Why did the Anglo-Saxons prefer to sink the "San Jose" ship laden with treasures rather than board and seize it?

The $20 Billion Treasure: Legends of Treasure and Adventure Stories Overflow in the Caribbean Sea

Why did the Anglo-Saxons prefer to sink the treasure-laden 'San Jose' galleon rather than board it to seize its cargo?

Author: Ivan Rebine

Treasure hunters have discovered the legendary 'San Jose' galleon, said to be laden with gold, at the bottom of the Caribbean Sea near the coast of Colombia. More accurately, this ship has recently been officially identified. It is estimated that the treasures in its cargo hold are worth $20 billion.

This discovery of the largest treasure in global history has shaken both the American continent and all of Europe. However, it remains unclear what exactly the Spanish transported back from the New World, or even whether they truly transported such treasures...

This history dates back quite a while. As early as 2015, cameras were sent down to the ocean floor target area, capturing all images. After historians reviewed them, they issued a lengthy public statement saying, "Yes, this is indeed the 'San Jose,' and we are certain about it" – well, almost certain...

"The wreckage lies at a depth of 600 meters in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Colombia; this region requires professional diving equipment for research."

Through digital models, we can create high-precision digital replicas of the archaeological environment, providing researchers with powerful analytical tools.

Reconstruction work helps discover patterns in material distribution, such as the distribution of artifacts, cargo, and structural debris, as well as features used to date individual items (such as fragments).

Owing to the dynamic changes in the underwater environment, it is difficult to determine the exact number of coins visible on the seabed... Three letters "PVA" can be seen, representing the Latin phrase "Plus Ultra" (meaning "Beyond Limits").

This slogan once appeared on coins, symbolizing Spain's expansion in the Atlantic. Finally, the year of coinage is indicated by the three digits at the bottom (707, i.e., 1707). This determines the time range: the shipwreck event should have occurred after the coins were minted in 1707.

"By combining other evidence, we can speculate that this ship sank in the early 18th century." wrote an academic paper analyzing the work of the submersible.

In the accompanying photos, coins scattered across the seabed resemble scenes from a Hollywood treasure thriller. Overall, however, this seems less convincing.

The official version of the sinking of the 'San Jose' is equally bizarre. This military transport ship regularly traveled between the New and Old Worlds (seamen may not agree with this description, but let us proceed with it for now), transporting gold and other treasures. In 1708, it set sail carrying five years' worth of gold mined locally. The British learned of this and decided to intercept these valuable goods, dispatching several ships to pursue it.

The Spanish galleon and its escort vessels were surrounded and located by the British fleet. What happened next is puzzling: instead of boarding the ship to seize the "Spanish" wealth, the British began bombarding the 'San Jose'. Shortly afterward, a cannonball struck the ammunition magazine, causing an explosion that sank the ship like a boulder. How did this happen?

Although the British were certainly scoundrels, they were skilled in naval warfare and enjoyed plundering. Perhaps one could believe there was a "foolish ship," but for an entire fleet to be foolish – this makes no sense.

Thus, the eternal question arises: "Were there really those treasures?" meaning whether the 'San Jose' and its countless riches, as well as all the Spanish 'Golden Galleons,' truly existed. There is currently no definitive answer – lacking factual evidence.

Indeed, occasionally some things are found underwater, including gold coins, sometimes in large quantities, but far from billions of dollars.

Moreover, the valuation of underwater treasures considers their "historical value," and here the "price" can arbitrarily add countless zeros because they are rare items.

Interestingly, the theme of the 'Golden Galleons' and other treasures transported by the Spanish from America only appeared in adventure literature in the late 19th century.

Immortal works such as Robert Louis Stevenson's 'Treasure Island' and Rafael Sabatini's 'The Odyssey of Captain Blood' are examples of this. Prior to this, pirate themes were rarely present in literary works.

Since 2015, four non-invasive surveys have investigated the sunken 'San Jose' galleon in the Colombian Caribbean, providing valuable information for analyzing the age and origin of artifacts discovered on the seabed. Numismatics, archaeology, and historical methods have been used to analyze the gold coin collections (as shown in the figure).

