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Voices Off-Stage?

Recovering the Writings of Christopher Columbus

Nachlass

There is a German word which is often used in the scholarly and academic world called

Nachlass. It is a compound word coming from the words nach, which means “after”, and lassen,

which means “to leave”. Together, this word is used to define the manuscripts, notes, letters, and

other such works that are left behind when an author dies, and are normally unpublished.1 These

works are especially important because they can add so much to what we know about the writer:

what they valued, what they were interested in, and what kind of person they were in general. With

a little imagination, this same word and concept can be applied to Christopher Columbus, the

famous explorer from Genoa, commissioned by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, who

discovered from a European perspective various islands in the Indies. Of course, Columbus’s

written legacy is not so much found in unpublished manuscripts left behind after his death in the

Journal but rather embedded in the works of others. The writings of others, most notably

Bartolome de las Casas in the case of The Journal of the First Voyage, and indeed in the exchange

of treaties with the Catholic Monarchs.

Problems with Columbus’s Nachlass

As Felipe Fernández-Armesto stated in his biography of Christopher Columbus, forgeries

and false documents were prevalent in Columbus’s time when historians were searching for his

documents. This leaves us as readers in a very difficult situation as we attempt to dissect the writing

1“Nachlass.” Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press, 12 February 2015. Web. 31 March 2015.

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and warped information from the text and try to emerge with Columbus’s own voice. While I show

how much of Columbus’s voice comes through in Las Casas’s abridgment, it is imperative that I

explain some limitations of this essay. One limitation is the length. Though this essay is extensive

and it is meant to take an in-depth look at Columbus’s voice in his Nachlass, there will always be

documents that I cannot either acquire or analyze due to length and time restrictions. So for the

sake of adhering to the word count of this essay, I will primarily be analyzing Christopher

Columbus’s log-book of 1492 (or the abridgment of it by Las Casas) and incorporate other works

by him, or about him, specifically the Capitulations of Santa Fe and the Columbus Letter. There

are other texts and fragments of Columbus’s writings that could be analyzed in detail but these are

the ones that will be focused on in this essay.

A Note on the Journal of the First Voyage

The only version of the Journal is in Las Casas’ and we have to ascertain how faithful a

transcription or copy it the scholar’s work is. The question of Christopher Columbus’s authentic

voice is to be found in many works, yet it is explicitly an issue in regard to his so-called Journal

of the First Voyage. Because Columbus’s words are embedded are primarily embedded in the

works of others, how much of them actually contain his voice and his words? Throughout this

essay, I will explain that much of Columbus’s voice is still preserved not only in his own writings

through Las Casas’s quoted texted, but also through Las Casas’s summaries of the so-called

Journal of the First Voyage and Fernando Columbus’s biography.

Columbus gave the Catholic Monarchs the logbook that he supposedly (as we do not know

for sure whether he kept it every day because we do not have the original copy) kept day to day on

his journey from the West Indies back to Spain. They did not return it but instead retained it and a

copy was sent to Columbus before he set sail on his second voyage. The copy was probably kept

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in Columbus’s family archives and was most likely the copy in which Luis Columbus, the

renown’s grandson, granted permission to be published. However, both the original and the copy

sent to the Columbus family have disappeared in the passage of time.2 The full contents of the

diaries are unknown simply because we do not know the location of them.

The organizational chart, or stemmata chart, below explains the progression of Columbus’s

log-book and the copy that was given back to him by the Catholic Monarchs. As I will establish

within this essay, both Las Casas and Fernando were most likely using the Catholic Monarch copy

of Columbus’s log-book when they created their abridgments. Both of these abridgments were

found and published by Luis Columbus when he found them in the Columbus family

library/archives. Both the original log-book that was retained by the Catholic Monarchs and they

copy they sent back to Columbus have been lost to the ages, as expressed in the chart.

2 Jane, Cecil and Christopher Columbus. The Journal of Christopher Columbus. London: Anthony Blond & The

Orion, 1960. Print. This background information can be found in the Foreword of the Cecil Jane translation, xv-

xxiii.

