He arrived there just after the great victory, by which the king and
queen had obtained their wish--had taken the noble city of Grenada and
ended Moorish rule in Spain. King, queen, court and army were preparing
to enter the Alhambra in triumph. Whoever tries to imagine the scene, in
which the great procession entered through the gates, so long sealed, or
of the moment when the royal banner of Spain was first flying out upon
the Tower of the Vela, must remember that Columbus, elate, at last, with
hopes for his own great discovery, saw the triumph and joined in the
display.

But his success was not immediate, even now. Fernando de Talavera,
who had had the direction of the wise council of Salamanca, was now
Archbishop of Grenada, whose see had been conferred on him after the
victory. He was not the friend of Columbus. And when, at what seemed the
final interview with king and queen, he heard Columbus claim the right
to one-tenth of all the profits of the enterprise, he protested against
such lavish recompense of an adventurer. He was now the confessor of
Isabella, as Juan Perez, the friendly prior, had been before. Columbus,
however, was proud and firm. He would not yield to the terms prepared
by the archbishop. He preferred to break off the negotiation, and again
retired from court. He determined, as he had before, to lay his plans
before the King of France.

Spain would have lost the honor and the reward of the great discovery,
as Portugal and Genoa had lost them, but for Luis de St. Angel, and
the queen herself. St. Angel had been the friend of Columbus. He was an
important officer, the treasurer of the church revenues of Aragon.
He now insisted upon an audience from the queen. It would seem that
Ferdinand, though King of Aragon, was not present. St. Angel spoke
eloquently. The friendly Marchioness of Moya spoke eagerly and
persuasively. Isabella was at last fired with zeal. Columbus should go,
and the enterprise should be hers.

It is here that the incident belongs, represented in the statue by Mr.
Mead, and that of Miss Hosmer. The sum required for the discovery of a
world was only three thousand crowns. Two vessels were all that Columbus
asked for, with the pay of their crews. But where were three thousand
crowns? The treasury was empty, and the king was now averse to any
action. It was at this moment that Isabella said, "The enterprise is
mine, for the Crown of Castile. I pledge my jewels for the funds."