Conquest of the Canary Islands

The ties between the Canaries and the Mediterranean world which had existed since antiquity were interrupted by the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire. Although these linkages were weakened, they were not totally severed, and the Canaries' isolation was not total. During the Middle Ages, the first reports on the Canaries come from Arabic sources, which refer to some Atlantic islands which may have been the Canaries. What does seem clear is that this knowledge of the islands did not signify the end of the cultural isolation of the native inhabitants.

Visits to the archipelago began to increase after the end of the 13th century for reasons including:

• The economic expansion of some European states, such as the Republic of Genoa, the Kingdom of Aragon, the Kingdom of Castille, and the Kingdom of Portugal. These states were already engaging in maritime trade along the Moroccan coast.
• Development of new navigation techniques (compass, astrolabe, stern rudder, cog-caravel) and the development of cartography: a portulan map by Angelino Dulcert of Majorca, from 1339, is the first to show some of the Canary Islands, and this date might in fact coincide with the effective rediscovery of the islands by the Genoese seaman Lanzarotto Malocello. The first expedition to visit all the islands of the archipelago took place two years later, in 1341, under the command of fellow Genoese seaman and explorer Niccoloso da Recco, at the service and on behalf of Portuguese king Afonso IV.
• Ideological and political motives: the monarchies of Southern Europe entered an expansive phase. In the case of the Iberian monarchies, their territorial expansion was spurred by the reconquista ("reconquest") of Moorish southern Spain (al-Andalus). For this reason, territorial expansion represented a reinforcement of royal power, imbued with crusader and missionary spirit.

The first visit by a European to the Canary Islands since antiquity was by Genoese captain Lanceloto Malocello traditionally dated 1312 (but possibly a little later, between 1318–1325).[1] Malocello's motives were unclear - it is believed he might have been searching for traces of the Vivaldi brothers who had disappeared off Morocco, around Cape Non back in 1291.[lower-alpha 1] Malocello made landfall (possibly shipwrecked) on Lanzarote island, and remained there for nearly twenty years. Malocello may have attempted to erect himself as a ruler among the aboriginal peoples and been eventually expelled by them.

According to some sources, shortly after his return to Europe, in 1336, Malocello led a return expedition to the Canaries, sponsored by the Portuguese crown.[3] However, the existence of this expedition has been dismissed by most modern historians, as being based on later forged documents.[4]

Portolan of Angelino Dulcert (1339) showing Lanzarote island

Evidently drawing from the information provided by Malocello, in 1339 appeared the portolan map by Angelino Dulcert of Majorca showing the Canary island of Lanzarote (named Insula de Lanzarotus Marocelus and marked by a Genoese shield), as well as the island of Forte Vetura (Fuerteventura) and Vegi Mari (Lobos).[5] Although earlier maps had shown fantastical depictions of the "Fortunate Islands" (on the basis of their mention in Pliny), this is the first European map where the actual Canary islands make a solid appearance (although Dulcert also includes some fantastic islands himself, notably Saint Brendan's Island, and three islands he names Primaria, Capraria and Canaria).[5]

In 1341, a three-ship expedition sponsored by King Afonso IV of Portugal, set out from Lisbon, commanded by Florentine captain Angiolino del Tegghia de Corbizzi and Genoese captain Nicoloso da Recco, and employing a mixed crew of Italians, Portuguese and Castilians. Cruising the archipelago for five months, the expedition mapped thirteen islands (seven major, six minor) and surveyed the primeval aboriginal inhabitants, the 'Guanches', bringing back four natives to Lisbon.[lower-alpha 2] (This expedition would become the basis of later Portuguese claims of priority on the islands.)

European interest in the Canaries picked up quickly after the 1341 mapping expedition. The descriptions of the primeval Guanches, in particular, drew the attention of European merchants, who immediately saw the prospect of new and easy slave-raiding grounds. In 1342, two Majorcan expeditions, one under Francesc Duvalers, another under Domenech Gual, assembled by private merchant consortia with a commission from Roger de Robenach (representative of James III of Majorca) set out for the Canary islands. The results of these expeditions are uncertain.