Christopher Columbus's Original Log-Book -

Whereabouts Unknown, Originally Retained by

Catholic Monarchs

Catholic Monarch Copy -Whereabouts Unknown

Las Casas Abridgment -Published by Luis Columbus

Fernando Columbus Biography and Abridgment

- Published by Luis Columbus

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The issue at hand is whether or how far Las Casas’s abridgment deviates from Columbus’s

original words. We have the abstract text by Bartolomé de las Casas and we can postulate that he

used either or both of the copies of the texts that existed at that time. We can tell this from certain

quoted passages which supposedly are copied word-for-word from Columbus’s diary. Other parts

of Las Casas’ text are abridged from the original work. While he copied Columbus’s diary of the

first voyage, he also made a copy of the third voyage. This version of the Journal remained

unknown for a long time but was discovered by Martin Fernández de Navarrete in the Duke del

Infantado’s library and it was then published in 1825. Because Navarrete had been in the Spanish

navy, he had corrected some of Las Casas’ inaccurate navigation instructions.

After Columbus wrote the Journal, it had been through the scribes that the Catholic

Monarchs hired to copy it, Las Casas who had copied it and created his own semi-abridged version

of it, and then “minor” changes again were made by Navarrete.3 This shows that the original word

of Columbus could have been changed drastically. Knowing this information, how much of

Columbus’ voice actually made it through to his readers? After all of these edits done not only by

other individuals like Las Casas or Navarrete, but also by Columbus himself, how much of his

original voice has been retained and how much has been lost to the ages? These questions will be

answered in this essay.

Las Casas as Editor

Las Casas’s contribution to the diaries has been essential specifically because if he had not

intervened and created his abridgment of the Journal of the First Voyage, there would be no

existing record of it. Because his father and uncle had accompanied Columbus on the second

3 Jane, London 1960, See Foreword for biographical information on pages xv-xxiii.

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voyage to the Indies in 1493, Bartolomé was the one who began collecting material about the

history of the Indies almost a decade after Columbus first sailed there. Las Casas was heavily

involved in the controversy surrounding the oppression of the Indians of the New World as well

as questioning the legitimacy of the Spanish presence in the New World.4 Within his magnum

opus, Historia de las Indias, he quotes heavily (though we do not know if it is accurately) from

Columbus’s Journals, normally from the Journal of the First Voyage. As previously stated in the

Introduction above, the copy of the first voyage journal Las Casas used was most likely the copy

that Isabella made and gave back to Columbus. Las Casas was also an accomplished historian and

was given a lengthy education, something that is apparent within his writing and can be contrasted

with Columbus’s writings as well.

With this information on Las Casas, it becomes difficult to ascertain exactly how much of the

Journal the editor changed or abridged. B.W. Ife makes a valid point in his Introduction to the

Journal of the First Voyage by stating that:

… [T]he manuscript is at two removes from the original: a digest of a copy of the origina l,

which may itself have been a fair copy rather than the actual log-book which Columbus wrote

up from day to day on board ship. We can only assume that the copy from which Las Casas

worked was reasonably faithful, although he was himself aware of inaccuracies and mis-

transcriptions.

At times, Las Casas tries to correct or even casts doubt on Columbus’s calculations or even his

knowledge of certain subjects.5 This is the contribution that Las Casas has made to Columbus’s

4 B.W. Ife, Christopher Columbus, and Ralph J. Penny. Journal of the First Voyage, 1492 = Diario Del Primer Viaje,

1492. Warminster, England: Aris & Phillips, 1990. Print. For biographical information on Bartolomé de las Casas, see

B.W. Ife’s Introduction, v-xxv. 5 B.W. Ife Introduction and Translation of Journal of the First Voyage, Warminster 1990, vii. See January 13th, “…

here it seems that the Admiral knew something about astrology, although these planets do not seem to be in their

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Journal and to the world. Las Casas has given us his own digestion and paraphrased version of

Columbus’s voice, though it is apparent through much of the Journal that Columbus’s voice

emerges from Las Casas’s abridgments.

