Pieces of Eight

Cozumel

The island of Cozumel lies off the Yucatan coast and was once a major Mayan religious site, sacred to Ix Chel, the moon goddess. Juan de Grijalva discovered the island in 1518 and made peaceful contact with the natives, who allowed him to hold a Mass on the beach for his crew.

Grijalva’s peaceful visit was followed a year later by Hernan Cortes, the infamous conquistador. The Mayans welcomed Cortes as they had his predecessor, but Cortes was no mere explorer. He had come to stamp Spanish Catholic values on the natives, and began by destroying their temples. Surprisingly, the Mayans put up little resistance to this desecration, but unfortunately they were not spared.

A smallpox outbreak devastated the local population, which is believed to have been in excess of 30,000. Within a few decades, the island was abandoned.

In 1525, another Spaniard, Francisco de Montejo, landed on the island with orders to start a colony as a port of call for ships heading to the Yucatan. Montejo named the island San Miguel de Cozumel, the name by which it is still known.

Once the Spaniards mapped, then conquered, the Yucatan, stopping off at Cozumel was no longer required. In the space of 30 years, the population plummeted from over 35,000 to less than three dozen. In 1700, the island was officially abandoned by Spain.

Within a year, pirates moved in, and took over the former Spanish settlements.