The Fall of Dublin - Guest Post by Marko Bosscher

In July 1649 The Earl of Ormonde marched a combined force of English Royalists and Irish Confederates on Dublin, the last major foothold of parliamentary forces in Ireland. Ironically Ormonde himself had held Dublin two years prior when it was besieged by Irish Confederates, before abandoning it to English parliamentary forces.

The Confederate/Royalist coalition had been forged in blood, the years since the Irish Rebellion in 1641 had been years of bloody and ruthless wars. Even as a peace agreement had been reached in 1648, after a series of defeats for the confederates at the hands of parliamentarian forces, fighting continued against those catholics who could not stomach submitting to the protestants who had inflicted massacres on catholics only a few years prior.

In 1649 things were going well for the coalition, the parliamentary forces received almost no support from England, where Cromwell had his hands full with the second English Civil War. At the end of July Ormonde had camped his troops at Rathmines near Dublin, with the intent to besiege the city. On the second of August his troops started fortifying the half-demolished castle of Baggotrath on the outskirts of Dublin. Michael Jones, the defender of Dublin, decided to move against this danger with an army of 5.000.

Although Ormond’s army had stood to arms for just such an eventuality Jones quickly captured Baggotrath, and turned towards the main Royalist camp. Although the royalist forces were thrown in disarray, they were able to fall back on a line formed by Lord Inchiquin’s infantry. Despite suffering heavy losses Ormonde was able to hold the line long enough for Lord Dillon to march against the parliamentarian rear.

Chaotic fighting raged on throughout the day, until at the start of the evening the remaining Parliamentarians forced themselves past Dillon’s battered forces and retired to Dublin.

The parliamentarians had inflicted heavy losses on the Royalists, but at the cost of most of their own force. Lord Inchiquin who had been stationed in Munster with three regiments of horse had marched North upon hearing the news, and linked up with Ormonde the next day. With Ormonde´s troops occupying the countryside and his artillery dominating the harbour, the siege of Dublin continued for another 6 weeks.

Cut off from England and with no remaining allies in Ireland Jones surrendered Dublin and was allowed to return to england with his troops, leaving behind most of their weaponry.

With no port open to him Cromwell called of his planned invasion of Ireland until spring. But the intended invasion of Ireland was overtaken by events, as the Scots proclaimed Charles II their king. The bulk of the New Model Army marched north against the Scots, leaving only a small army to invade Ireland and attempt to gain a foothold there.

Because the English navy still commanded the Irish sea parliamentarian forces could land unopposed near Drogheda. Needing to to take Drogheda before the Royalists could send reinforcements the walls were quickly broken by artillery and the city taken by assault.

The royalist garrison was massacred to a man, along with hundreds of civilians. The victory of parliament was short-lived as Ormonde marched the main royalist army against Drogheda, while Dillon marched troops from Dublin past Drogheda to block the parliamentarians from the north. With most defensible positions destroyed in the Parliamentarian attack the city was soon assaulted and it’s defenders given no quarter.

The massacre of Drogheda did much to strengthen Irish resolve. The defense of Ireland was strengthened by new fortifications in coastal towns and a reorganization of the Royalist army into three armies tasked with guarding Ireland against any invasion. Although English Royalists remained in command of these armies, with Ormonde in overall command, the Irish nobility was incorporated into the army as well.

Parliamentary propaganda tried to make the best of it’s failure to recapture Ireland by casting Charles II as “the Irish King”, hoping to fuel anti-Irish and anti-Catholic resentment in England, even though the monarch did not so much as set foot on Irish soil during these years.

Upon the restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 the Irish Confederacy was dissolved and the Irish Parliament instituted. The confederacy had achieved most of its goals, with self-government of Ireland assured and religious equality for Catholics (in Ireland) granted by Charles II.