Columbus’s own voice, which I am arguing has been preserved throughout Las Casas’s

abridgment, is to be defined as the Admiral’s own words. So how can we find Columbus’s true

voice in these writings of his? How can we differentiate what Columbus was attempting to say in

his log-book from what Las Casas summarized it as? One way we can do so is by examining the

sections where Las Casas is paraphrasing Columbus and where the editor is directly quoting

(supposedly). This can be seen in the Journal, and is especially evident within the prologue of the

Diary of the First Voyage.6 In Columbus’s address to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, which

has not been paraphrased by Las Casas and was taken directly from Columbus’s diary (according

to Las Casas), there are many run-on sentences that are only broken up by semi-colons or commas.

In the prologue, Columbus explains the achievements of the Catholic Monarchs and their piety

and only ends the thought with a period after a page and a half of semi-colons.7 B.W. Ife explains

this as Columbus suffering from an over-complexity of syntax, which seems apparent within this

passage. This element of Columbus’s writing seems to be another form of his personal style and

another part of his voice that has been preserved throughout many editions and abridgments.8

proper positions, due to bad transcription by the copyist…” and October 8th, “He steered WSW and they made about

11 and a half or 12 leagues during the day and night and it seems that at times during the night they were making 15

miles an hour, if the text is to believed”. 6Dunn, O.C., James E. Kelley, Christopher Columbus, and Bartolomé De Las Casas. The Diario of Christopher

Columbus’s First Voyage to America, 1492-1493. Norman: University of Oklahoma, 1989. Print, 17. Las Casas here

states that the beginning of the Journal, “This is the first voyage and the courses and way that the Admiral Don

Christóbal Colón took when he discovered the Indies, summarized except for the prologue that he composed for the

king and queen which is given in full and begins this way.” Alludes to the fact that the rest of the Journal will be

summarized, which did not happen as we can tell from the parts where the Journal slips into the first person, assuming

those parts are direct quotes from Columbus’s original log-book. 7 B.W. Ife, Warminster 1990, 19. 8 B.W. Ife, Warminster 1990, xi.

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As was previously mentioned, Columbus was a natural-born Italian speaker so he acquired

Spanish as a second language. This is also especially evident within the Journal at certain parts in

the original Spanish9. However, Las Casas (who was a natural-born Spanish speaker) corrected

some of these phrases and grammatical issues in Columbus’s Spanish Journal. In addition, we

must remember that Las Casas was writing his abridgment of Columbus’s Journal about 30 years

after the Admiral had finished them so certain lingual changes that were developing in his time

might have been different in Las Casas’s era.10 Columbus’s Italian/Genoese heritage certainly has

an effect on some of his spelling and word choice, even in the Spanish text. For instance, Ife points

this out in his Introduction to the Journal of the First Voyage:

The otherwise unprecedented form símplice(s) `simple', used by Columbus… may owe its

form to interference from a Genoese cognate of Italian sémplice. Likewise, the final vowel

of doblo may be accounted for in similar manner (cf. Italian doppio). Doblo does not

elsewhere appear in Spanish until 1640, and then only as a legal term.11

These terms are used within the Journal at different points but both, as shown by B.W. Ife, have

Italian characteristics and have little to do with the Spanish language. Columbus’s words reflect

his background in these instances.

Columbus also does something frequently which is a form of repetition which Ife calls

formulaic description. This is something that Columbus did by himself and Las Casas probably

would have copied from the original log-book. This technique is where the writer repeats certain

9 B.W. Ife, Warminster 1990, xxvii. “Unless we are dealing with an error of transcription by Las Casas, Columbus

confuses indicative and subjunctive mood in the following case: no me pareçe que las puede aver”. See November

27th, in Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 185. 10 B.W. Ife, Warminster 1990, vi. 11 B. W. Ife, Journal of the First Voyage, Warminster 1990. See October 14th for “simplice” (78) and on December

26th for “doblo”.

