Category: History

Witness the transformation across time and interpret the past of human societies while shedding light on the most prominent events.

How Did Latin America Gain Independence from Spanish Fule?
September 4, 2022

The Manhattan Project and the First Atomic Bomb

By the summer of 1945, the Allied powers had defeated Germany and turned their full attention to Japan, with over 2 million troops ready to fight to the end and 9,000 airplanes ready for suicide attacks. US experts estimated that an attempt to invade Japan could result in the deaths of 500,000 American soldiers and several million Japanese.

Why Did the US Use the Atomic Bomb?

Unable to risk such incredible losses, the Americans proposed using the atomic bomb. On July 26, 1945, the United States, Britain, and China called on the Japanese to surrender unconditionally and warned them that otherwise, they risk “immediate and total annihilation”. There was no mention of the atomic bomb.

The Japanese, anxious to buy time, ignored these demands. Some of the advisers of President Truman insisted on the atomic bomb to be detonated in an unmanned area to display how deadly the new weapon was; while others tried to pressure him to use it on Japan without prior warning. On August 6, the world learned of Truman’s decision.

The use of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and three days later on Nagasaki has long been debated. Some adherents believed it ended the war and saved the lives of Allied soldiers. The feared Japanese could be defeated, no matter how mercilessly.

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Who Invented the Atomic Bomb?

The scientists on the Manhattan Project team: The scientists on the Manhattan Project team developed the atomic bomb: Robert Oppenheimer, David Bohm, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, Otto Frisch, Rudolf Peierls, Felix Bloch, Niels Bohr, Emilio Segre, James Franck, Enrico Fermi, Klaus Fuchs and Edward Teller — The scientists on the Manhattan Project team developed the atomic bomb: Robert Oppenheimer, David Bohm, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, Otto Frisch, Rudolf Peierls, Felix Bloch, Niels Bohr, Emilio Segre, James Franck, Enrico Fermi, Klaus Fuchs and Edward Teller

As early as 1939, Albert Einstein and several prominent scientists had written a letter to President Roosevelt suggesting that the United States should launch a special research program to develop an atomic bomb. The Americans only needed such a weapon after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941. Since the first atomic bomb studies had begun at Columbia University in Manhattan, a top-secret atomic bomb development program called the “Manhattan Project” was launched in 1942.

With the Manhattan Project, thousands of scientists set to work in various parts of the country to build atomic bombs. Security at the Manhattan Project was extremely tight; only a few of the scientists knew what their colleagues were doing. At the Manhattan Project’s purpose-built facilities in Los Alamos, New Mexico, the scientific director of the atomic bomb Dr. Robert Oppenheimer oversaw the drawing and preparation of the bomb, or “The Beast” as it was code-named.

Three years later, at 5:30 a.m. on July 16, 1945, in a remote corner of the New Mexico desert, the first Manhattan Project atomic bomb was tested. A huge fireball lit up the sky above the desert and a mushroom cloud rose to a height of 7,580 miles (12,200 meters). Oppenheimer interpreted the event by quoting a Hindu sacred text: “Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”

The Manhattan Project team that invented the atomic bomb consisted of the following scientists: Robert Oppenheimer, David Bohm, Leo Szilard, Eugene Wigner, Otto Frisch, Rudolf Peierls, Felix Bloch, Niels Bohr, Emilio Segre, James Franck, Enrico Fermi, Klaus Fuchs and Edward Teller.

How Does An Atomic Bomb Work?

The atoms that make up matter consist of a central nucleus surrounded by electrons. The nucleus is held together by strong binders that are difficult to break.

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In 1919, New Zealand-born physicist Ernest Rutherford, working at the University of Manchester, showed that the nucleus of an atom could be broken apart if bombarded with extremely powerful energizing particles. However, he was skeptical that there was a source of energy on Earth that could produce this kind of transformation, as it would take a great deal of energy to break apart the binding forces in the nucleus.

However, Ernest Rutherford had not taken uranium into account. In a way, like a drop of water that stretches and finally splits in two, the uranium nucleus wobbles when it reaches the very edge of instability, and it only takes a slight collision with a neutron to shatter it. Discovered in 1938 in Berlin by Otto Hahn and Lise Meitner, this so-called “nuclear fission” produced two lighter elements from a heavier one which released a huge amount of energy and demonstrated how an atomic bomb could work.

Enough Uranium

The nuclear tests were carried on before and after Hiroshima.

What made this discovery so revolutionary was this: In the process of fission, the uranium nucleus releases two neutrons, which are enough to fission two more nuclei, thus freeing four neutrons, and so on indefinitely. All that is needed for a self-sustaining chain reaction was to use enough uranium so that the neutrons produced would not escape until they had caused more fission.

This “enough” which is called the “critical mass” was different for each element. The intriguing result of fission was that two lighter atoms were produced from the heavy atom that was scattered, and their combined mass was lighter than the heavier atom. This mass was converted into energy according to Albert Einstein’s equation E=mc².

So, to make a nuclear bomb, it was necessary to create a critical mass of uranium, known as uranium-235, which is only 0.7 percent of naturally occurring uranium. Another route to the atomic bomb was to use plutonium, an element that could be produced by neutron bombardment of U-238, a more abundant form of uranium that does not occur in nature. The atomic bomb on Hiroshima used uranium, and the atomic bomb on Nagasaki used plutonium. But both worked by fusing the critical mass at the moment of detonation.

Who Are the Hibakusha?

In Japan, hibakusha, meaning “bomb-affected person”, is the name given to the thousands of Japanese who survived the atomic explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Although deaths from the immediate effects of radiation ended within the next two months of the bombs being dropped, many hibakusha who were exposed to radiation at the time went on to die from bomb-related diseases such as cancer and leukemia. Others, disfigured beyond recognition, lived in pain and torture for years.

Because no one knows for certain how many of the hibakusha died of bomb-related diseases, the Japanese have never released a complete list of atomic bomb deaths. The experiences of these unfortunate people have since become the basis for the limits of trust in X-rays or other forms of radiation emission and the radiation applied. Based on the dose received by the victims and the level of radiation-induced illnesses, a limit was set for the radiation that people could tolerate, including those working in the nuclear industry.

What Happened After?

The atomic bombs dropped three days apart on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki forced Japan to surrender on August 10, 1945. In an unexpected radio broadcast, Emperor Hirohito addressed his nation, many hearing his voice for the first time: “We have resolved, by enduring the unendurable and bearing the unbearable, to pave the way for a grand peace for all generations to come.”

The Soviet Union detonated its first nuclear bomb in 1949. Britain followed in 1952. More and more sophisticated and deadly atomic bombs were built. The bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were toys compared to these new ones. Today, at least ten nations in the world belong to the “nuclear club”.