In reality: Ormonde’s troops were routed at the battle of Rathmines and never really recovered. Cromwell was able to use Dublin as ann entry point to Ireland and marched quickly against other coastal towns, Drogheda was just the first of many massacres. In total the human cost of the conquest of Ireland is estimated at between 200.000 and 600,000 death (15-50% of the total population), another 50.000 Irish were taken to the West Indies as slave laborers. Ireland was effectively colonized by the English under Cromwell, Charles II restored only part of the lands taken by Cromwell leaving the Irish almost completely disenfranchised.

Guest Post from Marko Bosscher: Watson, Crick, Pauling, & Franklin

1953 - Watson and Crick abandon search for DNA structure. "At once I felt something was not right. I could not pinpoint the mistake, however, until I looked at the illustrations for several minutes."

As the fifties started the race for the structure of DNA was about to begin. In 1951 Linus Pauling had accurately described the helix structure of proteins and he was confident he could do the same for DNA. In the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge Watson and Crick were discussing the structure of DNA among themselves, although they were not officially allowed to work on this subject. Meanwhile at King´s College in London Rosalind Franklin was working with Maurice Wilkins and Ph.D. student Raymond Gosling on X-ray diffraction images of DNA

Marko Bosscher

The race was on! And it officially became a three horse race when the head of the Cavendish Laboratory, Sir Lawrence Bragg, finally gave Watson and Crick permission to pursue their search for the structure of DNA.

Franklin meanwhile had a hard time of it. Only just arriving in King´s College after years of successful work on X-ray diffraction in France she immediately came into conflict with Wilkins, who had been conducting DNA research with Gosling. As a compromise the research team was split between Wilkins and Franklin, with Gosling assigned as her student. Pauling was a experiencing problems of a different kind, his nuclear activism had led to his passport being revoked. Leaving him unable to visit conference in England attended by the other major players, his assistant Robert Corey would take his place.

Under pressure to gain results quickly Watson and Crick created a preliminary model of DNA, with a triple helix structure. In Cambridge Wilkins and Franklin were on a collision course, as Wilkins became convinced that DNA had a helix structure Franklin came to the opposite conclusion. Franklin´s direct and often abrasive personality didn´t help matters either. After regaining his passport Pauling did visit England, but he did not take note of Rosalind Franklin´s images. Perhaps Corey had failed to realise their importance. Or perhaps he was too preoccupied with his own triple helix model.

At the start of 1953 things came to a head, Franklin had decided to leave King´s College and DNA research behind forever. But not before sending out manuscripts describing her research, among the papers were two that described a double helix structure. Pauling meanwhile had decided to publish his triple helix model of DNA, and a prepublication version was circulated at the end of January, Watson and Crick having read the Pauling paper realised it was flawed. Watson approached Franklin for cooperation in a final attempt to beat Pauling, but she dismissed them. Because they did not have a valid competing model Watson and Crick were forced to call of the hunt.

While the race was seemingly over Wilkins and Gosling continued to work on DNA, building off the work in previous years. Although Watson, who was friends with Wilkins, had a large amount of input on the final work it was Franklin whose name would appear on the paper. Wilkins, Gosling and Franklin became famous as the discoverers of the structure of DNA, while the important work of Watson and Crick was unjustly ignored.

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In reality: After the row between Franklin and Watson in early 1953 Wilkins gave Franklin’s data (including the vital 'Photograph 51') to Watson and Crick, who used it to create their double helix model of DNA. Franklin’s paper was published as as a supporting piece and generally overlooked.

Guest Post from Marko Bosscher: Gruffydd Survives Fall

On the first of March 1244 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn Fawr fell from the Tower of London, where he had been held hostage by Henry the Third. The next morning a Yeoman of the Guard found sheets hanging from his window and bloodstains on the ground below, Gruffydd had been too heavy for his improvised escape ladder.