The Catholic Church was also drawn by the news. In 1344, the Castilian-French noble Luis de la Cerda (Count of Clermont and Admiral of France), then serving as a French ambassador to the papal court in Avignon, submitted a proposal to Pope Clement VI, offering the Church the more palatable vision of conquering the islands and converting the native Canarians to Christianity.[7] In November 1344, Pope Clement VI issued the bull Tuae devotionis sinceritas granting the Canary islands in perpetuity to Luis de la Cerda and bestowing upon him the title of sovereign "Prince of Fortuna". The pope followed this up with another bull, in January 1345, giving the projected Cerda-led conquest and conversion of the islands the character of a crusade, granting indulgences to its participants, and papal letters were dispatched to the Iberian monarchs urging them to provide material assistance to Cerda's expedition.[8] The Portuguese king Afonso IV immediately lodged a protest, claiming priority of discovery, but conceded to the authority of the pope.[9] Alfonso XI of Castile also protested, claiming that, by the ancient Visigothic dioceses and prior reconquista treaties, the islands fell within the Castilian jurisdiction and 'sphere of conquest', but nonetheless recognized Cerda's title.[10] Despite their formal concessions, preparations were stalled by the opposition of the Iberian monarchs, with the result that no expedition was mounted before Cerda's death in 1348.

With De la Cerda out of the picture, other parties resumed their adventures and we have notices of further expeditions by Majorcans (now annexed by Aragon) to the area - Jaume Ferrer in 1346 (aiming for Senegal, but might have touched the Canaries), Arnau Roger in 1352, and a royal-sponsored expedition by Joan Mora in 1366 (with instructions to also patrol for interlopers). These expeditions (and doubtless many other unrecorded ones, not only by Majorcans, but also likely by merchants of Seville and Lisbon) were almost wholly commercial, with the primary purpose of capturing native islanders to sell as slaves in European markets. But there was also some peaceful trade with the locals, particularly for orchil and dragon's blood, which grew wildly on the islands and were much valued as dyes by the European cloth industry.

The pope did not give up on his hope of converting the natives. In 1351, Pope Clement VI endorsed an expedition by Majorcan captains Joan Doria and Jaume Segarra, with the object of bringing Franciscan missionaries, including twelve converted Canarian natives (apparently seized by previous Majorcan expeditions), to the islands.[lower-alpha 3] Whether this expedition ever set out is uncertain. Apocryphal legend relates the missionaries succeeded established an evangelizing center at Telde (on Gran Canaria), which the pope elevated to the 'Diocese of Fortuna' (although no bull to that effect has been found), until they were expelled in a native uprising in 1354. More confidently is the bull issued in July 1369 by the Avignon Pope Urban V erecting the diocese of Fortuna and appointing Fr. Bonnant Tari as bishop, and a follow-up bull of September 1369 instructing the bishops of Barcelona and Tortosa to dispatch 10 secular and 20 regular clergy to preach to the Canarians in their native languages.[lower-alpha 4] But whether this actually set out or just remained a paper project is also uncertain. We have a more reliable record of a Majorcan expedition in 1386 carried out by 'Pauperes Heremite', sponsored by Peter IV Aragon and Pope Urban VI. Although their exact fate is unknown, there is a later report that thirteen "Christian friars" who had been preaching in the Canaries "for seven years" were massacred in an uprising during 1391.[lower-alpha 5] At least five missionary expeditions would be sent (or at least planned) between 1352 and 1386.[14]

Catalan Atlas (1375)

Geographic knowledge of the Canary islands coalesced with these expeditions. La Gomera and El Hierro are depicted in the 1367 portolan of the brothers Domenico and Francesco Pizzigano. The Catalan Atlas of 1375 shows the Canaries almost completely and accurately mapped (only La Palma is missing). The eleven islands are named in the Catalan Atlas (from east to west) as Graciosa (La Graciosa), laregranza (Alegranza), rocho (Roque), Insula de lanzaroto maloxelo (Lanzarote), insula de li vegi marin (Lobos), forteventura (Fuerteventura), Insula de Canaria (Gran Canaria), Insula del infernio (Tenerife), insula de gomera (La Gomera), insula de lo fero (El Hierro).[15] The name 'tenerefiz' is first given alongside 'Infierno' in the 1385 Libro del Conoscimiento.