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bits of information (a canoa being a boat made from a single piece of wood12) for the sake of the

audience. We know this technique is done by Columbus, and not Las Casas, because this would

have been information that Las Casas would have known. He would not have needed to copy down

this information multiple times if the abridgment was just for his own eyes. Las Casas uses these

formulaic descriptions because they were prevalent in Columbus’s copy of the Journal. In

addition, there are certain descriptions that are repeated throughout the Journal, for instance the

comparison of the calm sea that Columbus is sailing on to the river at Seville. Ife has several

explanations for these repetitious phrases, one being that Columbus did not have many Spanish

words to describe what he was seeing and had to repeat certain words. But Ife’s other explanation

is that Columbus understood the power of language and the effect repetition has on a reader. It

makes Columbus’s work more memorable and it constitutes reality.13

Assuming that Las Casas was faithful when he copied certain sections of Columbus’s

Journal of the first voyage, we can hopefully say that these sections are entirely Columbus’s own

words and his voice. These parts count for about one-fifth of the whole Journal of the First Voyage.

Estelle Irizarry14 conducted a study to see the differences in both Columbus’s and Las Casas’s

writings. She finds patterns in certain sections of the Journal that are thought to be Columbus’s

own voice and sections that are specifically Las Casas’s summaries. These can show the difference

between Columbus’s own words and Las Casas’s contribution. Her results suggest that in the

12 B.W. Ife, Journal of the First Voyage, Warminster 1990, xi. This phrase is said at least ten times within the entire

Journal. 13 B.W. Ife, Journal of the First Voyage, Warminster 1990, xiii. 14 Irizarry, Estelle. "The Two Authors of Columbus' 'Diary'" Computers and Humanities 27.2 (1993): 85-92. Print, 85.

Estelle Irizarry is a Professor of Spanish at Georgetown University and Editor of Hispania and Courseware Editor of

CHum. She is the author of over 20 books on Hispanic literature. This study was done in 1993 and, with the help of a

computer, Professor Irizarry determined how much of the Journal of the First Voyage is Columbus’s own writing and

how much is Las Casas’s based on factors such as: word count per sentence, punctuation, and prevalence of religious

words.

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specifically quoted passages in the Journal, which we must assume are in Columbus’s own words

due to the article “I” in them, are significantly longer in sentence length than Las Casas’s

summarizations.15

However, though Irizarry utilizes a computer and gives helpful data, her results are less

than conclusive when it comes to longer sentences by both Las Casas and Columbus. Both writers

use long sentences more often than shorter ones, according to Irizarry’s data which diminishes her

initial point: that she can show the differences between Columbus’s own words and Las Casas’s

abridgments. Though Irizarry does aid this discussion and give an alternative analysis to

Columbus’s Journal, I think her works have been superseded by Barry Ife. I have come to this

conclusion simply because Ife offers answers and an analysis whereas Irizarry only gives raw data

and does not analyze her findings to the extent that she could. One might say she was right for the

wrong reasons. From the amount of analysis that she did do, we can take some information away

from it. Though we could take into account the different passages Irizarry was testing, it offers the

conclusion that Columbus uses less short sentences than Las Casas, which seems to be accurate

when one analyzes works by Columbus. This statement is also supported by the text of the Journal.

As stated in the Columbus section of this essay, the Admiral was rather keen on verbose and

lengthy journal entries. Las Casas was not so, as shown in certain passages of the Journal:

They steered on their route west that day and night and made 20 leagues. He reported a few

less. Here the men of the Niña said that they had seen a tern and a tropic bird, and these

birds never depart from land more than 25 leagues.16

15 See Irizarry, Computers and Humanities 1993, 88. From a 5000 word chunk of Las Casas’s writings taken from the

Journal of the First Voyage, there were about 30 sentences that were fewer than 10 words. For the same sized chunk

of Columbus’s writings taken from the Journal, there were only seven sentences with 10 words or less. 16 Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 31. See September 14th.

