Strangers in Their Own Land: How Moorish Occupation Conditioned Spanish Views of the New World

Abstract

The Spaniards watched with bated breath. The dust, having been kicked up by hundreds of natives who had just arrived, had yet to settle making visibility difficult. The cause of all this commotion was the arrival of the great Cacique, Atabalipa, who had come in a great show of force. For weeks he had been searching for the “Christians” as the Spaniards had become known. In response, Captain Francisco Pizzaro, leader of the Spanish expedition, had eagerly sought out Atabalipa in hopes to avoid any conflict.