of Chrysostomos Bobaridis, Historian - Department of Ancient History, University of Siena
After the light of Ancient Greece that filled the readers in the previous two issues of the new year, in this March the central figure, Hernán Cortes, belongs to the category of dark historical figures. The discovery in 1492 of the American continent by Christopher Columbus marked a turning point in modern history. The so-called Age of Discovery is defined by the difficult relationship between Europeans and indigenous peoples. In particular, the approach of the Europeans was dictated by the deep conviction of a cultural inferiority of the natives and above all by the thirst for wealth, especially gold. Cortes is the best example of this approach. Taking the Aztecs' initial welcoming approach as a weakness, he was quickly seduced by rumors of the "Golden City" and untold treasures and proceeded to effectively dismantle the empire and exterminate its inhabitants.
The brief but rich tribute to the Spanish explorer, whose travels were accompanied by the conquest of new places, offers readers the opportunity to get to know a historical period relatively unknown to the Greek public. The very figure of Cortes and his "work" occupied one of the most important post-war historians and philosophers, Tsvetan Todorov, in his monumental book The Conquest of America: The Problem of the Other. The European perspective mentioned above had the ideological as well as political support of the Roman Catholic Church. The most eloquent evidence is the signing of the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 between Spain and Portugal on the delimitation of their territories of sovereignty in the American Continent. The whole deal was achieved with the assistance and influence of the Catholic Church and the infamous Pope Alexander VI of the Borgia family. A significant share of the issue's pages is devoted to the Church of Rome. At the same time, through its association with the form and action of Cortes, a cause for consideration is provided regarding the delimitation - and especially the acceptance - of diversity. Don't you think the latter is a very topical dilemma?