Jews in The New World – Part Two

In their disguise as Portuguese Conversos,  Jews set up many businesses in the New World. They were merchants, traders and ship owners.  In fact, Jews actually made up the bulk of the  merchant class in the Spanish Empire. As long as they pretended to be Christian and delivered the goods, no one questioned too closely their religiosity.

Each Spanish colony had an underground community of Jews known only to each other and brethren in other colonies.  Jews established a global tribe of inside traders, a world wide intelligence network bonded by heritage, language and a hatred for Spain.

Once their trade network was established, Jews became expendable.

Many left Spanish territories for those occupied by the Dutch or English. Those who remained, suffered
the same penalties had they never left Spain.

In the l6th and l7th centuries, thousands of New World Conversos were arrested, tortured and tried. Found guilty, their wealth was confiscated. They were flogged, then either imprisoned, strangled, burned to ash, condemned to work in the salt mines of Venezuela, or row galley ships across the Pacific from which none returned.

The hatred of Spain made piracy the most attractive way to get back at the Spanish.  Jews who lived in
Curacao, for example, could easily discern the movement of the Spanish fleet from Venezuela, and send
messages to others who waited at sea.

Without Jewish pirates, the Spanish Empire would not have been so bankrupted and weakened  to
insure it’s defeat.