Rumors soon spread. Some said that Gruffydd had died, others that he had been allowed to escape by King Henry to ferment a civil war against his half-brother Dafydd. In fact Gruffydd had been badly injured in the fall (he would never regain the use of his left arm, and walked with a limp), but he was whisked away by men loyal to Daffyd and would publicly proclaim his loyalty in Daffyd’s court several months later.

His relationship to his brother was difficult. Their father Llywelyn the Great had greatly expanded the old realm of Gwynedd and proclaimed the principality of Wales, but he had selected the younger brother Daffyd (the son of his new English wife Joan) to be his heir. In exchange for peace and the acknowledgement of his claims by the English king Gruffydd had been given as a hostage to King John the First.

Gruffydd would spend many long years as a “guest” to the English King, while in Wales his half-brother was being groomed to take over from their father, In 1237 Llywelyn suffered a stroke and Daffyd ruled on his behalf, and when Llywelyn died three years later he formally became the ruler of the Gwynedd. Gruffyd was allowed to return to Wales, where he was held in captivity by his brother, to prevent him from making a claim to the Gwynedd.

But trouble was brewing on the horizon, the English King would not recognize Daffyd’s claim outside the Gwynedd, and things came to a head in 1241. King Henry invaded Wales and forced Daffyd to accept a treaty that involved giving up his claims to the lands outside, and sending his half-brother to England as a hostage. Which is how Gruffydd came to be locked up in the Tower in 1244.

With his half-brother by his side and unrest brewing in the English half of Wales Daffyd formed an alliance with the other Welsh nobles and invaded the English lands. During 1245 he dealt King Henry several defeats, but in february 1246 he suddenly died.

Because Daffyd had left no heirs his older brother succeeded him, with one of his sons still held hostage by the English and the military campaign floundering because of the death of his half-brother Gruffyd agreed to negotiations. Because he was unwilling to yield the gains made by Daffyd hostilities soon broke out again.

In order to bolster his support Gruffyd proclaimed himself Prince of Wales the following year. He himself was was no commander, but he had the luck that his son Llywelyn was a great military leader and Henry suffered several defeats before finally agreeing to a treaty.

By the time of his death in 1257 Gruffyd had been acknowledge as Prince of Wales by all the Welsh nobles, if not the English King. He was succeeded by his younger son Llywelyn.

Henry released Owain, who had been in English captivity all this time, in the hopes of fostering civil war. Despite his strong claims Owain found little support among the war-weary Welsh, and his small army was quickly routed. He was imprisoned by his brother and lived in captivity for most of the rest of his life.

In 1264 the Baron’s Revolt broke out in England, Llywelyn saw an opportunity. Proffering his fealty to Henry he offered to send an army in his support. Henry reluctantly accepted and recognized the title of Prince of Wales. Although this plan seemed to backfire when the Barons scored several victories, in the end Henry won and his son Edward I would further strengthen the position of the Prince of Wales in exchange for soldiers to fight the Scots.

In reality: Gruffydd fell to his death trying to escape from the Tower. His son Llywelyn would be recognized as Prince of Wales by the Welsh and the English, but Edward I quashed the nascent principality.

Marko Bosscher tours Natural History museums at http://hospitem.blogspot.de/ .

April 3, 1882 – Jesse James Flees Missouri

As famous outlaw Jesse James prepared his gang for another robbery, he noticed a picture frame was dusty.  He climbed onto a chair and proceeded to dust and straighten it.  Behind him, one of his gang members, Bob Ford, shot at him, narrowly missing his head.  Infuriated, James jumped down the chair and threw it at Bob, who had already run out the kitchen door.  James chased him into the streets of Saint Joseph, Missouri, firing several shots before mounting his horse and disappearing, riding east.