During the 1370s, when Portugal and Castile were engaged in dynastic wars following the assassination of Peter I of Castile, Portuguese and Castilian privateers were dispatched against each other, several of which made detours to the Canary islands for shelter or slave-raiding jaunts. Ignoring the 1344 bull, Ferdinand I of Portugal granted (in 1370) the islands of Lanzarote and La Gomera to the adventurer 'Lançarote da Franquia' (believed by some to be none other than the impossibly-aged Lanceloto Malocello).[lower-alpha 6] This Lanzarote made an attempt to seize the islands and is reported to have engaged in fighting with "Guanches and Castilians" there.[lower-alpha 7]

There were several other reputed expeditions, since determined to be apocryphal.[lower-alpha 8] Among those deemed purely legendary are:

• (1) A 1360 Catalan-Majorcan expedition of two ships, captain unknown (alleged in legend to be the same Aragonese galleys prepared for Cerda back in 1344). Upon making landfall at La Gomera or Gran Canaria, the Europeans were defeated and taken prisoner by the native Canarians. After a certain period of time living among the Canarians (possibly a few years), the native chieftains secretly decided to kill all the prisoners. The entire crew, including the clerics (two Franciscan friars according to Abreu de Galindo, five says Viera y Clavijo), were swiftly rounded up and massacred by the Canarians.[lower-alpha 9]
• (2) a 1372 expedition by 'Fernando de Castro' (Galician, not his Portuguese namesake), who also made landing at La Gomera. After engaging in hostilities, Castro was defeated by the natives, but (unlike the 1360 expedition), the surviving Europeans were magnanimously spared and allowed to embark back to Iberia. Tradition claims that at the behest of the local king Amalahuige, Castro (or Oromel later) left behind his chaplain to convert his people to Christianity.[19]
• (3) the famous tale of the Biscayan privateer Martín Ruiz de Avendaño, who took shelter on Lanzarote in 1377, and, during his stay, slept with the queen Fayna, wife of native king Zonzamas. This liaison produced a daughter Ico, who went on to marry the next king Guanarame and produce a son, Guardafia. After Guanarame's death, Guardafia's ascension to the throne was blocked by suspicions that his mother Ico (Avendaño's daughter) was not of noble lineage, until she was put through a trial by ordeal (being smoked in hut, and survived).[lower-alpha 10]
• (4) A 1382 ship from Seville, commanded by Francisco Lopez, wrecked off Guinigada (Gran Canaria), with 13 survivors; they went on to live among the Canarian natives, until their deaths c.1394.[20]
• (5) An expedition in 1385 by Hernan Peraza, a Sevillan with a permit from Henry III of Castile.
• (6) A 1386 expedition of two ships, under the command of Fernando de Ormel, of Galician origin, but noble in Castile and naval officer of John I of Castile. While patrolling the Andalusian coast, was caught up in a storm and ended up emerging at La Gomera.[21]
• (7) A 1399 expedition of Gonzalo Peraza Martel, Lord of Almonastor (unlike the actual voyage of Almonastor in 1393).

Other legendary traditions include the apparition of the Virgin of Candelaria in 1392-93, encountered by two Guanches on the beaches of Tenerife.[22]

In the 14th century, a variety of forces competed for control of the Canaries: Genoese, Catalan-Mallorcan, Castilian, and Portuguese. In the following century, Castile and Portugal were the primary contenders.

Jean de Béthencourt

The conquest took place between 1402 and 1496. It was not an easy task, militarily, given the resistance of the Guanche aboriginals in some islands. Nor was it easy politically, given the conflicting interests of the nobility (bent on fortifying their economic and political power) and the state, particularly Castile, with an interest in reinforcing its own power in competition with the nobles.

Historians identify two distinguishable periods in the conquest of the Canaries:

• Conquista señorial, so called because the conquest was carried out by the nobility for their own ends and without the direct participation of the Crown. Under a pact of vassalage the Crown granted the rights to the conquest and in exchange the noblemen swore allegiance to the Crown. We can distinguish within this period two phases. The first is known as the Conquista Betancuriana o Normanda (the Bethencourt or Norman Conquest) was carried out by Jean de Bethencourt and Gadifer de la Salle between 1402 and 1405 and involved the subjugation of Lanzarote, El Hierro and Fuerteventura. The second phase is known as the Conquista Señorial castellana and was carried out by Castilian nobles whose appropriation of the land was mediated through purchase, cession and marriage. This phase included the land conquered in the first phase and also the island of La Gomera and lasted until 1450. A prominent force in this phase was the Peraza family, which had managed to successfully consolidated the Canary Islands under a single unified lordship and seigneury for the reigns of Hernán Peraza the Elder[23][24][25] and his daughter Inés Peraza,[26] though this did not hold.
• Conquista realenga. This term defines the conquest carried out directly by the Kingdom of Castile during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs who armed and part financed the conquest of the islands not yet subjugated: Gran Canaria, La Palma and Tenerife. This conquest ended in 1496 with the defeat of Tenerife and the integration of the Canaries Archipelago into the Kingdom of Castile. The Conquista realenga took place between 1478 and 1496.

The first period of the conquest of the Canaries was carried out by the Norman nobles Jean de Bethencourt and Gadifer de la Salle. Their motives were basically economic: Bethencourt possessed textile factories and dye works and the Canaries offered a source of dyes such as the orchil lichen.

Le Canarien

Bethencourt received important political support in the court of King Henry III of Castile. His uncle, Robert de Braquemont, gained the king's permission for the conquest of the Canary Islands on behalf of the Norman noble. In exchange for these rights Bethencourt became a vassal of the Castilian King. Robert de Braquemont invested a significant amount in the venture. The story of the Bethencourt Conquest was recorded in the chronicle known as the Canarien, compiled by two clerics Pierre Bontier and Jean Le Verrier. The original was adapted in two later versions, one by Gadifer de La Salle (which appears the more reliable of the two) and the other by the nephew of Bethencourt, Maciot de Bethencourt.

The Bethencourt era ended in 1418 when Maciot sold his holdings and the rights to subjugate the remaining islands to Enrique Pérez de Guzmán. From this point on the intervention of the King of Castile increased. Between 1418 and 1445 dominion over the islands changed hands on a number of occasions. Finally, control over the conquered islands and the right to further conquests fell to Hernán Peraza The Elder and his children Guillén Peraza and Inés Peraza. The death of Guillén Peraza in the attack on La Palma has been immortalized in a moving lament. After the death of her brother Inés and her husband Diego García de Herrera became the sole rulers of the islands until 1477 when they ceded La Gomera to their son Hernán Peraza The Younger and the rights to the conquest of La Palma, Gran Canaria and Tenerife to the King of Castile.

The island of La Gomera was not taken in battle but was incorporated into the Peraza-Herrera fiefdom through an agreement between Hernán Peraza The Elder and some of the insular aboriginal groups who accepted the rule of the Castilian. However, there were a number of uprisings by the guanches due to outrages committed by the rulers on the native Gomeros. The last one, in 1488 caused the death of the islands ruler, Hernán Peraza The Younger, whose widow, Beatriz de Bobadilla y Ossorio, succeeded him in rule and sought the assistance of Pedro de Vera, conqueror of Gran Canaria, in order to snuff out the rebellion. The subsequent repression caused the death of two hundred rebels and many others were sold into slavery in the Spanish markets.

The Catholic Monarchs: Ferdinand and Isabel

The second period of the Spanish conquest of the Canaries was different from the first in a number of ways:

• The Catholic Monarchs commanded and armed the invading forces.
• The funding for the enterprise was the responsibility of the Crown and individuals interested in the economic exploitation of the island's resources.
• The islands involved, Gran Canaria, La Palma and Tenerife, had larger populations and offered the best economic rewards.
• The guanches of the three islands, but particularly those of Gran Canaria and Tenerife, offered a clear and prolonged resistance to the conquest.

Conquest of Tenerife (1494–96)

Division of Tenerife at the time of the conquest

Tenerife was the last island to be conquered and the one that took the longest time to submit to the Castilian troops. Although the traditional dates of conquest of Tenerife are established between 1494 (landing of Alonso Fernández de Lugo) and 1496 (conquest of the island), it must be taken into account that the attempts to annex the island of Tenerife to the Crown of Castile date back at least to 1464.[28] For this reason, 32 years passed between the first attempt in 1464, until the island's final conquest in 1496.