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These sentences, though long, are not to the extent of Columbus’s sentence length. With

Columbus, many of his sentences are exceedingly long with many semi-colons and commas, as

shown in the Introduction. Las Casas is normally shorter and more direct, as would be expected of

a summary. But even with this thought in mind, we can still see how much of Columbus’s voice

comes through in Las Casas’s abridgment of Columbus’s Journal. For instance, when Las Casas

summarizes the proceedings of September 6th in the Journal, he says this:

And the Admiral learned from a caravel that was coming from the island of Hierro that

three Portuguese caravels were sailing in the vicinity in order to capture him. It must have

been from envy that the king felt because of the Admiral’s having gone away to Castile.

And he proceeded all that day and night in very light winds and in the morning he found

himself between Gomera and Tenerife.17

Though Las Casas is summarizing Columbus here, we can still hear Columbus speaking. Las

Casas’s reasoning behind the Portuguese king sending ships after Columbus was because the king

was probably jealous of Columbus for his voyage. But this seems like a statement that Columbus

himself would have said. As Fernández-Armesto said:

His manner and speed exuded ambition. He was pre-disposed to success, unresponsive to

setbacks and blind to any obstacle, of however incontestably material a nature, that might

lie in his path He had a deep conviction of self-righteousness and the unlimited capacity

for self-deception that usual accompanies that quality.18

Columbus was a man of self-righteousness and was capable of self-deception and this statement

supports these qualities. Though Las Casas summarized and corrected Columbus in certain areas

17 Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 27. 18 Fernández-Armesto, Felipe. Columbus and the Conquest of the Impossible. London: Phoenix, 2000. Print. 26.

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of this journal, Columbus’s main points and his voice come across to the audience. We are still

able to hear his personality and envision his actions without Columbus’s original words in the

Journal and even though it was edited by another person.

Columbus’s own voice and his words are seen in writings other than in Las Casas’ copy of

the Journal19 in places like his letters back to Spain. Perhaps these letters reveal much about the

Admiral’s personality and mannerisms that are supported by the Journal. For example, when he

is writing back to Antonio de Torres, Columbus’s correspondent back in Spain with the Catholic

Monarchs:

…[Y]ou will tell their Highnesses, as I charged and ordered you, that I have given strict

orders that the gold that you carry with you be placed in the hands of some merchant in

Seville, in order that he may therefrom disburse the sums necessary for loading the two

caravels with wine, corn, and other articles detailed in this memorial...

With quotations like these, which can be seen throughout Columbus’s letters to Antonio de Torres,

it can be seen just how often Columbus ordered others and showed how prescriptive he was, even

with the title of Admiral. Without consulting the Catholic Monarchs, he had already arranged for

the supplies he needed to be transported to him with the gold that he was supposed to send back to

the Catholic Monarchs. In addition, Columbus begins almost every letter to de Torres with the

words, “You will” rather than requesting de Torres to do something. Columbus was a demanding

individual, which is also evident within his own Journal.20 Even in the sections that Las Casas has

19 An obvious limitation of this essay is that we as a world do not have many of the original copies of the texts that I

am going to be discussing. The original log-book of Columbus’s has been lost to the ages and all that remains is the

mainly-summarized version that Las Casas left behind. There is so much more evidence of Columbus’s voice and his

own words that have disappeared. 20 Many of these works are in Spanish, which was not Columbus’s native tongue due to his Italian ancestry but was

Las Casas’s native language, so I will be using translations as I do not speak either of these language. Though this

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abridged, Columbus is still depicted as “ordering” or “commanding” others to carry out his

wishes.21 This is certainly Columbus’s voice: Religious in a certain sense, educated but only to an

extent, and commanding while also putting his needs before other’s permission (with the example

of the gold given to a merchant instead of the Catholic Monarchs).

