The Embassy to Tamerlane is a fascinating historical event, that occurred during the reign of King Enrique III of Castile and Leon. In 1402 - this was before Spain completed la reconquista - a fellow by the name of Ruy Gonzalez de Clavijo was sent to Samarkand, the capital of the Timurid empire. King Tamerlane was a descendant of Genghis Khan and had become the lord of Central Asia. He was going to be the protagonist of a clash with the Ottomans because both were the ascending empires. The Spain ambassador mission, was to establish an alliance with Tamerlane against the Ottomans.
I was taught at school, that Christopher Columbus goal was to establish a new trade route with China. At least that’s how he sold it, to King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. I think is nonsense. The Spanish monarchy was thinking about finding a way to attack the Ottoman empire from the back. They were planning this since 1402.
My point is, this was part of Spain geopolitical planning. The spirit of the crusades was over in the rest of Europe. Spain finished la reconquista and was still on crusader mode against the Islamic world. The New World was an accident for Spain.
The culmination of all of this happened in the Battle of Lepanto. At the end of the day Spain had to engage the Ottomans and the alliance was able to stop their expansion in the Mediterranean. All these protestant kingdoms with their Lutheran sola fide did absolutely nothing, zilch, nada for the Christian world. Not even a dingy for the cause. In fact, the French sided with the Ottomans. Ironic and now in 2025 they are getting invaded.
This is why I support the state of Israel, despite the fact I hate Zionism and everything in that horrible country. The Israelis are keeping an important port from falling in the hands of the Muslim world, giving them important access to the sea.
A movie about the Embassy to Tamerlane should be made is a fascinating story.