In 1464, takes place in the barranco del Bufadero taking symbolic possession of the island by the Lord of the Canary Islas Diego Garcia de Herrera. This signing a peace treaty with menceyes, allowing shortly after mencey Anaga build a tower on their land, where Guanches and Europeans had treatment until it is demolished around 1472 by the same Guanches.[28]

In 1492 the governor of Gran Canaria Francisco Maldonado organized a raid ending in disaster for Europe, as they are defeated by the Guanches of Anaga.

In December 1493 Alonso Fernández de Lugo obtained the Catholic Monarchs confirmation of his right of conquest over the island of Tenerife and in exchange for renouncing the bonus promised for the conquest of La Palma he claimed governorship of the island, although he would not receive revenue from the quinto real tax.

The finance for the conquest was achieved by the sale of his sugar plantations in the valley of Agaete, obtained after the conquest of Gran Canaria, and by forming an association with Italian merchants who had settled in Seville.

At the time of the conquest Tenerife was divided into nine Menceyatos or kingdoms which can be divided into two camps, one largely in favour of the Castilians and the other opposed to them. The former which became known in Spanish as ″el bando de paz″, comprised the peoples of the south and east of the island (from the ″menceyatos″ of Anaga, Güímar, Abone and Adeje) who had previous contact with Castilians through the activities of the missionary Candelaria. The opposing ″bando de guerra″ was based in the ″menceyatos″ of the north: Tegueste, Tacoronte, Taoro, Icoden and Daute and maintained a fierce resistance to the invasion.

The First Battle of Acentejo, Tenerife

The invading force set sail from Gran Canaria in April 1494 and landed on the coast of present-day Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The force comprised 2,000-foot soldiers and 200 cavalry made up of peninsular Castilians as well as soldiers from the other Canary Islands (mainly from Gomera and Gran Canary). After building a fortress they advanced towards the interior of the island. They tried to negotiate with Bencomo, the most important king in the ″bando de guerra″, and offered peace if he accepted Christianity and submitted to the authority of the Catholic Monarchs. Bencomo rejected the conditions attached to the offer making confrontation inevitable.

The native kings of Tenerife surrender to Alonso Fernández de Lugo, 25 July 1496

The first armed encounter between the two sides was the celebrated First Battle of Acentejo that took place in a ravine called the Barranco de Acentejo or Barranco de San Antonio in the present day municipality of La Matanza de Acentejo. A force of more than 2,000 men advanced towards the north of the island through the valley of Taoro. The objective was to defeat the Guanches in the centre of their heartland. The guanches ambushed the invaders who suffered a grave defeat, losing eighty percent of their forces in the battle. Alonso Fernández de Lugo managed to escape to Gran Canaria where he organized a new force with better trained troops and greater financial resources supported by Genoese merchants and Castilian nobles. After the battle the guanches destroyed the fortress built by the Castilians.

Alonso Fernández de Lugo requested and received extensive further aid and supplies from neighboring territorial lord Inés Peraza totalling 600,000 maravedí [29] and returned to Tenerife with a better trained and armed force. After rebuilding the fortress at Añazo he advanced towards the plains of Aguere (San Cristóbal de La Laguna) where in November he defeated Bencomo in the Battle of Aguere as the gaunche leader committed the error of engaging the Castillian forces in battle in open ground. The use of cavalry and reinforcements provided by Fernando Guanarteme were the deciding factors in the Castillian victory. The guanches lost 1,700 men including Bencomo and his brother (or possibly stepbrother) Tinguaro. It is claimed that an epidemic had infected the population before the battle, decimating the island's population and leaving the survivors weak or ill, this is known as the "gran modorra" or the great drowsiness. However, the exact size of the epidemic and its importance in the outcome of the battle remains disputed by some historians.

In December 1495, after a long period of guerrilla warfare, pillaging and war fatigue the Castilians again advanced on the interior in the direction of Taoro, this time from the north. A force of several thousand guanches awaited them in a ravine near to the present day municipality of La Victoria de Acentejo, not far from the site of the First Battle of Acentejo. The Castilian victory in the Second Battle of Acentejo brought about the collapse of aboriginal resistance and access to the Taoro Valley remained open. The battle marked the conquest of the island of Tenerife and the end of the conquest of the Canary Islands.

• Kingdom of the Canary Islands
• Battle of Aguere
• First Battle of Acentejo
• Second Battle of Acentejo

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