The Rediscovered Islands. Draft

As I have promised, I uploaded a draft copy of  The Rediscovered Islands. This will be the third chapter of Unit I of my third book. 

The article delves into the medieval history of the Canary Islands from their rediscovery in the 1430s to European colonization in the course of the 15th and 16th centuries. The author emphasizes the dark sides of the European intrusion, including ecological imperialism and genocide.

 

Tags: Brothers Vivaldi, Cape Non, Francesco Petrarch, Angelino Dulceti, Luis de la Cerda, Afonso IV, Boccaccio, Jean de Bethencourt, Gadifer de la Salle, Ferdinand of Aragon, Isaballa of Castile, Pedro de Vera, Alfonso de Lugo

The article includes five parts. The first part, The Priority of Discovery, sums up what is known about the possible date of the discovery and the name of the first explorer. It shows that from the beginning there were several contenders on the coveted territory. 

The second part, People Behind the Scenes, explains what kind of people encountered the Europeans when they landed on the Canaries. 

The third part, The Norman conquest, focuses on the first conquerors, Jean de Bethancourt and Gadifer de la Salle.

The fourth part, The Royal Conquest, analyses the takeover of the last three islands.

The fifth part, The Sugar Islands, observes the staple crop of the first European colonizers and describes the atmosphere associated with the production of the cash crops. 

The last part, Reassessment sums up the entire article and adds some colors to the picture. You can view the article at https://www.academia.edu/43517659/The_Rediscovered_Islands

Try Download PDF since the main section lacks some pages. 

I continue processing the text for the new chapter, The Quest for the River of Gold. The first section will deal with the Europeans who happened to visit or even settle in the medieval North Africa. 

I have to postpone my other project on social inequality in Chalcolithic Mesopotamia since I am studying at the seminar on ancient Rome, a FutureLearn project conducted by the Reading University. 

Best wishes and strength to endure this unusual period.