Country	Warheads	First test	Number of tests
United States	5,428	16 July 1945 (Trinity)	1,054
Russia	5,977	29 August 1949 (RDS-1)	715
United Kingdom	225	3 October 1952 (Hurricane)	45
France	290	13 February 1960 (Gerboise Bleue)	210
China	350	16 October 1964 (596)	45
India	160	18 May 1974 (Smiling Buddha)	6
Pakistan	165	28 May 1998 (Chagai-1)	6
North Korea	20	9 October 2006	6
Israel	90	1960–1979	N/A

The current status of the “Nuclear Club” countries.

Atomic technology has also been used for the benefit of humanity. Nuclear reactors produce energy all over the world and radioactive isotopes are used in research, industry, and especially medicine.

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The most valuable lesson to be learned from the events in Hiroshima is that nuclear weapons should be seen as a last resort deterrent in future wars. Using a nuclear weapon could be the end for both sides or a catastrophe for the whole world.

Manhattan Project at a Glance

What was the Manhattan Project?

The Manhattan Project was a research and development program initiated during World War II with the goal of creating an atomic bomb. It was a collaborative effort between the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.

What led to the creation of the Manhattan Project?

The Manhattan Project was prompted by fears that Nazi Germany might develop atomic weapons first. It was initiated in response to a letter from Albert Einstein to President Franklin D. Roosevelt, expressing concerns about the potential military applications of nuclear fission.

Who were the key scientists involved in the Manhattan Project?

Several prominent scientists played crucial roles in the Manhattan Project, including Enrico Fermi, who led experiments on nuclear fission, and J. Robert Oppenheimer, who directed the Los Alamos Laboratory, where the bomb’s design was developed.

How were the atomic bombs developed during the Manhattan Project used in World War II?

The atomic bombs developed during the Manhattan Project were used in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945. These bombings played a significant role in hastening Japan’s surrender and ultimately ending World War II.

What was the Trinity test?

The Trinity test was the first detonation of an atomic bomb conducted as part of the Manhattan Project. It took place on July 16, 1945, in New Mexico, and successfully demonstrated the explosive power of a nuclear weapon.