James' life had been one of hardship.  He was born in 1847 to Baptist minister Robert S. and Zerelda James, who moved from Kentucky to Missouri and contributed to founding William Jewel College.  Robert led the family to California during the 1849 Gold Rush to become ministers.  He died there shortly after, leaving behind his widow, James, his older brother Frank, and his younger sister Susan.  Zerelda remarried, but their new stepfather Benjamin Simms was cruel to the young boys.  She divorced him and remarried again, this time to a soft-spoken man, Dr. Reuben Samuel, who left his practice to work the James farm.

While his home life became peaceful, the rest of the nation turned to war.  The James-Samuels lived on the pro-Confederacy western part of Missouri, a border state that determined to stay with the Union.  Locals formed militias known as "bushwackers" for those supporting secession and Unionist "jayhawkers", and the state became plagued with guerilla war.  Frank James joined the war on the Confederate side, fighting at the Battle of Wilson's Creek before taking sick-leave.  In 1863, Jayhawkers came to the farm hunting Frank.  They tortured Samuel by hanging him before cutting him down and reportedly whipped Jesse.  Jesse soon departed the farm to meet up with Frank, who had fought as part of Quantrill's Raiders before returning to Missouri.  The two brothers participated in massacres, learning skills in surprise tactics and psychological warfare, such as scalping and killing those who surrendered.  Jesse himself attempted to surrender near Lexington, Missouri, where he was shot in the chest and forced to sit out the rest of the war.  He was nursed back to health by his cousin Zerelda "Zee" Mimms, whom he married in 1874.

As the Civil War ended, the days of Reconstruction came.  Confederates were banned from voting, preaching, and forming corporations.  Many rebels continued the fight, operating as outlaws pulling robberies and harassing local government.  Jesse and Frank fell in with the outlaws, joining a gang of brothers headed by fellow guerilla Cole Younger.  The James-Younger gang became famous in December of 1869 when Jesse shot a bank cashier mistaking him for a former Union militia officer.  The act of revenge on the Union and the James' larger-than-life escape put his name in the newspapers.  While many dubbed them deplorable criminals, founder and editor of the Kansas City Times and former Confederate John Newman Edwards gave them a sense of heroism fighting the oppression of Reconstruction.  He began publishing letters written by James, who claimed innocence and made argument for the right to resist tyrants.

For several years, the gang committed numerous robberies over half the country.  As their fame grew, they were able to commit public robberies, even joking with fawning witnesses.  Many considered them heroically fighting corruption, though they themselves never donated any of their income.  The government attempted to crack down on them; Missouri Governor Thomas T. Crittenden stated in his inaugural address that their arrest was priority.  Companies hired the Pinkerton Detectives to hunt the gang down, but the agent sent to the James farm was later discovered dead.  In a shootout, Pinkertons killed several of the Youngers.  A robbery gone wrong at the First National Bank of Northfield, Minnesota, and the following manhunt wiped out the Youngers while the Jameses disappeared.

Frank decided to give up the life of an outlaw, but Jesse formed up a new gang and began a new spree.  This gang, however, did not have the cohesiveness of the ex-Confederates.  Infighting occurred, and Jesse turned paranoid.  He insisted that his two gangmembers, Charley and Bob Ford, move in with him.  His paranoia proved right when Bob attempted to murder him and collect the governor's $5000 reward.

Soon after Jesse disappeared from St. Joe, Irish poet Oscar Wilde arrived in town looking for the famous outlaw.  He had arrived in America that January and began an adventurous lecture tour on aestheticism.  Wilde was disappointed but left word of where he could be reached.  While drinking with miners in Leadville, Colorado, a man introduced himself as Jesse James.  The two sat up late talking, discussing ethics and Wilde's famous quote "It's not whether I did it or not that's important, but whether people believed I did it" in comparison with James' "heroic" outlaw life.  James seemed annoyed by Wilde's lack of conviction, but, upon Wilde's invitation to smuggle him and his family back to Europe, James agreed to travel with him.

