On close reading of Christopher Columbus’s letters and notebooks he does not present an especially attractive figure. “The Admiral,” as it pleased him to be known, was a braggart and at times an outright liar. He misled his crew about his intentions and the progress of their expedition. He claimed credit for having been the first to spot land in the Bahamas, when he had done no such thing. He took advantage of the good nature of people he met in the new lands;
