Skirmishing, 1547–1550

The return voyage, from about April to June, 1547, was pleasant. After a stop in the Azores on the island of Tercera, they sailed on to Lisbon where Las Casas disembarked and headed to Castile by land. He arrived at Aranda de Duero sometime in early June. By coincidence, the visitor general to New Spain, Sandoval, followed Las Casas back across the Atlantic, arriving himself at the port of Sanlúcar de Barrameda on September 19. He wrote Las Casas a warm letter upon hearing that the bishop of Chiapa also safely crossed the Atlantic. Sandoval came home to a warm welcome by the crown. His astuteness and political savvy had prevented a rebellion in New Spain, and Philip rewarded him with a bishopric.

Las Casas, on the other hand, faced another one of those major junctures in his life. He came home with the intention of resigning his bishopric of Chiapa, itself an admission of failure. But he did not yield to any sense of defeat. If anything, the intransigence of the settlers and encomenderos stiffened his resolve to continue as advocate and universal Protector of Indians.