James began his own lecture tour, visiting numerous cities in the United Kingdom as well as several countries on the Continent.  He and Wilde conversed a number of times again, and James signed alongside Wilde on the petition put out by George Bernard Shaw to pardon the violent strikers at Chicago's Haymarket Riot in 1886.  James noted to Wilde the importance of maintaining an unquestionable personal clout rather than depending on the law.  Wilde himself was believed to have practiced the advice when his feud with the Marquess of Queensberry ended with a fistfight between the two.

In 1892, James finally returned to America.  He had written to his brother Frank, who was living under an assumed name as a shoe salesman, and the two decided to come clean.  After a fanfare trial, the two were acquitted.  Jesse and Zee settled back on the farm, where their mother had been leading tours of the famous raid.  His son, Jesse Edward James, studied law and became a prominent Missouri politician.  James continued to write, dying in 1917 shortly after America's entry into World War I, for which he had campaigned vehemently as revenge on German u-boat attacks.

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In reality, Bob Ford shot Jesse James in the back of the head.  He and his brother surrendered, were convicted of murder, and then pardoned.  Frank was later acquitted of his crimes and lived his life quietly.  Oscar Wilde narrowly missed meeting Jesse James.  Later, Wilde attempted a libel case against Queensberry due to accusations of sodomy, but he lost the case and was sentenced to two years hard labor for "gross indecency."

April 2, 1502 – Arthur Tudor Survives

After decades of civil war, England's Wars of the Roses came to an end with Henry Tudor defeating Richard III at Bosworth Field in 1485.  Henry, now Henry VII, dedicated his reign to securing the throne of England.  He married Elizabeth of York, tying together the Lancasters and the Yorks to end the matter of supremacy and defeated anyone who continued to rebel.  Henry also encouraged support from Wales by claiming Welsh descent.  Most of all, he sought European recognition, which would legitimize his rule despite his being a questionable heir.  Treaties ended war with France and called for Perpetual Peace with Scotland.  He looked to the newly unified kingdoms of Castile and Aragon whose Ferdinand and Isabella were successfully driving the Moors out of Spain.  In 1489, England and the Catholic Nobles signed the Treaty of Medina del Campo.  Ferdinand and Isabella's youngest daughter, Catherine, would marry Henry's oldest son, Arthur.

Arthur had been born September 20, 1486.  His father had prophesied that Elizabeth's child would be a boy, whom he would name Arthur as he would bring about a new golden age for England.  Henry arranged for the birth to be held at the capital, Winchester, which proved a bold and successful move.  Arthur was estimated to be born prematurely but was strong.  He was betrothed before his third birthday to Catherine, a few months older than he.  Soon he was created Prince of Wales, coinciding with the birth of his sister Margaret, who would marry James IV of Scotland and secure England's northern border.  Arthur grew up at Ludlow Castle in Wales under the guidance of tutors expert in politics, humanism, and science.  Bernard André, the blind poet and biographer, ensured he thoroughly read the Greek and Latin Classics.

During his education, Arthur wrote letters to Catherine in formal, polite Latin, and she replied in kind.  Arthur was quiet and reflective, much unlike his younger brother Henry, who preferred jousting to his clerical studies.  After they were married in proxy in 1499, Arthur wrote to Ferdinand and Isabella that he would be "a true and loving husband" to Catherine.  The two finally met and were married in November of 1501; Arthur said to his parents that he was pleased to "behold the face of [my] lovely bride."  Despite his reservedness, Arthur commented to others before his wedding that that we was "lusty and amorous" and after, "Masters, it is a good pastime to have a wife."

The couple retired to Ludlow Castle, where Arthur continued his duties as Prince of Wales.  A plague of "sweating sickness" struck the castle, including the royal couple.  After a harrowing illness, Arthur pulled through, saying he owed much to the dutiful care of his wife.  They had their first son, Edward, three years later.  Henry VII, seeing that his line was continued, died at peace in 1509.  Arthur's brother Henry, meanwhile, settled into his role in the Church, where he convinced his brother to pull away from Roman authority as the Catholic monarchs had done with their own Spanish Inquisition.  The English Inquisition, while never granted great powers, served as a significant contributor to military science following Henry's creative interests.

