Christopher Columbus Wasn’t as Good—Or as Terrible—As You Think

History Unplugged Podcast

History Unplugged

Society & Culture, History

4.2 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 6 October 2017

⏱️ 11 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Depending on which account you hear, Columbus was either the bravest explorer of the early Renaissance or a mass murdered who subjected the indigenous population of the new world to death or slavery. Learn in this episode how Columbus was both and neither of these descriptions. TO HELP OUT THE SHOW Leave an honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really help and I read each one. Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher

Transcript

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0:00.0	The History of North America podcast is a sweeping historical saga of the United States,
0:09.4	Canada, and Mexico from their deep origins to our present epoch.
0:14.2	Join me, Mark Vinet, on this exciting, fascinating epic journey through time, focusing on the compelling,
0:20.8	wonderful, and tragic stories of North America's inhabitants, heroes, villains, leaders,
0:27.1	environment, and geography.
0:29.5	I invite you to come along for the ride!
0:59.5	Welcome to the History Unplugged Podcast, the unscripted show that celebrates unsung heroes,
1:14.6	Mythbust's historical lies, and rediscover the forgotten stories that changed our world.
1:21.3	I'm your host, Scott Rank.
1:29.5	Today's topic is, Christopher Columbus wasn't as wonderful or as terrible as you've heard.
1:36.0	Columbus Day is this Monday, so I thought it'd be fair to do a Columbus Day episode.
1:41.3	And I'd like to do it for a few reasons.
1:43.7	First, I'm trying to describe why Christopher Columbus is not as terrible as you've heard.
1:48.5	If you take in college coursework, if you've studied history at all, if you've tried to learn about things from the perspective of indigenous cultures,
1:56.9	and not just from the conquerors or the colonizers, Christopher Columbus comes off with a very bad rap.
2:03.7	He'd be described as a mass murderer, the one who instituted 400 years of slavery in the US,
2:10.0	and is single-handedly responsible for the subjugation of native peoples in North and South America.
2:15.7	On the other side of the coin, Christopher Columbus could be depicted as a hero,
2:20.3	somebody who undertook a very dangerous voyage, and against all reasonable expectation succeeded,
2:26.5	even though all the intellectual classes of Europe, the clergy, and monarchies thought he was a full-hardy sailor
2:32.8	who would fall off the edge of the earth.
2:35.5	Let's first approach the idea that Columbus was a hero who sailed bravely across the Atlantic
	...

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