The Third Journey: Chaos and Rebellion

As we returned back to Spain, Columbus faced mixed emotions and reactions. Spanish Crown and the people had expected him to discover more than he did and they worried about rebellion from the Tainos. Columbus insisted on going on a third voyage to continue his discoveries and promised to bring colonies and treasure to the country. With that, 6 ships were arranged for us and we departured Sanlucar de Barrameda on May, 1498.

We regrouped in Gomera where Columbus split our fleet, sending half our ships to Hispaniola for supplies and resources and left the rest for exploration purposes. I stayed with Columbus's crew and later on land would be sighted and would later be known as Trinidad off the coast of Venezuela. This discovery motivated Columbus to sail South, believing more unknown land would be discovered.

We later on entered the Gulf of Paria which was bordered by Trinidad. Columbus recognized this as new area, believing this was the New World and planting the Spanish flag. After further sailing we reached a new area that Columbus referred to as "Another World" as he spotted the flow of fresh water from the Orinoco river.

After marking his discoveries, Columbus lead us back to Hispaniola to check on the colony set up during our previous voyage. Upon arrival we found the colony in poor condition. Bartholomew and Diego, Columbus's brothers, were left in the colony to keep rule over it previously and it was reported that their rule was extreme and unfair. Tainos continued resisting which left the colony completely divided and chaotic. The news reached spain which caused the Spanish people to question and revolt against Columbus and his brothers as they accused them of mismanagement and lying about bringing wealth to the country. This led to the Spanish Crown appointing Francisco de Bobadilla to investigate Columbus and his brothers, he would soon arrive to Hispaniola in 1500. Upon arriving and assessing the disruptive and chaotic state of the colony, Bobadilla arrested Columbus and his brothers, accusing them of power abuse and sent them back to Spain. They arrived to Spain as prisoner, after hearing Columbus side they ultimately set him free, however, his great titles were stripped away and the Crown would not trust him.