Christopher Columbus' Description of Native American weaponry to King
Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain:
They (the natives] are all, as I said before, unprovided with any sort of iron, and they are destitute
[lacking] of arms (guns), which are entirely unknown to them. They carry, however, canes dried in the
sun in place of weapons, upon whose roots they fix a wooden shaft, dried and sharpened to a point. But
they never dare to make use of these, for it has often happened, when I have sent two or three of my
men to some of their villages to speak with the inhabitants...but, when they saw our men approaching,
they speedily took to flight, parents abandoning their children, and children their parents."
Source: Christopher Columbus "Letters to Ferdinand and Isabella, 1493.
1
Historical Context - refers to the historical circumstances that led to this
event/idea/historical development.
1. Using document 1, explain how the historical circumstances affected the
interaction between Native Americans and Europeans. [1]
