this time. As the Caddo shifted from larger communities indicative of the earthworks and mound culture found in earlier archeological sites, to small village agricultural communities, "Caddo farmers moved to the country, so to speak."(30) Archeological findings from this time period show both these "rural" communities, and also a continued pattern on the "city" life of the large mound and ceremonial centers. There is speculation that the mound civic and ritual centers which are spaced rather evenly along the red river valley, served associated villages as places of interaction. "For example, the Jamestown (eight mounds and village), Boxed Springs (four mounds, village, and large cemetery), and Hudnall-Pirtle (eight mounds and 60-acre village) sites appear to represent the apexes (central places) of three Early and Middle Caddo networks in the Sabine River basin...[including] premier mound centers in the Neches-Angelina river basin, and the Washington Square site in the middle of what is today Nacogdoches, Texas"(31), just north of present day Houston, Texas.
The Oak Hill Village site in Rusk County, Texas, occupied a small ridge overlooking Mill Creek, a tributary of the Sabine River. More is now known about this Oak Hill Village site in Rusk County, Texas than perhaps any other site dating to the period. On behalf of TXU Mining Company LP, archeologists from the private consulting firm PBS&J used heavy machinery and hand excavation to open up broad areas, researchers were able to expose the "footprint" of virtually an entire small village...Oak Hill Village had at least 42 circular and rectangular structures representing at least three successive villages. The structures that were part of the last and largest village were arranged over a 3.5-acre area in a circular pattern around a central plaza area....analysts were able to work out the basic sequence of the village phases, called here the early, middle, and late villages.(UT Austin)
The Early Village style (ca. 1150 A.D. is characterized by rectangular structures and the village lacked a central plaza. The population of this village may have been up to 70 individuals. The Middle Village (ca. 1250 A.D.) exhibited circular structures, similar to other Texas Caddo sites. This era appears to have spanned approximately 100 years, the dwellings were contracted around a central plaza, and the population may have approached 100 inhabitants. The Late Village (ca. 1350-1450 A.D.) shows an expansion of the houses, continuing to be built as circular structures, and the village may have had a population of a little over 100 people. There is also evidence of "special structures" with long entryways pointing north, interior partitions to some of the buildings, and possible evidence of circular buildings used for grain.(32) The homes were constructed primarily of oak, and evidence of cooking fires or "smudge pits" perhaps designed for meat smoking or mosquito protection had also been found. Through this archeological site, and charred corn cobs unearthed, it has been determined that the Caddo of this period grew several different types of corn, perhaps at different times of the year and with different susceptibility to drought. "The 300-year span of the successive Oak Hill villages illustrates nicely the increasing importance of corn. Corn was found in 32% of the Early Village soil samples from hearths and pits, 50% of the Middle Village samples, and 97% of the Late Village samples."(33) The village economy also depended on a mix of crops, the gathering of wild plants, and hunting of small game (deer was a favorite, rabbits, buffalo, and squirrel). Hickory nuts were abundant in the archeologists findings, as were acorns, walnuts, and evidence of persimmons, dewberries, and grapes.
Late Caddo Period (ca. 1400-1680 A.D.)
