I understand that during the age of manifest destiny in America, there were many authors, albeit somewhat unpopular, who advocated for a more "ethical" (insofar as colonization can be ethical) approach to westward settlement and the treatment of native Americans, or opposed it outright.
What is the earliest record of a European expressing displeasure with the colonization of the Americas for moral reasons? After 1492 when Christopher Columbus identified the nature of native Americans (which was, as he and the rest of Europe perceived it, weak and easy to subjugate), was there anyone who said anything along the lines of: "no, it would be wrong to displace millions and settle in their land"? To what extent were there any doctrines, institutions, or ideologies in Europe at the time that would have discouraged this for moral reasons? If not, how long did it take for someone to express such a notion?
Thanks!
Bartolomé de las Casas began the type of advocacy you’re describing in 1515. He wasn’t completely opposed to colonization, but he thought the indigenous Americans should become Spanish subjects and be treated with the same rights as any Spaniard. He wrote strongly against enslaving the indigenous population and the mistreatments they received, including at the hands of Columbus.
He proposed using African slaves instead of indigenous slaves, so like...kind of a mixed bag.