Fernando Columbus

Fernando Columbus (sometimes referred to as Fernando) was Christopher Columbus’s

second son who voyaged with him on the Fourth Voyage. Though Fernando did not play a part

in translating and editing his father's journals22, he did write The Life of the Admiral Christopher

Columbus which tells the story of the voyages, some of which Fernando played a part in, and

how this son saw his father. To create this biography, Fernando would have had to have a copy

of his father’s Journal, or at least Las Casas’s abridgment. Certain sections within the biography

suggest that he was using Columbus’s copy of the log-book which he received from the Catholic

Monarchs. For instance, in the Author’s Foreword, which is written in Fernando’s own words, he

says something that suggests he is not using Las Casas’s work:

I promise to tell the story of the Admiral's life only from his own writings and letters and what

I myself observed. And whoever suspects that I have added something of my own invention

does detract from the accuracy of Columbus’s intended words, the differences are small and should not cause many

issues. 21 Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 43, 53, and 117. See September 25th, “The Admiral ordered the ships to leave their

course…”, October 7th, “... fired a Lombard as a signal that they saw land, because so had ordered the Admiral. He

had also ordered that at sunrise and sunset the vessels s hould join him”, and October 28th, “He ordered not a thing of

all this was to be touched, and thus is was done”. 22 Columbus, Fernando. The Life of the Admiral Christopher Columbus By His Son Ferdinand . Trans. Benjamin Keen.

London: Folio Society, 1959. Print, 77. The Historie was not actually published by Fernando himself, but by his

nephew, Luis who was hard-pressed for money and had found the manuscript.

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may be certain that I know such a thing would profit me nothing in the next life and that none

but my readers shall reap the fruits of my labour.23

Had Fernando been using Las Casas’s abridgment, he would have indicated that at the beginning

of the biography. However, he says he is using his father’s own writings and letters. Therefore, we

must assume that these works were the originals that Columbus wrote and his Journal must have

been the one the Admiral received from the Catholic Monarchs. Fernando would have had access

to this copy because it was stored in the Columbus family’s library, as indicated in the Introduction.

Though this biography of Columbus is from his son's point of view, we can also tease out the

parts where Columbus's voice and his own words shine through. For example, in Fernando’s

biography of his father, we can see Columbus’s influence on his son:

That night, therefore, after they had sung the Hail Mary as seamen are accustomed to do at

nightfall, he spoke to the men of the favour that Our Lord had shown them by conducting them

so safely and prosperously with fair winds and a clear course, and by comforting them with

signs that daily grew more abundant.24

From this passage, we can see the religious references in which Columbus was so adamant about

relaying in his Journal.25 We know that this is Columbus’s voice here because Fernando was using

his father’s works when the son was creating the biography, and in the Journal Columbus was said

to pray often and make many religious references to the Bible as shown in the footnote. Because

23 Keen, London 1959, 25. 24 Keen, London 1959. 77. 25 Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 35 & 41. See September 17th “… I hope in that mighty God in Whose hands are all

victories that very soon He will give us land” and September 23rd “… the high sea was very necessary for me, [a sign]

which had not appeared except in the time of the Jews when they left Egypt [and complained] against Moses, who

took them out of captivity.”

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Fernando had access to the majority of his father's writings (his Nachlass) we can find Columbus's

thoughts, like the ones above, on the voyages and compare them to Fernando's own voice.26

The Columbus Letter

While we have biographies and abridgments of Columbus’s words, we also have

documents like the Columbus Letter which was written by the Admiral himself and is in his

original voice. This letter was sent by Columbus to either Luis de Santángel (the financia l minis ter

of King Ferdinand) or Gabriel Sanchez and was used by the Admiral to spread the news of his

homecoming around Europe.27 It was printed in Spanish originally and then in Latin for further

dispersal. This letter is important in hearing Columbus’s voice in other sources because the letter

is in his own words. Barring complications with translators and grammatical changes throughout

time, these are (supposedly) the words that Columbus wrote to excite the people of Europe about

his return to Granada. It is essentially a recap of the First Voyage and a short description of the

islands he discovered.

This is significant in showing us Columbus’s voice because passages from the letter can

be compared with the sections of the Journal Las Casas allegedly copied from Columbus’s log-

book to determine the accuracy of said passages. For instance, even at the very beginning of the

26 Keen, London 1959, 179. “At Medina del Campo, in 1498, the Catholic Sovereigns granted him many favours and

privileges in what related both to the Admiral’s affairs and estate and to the better government and administration of

the Indies. I shall give account of these things here in order to make clear the good will of the Sovereigns toward him

and their desire to reward him for his merits and services. Later, because of the lying reports of spiteful and envious

men, they changed their demeanor and permitted injuries and offences to be done to him, as I shall pres ently relate.”