The high point in the Caddo population where ritual centers, villages, hamlets, and farmsteads flourished in the Caddo homeland. The small village societies did not form any central alliance, but formed small, competing village-groups (polities) and maintained competition with neighboring Caddo. It is also during this time in the Caddo history that there is some supporting archeological evidence for specific geographic territories throughout the Caddo Homeland: Clusters of villages that intermarry and share ritual, economic and military ties. The larger mound community centers as well as the smaller farmstead/villages had circular homes constructed with oak poles and grass, and included outdoor shaded areas, household cemeteries and refuse areas. "The Spanish noted that successful fall harvests occasioned major festivals at the principal villages that drew kinfolk and allies near and far for several-day celebrations of Caddo life. Such events would have involved feasting, special ceremonies, tobacco smoking, dancing, performances of stories and songs, trading, negotiating, courtship, and many other activities."(34)
Titus Phase
Between 1430-1680 A.D., the specific society of Caddo living between the Sabine and Sulphur rivers in the East Texas Pineywoods between are known as the Titus phase. Styles of pottery define the phases of the culture within this timeframe and geological region. There is a marked variety and artistry to the pottery unearthed and linked to this period exhibited in a plethora of vessel shapes, decoration, and multiplicity of uses including as both fine and utility ware: cooking and serving food, personal possessions, social identifiers.(35)
Examples of fine ware include highly polished and decorated vessels with crushed clay and bone, vessels engraved "with engraved lines, with scrolls, scrolls and circles, pendant triangles, and other curvilinear motifs."(36) Ochre and white kaolin were used on the surface as coloration. "The diversity of vessel forms is impressive: carinated bowls, compound bowls, bottles, cone-shaped bowls, ollas, jars with flaring rims, square bowls, globular peaked jars, and chalices. Animal effigies and rattle bowls were also made."(36) Utility vessels were characterized by plain conical shapes, larger vessels with wide mouths and vessels for liquid with narrow "necks". They were decorated with bands, brush strokes, and punctures, and as is expected, the utility vessels comprise the bulk of the archeological finds. Ceramic, siltstone, sandstone, and wood body decoration included earspools and elbow pipes of clay.
The Caddo made their first, limited European contact with DeSoto's army in 1542-1543. The "protohistoric" period refers to the period after the first contact with Europeans. However, it was not until 1686 that Europeans returned to the area bringing diseases, horses, Old World plants, and European trade goods, this is when the catastrophic impact on the Caddo can been seen.(36)
The 1541-1543 Spanish entrada led by Hernando de Soto, and, following De Soto's death at the Mississippi River, by Luis de Moscoso, was the first European penetration into the interior of the Southeastern U.S. It was a long and often violent intrusion that left Native American societies in its wake in turmoil and resulted in uncounted casualties, some killed outright by the Spanish army and others gradually by inadvertently unleashed Old World diseases. The large Spanish army fed itself by demanding or simply confiscating food stores from native peoples as they moved from place to place attacking and usually defeating the towns and peoples who stood up to them. The De Soto chronicles are the first written accounts describing Caddo peoples.(37)
Within the last 10 years, archeologists and ethnohistorians studying the Caddo have been attempting to map more precisely the routes of Spanish and French explorers and colonists and determine the impact of this European contact on the Caddo. Although European contact with the Caddo was irreparable and catastrophic for these relatively peaceful farmers of the southeast river valleys, the impact of the fist meeting with De Soto's army in 1542, and then the subsequent 144 years of non-intervention before European return, points to a gradual decline in Caddo population unfolding "in fits and starts over several centuries ."(38)
It was in 1686 when La Salle's expedition again met the Caddo along the Red River in East Texas. Over the next 150 years as Europeans laid claims to Caddo lands and beyond, the Caddo became sandwiched between French and Spanish settlements. Between 1691 and 1816 it is estimated that 95% of the Caddo populous succumbed to epidemics brought by the Europeans.(39) The remaining Caddo gained economically in trade with the Europeans. "The resulting economic symbiosis between the Caddo groups and Europeans was the key to the political success, resilience, and strength of the Caddo tribes through much of the colonial era."(40) What was left of the Caddo population gave rise to diverse groups uniting, and to practical and forced migration. There is evidence to support the idea that the Caddo societies of the late 17th and early 18th centuries enjoyed a successful relationship with the French and Spanish, not succumbing to the mission culture, and welcoming the Europeans into their society in order to maintain good sociopolitical ties with them.
This helps explain why Caddo rituals and greetings seemed excessive to Europeans and why discussions of these exchanges seem to dominate much of the Spanish and French archival documents. Similar interactions are sadly missing from the observations and records of the Americans, strongly hinting that the Caddo by the 1810s were unable to exploit existing American trade and military relationships in the same way they had the Spanish and the French.(41)
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