Well, first off, the Spanish gave him a new name as well--his Italian name is Cristoforo Colombo--which is closer to what we call him than what the Spanish called him, it is true, but should we not honor him best, if we are going to honor him at all, by calling him by his real name? Not a popular sentiment either here or in Spain.
The remains of Colombo were not always here. The cathedral is late 19th century Gothic (apparently if they couldn't build the biggest church in Europe, they decided to build the biggest Gothic church in Europe), and the tomb was one of the last additions to the cathedral, installed in 1899. It was designed by the sculptor Arturo Melida, and was originally installed in Havana before being moved to Seville after Spain lost control of Cuba.
But Columbo’ body has been on the move almost as much in death as it was in life. It began its final rest in Valladolid, Spain where he died in 1506, and was moved shortly thereafter to Seville, by orders of his surviving brother, Diego--Colombo was in a bit of disgrace at the time of his death, and was not accorded a great burial. In 1542, the remains were again moved, this time to Colonial Santo Domingo, in what is now the Dominican Republic, where they were installed in the newly completed Cathedral of Santa Maria. There they remained for a couple of centuries, near the spot that made him famous, both in his time and in ours. Then, in 1795 when Spain lost control of the Dominican Republic, they were moved again to Havana, Cuba. One hundred years later, they made their final voyage back home to Seville, seemingly for good, but who knows.
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