September 4, 2022

History of Tea: The Origin of a Global Phenomenon
The tea plant, Camellia sinensis, is part of a Chinese beverage tradition. This beautiful evergreen shrub (or tree, if it is allowed to grow) likes high-altitude, warm, acidic soils with good rainfall. Like coffee and certain other plants, its leaves contain two important alkaloids: caffeine and theophylline. Both stimulants and addictive, these alkaloids explain why tea (and coffee) are so widely drunk.
How Is Tea Made?
Camellia sinensis, the plant from which tea is harvested, is the source of this beverage. This plant comes in two different types: It is the Camellia sinensis assamica plant that is used to make Assam tea or Indian tea, whereas the Camellia sinensis plant is used to make Chinese tea. The former can survive harsher conditions and has smaller leaves.
Even though tea plants have the potential to grow to 55 feet (17 meters) in height, when planted for commercial purposes, they are regularly clipped so that they stay shrubs no higher than 6.5 feet (2 meters). It’s the same plant that produces both black and green tea. However, fermentation is a vital step in the making of black tea. Following the harvest, the leaves are dried by airflow, which also stimulates enzyme production. After that, the leaves are crushed between two surfaces to break down the cells and release the sap that gives the tea its distinctive taste.
Origin of Tea
Camellia sinensis, the tea plant.
It is not known how tea drinking began in China, but by the middle of the 1st century BC, the leaves of this plant were being collected and perhaps brewed with other herbs. The leaves of C. sinensis were regularly chewed in the southwestern regions of China, the homeland of C. sinensis, just like today. The cultivation, preparation, and consumption of tea are intertwined with China’s tumultuous history going back to ancient times. Used as currency and as an official form of payment, the tea was subjected to consistently high taxes and monopolized by the state to maximize profits. The plant’s taste was so popular that it became almost a sacred herb.
Drinking tea was so important in Chinese society that tea was sometimes ceremoniously sipped. In 805, Buddhist monks studying in China took the plant back to their homeland, and the tea-drinking ceremonies were thoroughly ritualized in Japan. The Japanese tea ceremony achieved its highest form under a Japanese tea master named Sen Rikyu.
The ceremony was conducted in a special room built for this purpose with a group of five guests and was governed by strict rules. Entrance and exit from the room, the utensils used, the dialogue, and the sequence of actions were all carefully regulated. In a sense, the tea itself was overshadowed by the symbolism of the ceremony, but it still had to be carefully prepared, brewed, and perfectly presented. After Sen was killed in 1591 (for unknown reasons), different versions of the ceremony were made, but the importance of tea in ceremonies stayed a part of Japanese culture.
How Did the Russians Discover Tea?
Tea plays an important role in social life around the world. Mongol invaders adopted tea, which they mixed with milk and butter. The tea gradually spread to Russia and other Asian countries. The first Russians to be recorded drinking tea were two envoys sent to negotiate with a Mongol prince at the beginning of the 17th century.
The samovar seems to have been invented (or introduced to Europe) by the Russians after this encounter, and it became popular across the vast Russian territory. With its cleverly arranged internal apparatus, the samovar kept the water hot and the tea ready to drink at all times, which made it the embodiment of Russian domesticity. The tea plant came to Russia mainly via Kyakhta. This town on the border with Mongolia used to be very prosperous, and its historical importance flourished from the tea markets that were held here.
Tea Introduced to Europe
The shipping of tea at the port of Guangzhou, formerly Canton.
The tea plant was first taken to Europe by ship and reached Portugal and the rest of Europe in the 15th century with the discovery of ocean routes to Asia via the Cape of Good Hope. The Dutch began importing the tea plant to Europe in the early 17th century. The diarist Samuel Pepys recorded his first experience with this “Chinese drink” on September 25, 1660.
But when was tea widely introduced in England? In England, the herb started to be sold in Thomas Garraway’s famous coffee house in London’s Exchange Alley and quickly became popular along with coffee. Since the import tax for tea was set too high, most of the tea was smuggled into England.
Since the trade in the tea plant was carefully controlled and few foreigners ventured beyond the main port of Canton, for two long centuries, Europeans did not know in which part of China the tea was grown. Transporting tea from the interior lands, where it was grown and processed, to the port was time-consuming and required considerable organizational skills. At this time, it was thought that green tea and black tea came from different plants.
Opium Wars Between China and the British
The Opium Wars ended in China’s defeat.
The benefits and harms of tea had long been discussed, and lexicographer and tea drinker Samuel Johnson even had to publicly justify his tea addiction in the 18th century. But soon, the plant gradually became central to English social life. The English people highly demanded the plant, and the Chinese’s preference to get paid in silver led to the search for a bartering product to offset the costs of importing tea from China. For that, opium was perfect for the job.
One of the causes of the Opium Wars of the 19th century was the British obsession with tea. In the mid-19th century, the first fast cargo ships were competing to reach England from Chinese ports, and this competition was widely described in the newspapers. But the speed of the ships had nothing to do with the quality of the tea drink, as properly prepared herbs lasted a long time.
Intense market demand for tea led to a search for new regions where the plant could be grown. But after some unsuccessful experiments, tea began to be cultivated in greater and greater yields in British India, first in Assam, then in Darjeeling and other hilly regions. Tea plantations were established in Kenya and elsewhere in East Africa. In Ceylon (Sri Lanka), tea became popular after a fungal disease wiped out the country’s coffee plantations.
Robert Fortune: The Tea Spy
A poster from “The Great American Tea Company” from the early 18th century demonstrates that tea had already become a popular drink in the United States.
Even though India now consumes and produces more tea than any other country, commercial tea cultivation in India did not begin until the middle of the 19th century. The British East India Company engaged in a crafty act of biopiracy that facilitated the growth of the tea trade in the East. As demand for tea grew in Europe, the company saw an opportunity to overtake China as the biggest player in the tea market.
The Royal Horticultural Society sent Robert Fortune, a Scottish plant collector. “The tea spy,” Robert Fortune, despatched the tea seeds to Calcutta. According to his book, “A Journey to the Tea Countries of China,” he was able to secure nearly 20,000 tea plants, eight first-class tea farmers, and a wealth of equipment from the finest tea districts of China to the Himalayas in 1852.
India’s tea exports to the United Kingdom increased in value from £24,000 in 1854 to £20,087,000 in 1929. Today, there are now 3,300,000 US tons (3,000,000 metric tons) of tea manufactured each year to meet the global tea demand, making it the most widely consumed soft drink in the world.
The World’s First Tea Bags
The Twinings company was founded in 1706.
Tea remains one of the world’s most popular beverages, especially in the UK, Australia, Turkey, China, and India, where it was first produced. Today’s leading tea brands are often named after early tea entrepreneurs, such as Lipton, and Twinings. So is Earl Grey, flavored with bergamot peels. The introduction of the shaken tea packet in 1908 democratized tea, which was once drunk only by the elite, even though it was initially reviled by tea connoisseurs.
Types of Tea
The main difference between green tea and black tea is the collection and processing. Only the top three leaves of the tea plant—the top two leaves and the bud—are harvested by hand. Green tea leaves are picked when they are a little fresher and are not fermented (not allowed to oxidize). In China, green tea was most popular for its delicate flavor. The more resistant black tea, which undergoes more processing, is the national drink of many nations. Somewhere in between, oolong tea is also popular.