Because Fernando was an essential part of the litigations in favor of restoring the rights promised to Columbus in the

Capitulations, he has made it known in this biography his own opinion on the matter. Though Columbus himself was

indeed disappointed because the Catholic Monarchs failed to uphold their end of the bargain, it was his family who

fought long and hard for their “rights” to the title and wealth they were promised. This is Fernando’s own contribution,

not Columbus’s, within the biography. 27Jane, London 1960, xxi.

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letter28, the grammar and punctuation seems to be similar (if not identical) to the beginning of the

Journal in the section where Columbus is supposedly quoted directly from the log-book (see

explanation in Las Casas and Columbus section about Columbus’s punctuation).

Not only does the Journal show similarities in punctuation, but the descriptions of the

islands and the ocean are very similar to the sections where Las Casas supposedly transcribed

faithfully from Columbus’s original log-book. For instance, within the Columbus Letter, the

Admiral tries to explain the beauty of the islands:

… [M]ost lofty mountains incomparably beyond the island of Tenerife, all the most

beautiful in a thousand kinds, so lofty that they seem to reach the sky. And I am assured

that they never lose their foliage; as may be imagined, since I saw them as green and as

beautiful as they are in Spain during May.29

Columbus, within Las Casas’s abridgment, writes almost the same description in the Journal on

December 20th.30 In addition, Columbus constantly compares the beauty of the islands in the Indies

to Spain, which is also shown in the Journal.31 Sections such as these show how similar the Las

Casas abridgment and the Columbus Letter not only in punctuation but also with descriptions. If

Las Casas’s summaries and supposed-transcriptions are so similar, it leads me to believe that Las

Casas faithfully transcribed and summarized Columbus’s log-book.

28 Jane, London 1960, 191. “Sir: As I know that you will have pleasure from the great victory which our Lord hath

given me in my voyage, I write you this, by which you shall know that in thirty -three days I passed over to the Indies

with the fleet which the most illustrious King and Queen, our Lords, gave me; where I found very many islands

peopled with inhabitants beyond number.” 29 Jane, London 1960, 192. 30 Jane, London 1960, 108. “… it ran down to the harbor from the south-east and was all fenced in by very lofty

mountains, which seemed to touch the sky, in which were very beautiful, full of green trees, and without a doubt there

are there loftier mountains than the island of Tenerife in the Canaries, which is held to be one of the loftiest that can

be found.” 31 Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 251. “Here and in all the island everything is green and the vegetation is like April

in Andalusia.”

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The Capitulations of Santa Fe

In addition to examining those who had an effect on Columbus’s voice and words, we can

also see certain documents which indirectly or indeed vicariously express the Admiral’s words.

Documents like the Capitulations of Santa Fe, the documents which stipulated what rewards

Columbus would acquire should he find new land for the Catholic Monarchs, are perfect examples

of Columbus’s indirect voice. Though they were not written by Columbus himself, there are echoes

of his voice and his influence is apparent in them. This is another instance where Columbus’s voice

is embedded in the writings of others rather than his own. This document was most likely drawn

up by Columbus and his lawyers before he left for his First Voyage and was signed by the Catholic

Monarchs without hesitation. The Capitulations generally stated these five stipulations:

1. To appoint Columbus Admiral and Don for all his life and his heirs, and those islands and

main-lands which were discovered.

2. To grant the title and position of viceroy and governor of all lands discovered or won by

Columbus.

3. To grant Columbus a tenth of all goods and products (gold) of any kind in which were

obtained in the lands he discovered.