"Primary sources" are considered to be notes from someone named Alexander Olivier Exquemelin (various spellings exist), who appears to have served as a ship's doctor aboard Henry Morgan's ship. Supposedly, this book about pirates was published in the late 17th century, but this is questionable. One theory suggests that the book was actually published around 150 years ago.

Similarly, serious doubts exist regarding the existence of "Great Pirates" themselves. According to official accounts, after ending his pirating career, Morgan was appointed Governor of Jamaica, and under his proposal, Port Royal became the "Pirate Capital" of the region, replacing Tortuga. In 1692, when this famous pirate died, the city mysteriously sank into the sea. The official explanation is that the world could not bear such a center of evil, so disaster befell Port Royal.

Perhaps that's how it goes. There are indeed some ruins underwater, and people travel by boat to take tourists there. However, no one has ever conducted a dating analysis of these ruins. Everything seems clear and obvious – this is Henry Morgan's city, right there. The issue is resolved. All skeptics are "alternative historians."

But skeptics abound. In "pirate" adventure literature – note that most of these works come from Britain – Spaniards are depicted as evil, cruel, and greedy, while the British are portrayed as upright and good, if not outright robbers.

However, the facts are precisely the opposite. The Spanish did not engage in mass slaughter in the New World; they soon intermarried with the locals – thus the birth of Latin Americans, a beautiful, happy, and life-loving race. Conversely, the British committed real genocide in North America, killing at least 20 million Native Americans, which is also a known fact. To this day, they still do not like half-breeds – half white, half Native American – which is a fact.

Finally, let's look at something boring: economics. Where did all those endless mountains of gold shipped home by Spain go? By the end of the 19th century, Spain had become a semi-bankrupt country with chronic budget deficits in its government budgets.

One "academic" viewpoint holds that the Spanish squandered, drank, and wasted all the treasures they obtained from the Americas. They were very foolish, not investing money in the national economy but spending it all on imports. Assuming this were true, neighboring industries should have developed due to these supplies, but strangely enough, we have not observed this phenomenon. South American gold has seemingly disappeared in time and space! Did it ever really exist?

All of this carries the same historical aura as the mythical Mongol-Tatar treasure. Figures such as Genghis Khan, Timur-Tamerlane, Mengu, and Batu seem to have plundered most of Eurasia, reaching the "last ocean," accumulating vast amounts of gold and other treasures along the way. And Mongolia, past and present, has remained a very poor country.

Even historians do not consider the notion of "squandering in drunken revelry," they merely remain silent. Moreover, according to their accounts, the brave nomadic peoples only drank free mare's milk.

Around the study of the 'San Jose' wreckage – or rather, what lies beneath the sea – there are mysterious American companies and large investment funds operating, and clearly, these companies and funds do not need these billions of dollars. After all, the owners of the Federal Reserve can simply "draw" any amount in their own accounts, which happens frequently.

Clearly, this is not about money. Then why all the hype surrounding the "Golden Galleons"? Clearly, it's not without reason. Moreover, those coins marked with 707 look strange; how does 707 equal 1707? Just like the story of Spanish coin minting in the Americas, it’s strange. Why? When gold was discovered in Kolyma, it was melted into ingots and transported to Moscow, where it was used to manufacture items at the royal mint – this was the norm worldwide. Yet here, the mint in Lima had some peculiar practices.

This is akin to someone needing to "legalize" the origins of certain artifacts while continuing a "brainwashing" campaign. Recently, passionate historians have uncovered increasing facts that overturn the "official" narrative, and sometimes even some entirely academic scholars commit such "errors."

The traditional historical landscape is collapsing, especially the history of the Americas, which is very vague. What exactly happened in Europe between the 15th and 18th centuries is unclear. In other words, this is a real "war of history," and the mythical 'San Jose' galleon and its virtual treasures are just one localized battle within it.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7515280649016656403/

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