Camellia sinensis is a flowering branch of the tea plant. It is a plant in the same genus as garden camellias. The tip of the branch, or “two leaves and a bud”, is collected twice a year, in early spring and late spring/early summer. The “bud” of this plant is not an unopened flower but an immature leaf. The preparation of tea for drinking is a delicate process that requires knowledge and skill. When properly prepared and packaged, the tea plant lasts a long time, which is one of the reasons why it is loved all over the world today.
Sources:
1. James A. Benn (2015-04-23). Tea in China: A Religious and Cultural History. Hong Kong University Press. p. 173. ISBN 9789888208739.
2. Waley, Arthur, ed. The Opium War through Chinese eyes (1960).
3. Wong, John Y. Deadly Dreams: Opium, Imperialism, and the Arrow War (1856–1860) in China. (Cambridge UP, 2002)
September 4, 2022
The British East India Company
September 4, 2022
Ellis Island: How Did 30 Million People Immigrate to the United States?
September 4, 2022
Invincible Armada: How Was the Spanish Armada Defeated by England?
England and Spain were allies rather than enemies for much of their history. Queen Mary, the Catholic daughter of Henry VIII, cemented this alliance by marrying King Felipe II of Spain in 1554 (a childless marriage). When Mary’s Protestant sister Elizabeth succeeded her as queen of England in 1558, the old alliance began to break down. Elizabeth began to nurture English power and with it Protestantism, which Philip considered heresy.
When the Dutch rebelled against Spanish rule in 1566, Elizabeth encouraged them; when the rebel leader Prince William began to support Protestant pirate ships (known as “Sea Beggars” or Geuzen) to harass Spanish ships, English ports gave them shelter and English citizens joined them.
In 1567, John Hawkins, an English pirate, challenged the Spanish monopoly by selling African slaves in America. The following year he and his young lieutenant Francis Drake were expelled from New Spain (Mexico).
When Felipe ascended the Portuguese throne and united Spain and Portugal in 1580, rumors began to circulate in Europe about the threat of invasion. But it took time for Felipe to devote himself to his “divine mission”, which he defined as reclaiming the rights of his dead wife and reviving the Catholic faith in England. In 1586 he ordered the preparation of the Invincible Armada; it was to be fought.
Why Did the Armada Fail?
When Felipe II began to plan his invasion, he had only a few guides to follow. Until then, there had been no major clashes between fleets of sailing ships. A few boats were enough to protect treasure-laden ships from the New World. Spain never had a permanent navy until 1580 when it joined Portugal. An invasion by sea on this scale and distance was never planned by anyone, anywhere (except Spain).
Unfortunately, Felipe’s plan to use his navy to transport his army was a flawed idea. The main Spanish warship, the galleon, was essentially a floating fortress. Galleons were heavy and cumbersome ships. Victory depended on catching enemy ships with hooks and boarding them. The British had a completely different approach. They had a long-established navy, and a well-functioning maritime administration system, and had recently built better ships.
In 1573, John Hawkins, a former privateer who had recently made the Treasurer of the Navy Admiral changed the naval design by abandoning the bowsprit and building slimmer and faster ships. British warfare techniques were also different. British victory depended on sailors, not soldiers, defensive evasion and broadside fire from a safe distance.
The logistics of the Armada were also difficult, requiring 2.5 million gallons (11 1/4 million liters) of wine and water, 1000 tons of salted meat and similar quantities of rice, chickpeas, and beans. By the time the last supplies arrived, the previous ones were usually exhausted, the crews were sick and the ships had to be repaired.
Even for a king with resources like those of Felipe, the costs were extremely high. The Armada cost 4 million ducats, equivalent to half a year’s royal income, more than a hundred times the cost of Elizabeth’s defense. These difficulties and costs led to the final mistake: The assumption that the fleet and the army in the Netherlands could be united. In the end, this was not achieved, and in retrospect, the venture was doomed to fail from the start.
Invincible Armada’s Defeat Against the English
The 120 ships that made up the Spanish Armada fleet were anchored off Calais. The English fleet was less than two miles away. It was the most nerve-wracking moment since the Spanish invasion force had been sighted off the coast of England just over a week earlier at the end of July 1588.
The British knew that the Spanish were in desperate need of rest, food, ammunition, and men. If they stayed where they were, the French could lend support to their struggle and they could take advantage of the weakening of the Spanish army that had occupied the Netherlands. Refreshed and strengthened, thus, they could easily reach the shores of England. The British admiral, Charles Howard, Baron of Effingham, knew he had to drive the Spanish away. For Howard, the world had never seen a fleet like the Spanish Armada.
However, the Baron’s solution was devastating: Flaming fireships filled with oil, tar, and explosives, with cannons loaded with shells that ignited when heated and burst into flames. Floating on the water, with a favorable current and wind, those floating bombs approached just after midnight, crackling with flames and their cannons firing random salvos. Panic-stricken Spaniards cut their anchors and the ships were damaged by crashing into each other as they fled in panic. At dawn, the Spanish fleet came into view and the disorder was prevailed and the fleet was vulnerable to attack. The British made their move.
King Felipe II of Spain, the creator of the Invincible Armada (La Armada Invencible), wanted to consolidate his position in Europe and the world. Spain recently united with Portugal, had estates in the Netherlands and Italy, and colonies across the Atlantic rich in gold. Felipe’s income was ten times that of Queen Elizabeth’s. But the Netherlands had rebelled against the Spanish, the English were supporting the rebels, and Englishmen like Sir Francis Drake, or El Draque (The Dragon) as the Spanish called him, who pirated with government permission, were plundering Spanish treasures in the New World.
At El Escorial, his palace near Madrid, Felipe sifted through many plans. The final decision was to move half the army to the English Channel, to be supported by the troops of the Duke of Parma, Felipe’s commander in the Netherlands, and to mount a joint land and sea campaign to carry the combined army by ship to England and victory.
Francis Drake’s Confidence
The scenes behind the Queen depict the Armada.
In late April 1588, an invading fleet of 130 ships, more than 3,000 guns, 8,000 sailors, and 19,000 soldiers left Lisbon. It took Spanish Armada three months just to reach the English Channel. Storms drove the fleet into the port of Coruna in northern Spain. Ships fell apart, food rotted, and soldiers fell ill. The British, however, prepared as best they could. On Friday, July 29, a small scout ship arrived in Plymouth to report the long-awaited contact, while messengers on fast horses delivered the news to London within hours.
Drake was playing a game of ball at Plymouth Hoe when he received the news and knowing the sea currents well, he was reported to have said this, “There is time to finish the game and beat the Spaniards too”. When the tides turned, about 60 English ships sailed from Plymouth.
“If you fail, you fail; but the cause being the cause of God, you will not fail.”
Felipe II to Medina Sidonia
Medina Sidonia, the Spanish commander, had hoped the British would stay windward. But with a southerly wind, they appeared directly behind them on Sunday morning. In an extraordinary display of naval discipline, the remaining 120 Spanish boats slowly turned and formed an impenetrable half-moon. For nearly a week the two powers tried to outmaneuver each other. The Spanish ship San Salvador was blown up. Rosario’s bollard broke and fell victim to Drake who seized the opportunity. But the Armada held together, ready to meet the Duke of Parma.
Parma’s Incompetence
Meanwhile, reserve forces from ports on the south coast joined British Howard’s fleet. Gunpowder and shells began to arrive from the coast at a time when the Spanish were running low on ammunition, food, and water. Late on Saturday, the Spanish Armada anchored off Calais, from where Medina Sidonia sent pleading letters to the Duke of Parma in Dunkirk, 30 miles away. But the Duke of Parma had no warships to put his men to sea, and barges were easy targets. He couldn’t even send reinforcements.
It was the English fireships tactic that sealed the fate of the Invincible Armada. No Spanish ships were burned down, but as dawn broke on Monday the Spanish ships were already seen scattering to the northeast.
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By the time the few Spanish ships that remained calm had gathered together, Drake’s Revenge had lined up a line of ships all of which had begun broadside firing. The other Spanish boats gradually gathered to form a final half-moon until each was out of ammunition.