Arthur, ever-sickly after his illness, died in 1522.  Eighteen-year-old Edward VI became king and soon married Princess Renée of France, cousin and sister-in-law to King Francis I.  Catherine dominated the court, causing Reformer Thomas Cromwell to note, "If not for her sex, she could have defied all the heroes of History."  Catherine pushed Edward to prevent Protestantism from infecting England.  After Catherine's death in 1533, Renée began to be suspected of being a Calvinist heretic.  The English Inquisition interrogated her, bringing the matter of the Reformation to the forefront of English politics.  Edward began to rein in the powers of the Inquisition, which caused his uncle Henry to appeal to Rome for Edward's dismissal.  Locals, who had long been angered over the influence of foreigners (even to provoke a riot known as Evil May Day in 1517), were outraged, and more riots began.  Finally Edward followed the lead of Scandinavian countries by severing the state church from Rome.  Henry was removed from office, and Cromwell and Thomas Cranmer oversaw the transformation of England to a largely Protestant nation.

The action caused war with Catholic Spain during the reign of Edward's eldest son, Henry VIII.  The two nations fought their wars abroad, not risking the investment of direct invasion by an armada.  Civil war in Scotland in 1638 against its king Charles sparked invasion by the English to defend Protestant interests.  Success there prompted England to contribute to the Eighty and Thirty Years' Wars on the Continent, but the expense proved too great and resulted in the loss of Scotland as well as Catholic Ireland by the beginning of the 1700s.  After recuperating, England returned her attention to colonies abroad, carving out a massive empire in North America (between Scottish Canada, French Louisiana, and Spanish Mexico), India, and Africa, but always seemingly at a shortage of manpower.

As an end came to Colonialism, England reinvented her colonies into the Commonwealth, which proved to be a potent economic and defense network.  Other colonial nations, such as the Netherlands, Portugal, and Scotland, whose advancements in industrial technology in the late 1700s brought it among world leaders, lost much of their clout as the empires became fully independent.

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In reality, Arthur died of unknown causes at the age of 15.  Henry VIII succeeded his father, whose dying wish it was for him to marry Catherine despite protests by the Pope and the prince himself to ensure a male heir.  The marriage ultimately failed as only one of Catherine's six children from 1510 to 1518 lived beyond a few weeks: Mary I of England.  Henry annulled the marriage, breaking with Rome when the Pope refused.  Five marriages and several heirs later, his daughter Elizabeth I had no issue, prompting the throne to be given to James VI of Scotland, unifying Britain.

March 31, 1492 - Alhambra Decree Begins Scheme to Send Jews West

The Reconquista of Spain completed with the Battle of Granada on January 2, 1492.  Muslims had controlled the Iberian Peninsula after their invasion in 711, but gradually the Christian kingdoms of the north expanded southward.  In-fighting slowed the Christian efforts, but the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile in 1469 united two of the largest kingdoms to a single force.  In twenty years of warfare, they pushed back the Muslims to Granada, where they affirmed rule of the peninsula fully in the hands of Christian monarchs.

Following the battle, Ferdinand and Isabella settled on to new projects.  With the conquest of Granada, the Catholic Monarchs had acquired vast lands but also now ruled a new population of Muslims and Jews.  Jews, as fellow "People of the Book", were initially treated with respect under early Muslim rule.  Jews from all over the Mediterranean immigrated to what was then known as al-Andalus, creating banking and centers of education.  Religious zeal increased on both sides of the peninsula as Christians called to retake lands lost by the Visigoths, and tolerance of Jews fell.  The Spanish Inquisition began in 1480, giving religious authority to the crown rather than the Pope.  Their agent, Dominican friar Tomás de Torquemada, served as Grand Inquisitor as well as confessor for Isabella.  Along with others, he encouraged the monarchs to expel non-Christians from the country to purify it.  Those who did not leave would have to convert (and the Inquisition would make certain they did not secretly practice forbidden faith) or face torture and death.

