Ottoman Algeria in Western Diplomatic History with ... - Bibliothèque

fighting for Christian faith against the infidels.” 39 For many historians, her will
was “a precious legacy bequeathed to her people, to guide them when the light
of her personal example should be withdrawn for ever.” 40
In fact, the two documents, will and codicil, were the embodiment of a
full political program for future generations to carry out. In it, she stressed the
need for unity among the kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula and maintenance
of control over the Strait of Gibraltar. 41 Furthermore, she outlined a policy of
expansion into North Africa for which she had already started preparing a plan
for invasion. To this political agenda, she insisted upon “the good work of
converting and civilizing the poor Indians.” 42 Less than two decades later, the
brute conquistadors led by Hernando Cortez transformed this ‘civilizing
mission’ into a mission that brought to an end the flourishing civilization of the
Aztecs and exterminated the ‘poor Indians.’ 43
Beginning from 1505, other
conquistadors started occupation of important ports in Algeria, raided its
interior lands, and pillaged its wealth. For the next 300 years or so, Isabella’s
faithful and pious subjects were to abide by her legacy of religious hatred and
astute political design.
More than religious and political designs, the conquest of the Algerian
littoral was part of a larger strategy devised and executed by military leaders. In
general, the Spaniards considered that the expelled Moors, knowledgeable of
39 Grammont, Histoire d’Alger, p. 29.
40 Prescott, Ferdinand and Isabella, pp. 165-66.
41 Lerne L. Plunket, Isabel of Castile and the Making of the Spanish Nation, 1451-1504 (New
York/London: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1915), pp. 383-84.
42 Prescott, Ferdinand and Isabella, pp. 165-66.
43 Stuart Matthews, “Cortés and Aztec Gold: Initial Conflict and Modern Political Ecology,” ICE Case
Studies, n° 174, March 2006. (Accessed 1 June 2008). http://www.american.edu/ted/ice/aztec.htm
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