Bobadilla, Francisco de (d. 1502), Spanish administrator known for arresting Christopher Columbus in Santo Domingo after several of the Spanish colonists revolted against the explorer.
Bobadilla was a noble who had fought in the wars of reconquest against the Moors. In 1500, he was sent to Santo Domingo by the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella as Royal Commissioner and Chief Justice, with the power to assume the governorship, if necessary.
After an investigation of Columbus's administration revealed that the explorer had hanged five Spaniards, Bobadilla arrested Columbus's brother Diego, who was then in charge of the Spanish settlement in Columbus's absence. He also took possession of the town of Santo Domingo. When Columbus returned from an expedition against the natives on another part of the island, Bobadilla placed him in chains and sent him and Diego back to Spain.