Only then did the British get close enough to destroy the thick Spanish ship’s buttresses. One ship sank with its crew of 275 men. Again and again, the Spanish tried to catch the British ships with their broadside hooks to get their men on board. Each time the British changed course. Three Spanish ships ran aground and the others drifted with their masts broken. 600 Spaniards were killed and 800 were disabled. In contrast, the British ships were all operational and only 100 men were lost. Meanwhile, the rest of the Spanish fleet drifted north to an unknown fate.
In What Conditions Did the Sailors Live?
Elizabeth’s beheading of her Catholic cousin and heiress Mary Queen of Scots in 1587 deepened Philip II’s hostility towards England.
The scale of the Invincible Armada alone posed unique problems. All Europeans had a centuries-old tradition of seafaring, but it went no further than short voyages from port to port. To fulfill Felipe’s orders, thousands of sailors were crammed into tiny cabins for three months before the fleet even reached the English Channel. In midsummer, the food on the ships spoiled in a matter of days. The water stored in wooden barrels also developed a muddy layer of dirt. People living in crowds in damp conditions easily became ill.
The British had a crucial advantage: Because they fought from their home ports, they never had to board the ships for months. Even so, the disease was difficult to deal with. The British lost about 100 men during their attack against the Armada. But they had also lost about 3,000 people who died of food poisoning before reaching the harbor. Fewer people died in the battle from cannonballs and musket fire than from splinters of shattered ship wood.
At the Battle of Gravelines, when a Spanish ship turned on its side while changing direction, the British saw blood pouring from the deck holes.
How Did the Spanish Escape?
For four days, English ships pursued the northbound Armada for four days as it sailed around the British Isles, aiming to return home. Off the coast of Scotland, they turned back because the food was running low and the Spanish were no longer a threat. The Spanish continued on their way to the final destruction.
Their supplies were running low as well. Horses and mules were thrown into the sea to save water. The daily ration was reduced to 250 grams (8.8 ounces) of bread, half a liter of water, and half a liter of wine. Typhus was rampant. Ships were wrecked, their timbers splintered and the equipment badly damaged by cannon fire.
Only half of the Spanish Armada ships reached their ports with sick or dying men. Three out of every four people who set sail with the Spanish Armada died in battle or from wounds or diseases sustained during the battles.
The Main Consequences of the War
The defeat of the Spanish Armada was a sign that the balance of power in Europe was shifting from the Catholic south to the Protestant north. It also symbolized the transformation of Europe from a Europe of small dynastic states to a Europe of nations.
Protestantism in England was finally secured. Soon after Elizabeth’s death in 1603, England and Scotland were united by the Protestant King James I. The defeat of the Armada was also an experience for England that confirmed the benefits and advantages of a strong maritime policy and politics and the tradition of sea travel. Within 20 years, a great new empire began to take shape across the Atlantic.
Spain’s dominance in Europe up to that time was now coming to an end. The Dutch, supported by the English, was recognized as a nation by a treaty of truce that came into force in 1609. This nation would later establish its own empire in the East Indies, competing with its former masters.
KEY DATES OF THE INVINCIBLE ARMADA
August 20, 1585: Signature of the Treaty of Nonsuch
After Spanish troops took over Europe’s biggest port city, Antwerp, on August 20, 1585, England, which was at war with Spain, tried to get the rebels of the Netherlands to fight against its dominance. The Queen of England agreed to send a few hundred horsemen and foot soldiers to help the rebels. In response, Spain sent an army of ships called a “Armada” to attack Great Britain with the goal of taking it over.
April 19, 1587: Francis Drake destroys the Spanish fleet at Cadiz
In April 1587, when some English troops were gathering in Antwerp and the Queen of England decided to help the Dutch rebels, Spain got ready to invade the country with its powerful fleet, which was called the Armada. At the same time, Francis Drake, who had heard about the danger, led his first mission against Philip II of Spain and, on April 19, set fire to 37 Spanish ships in the port of Cadiz. This attack started up the Anglo-Spanish War again, and it didn’t end until the Treaty of London in 1604.
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August 8, 1588: The defeat of the Invincible Armada
Off Gravelines, the 190 ships of the English fleet beat the 130 ships of the Spanish fleet (near Calais). The Spanish Armada was defeated by a storm and the better strategy of the English. So, Philip II of Spain fails in his plan to invade England and overthrow Queen Elizabeth I and bring back Catholicism. Lord Burghley, an advisor to the queen of England, will give the Spanish fleet the name “Invincible Armada” after the battle to make fun of them.
April 15, 1589: Departure of the Drake-Norreys Expedition
During the Anglo-Spanish War, Admiral Francis Drake and General John Norreys led the Drake-Norreys Expedition. Their goal was to fight against the Spanish Armada. This trip was called the Counter-Armada. Elizabeth I of England claimed the land after the English won the battle of Gravelines. However, the campaign failed because the Spanish navy was stronger. Spain could count on Portugal’s help, but the Queen of England wouldn’t help the English troops that were already in the area.
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Because of this, 13,000 people died.
September 4, 2022
Transatlantic Telegraph Cable: In 1858, Two Worlds Were Connected
How did the brave engineers of the 19th century manage to lay the first transatlantic telegraph cable in the history of communication? The question “What hath God wrought?” was the very first message to be sent using a commercial teletype, often known as a telegraph, in the year 1844. Around the year 1860, the practice of communicating over copper wires had already become commonplace. But the actual process of placing the wires was fairly difficult at times. The traditional mail soon became too slow, not in the least due to the ever-increasing presence of railways. Communication via the use of electrical impulses had contributed to the provision of a world that is capable of delivering rapid communications. But even this cutting-edge technology would eventually hit its constraints, namely those posed by the Atlantic Ocean.
Today it is conceivable to build cables over water; since 1850, one has been spanning the English Channel to link London and Paris. However, the ocean presents a different challenge than a smaller body of water would.
Up until 1858, there were several attempts made to lay a telegraph cable over significant bodies of water on the continent of North America. In 1855, an attempt to run a cable over the Cabot Strait located in Canada was proven unsuccessful.
First Stop: Canada, Followed by the Continents
A telegraph engineer by the name of Frederick Newton Gisborne was the first to install an undersea telegraph cable that connects North America to the rest of the world. He was successful, at least for a brief period. Even though it is just 9 miles (15 km) long, the cable that ran across Northumberland Strait demonstrated the advanced engineering of the time. However, before Gisborne could benefit from it, the firm that he founded expressly for this enterprise went bankrupt, and owing to his amassed debts, he was even imprisoned for a brief time.
However, not long after that, he found himself in contact with C. W. Field. His ability to see into the future and be persistent would prove to be a game-changer for transatlantic communication despite the obstacles and failures he encountered along the way.
Cyrus West Field.
Cyrus West Field was the eighth of ten children and was born in 1819. At the time of his birth, he had already amassed a fortune from the operation of a paper mill. He had the means to retire comfortably in 1853, one year before he met Gisborne and became acquainted with him.
However, Gisborne’s proposal to construct a cable that would cross the Atlantic Ocean piqued his interest. He went to two other guys in the hopes that they would have the knowledge he needed, although he had very little understanding of the situation. One among these individuals was Samuel Morse, the inventor of the telegraph. Morse, for his part, had already been cultivating ideas for constructing an underwater cable. The other person was Lieutenant Matthew Fontaine Maury, a member of the United States Navy who, following a serious accident, was confined to a wheelchair and assumed leadership of the United States Naval Observatory in Washington after he recovered from his injuries.