4. Giving Columbus the right to serve as a judge in any kind of problems related to wealth.

5. Giving Columbus the right to participate in one-eighth of the profits of the entire fleet and

the grant of trade with other countries identified.32

32Nader, Helen and Christopher Columbus. The Book of Privileges Issued to Christopher Columbus by King Fernando

and Queen Isabel, 1492-1502. Berkeley: University of California, 1996. Print. Due to certain research restrictions, a

full copy of the Capitulations of Santa Fe could not be found. The Book of Privileges has a summary of the

Capitulations. 17-24.

Astra 17

However, when Columbus upheld his part of the bargain (discovering certain islands in the Indies),

the Catholic Monarchs renegaded on their promises to him. These stipulations surely reflect

Columbus’s influences and what he desired to take away from this first voyage. For example,

within the third stipulation it is apparent that Columbus will receive one-tenth of all of the gold

and products that are discovered on the islands. This shows that Columbus values gold and money,

considering two out of the five stipulations have to do with profits and gold. This is also confirmed

by the Journal because whenever he attempts to speak with the natives he meets, he always

inquires as to where he can find gold.33 It is also shown in the Columbus Letter that the Admira l

is very concerned with the goods and valuables of the new islands that he discovered simply

because he references it many times.34

Columbus’s demanding personality also is shown throughout this document just like it is

shown in the letters written to Antonio de Torres (see Las Casas and Columbus section). In can be

seen specifically in the first stipulation of the Capitulations. According to Helen Nader, Columbus

fought heavily for the right to an inheritable title and possessions that he would obtain from his

voyage. The Catholic Monarchs were hesitant specifically because these clauses violated the very

nature of their monarchy.35 But Columbus had his way in the end and the stipulation was put into

the Capitulations. Just like he ordered others around when he was on his voyage, he managed to

33Dunn & Kelley, Norman 1989, 141 & 145. See November 6th “Today I pulled the ship off the beach and made ready

to leave on Thursday, in the name of God, and to go to the southeast to seek gold and spices and to explore land” and

November 12th, “Because without doubt there is in these lands a very great quantity of gold; for not without cause do

these Indians that I bring with me say that there are in these islands places where they dig gold and wear it on their

chests, on their ears, and on their arms, and on their legs; and they are very thick bracelets.” 34Jane, London 1960, 194. “In the earth there are many mines of metals… the mountains and hills, and plains, and

fields, and the soil, so beautiful and rich for planting and sowing, for breeding cattle of all sorts, for building of towns

and villages… the many and great rivers, and excellent waters, most of which contain gold… There are many spiceries

and great mines of gold and other metals.” 35Nader, Helen. Rights of Discovery: Christopher Columbus’s Final Appeal to King Fernando: Facsimile,

Transcription, Translation & Critical Edition of the John Carter Brown Library’s Spanish Codex I . Cali, Colombia:

Carvajal, 1992. Print. 3.

Astra 18

order the Catholic Monarchs into letting him have this title (even though they did renegade on

these stipulations after the voyage). His actions and voice are still seen in contracts and documents

he did not even write.

Conclusions

After all of this, what are we left with? One of the most prevalent issues with Columbus’s

Nachlass is that it is found within the works of others so we do not know how much of it retains

Columbus’s original voice. From the analysis of Las Casas and Columbus, we can see that there

are many grammatical, descriptive, and lingual markers that Las Casas left in his transcription of

the Journal that would only have come from Columbus. When we look at the Columbus Letter,

we are shown the Admiral’s own words and voice. This gave us a valid comparison between the

Journal and the Letter. With the analysis of the Capitulations of Santa Fe, we are shown exactly

what Columbus valued (which is also expressed by the Journal) and how demanding he was, even

to the Catholic Monarchs. Finally, through all of these analyses, it can be said that Las Casas’s

abridgment contains much of Columbus’s voice and, especially comparing the sections where Las

Casas “transcribed” Columbus’s own words with the Columbus Letter, it is evident that Las Casas

was faithful in his version of the Admiral’s Journal of the First Voyage. In light of this information

and as shown with the additional documents about Columbus, if we as an audience listen carefully,

we can hear the voice of the Admiral in the Journal as well.

Astra 19

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Astra 20

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