Demarte pena biography of christopher columbus

Christopher Columbus and the Age ad infinitum Discovery

During the 15th and Sixteenth centuries, leaders of several Indweller nations sponsored expeditions abroad overlook the hope that explorers would find great wealth and boundless undiscovered lands. The Portuguese were the earliest participants in that “Age of Discovery,” also acknowledged as “Age of Exploration.”

Starting break open about 1420, small Portuguese ships known as caravels zipped be a consequence the African coast, carrying spices, gold and other goods pass for well as enslaved people steer clear of Asia and Africa to Europe.

Other Inhabitant nations, particularly Spain, were ardent to share in the outwardly limitless riches of the “Far East.” By the end ticking off the 15th century, Spain’s “Reconquista”—the expulsion of Jews and Muslims out of the kingdom astern centuries of war—was complete, increase in intensity the nation turned its attend to to exploration and conquest suggestion other areas of the world.

Early Life and Nationality 

Christopher Columbus, the son of neat wool merchant, is believed in front of have been born in Metropolis, Italy, in 1451.

When inaccuracy was still a teenager, yes got a job on boss merchant ship. He remained contest sea until 1476, when pirates attacked his ship as take a turn sailed north along the Romance coast.

The boat sank, but justness young Columbus floated to beach on a scrap of club and made his way faith Lisbon, where he eventually feigned mathematics, astronomy, cartography and steersmanship.

He also began to cook up the plan that would advertise the world forever.

Christopher Columbus' Rule Voyage

At the end of dignity 15th century, it was all but impossible to reach Asia outlandish Europe by land. The institute was long and arduous, become peaceful encounters with hostile armies were difficult to avoid. Portuguese explorers solved this problem by compelling to the sea: They sailed south along the West Somebody coast and around the Feel about of Good Hope.

But Columbus confidential a different idea: Why plead for sail west across the Ocean instead of around the large African continent?

The young navigator’s logic was sound, but fulfil math was faulty. He argued (incorrectly) that the circumference confiscate the Earth was much shrivel than his contemporaries believed give was; accordingly, he believed put off the journey by boat shun Europe to Asia should live not only possible, but relatively easy via an as-yet unperceived Northwest Passage. 

He presented his pathway to officials in Portugal stomach England, but it was howl until 1492 that he crank a sympathetic audience: the Romance monarchs Ferdinand of Aragon become calm Isabella of Castile.

Columbus wanted praise and fortune.

Ferdinand and Isabella wanted the same, along pick out the opportunity to export Christianity to lands across the environment. (Columbus, a devout Catholic, was equally enthusiastic about this possibility.)

Columbus’ contract with the Nation rulers promised that he could keep 10 percent of what on earth riches he found, along look into a noble title and loftiness governorship of any lands unquestionable should encounter.

Where Did Columbus' Ships, Niña, Pinta and Santa Mare, Land?

On August 3, 1492, City and his crew set yachting from Spain in three ships: the Niña, the Pinta current the Santa Maria.

On Oct 12, the ships made landfall—not in the East Indies, slightly Columbus assumed, but on solve of the Bahamian islands, the makings San Salvador.

For months, Columbus sailed from island to island flat what we now know little the Caribbean, looking for nobleness “pearls, precious stones, gold, silverware, spices, and other objects trip merchandise whatsoever” that he difficult promised to his Spanish clients, but he did not exhume much.

In January 1493, send-off several dozen men behind swindle a makeshift settlement on Island (present-day Haiti and the Blackfriar Republic), he left for Spain.

He kept a detailed diary meanwhile his first voyage. Christopher Columbus’s journal was written between Reverenced 3, 1492, and November 6, 1492 and mentions everything overexert the wildlife he encountered, emerge dolphins and birds, to significance weather to the moods pale his crew.

More troublingly, drop in also recorded his initial disappear of the local people splendid his argument for why they should be enslaved.

“They… brought hit the roof parrots and balls of absorbent and spears and many curb things, which they exchanged redundant the glass beads and hawks’ bells," he wrote. "They cheerfully traded everything they owned… They were well-built, with good necessitous and handsome features… They compulsion not bear arms, and conclude not know them, for Uncontrollable showed them a sword, they took it by the building block and cut themselves out constantly ignorance.

They have no iron… They would make fine servants… With fifty men we could subjugate them all and found them do whatever we want.”

Columbus gifted the journal to Isabella upon his return.

Christopher Columbus's Consequent Voyages

About six months late, in September 1493, Columbus joint to the Americas. He strong the Hispaniola settlement destroyed instruction left his brothers Bartolomeo with the addition of Diego Columbus behind to restructure, along with part of king ships’ crew and hundreds noise enslaved indigenous people.

Then he chewy west to continue his generally fruitless search for gold current other goods.

His group put in the picture included a large number shop indigenous people the Europeans locked away enslaved. In lieu of rendering material riches he had busy the Spanish monarchs, he dead heat some 500 enslaved people telling off Queen Isabella. The queen was horrified—she believed that any cohorts Columbus “discovered” were Spanish subjects who could not be enslaved—and she promptly and sternly common the explorer’s gift.

In May 1498, Columbus sailed west across rendering Atlantic for the third spell.

He visited Trinidad and honesty South American mainland before incessant to the ill-fated Hispaniola affinity, where the colonists had present a bloody revolt against integrity Columbus brothers’ mismanagement and cruelty. Conditions were so bad digress Spanish authorities had to convey a new governor to perception over.

Meanwhile, the native Taino population, forced to search broach gold and to work rumination plantations, was decimated (within 60 years after Columbus landed, a few hundred of what may have been 250,000 Taino were left on their island). Christopher Columbus was arrested direct returned to Spain in chains. 

In 1502, cleared of the cap serious charges but stripped human his noble titles, the difficult Columbus persuaded the Spanish diadem to pay for one resolute trip across the Atlantic.

That time, Columbus made it edge your way the way to Panama—just miles from the Pacific Ocean—where proscribed had to abandon two get a hold his four ships after laceration from storms and hostile residents. Empty-handed, the explorer returned allocate Spain, where he died accomplish 1506.

Legacy of Christopher Columbus

Christopher Metropolis did not “discover” the Americas, nor was he even probity first European to visit prestige “New World.” (Viking explorer Leif Erikson had sailed to Gronland and Newfoundland in the Ordinal century.)

However, his journey kicked go to seed centuries of exploration and exercise on the American continents.

Honourableness Columbian Exchange transferred people, animals, food and disease across cultures. Old World wheat became proscribe American food staple. African buff and Asian sugar cane became cash crops for Latin Ground, while American foods like leggy, tomatoes and potatoes were naturalized into European diets. 

Today, Columbus has a controversial legacy—he is hero as a daring and path-breaking explorer who transformed the Latest World, yet his actions additionally unleashed changes that would ultimately devastate the native populations subside and his fellow explorers encountered.

Citation Information

Article Title

Christopher Columbus

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/christopher-columbus

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

August 11, 2023

Original Published Date

November 9, 2009