Luis De Santángel
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Luis de Santángel (died 1498) was a third-generation ''
converso A ''converso'' (; ; feminine form ''conversa''), "convert" (), was a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, or one of their descendants. To safeguard the Old Christian popula ...
'' in Spain during the late fifteenth century. Santángel worked as ''escribano de ración'' to King Ferdinand II and Queen Isabella I of Spain which left him in charge of the Royal finance. Santángel played an instrumental role in
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...
's voyage in 1492, for he managed to convince the Catholic monarchs to fund Columbus's expedition and provided a large sum of the money himself.


Professional activity

In his professional life, in 1453, King
John II of Aragon John II (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Juan II'', Catalan language, Catalan: ''Joan II'', Aragonese language, Aragonese: ''Chuan II'' and ; 29 June 1398 – 20 January 1479), called the Great (''el Gran'') or the Faithless (''el Sense Fe''), was ...
allowed Santángel to dedicate himself to the importation of cereals to
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
, a product that fetched high prices during times of scarcity. Likewise, in 1475, King John II appointed him receiver of the rents and funds of the Royal Heritage in Valencia. Three years later, he began working as a courtier, a position he held until his death, being succeeded by his brother Jaime. Then, in 1479,
Ferdinand II of Aragon Ferdinand II, also known as Ferdinand I, Ferdinand III, and Ferdinand V (10 March 1452 – 23 January 1516), called Ferdinand the Catholic, was King of Aragon from 1479 until his death in 1516. As the husband and co-ruler of Queen Isabella I of ...
granted him a position as an alderman at the
Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's official maker of British coins. It is currently located in Llantrisant, Wales, where it moved in 1968. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly ow ...
of Valencia. On September 13, 1481, he was appointed ''escribano de ración'' (similar to a public notary) by King Ferdinand. Luis de Santángel was a trusted man, treasurer, and financer of Ferdinand the Catholic. In 1476, upon the death of his father, Luis de Santángel assumed the family leadership, continuing and expanding the traditional family business activity. He is especially known for his commercial activity in
salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
, where he continued to lease the saltworks of La Mata (property of the Crown) and exported salt via sea routes, and
sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...
, a booming industry with product sourced from Valencian sugar mills ( trapiches). His main partners were high-ranking merchant Genoese families or other converso families of Jewish origin. His business activities were primarily carried out in two major centers:
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
and
Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
. These merchants traded their products following the
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
-
Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...
route. Additionally, he was a lessee of numerous customs duties in the
Kingdom of Valencia The Kingdom of Valencia (; ; ), located in the eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula, was one of the component realms of the Crown of Aragon. The Kingdom of Valencia was formally created in 1238 when the Moorish taifa of Valencia was taken in ...
. Luis de Santángel also undertook numerous tasks for the
Spanish Crown The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...
in Castile, where he acted as a financier for the high society. Luis de Santángel managed the funds of the ‘’
Santa Hermandad Santa Hermandad (, "holy brotherhood") was a type of military peacekeeping association of armed individuals, which became characteristic of municipal life in medieval Spain, especially in Castile. Modern hermandades in Spain, some of which evo ...
’’ in Castile, alongside the Genoese Francisco Pinelo (Santángel's partner and a resident of Valencia as an agent for Genoese
Bank of Saint George The Bank of Saint George ( or informally as ''Ufficio di San Giorgio'' or ''Banco'') was a financial institution of the Republic of Genoa. It was founded on 23 April 1407 to consolidate the public debt, which had been escalating due to the war ...
until 1478), which gave him extensive knowledge of the administration of the Crown of Castile. He also maintained close relations with Alfonso Sánchez and Gabriel Sánchez, treasurer of King Ferdinand and Santángel’s friend; both brothers came from a converso family of Aragonese Jewish origin. Furthermore, Santángel was part of the financial team of Friar
Hernando de Talavera Hernando de Talavera, Hieronymites, O.S.H. (c. 1430 – 14 May 1507) was a Spanish clergyman and councilor to Queen Isabel of Castile. He began his career as a monk of the Hieronymites, Order of Saint Jerome, was appointed the queen's confess ...
, confessor and personal advisor to Queen Isabella, and established an excellent personal relationship with the religious leader. In 1496, Santángel was responsible for overseeing and certifying the marriage between the king’s daughter
Joanna Joanna is a feminine given name deriving from from . Variants in English include Joan, Joann, Joanne, and Johanna. Other forms of the name in English are Jan, Jane, Janet, Janice, Jean, and Jeanne. The earliest recorded occurrence of th ...
and
Philip the Handsome Philip the Handsome (22 June/July 1478 – 25 September 1506), also called the Fair, was ruler of the Burgundian Netherlands and titular Duke of Burgundy from 1482 to 1506, as well as the first Habsburg King of Castile (as Philip I) for a brief ...
.


