Even though Christopher Columbus' first trip to the New World, did not result in a great acquisition of gold or other valuable materials, he was still able to successfully petition the Spanish monarchy to finance a second trip. Also, there was still the issue of the 39 sailors he'd left at the settlement of La Navidad in the care of the Taino people.
His final stop in the New World, before returning home from the initial foray, was at what is now known as the Bay of Rincon, Samana Peninsula, of the scenic Dominican Republic. Upon arrival he was fired upon, with arrows, by the Ciguayos people. This was the first hostile reception Columbus had met in the New World. Columbus decided to call the place of the confrontation, The Bay of Arrows (or Gulf of Arrows). While there, Columbus captured between 10-25 natives to take back to Europe. Only 7 or 8 survived the journey, but it was enough to impress the monarchy and aided his bid for a return journey.
On September 24, 1493, Columbus left Cadiz, Spain, on his second voyage to the New World. The second trip was a far more serious endeavor and included 17 ships and 1200 men. The modus operandi now was colonization, not just exploration. The crew consisted of soldiers, priests, farmers and, by some reports, the first African slaves in the New World (ten years before the slave trade really began). Before making the longest leg of this journey, Columbus once again stopped at the Canary Islands. He departed on October 13th, 1493, and his first sighting of land was on November, 3rd 1493.
The rugged little island of Dominica (as dubbed by Columbus), was the first land encountered on this voyage. An interesting feature of this island is that it has the worlds second largest boiling lake. Dominca also became a refuge for the Carib people as they fled colonization. It also has the distinction of being the first British Caribbean colony to have its legislature controlled by a black majority. In 1978, Dominica became an independent nation.
After Dominica, Columbus headed north though the Lesser Antilles. Along the way he sited and named many islands, including: Montserrat, Antigua, Redonda, Nevis, Saint Kitts, Saint Eustatius, Saba, Saint Martin and Saint Croix.
Next he continued on to the Greater Antilles, and harbored at Puerto Rico, on November 19, 1493. One of the first altercations, since the time of the Vikings, ensued between the local natives and Columbus' crew, when he was forced to rescue two boys that had been captured.
Columbus' next stop was back at the more familiar La Hispaniola. He returned to La Navidad, the place where the 39 crew had been left from the previous voyage, only to find the settlement destroyed and all the men dead. The Taino people were not happy with the behavior of the stranded crew and decided to exterminate them.
As punishment to the Taino, Columbus demanded that each adult (any male over 14 years old) had to bring him a hawks bell filled with gold every 3 months. If the gold could not be found, then twenty five pounds of spun cotton could be substituted. Failure to deliver this tithe was punishable by death.
Columbus then moved 100 kilometers east and established the short-lived settlement of La Isabela. On April 24, 1494, he left La Hispaniola, and arrived at Cuba, on April 30th, 1494. He initially mistook Cuba for a peninsula. Columbus next arrived at Jamaica, on May 5, 1494. He then re-traced his route back to La Hispaniola, and dropped anchor there on August 20th, 1494. He then return to Spain, to plan his next voyage to the New World.
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