Since the publication of his book “The Physical Geography of the Sea,” Maury has had a reputation as an oceanography authority. Using a research vessel from the Navy, Maury had begun his exploration of the Atlantic below in 1853, halfway between Newfoundland and Ireland. After much consideration, he realized that a plateau he had discovered there would provide an excellent location for the base of a transatlantic cable.
The laying of the transatlantic cables from HMS Agamemnon in 1858.
Field, who is wealthy but not wealthy enough to finance the entire venture by himself, bought Gisborne’s old company—along with its debts—and founded the Newfoundland and London Telegraph Company with the assistance of various investors. Everything was now ready to be initiated with a budget of 1.5 million dollars established. To begin, a cable is to be laid across the Cabot Strait, and ultimately, connect to the telegraph network that is already in place in Nova Scotia.
Field had entertained the notion that this undertaking might prove to be less challenging than the installation of the later transatlantic cable. However, once the cable had successfully run over the Cabot Strait, virtually the whole budget of the corporation had been used up as a result of bad weather conditions and tough terrain. It was necessary to find new investors.
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This vital search resulted in the establishment of a new business, which will be known as the Atlantic Telegraph Company.
The First Transatlantic Telegraph Cable Was Placed
Installing the Atlantic Telegraph Cable from the USS Niagara, 15 August 1857.
Field made his way to England in order to present his new project; to lay a telegraph cable across the Atlantic Ocean. He was greeted with a great deal of interest but also some skepticism.
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In the end, he was successful in raising 350,000 British pounds, which, in today’s money, is equivalent to over 48 million pounds. This was achieved at a time when electrical impulses were falsely demonstrated to not go farther than 2,000 miles (3,200 km) underwater.
Field was not discouraged by this “finding” and in the year 1857, the first effort to install the transatlantic telegraph cable was started. The transatlantic cable project had the backing of both the United Kingdom and the United States governments, particularly in the form of the two ships HMS Agamemnon and USS Niagara, which were repurposed as cable ships.
On August 5, the first cable, which consisted of three thick copper wires insulated with gutta-percha (gum of a tree native to the Malay) and wrapped in tarred hemp rope, was installed in the southwest of Ireland close to Ballycarbery Castle.
However, the cable was damaged on the very first day that it was laid. After being fixed, the malfunction occurred again after 400 miles, this time with the cable end falling to the bottom, two miles below. The investors finally decided to put the matter to rest, which meant that the cable worth 36,000 pounds was to be discarded.
The next year, after spending many months figuring out how to properly and more securely install the cable, a second effort was made. This time, it was successful. The company followed a strategy that was a bit different than before: Once the two ships that were laying the Atlantic cables met each other halfway between North America and Ireland, they started laying the telegraph cables in the direction of their countries. However, the cables were again broken while on the return route, but the ships were able to fix them shortly after.
On August 5th, both ships, together with the cables that were installed, finally arrived at their destinations. This first-ever transatlantic telegraph cable spanned across the Atlantic Ocean for about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) at a depth of sometimes over two miles (3.2 km).
On August 10, 1858, Newfoundland sent its first test communications over the Atlantic Ocean. On August 12, the first transmission was received on Valentia Island, which is located in Ireland, on the opposite side of the Atlantic Ocean.
After the cable connecting the two hemispheres was laid down on the ocean floor, it left a lasting effect on the developed world: On August 13, 1858, the directors of the Atlantic Telegraph Company in England relayed to the directors in the United States:
Europe and America are united by telegraphy. Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, goodwill toward men!
Queen Victoria herself personally sent a message over the transatlantic line.
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In it, she offered her congratulations to James Buchanan, who was serving as President of the United States at the time.
The Cable Was Too Slow
The location of the Atlantic cable from London to New York.
However, the happiness did not last for very long. The first transatlantic cable had a transmission rate that was too slow. It takes more than 16 hours to send the whole 98-word response that the Queen had given.
The many different efforts to get a better transmission rate were not only unsuccessful but also disastrous in the end. The president of the Atlantic Telegraph Company, Edward Whitehouse, decided to increase the amount of voltage that is sent over the Atlantic cable. But as a direct consequence of this, a portion of the insulation melted, and ultimately the cable snapped.
It seemed that the ambition of constructing a cable across the Atlantic Ocean had been entirely dashed. Field had to put up with a lot of boasting and even accusations of fraud to keep his job. Because of the advent of the American Civil War in the 1860s, there were no more efforts made to lay another cable, for the first time.
One More Wire Preserves the Hope
But in 1865, a new Atlantic cable effort was made using new delivery techniques and, most importantly, a new and superior cable. This new attempt was made with the help of the scientist William Thomson, Lord Kelvin, who is now recognized as the namesake of the temperature unit Kelvin. The new attempt was successful. The transatlantic cable was installed by the ship “Great Eastern,” which was a remarkable technological wonder at that time.
But Field was not discouraged in the least when the new cable was severed on the first attempt to lay it around 600 miles (965 kilometers) off the coast of Newfoundland. The ship sailed once again from England on July 13, 1866, this time carrying a replacement cable. This time the laying did not give rise to any remarkable events, but it was a success.
Field sent a new transatlantic telegraph message to the Associated Press in New York on July 29, 1866, announcing the successful installation of the second cable. A few days later, the Atlantic cable linked to the existing telegraph network in the United States.
Rivalry Is Always Good for Business
With a fee of one dollar for every 15 words sent or received, using the Atlantic telegraph cable was set to be quite pricey at first. In the year 1869, a new telegraph cable owned by a French corporation was laid all the way from France to Massachusetts. After that, the cost of transatlantic communication began to drop, and it didn’t take long until it was used by the general public.
C. W. Field’s fortune improved dramatically as a result of the cable. He already had a fortune of six million dollars by the year 1880; adjusted for inflation, that number would be equivalent to 150 million dollars today. However, he would not be able to keep the money for long since, in 1887, he gambled it all away on Wall Street and lost everything. When he passed away in 1892, he had nothing to his name.
However, his legacy will live on in the shape of improved methods of modern communication across the continental regions of the globe. The Atlantic cable that was installed in 1866 was still in use after almost 100 years, right up until the 1960s. Moreover, today we pretty much use the same method, just with far more advanced cables.
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The Blackfoot Tribe and Their 10,000 Years of History
For thousands of years, indigenous people on the northern plains known as the Blackfeet tribe (really “Blackfoot” since the term in Siksika is singular) drove bison over cliffs. Buffalo hunting gave the Blackfoot everything they needed to live. A large granite face rises from the plains in southern Alberta. The sandstone cliffs dominate the picture from several miles away while approaching the Rocky Mountains from the east.
The plains look to continue forever from the Rocky Mountains. It culminates in cliffs where the granite drops nearly as steeply. Bison were originally driven here by Blackfoot tribes. Panicked animals leaped from the cliff into their deaths. Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump was used as a slaughterhouse for around 6,000 years and is now a heritage site.
