Speciale Aanbieding Rivers of gold: The rise of the Spanish empire – Hugh Thomas

When, in 1492, Christopher Columbus finally stood ready to set sail across the ‘Ocean Sea’ for what he thought was India, he crossed himself and devoted his expedition to the Holy Trinity and to the King and Queen of Spain. With the gold and spices (and slaves) he would find, Columbus planned to fund a new Crusade to win back Jerusalem. At the time Columbus’s voyage was insignificant, but it became one of the most important events in history. The colonisation he started was followed by the Dutch, French and…