Columbus's voyage


Funding

In 1486, Columbus met with Ferdinand II and Isabella I to propose his plan of finding a passage to India by sailing west rather than east. While the Spanish monarchs were interested in his plans, they turned him down on the basis that they were financially tied up with fighting the
Moors The term Moor is an Endonym and exonym, exonym used in European languages to designate the Muslims, Muslim populations of North Africa (the Maghreb) and the Iberian Peninsula (particularly al-Andalus) during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a s ...
. To prevent Columbus from seeking out competing monarchs and nations, Ferdinand II and Isabella provided Columbus with a retainer of 12,000 maravedis (about USD $840 in modern currency), and in 1489, they provided him with documentation to obtain food and lodging in any Spanish municipality. Following the Spanish victory against the Moors, Columbus was called to meet with the Spanish Monarchs again on January 12, 1492, to discuss funding his voyage. Isabella was still not convinced, and Columbus left the meeting upset, confiding in Santángel that he planned to seek financial funding from France or England—whichever nation agreed first. Using his position as a royal treasurer, Santángel met with Isabella and convinced her to accept Columbus's proposal by alluding to the fame and glory that would come with Columbus's success in finding a new sea-route to the Indies. This is how his son and biographer, Ferdinand Columbus, described the meeting: The Queen followed his advice, she ordered Columbus to be brought back, and the Monarchs accepted his terms in the
Capitulations of Santa Fe The Capitulations of Santa Fe between Christopher Columbus and the Catholic Monarchs, Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, were signed in Santa Fe, Granada on April 17, 1492. They granted Columbus the titles of admiral of t ...
. Going a step further, Santángel arranged for the majority of the expedition's funding (without interest) by contributing much from his own pocket and additional money he had borrowed. Later, the Kings paid him back the money borrowed.


Columbus's first letter

Columbus's letter on the first voyage was addressed to Santángel.


Jewish heritage

Santángel's grandfather, the Jewish Azarias Chinillo, converted to Christianity during the fifteenth century and changed his name to Luis de Santángel. Later, he moved from
Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...
and settled in the booming city of
Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
. After this conversion, the Santángel family began to prosper economically and in status; all three Santángels served the Royal crown and possessed a large sum of wealth.


Spanish Inquisition

While the
Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...
targeted and persecuted Jews, including ''
converso A ''converso'' (; ; feminine form ''conversa''), "convert" (), was a Jew who converted to Catholicism in Spain or Portugal, particularly during the 14th and 15th centuries, or one of their descendants. To safeguard the Old Christian popula ...
s'' believed to be practicing Judaism privately, Santángel and his immediate family were protected from the persecution. However, one of his relatives was
burned at the stake Death by burning is an list of execution methods, execution, murder, or suicide method involving combustion or exposure to extreme heat. It has a long history as a form of public capital punishment, and many societies have employed it as a puni ...
in Saragossa. On May 30, 1497, Ferdinand II issued a royal decree that exempted Santángel, his family, and his future successors, from the Inquisition. Despite this protection and high status, Santángel was believed to have wanted to help Jews escape their persecution by funding Columbus's journey, which would potentially offer a safer place for them to reside. After his expeditions, Columbus was granted the island of
Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
, which became a place of refuge for many
Sephardi Jews Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...
after their expulsion from Spain and Portugal. The descendant of Luis Santangel, Antonio de La Cadena Maluenda, born around 1490 and his sister Catalina settled 1525 in New Spain (Mexico) as the treasurer. Dr. David Raphael author of The Alhambra Decree and director of the musical documentary Song of the Sephardi is a descendant of Luis Santangel.


Inspiration for ''By Fire, By Water''

In April 2010, author Mitchell James Kaplan published a book titled ''By Fire, By Water'' that explored a fictitious retelling of Luis de Santángel's life during the 15th century. The novel, while not necessarily accurate, incorporated prominent events and situations such as Santángel's position in the Royal court, the Spanish Inquisition, and Columbus's journey. It discusses the impact of the Spanish Inquisition on ''conversos'' who were often still suspected when it came to religion and explores Santángel's desperate intervention towards Columbus's meetings with the Spanish Monarchs in attempt to discover a place that offers acceptance rather than terror and violence for Jews and ''conversos'' at the time.


References


External links


Letter from Columbus to Luis de Santángel (pdf)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Santangel, Luis De Christopher Columbus Spanish Roman Catholics 1498 deaths Conversos Year of birth unknown Spanish people of Jewish descent