Buffalo skulls and bones piled up at the bottom of the 32-foot (10-meter) sandstone wall when Junius Bouton Bird of the American Museum of Natural History began digging there in 1938. Stone instruments were used by hunter-gatherers to carve their victims. Since then, scientists have found how Stone Age hunters trapped and processed animals. Several Blackfoot tribes of 80–240 people worked together to achieve the hunt.
Throughout history, hunting influenced the civilizations of these people. Buffalo-themed songs, art, beliefs, and mythology on the Buffalo Head-Smashed-In Jump’s sandstone cliffs are remnants of a highly sophisticated culture like Egypt’s pyramids, India’s Taj Mahal, and Peru’s Machu Picchu. In 1981, they were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
UNESCO added another Blackfoot site 125 miles (200 km) east in July 2019: Áísínai’pi, or Writing-on-Stone, is a park with several sandstone hoodoos sculpted by wind and water. On rock walls, over 100 Blackfoot figures are painted or carved. The hoodoos were revered by the Blackfoot. The Shoshone tribe, whose hunting grounds encircled Blackfoot, might have drawn here as well.
Rock Structures From the Ice Age
Six Blackfeet Chiefs by the North Saskatchewan River in Saskatchewan, Canada. The painter is Paul Kane. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
The cult site was formed from the remains of a massive lake 85 million years ago when dinosaurs roamed the Earth. The pressure exerted by the overlying masses compacted the sand at the bottom of the body of water, transforming it into sandstone. Massive amounts of water eroded the sandstone as the last Ice Age glaciers receded 20,000 years ago.
Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park is located in one of these glacier valleys. Its northern bank is bounded by sandstone cliffs. Because of the “rain shadow” cast by the Rocky Mountains, the prairies are parched. Rain can wash porous sandstone cliffs into the Milk River.
The sun heats the area to 104°F (40°C) in the summer, while arctic air cools it to -40°F (-40°C) in the winter. The temperature differential and intense frost pulled pieces of the cliff away, resulting in strange rock formations. Prairie winds also sandblasted the rocks, carrying the sand away. This resulted in the formation of hoodoos, which typically consist of a hat-like, hard stone spire and a slender sandstone column.
For 4,000 years, Stone Age hunter-gatherers concealed themselves from the wind by hiding under hoodoos. The Blackfoot, and less often the Shoshone, Cree, and Assiniboine, journeyed to the Milk River, where beavers built dams and where species like mule deer still live today.
These animals were less difficult to dispatch than the big buffalo. The native people wrote about hunting bison, mule deer, and beaver in hoodoos, as well as some heroic actions and European colonization. The drawings were created by the Blackfeet or Blackfoot people using buffalo grease and red soil. Archaeologists are continuously discovering fresh petroglyphs today.
The Ford T in the Sandstones
The ages of these Blackfeet artworks are simply estimates. Around 1730, the Shoshone brought horses to the region. Around 1750, the Blackfoot started to hunt buffalo on horseback. Hunters probably employed buffalo-hide shields before 1750, as shown by petroglyphs. Personal insignia, similar to European coats of arms, are often displayed on the shields.
In those images, native folks raise their arms. Others, most likely dancers, support themselves on their hips or knees. Archaeologists are baffled by the pictures, but Blackfoot elders recognize their importance and refuse to share them with non-native Canadians.
A rock sculpture resembling a Ford T has been decoded by experts. Between 1908 and 1927, 15 million were produced in the United States. A Blackfoot dubbed “Bird Rattle” traveled from a Montana reservation to the Milk River hoodoos in September 1924 and carved a vehicle into the rock.
The Dangers of Buffalo Hunting
Alfred Jacob Miller (1810–1874), Hunting Buffalo. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
Writing-on-Stone was a spiritual and cultural center for the Blackfoot, but Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump depicts aboriginal life before horses and weapons. The buffalo hunt was more difficult and deadly back then. The shoulder height of a bison bull is 5.75 feet (1.75 meters), putting it at eye level with a human. Bison may grow to be 10 feet (3 meters) tall and weigh up to 1800 pounds (800 kilos).
Buffalo calves were easier to hunt since they were half the size of humans. The 40-pound (18-kg) calves remained close to their mother for a year while being fully protected by her. However, even one-year-old bison weighing 450 to 650 pounds (200 to 300 kg) are not easy prey, so hunting buffalo was always tough until the Blackfoot began using horses and weaponry about 1750. Although bison were difficult to kill, aboriginal Americans such as the Blackfoot prized their meat, fat, hides, skins, bones, and horns.
Using Bison and Wolf Masks
Bison hunting was difficult for indigenous Canadians since the animals roamed in herds in Alberta and Montana. Because there were few trees on these plains, hunters like Blackfoot couldn’t sneak up on animals. The best time for this was about midday. On the grass, bison sat and chewed their cud. Because buffalo can’t see well in the wind, Blackfoot hunters approached them against the wind and on their knees.
A stalking hunt by a Blackfoot family provided food for many days. However, this method was not producing enough prey for the winter. Thus, hunter-gatherers in what is now Texas drove bison off a cliff 10,000 years ago to capture a large number of them at once.
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo is 32 feet (10 meters) tall. The Jump strata features the region’s first mass hunt evidence. Using C14 carbon dating, deep bison bones were dated at 5800 years. By that time, aboriginal hunter-gatherers were chasing bison over cliffs to hunt them all at once. Two stone spearheads discovered in a neighboring stream valley show that early people similar to the Blackfoot civilization were in the region 9000 years ago. It’s unclear if they were just passing by, setting up their winter camp in the canyon, or hunting on the cliffs.
Bow and Arrow Hunting, Spear Slings, and the Sandstone Cliff
The “stone tips” that were found with the buffalo bones under the cliff help to figure out how the Blackfoot tribe hunted. The tips are from stone arrows (or spearheads), indicating that when the buffalo survived the fall, the Blackfoot generally ended it with a bow and arrow. The oldest stone tools date back more than 1700 years. Before it, they used spear throwers.
The 1,6-foot (0.5-meter) sticks helped in the lengthening of the throwing arm and accelerated the wooden spears to approximately 90 miles per hour (150 km per hour). They were more powerful than a hand-thrown spear. This technique was developed by Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump 5800 years ago. And the locals did not employ spear throwers until 4200-3200 years ago since no spear points until this period were discovered on sandstone cliffs.
The Stone Age inhabitants drove buffalo over cliffs only at a certain time of year and established a large butchery in the fall. The reason was that the calves born in the spring were half a year old at this time, and the juvenile buffaloes were 1.5–2 years old. These ages were determined by experts using fossilized teeth since other animal remains are uncommon.
The buffalo had congregated in a hollow west of the cliffs before the fall hunt. The groundwater was high there, and fresh, healthy grass sprang abundantly. The Blackfoot shamans and elders agreed to begin the hunt if the weather was fair and the wind blew in such a manner that the animals didn’t notice the humans. However, this only occurred every few years. After all, there were additional “Buffalo Jump” stone cliffs found on the plains. However, the Stone Age slaughterhouse at Head-Smashed-In is the best preserved and reveals the most about Blackfoot hunting methods.
“Dead Men” Stones as Buffalo Scarecrows
The bison that roamed in the depression were in excellent condition. They’d put on winter fat and grow a thick coat. The Blackfoot got ready for the hunt by making a trail from the valley to the cliffs. Every few feet, they laid stones along the route. They were dubbed “death men” by Blackfoot. Many of them are still standing today, reminding us of Stone Age times. Small bushes were put into the piles to provide hair for the buffalo scarecrows. And the bison was terrified of this.