While religious fervor marked much of the reasoning behind expulsion, the matter was also economical.  Torquemada stressed that much of the economy of Spain was held by influential Jews.  With their power, they could subvert the authority of the Church or even the monarchs.  He called for their expulsion long before the conquest of Granada, but Ferdinand and Isabella did not want to risk the crash of their economy during wartime.  With the war over, they could restructure their economy as well as seize the valuable property of the Jews who chose to flee.

Meanwhile, Christopher Columbus, an Italian navigator campaigned at court for funding of an expedition that would reach the Orient by sailing west.  He had attempted to win favor from John II of Portugal, but the king had turned him away after his advisers stated the calculations for the circumference of the Earth were far too short.  Columbus had argued at court since 1486, noting the potential wealth from a new trade route.  He was given no positive answer, but he was furnished with food, lodging, and a salary, keeping him on retainer rather than seeking support from any other monarch of Europe.

When it slipped that Columbus would eventually be turned down on the advice of Torquemada, Columbus decided to change his position.  He took one item of Torquemada's agenda, the removal of the Jews, and tied it to his own.  Managing an interview with Torquemada, he pointed out the danger of letting the Jews "escape" to build up power elsewhere.  Instead, they should be sent to the East, where their wares would have to pass through Spain to market.  Torquemada approved the plan, and the monarchs soon announced the "Alhambra Decree", stating that in four months Jews would be forced to live in Granada alone.  That summer, hundreds of thousands of Jews moved to the city, allowed to keep their possessions but selling homes and businesses far under value.

In 1493, Columbus returned successfully from what was soon to be realized as the New World.  His next expedition left that September, and along with it went a large fleet of forced Jewish immigrants.  The Spanish established settlements on Hispaniola, using Jews and local natives as labor.  Over the next decade, the Jews of Spain converted, sneaked out of the country, or were deported to the New World.  During the rule of the Spanish Empire, several Jewish revolts began, but the might of the Conquistadors and the Spanish navy put down the rebellions.  Many Jews settled into their work on plantations and were joined by African slaves, creating a lucrative economy exporting to Europe.

By the seventeenth century, new hope for the Jews arrived as other nations began to colonize the Caribbean.  Piracy flourished, and, in the chaos, Jews escaped from Hispaniola by the thousands to neighboring islands.  Many settled on the far coast of Hispaniola under French rule, helping to make Saint-Domingue the most prosperous colony in the region.  The Caribbean became a popular destination for Jews fleeing oppression in other areas of Europe, particularly Germany and Italy, where corporations funded ships to transport colonists.

Antisemitism continued in the Caribbean, where for centuries the Jewish people were held as second-class citizens along with natives and Africans.  As they gained economic clout by the early twentieth century, however, the Jews won their recognition, and the Caribbean today is well known for its banking, produce, and tourism.  In modern times, many Jews hold to ideals of Zionism, wishing for a Jewish state in Palestine, where some Jews have established communities.  However, with the large Jewish population of the Caribbean, there has not been fervent international action answering the call for a geographic "Israel."

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In reality, the Alhambra Decree simply expelled the Jews from Spain. Torquemada convinced Isabella to deny Columbus's request, but, as he was riding away, he was stopped by messengers from Ferdinand who had asked the queen to reconsider.  Meanwhile, the Jews of Spain fled by land or sea, where many perished as brigands sliced them open looking for swallowed jewels or captains threw them overboard after charging exorbitant fees for passage.  Many Jews escaped to the Ottoman Empire, where Sultan Bajazet boasted, "How can you call Ferdinand of Aragon a wise king, the same Ferdinand who impoverished his own land and enriched ours?"