Fay,Thank you for the encouragement.btw - I found it strange, but very sad, by looking at certain of the entries.It seems that most of the persecutions of the Jews, in different parts of Spain,occurred when those parts were under catholic, rather than muslim, control.About 30 years ago, I heard something good said about Columbus on the radio.It shocked me, because people had been becoming increasingly against Columbus.I mentioned this to my son's teacher, who is Jewish.She thought that I may have made a little too much out of this information.So, I went to the public library to investigate.Those were buildings that actually had all kinds of books in them, before there was Google :^)Anyway, I started looking at books that were about, or had parts about, Columbus.The newer the book, the more negative they were about Columbus.The older the book, the more favorable they were about Columbus.I eventually found a book that had been published in the 2nd half of the 19th century.It claimed that Columbus believed that he was being used of the LORD,to fulfil a prophecy in Isaiah.Also, that Columbus wanted to use the money made by a shorter trip to the far east Indies,to buy back Jerusalem from the muslims, as a homeland for the Jews.That the expulsion of Jews, from Spain, in 1492, under threat of the Inquisition,was during the same time that Columbus sailed out from Spain,that he rescued some Jews, taking them with him on the voyage,(I think one was an interpreter, another a navigator, and another a doctor),who would have faced the Inquisition, even if they went through a formal conversion,as did a number of Merranos, at that time, had they not sailed out with Columbus.To say the least, my son's teacher was shocked, but very encouraged, I believe.
(Also, the first public library in Chicago was donated to it by your country, after the 1871 fire,and that it was to be free for the public to use,since prior to that, things like that were not free, there.So, thank you, for your country's gift)