According to Blackfoot folklore, young Blackfoot males called “buffalo runners” came up behind the herd. They were dressed in animal skins. The buffalo were worried but not scared. They continued to graze while avoiding the disguised “dead men.” Animals cautiously approached the cliffs along these guardrails.
The Blackfeet men crept in front of the herd, dressed in bison calf skins and greased with bison fat. Thus, they stunk like buffalo. When they bleated like calves, the cows rushed to their aid. From behind the cairns, shouting Blackfoot men waved buffalo skins just before the edge. As a consequence, terrified bison stampeded. The animals were unable to halt at the cliff’s edge and fell to their deaths.
The cliffs were 65 feet (20 meters) high 5800 years ago, and most buffalo died as a result of the falling. The cliffs have stayed about 33 to 36 feet (10 or 11 meters) in height over time due to the accumulation of bones in the area.
Butchering of Prey
Blackfoot hunters utilized spearguns or bows and arrows to kill the animals below the cliffs. Then the real job began. Some of the stone rings that held Blackfoot tents to the ground are still visible today. Hundreds of Blackfoot people peeled bison skins using stone scrapers.
After the animal was hacked up, sinews and bones were used to make thread and tools. The Blackfeet used stone knives to cut buffalo meat into thin strips, which they sun-dried on wooden racks. To get the marrow, bison leg bones were shattered. They burned stones in a pit lined with fresh buffalo leather to remove fat from bone fragments.
From this, entrail tallow, and powdered beef pieces, the Blackfoot kneaded pemmican. Dried berries were used as a seasoning. The thing about Pemmican is that it preserves well and is nutritious. The Blackfoot were able to endure the winter because of this shelf-stable food. They ate it this way or dissolved it in hot water like instant soup.
The End of a Lifestyle
In 1874, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) established its first post in Blackfeet territory, and European settlers quickly followed. By 1881, bison were almost extinct. After losing their livelihood, the Blackfoot adapted to a new environment. Today, about 30,000 Blackfoot people live in Montana and Alberta, farming, raising cattle, and manufacturing crafts. Others are still unaware of their 1,000-year-old bison-centered lifestyle.
Sources and further reading:
- Grinnell, George Bird (1892). “Early Blackfoot History”. American Anthropologist.
- West, Helen B. (Autumn 1960). “Blackfoot Country”.
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Treaty of Tordesillas (1494): Splitting the World in Two
Signed on June 7, 1494, the Treaty of Tordesillas established an imaginary line running across the Atlantic to the west of the Cape Verde Islands, demarcating the overseas possessions of Spain and Portugal. By this treaty, which would later be ratified by a papal bull, the Catholic Monarchs and King John II of Portugal shared the New World, which was still unexplored. Other European maritime powers were denied any rights to these new lands.
King Francis I of France would demand to see “the clause of Adam’s will that excludes him from this division.” The Native American, African, and Asian populations, however, were not consulted during the negotiation of Tordesillas…
Spain and Portugal Divide the World
As early as the mid-15th century, Portuguese navigators and explorers ventured into the Atlantic Ocean in search of a new trade route to Asia, establishing trading posts along the African coasts. The passage around the Cape of Good Hope, the gateway to the Indian Ocean, by Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias in 1488 paved the way to Asia. But soon, Portugal found itself in competition with the rising power of Spain. In the 1480s and 1490s, Portugal was forced to cede its territorial claims to the Canary Islands in favor of Queen Isabella, which was formalized by the Treaty of Alcáçovas in 1479.
It was especially the discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus that made it urgent to establish a dividing line between the spheres of influence of the two Iberian countries. In 1493, a papal bull by Pope Alexander VI set the “demarcation” line from pole to pole 100 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. This was a victory for the Spanish, but the King of Portugal soon requested that this line be renegotiated. Negotiations began in May 1493 in Tordesillas, in the province of Valladolid.
The Treaty of Tordesillas
Treaty of Tordesillas (1494). (Image: Jl FilpoC, Wikimedia Commons, CC 4.0)
By the Treaty of Tordesillas, signed on June 7, 1494, between the Catholic Monarchs and King John II of Portugal, Spain and Portugal set the line dividing their future overseas possessions: this line, originally established by Pope Alexander VI in 1493 at 100 leagues west of the Azores and Cape Verde, was moved, at the request of the Portuguese, to 370 leagues. Any land discovered to the east of this line was to belong to Portugal; to the west, to Spain. The Treaty of Tordesillas was confirmed by Pope Julius II in 1506 (Bull Inter Caetera). Henceforth, all lands discovered to the east of this line would be Portuguese, and all territories to the west would belong to the Spanish Crown.
The treaty reserved for Portugal the most coveted trade routes, those leading to the precious spices of the East, establishing trading posts along the African coasts and in Asia. The adjustment made by Tordesillas granted Portugal rights over the American continent, where the small Iberian kingdom would establish its only settlement colony, Brazil.
On the other hand, Spain would be able to create a vast empire beginning with Mexico and Peru, rising to the rank of Europe’s leading power. The wealth from the gold and silver flowing from the Americas would finance its wars in Europe while stimulating the economy of the old continent. By 1550, Spain controlled almost all of South America, Central America, Florida, Cuba, and in Asia, the Philippines.
The newly found areas outside of Europe were split between Portugal and Castile by the Treaty of Tordesillas (7 June 1494).
A Quickly Contested Treaty
By the 16th century, the two nations began to make breaches in the Treaty of Tordesillas. The Portuguese colony of Brazil expanded far beyond the demarcation line, and in Asia, Spain seized the Philippines and Ternate, which were supposed to be within the Portuguese sphere of influence. The demarcation line and all associated agreements were abolished in 1750 by a treaty settling a conflict regarding the southwestern border of Brazil. The 1750 treaty was itself abrogated in 1761, and new disagreements between the two countries were settled by another treaty in 1779.
The northern European maritime nations (England, France, and the Netherlands) paid little attention to the various treaties signed by Spain with the papacy and Portugal, and from 1520 onward, their merchant ships increasingly entered the Caribbean Sea, supplying the major islands with African slaves. In the 17th century, as Portugal and Spain declined, they could only watch helplessly as new colonial empires emerged within their spheres of influence defined by the Treaty of Tordesillas.
Treaty of Tordesillas (1494) at a Glance
Is the Treaty of Tordesillas still in effect today?
The Treaty of Tordesillas is no longer in effect, as it was superseded by subsequent treaties and agreements that shaped the geopolitical landscape in the centuries following its signing. However, its historical significance in shaping early European colonial expansion remains noteworthy.
What were the long-term consequences of the Treaty?
The Treaty of Tordesillas had significant long-term consequences for the division of colonial territories. It established Spain and Portugal as major colonial powers and laid the groundwork for their respective overseas empires.
How did the Treaty impact indigenous peoples?
The Treaty of Tordesillas did not consider the rights of indigenous peoples in the New World. As European colonization progressed, indigenous populations were often subjected to exploitation, forced labor, and cultural assimilation.
What led to the signing of the Treaty of Tordesillas?
The signing of the Treaty was prompted by the 1493 papal bull, Inter caetera, issued by Pope Alexander VI. This papal bull divided the newly discovered lands outside Europe between Spain and Portugal along a meridian line, giving each empire exclusive rights to claim and colonize territories on their respective sides.
What was the purpose of the Line of Demarcation in the Treaty?
The Line of Demarcation was a key element of the Treaty of Tordesillas. It was an imaginary line drawn north to south on a map, approximately 370 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Lands discovered to the west of this line would belong to Spain, while those to the east would belong to Portugal.
Bibliography
1. Roland Chardon, “The linear league in North America“, (1980).
2. Horst Pietschmann, Atlantic history: history of the Atlantic System 1580–1830, (2002).
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