Now the ultimate end and scope that incited the Spaniards to endeavor the Extirpation and Desolation of this People, was Gold only…
They don’t seem to care for people at all, it’s greed.
33 Matching Annotations
- Feb 2026
-
publish.obsidian.md publish.obsidian.md
-
-
The Spaniards first assaulted the innocent Sheep, so qualified by the Almighty, like most cruel tigers, wolves, and lions, hunger-starved, studying nothing, for the space of Forty Years, after their first landing, but the Massacre of these Wretches,
This is horrifying. Las Casas really makes it clear how violent and long lasting the Spanish attacks were.
-
Now this infinite multitude of Men are by the Creation of God innocently simple, altogether void of and averse to all manner of Craft, Subtlety and Malice, and most Obedient and Loyal Subjects to their Native Sovereigns;
The native people where peaceful and trusting, it’s crazy to see how unfairly they were treated when they didn’t deserve it.
-
The king Montezuma, who was accompanied by Itzcohuatzin and by those who had brought food for the Spaniards, protested:
Montezuma tried to stop the violence, but it didn’t work. It makes me realize how powerless the Aztec were in that moment.
-
The Spaniards attacked the musicians first, slashing at their hands and faces until they had killed all of them.
This is insanely brutal to do to anyone.
-
When Montezuma had given necklaces to each one, Cortés asked him: “Are you Montezuma? Are you the king? Is it true that you are the king Montezuma?”
This shows the first meeting between Montezuma and Cortés. It’s kind of shocking how formal and careful they were at first.
-
Leif replied that he would nevertheless be the one who would be most apt to bring good luck and Eric yielded to Leif’s solicitation,
It’s interesting how much they believed in luck and fate when exploring.
-
Biarni gave an account of his travels [while lost at sea in a fog for several days, he apparently landed in America] when he saw the lands, and the people though that he had been lacking in enterprise, since he had no report to give concerning these countries; and the fact brought him reproach.
This shows how discovery only matters if you could prove and use it since they didn’t take him seriously before.
-
they observed that there was dew upon the grass, and it so happened that they touched the dew with their hands, and touched their hands to their mouths,
This part is interesting because it shows how new and surprising this land felt to them.
-
But when Pizarro crossed the Andes with only eighty conquistadors, he found social chaos
This makes the conquest feel less like a fair fight and more like taking advantage of a disaster.
-
The Treaty of Tordesillas awarded all the territory east of the 47th meridian to Portugal and everything west of it to Spain
It feels unfair that Spain and Portugal got to split up a land when people already lived there.
-
Along the Mississippi River and its tributaries, indigenous people lived mostly in villages but occasionally gathered into cities and built mounds like those found at Cahokia.
This surprised me because I didn’t realize Native Americans built cities and large structure like Mount. It made me think they were way more organized in advance than people usually give them credit for.
-
Reliable, storable, staple food supplies are a necessary precondition for long-term settlement and population growth – in other words the creation of cities.
This stood out to me because it shows how important food was to everything else, like people being able to settle down and build cities.
-
Finally, in one word, their Ambition and Avarice, than which the heart of Man never entertained greater, and the vast Wealth of those Regions;
Las Casas point out that greed and disrespect drove the Spanish to there action against the natives.
-
the Spaniards by their barbarous and execrable Actions have absolutely depopulated Ten Kingdoms,
This highlights the destruction and the depopulation caused by the Spanish, emphasizing the cruelty of colonization.
-
of Three Millions of Persons, which lived in Hispaniola itself, there is at present but the inconsiderable remnant of scarce Three Hundred.
The number show the massive scale of death caused by Spanish actions, almost an entire population wiped out.
-
Now this infinite multitude of Men are by the Creation of God innocently simple, altogether void of and averse to all manner of Craft, Subtlety and Malice, and most Obedient and Loyal Subjects to their Native Sovereigns
Las Casas emphasizes how peaceful and loyal the Native Americans were showing that they’re suffering was undeserved.
-
The Sun had treacherously murdered our people on the twentieth day after the captain left for the coast.
Describing the killings as treachery shows the betrayal felt by the Aztecs.
-
lords, that is enough! What are you doing? These people are not carrying shields or macanas
Montezuma‘s protest emphasizes how unfair and brutal the Spanish actions were.
-
The Spaniards attacked the musicians first, slashing at their hands and faces until they had killed all of them.
The attack on the musicians highlights of the extreme violence of the conquest.
-
I have seen you at last! I have met you face to face! I was in agony for five days, for ten days, with my eyes fixed on the Region of the Mystery.
Montezuma‘s awe shows the impact the Spaniards had on the Aztecs.
-
whereat the Skrellings were frightened, and ran away with their packs, wherein were gray furs, sables, and all kinds of pelts. They fled towards Karlsefni’s dwelling and sought to effect an entrance into the house; but Karlsefni caused the doors to be defended [against them].
Encountering the Skrelling must have been tense and shows how uncertain life in a new land can be.
-
They afterward determined to establish themselves there for the winter, and they accordingly built a large house.
I think building a proper shelter, shows how serious they were about surviving the winter.
-
They sailed up to the land, and cast anchor, and launched a boat, and went ashore, and saw no grass there. Great ice mountains lay inland back from the sea,
The harsh landscape must have made exploring really challenging for the people.
-
Leif invited his father, Eric, to become the leader of the expedition
It’s impressive that Leif stepped up to lead such a huge journey at a young age.
-
The entire region had been emptied by the diseases which had accompanied De Soto and his men, and had returned to wilderness
Disease from the Spanish wiped out most of the people in the south, even before European settled there. This shows how big and impact disease had on native communities.
-
To defend themselves, Spanish colonialists accused the Aztec and Inca Empires of atrocities of their own and emphasized the support conquistadors received from indigenous rivals of these empires.
It’s interesting how history can be viewed differently depending on who is telling the story.
-
Along the Mississippi River and its tributaries, indigenous people lived mostly in villages but occasionally gathered into cities and built mounds like those found at Cahokia.
This shows that Native American societies were organized and capable of building large cities, not just small villages.
-
To run their complex society, the Maya developed a written language based on 800 hieroglyphs that represented different syllables.
This show that the Maya were very advanced because they created their own writing system to manage their society.
-
- Jan 2026
-
publish.obsidian.md publish.obsidian.md
-
While baby boys were a blessing, girls were considered an expense to their birth families, since they only became valuable when they married and bore sons for their husbands' families.
It’s sad to think that girls were seen as less important just because of their gender, and it makes me realize how much cultural values can shape peoples lives in both harmful and lasting ways.
-
One of the most interesting questions about Zheng He’s voyages is, "Why did they end?"
This sentence asks why Zheng He’s voyage ended, showing that China had strong ships, but chose not to keep exploring. It makes you think about why politics money and culture all mattered
-
Calligraphy in China equaled literacy.
This means that being able to write Chinese characters in calligraphy was the same as being considered educated. It shows how important writing and culture wear in Chinese society.
-
But the exams were also democratic in a way: even a scholar from a poor family could take the exam if he could educate himself.
This feels very fair compared to many other societies were only wealth or noble families held power. It’s interesting how education could give anyone a chance to succeed in China.
-