Christopher Columbus was a Genoese navigator and organized various expeditions. He began to sail in trading trips. He gained knowledge of navigation and observed the trades in Gold and slaves during these trips. In the 15th century several European nations sponsored expeditions in the hope to find wealth and undiscovered lands. The route to Asia from Europe by land was long and difficult; it was often accompanied by encounters with hostile armies. People were aware of the gold in Asia. This was accompanied by the tales of Marco Polo and others bringing silk and spices of great value from Asia. Hence all the nations were interested in finding a safe sea route to get their hands on the wealth and resources in Asia.
Christopher Columbus’ knowledge of geography convinced him to sail west to discover a short and safe route to Asia. This was an alternative to traditional route which went east around Africa. This idea of sailing west was conceived by Columbus as early as 1481 because of his correspondence with Italian scholar Paolo del Pozzo Toscaneli. He assumed most of the world was covered by land and Japan lay only 3,000 nautical miles. Columbus would never have made it to Asia, which was thousands of miles farther away than he had calculated, imagining a smaller world. He would have been doomed by that great stretch of sea. But he was lucky.
Columbus made an appeal to king of Portugal who did not agree to his approach of west ward sailing. Columbus convinced the King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to sponsor his expedition of finding safe sea route. The King and queen agreed to Christopher Columbus’ approach as they wanted a quick source of wealth. This was due to the religious war that Spain had been facing pushing out Muslims and Jews. Hence Spain needed money. In return Columbus was promised 10% of profits, governorship over new found land and a new title. Columbus sailed with 3 ships in August of 1492. During early October 1492 the ship crew saw signs of land. Columbus had assumed to reach Japan by now and had imagined to find rich gold mines he desired. It was an island in the Bahamas and Caribbean Sea. Here Columbus was greeted by the Arawak Indian. The Arawak lived in village communes, had a developed agriculture of corn, yams, cassava. They could spin and weave but they had no sense of horses or work animals. They had no iron but they had tiny gold ornaments in their ears. They did not have enough knowledge of weapons as well. Columbus looked this as an advantage and took some of them aboard ship as prisoners. Columbus wanted the Arawak Indians help him in search of gold. Columbus reached Española (Hispaniola) after exploring Bahamas and Cuba during his search. In Hispaniola, Columbus built a fort, the first European military base in the Western Hemisphere. He called it Navidad and left 39 of his crew men to find and store gold. Columbus exaggerated his report and
Christopher Columbus Hello everyone! Today I will be talking to you about an explorer named Christopher Columbus. Let me start by telling you about his background. Columbus was an Italian explorer, navigator and colonizer. He was born in October and in the year of 1451.He was born in Genoa, Italy. His Italian name was Cristoforo Colombo. He was the son of Domenica and Susanna Fontanorossa. His wife’s name was Filpa Moniz Perestrolo. He had 4 siblings. Their names were Bartholomew, Giovanni, Bianchinetta…
For generations Christopher Columbus was hailed as the discoverer of the Americas. In recent years, some have downplayed this discovery. After all, the Native Americans, Aztec and Mayans had all been living in the Americas and did not want or need to be discovered. Furthermore, it's clear that the Vikings had visited the far northern part of America. Despite these questions, Columbus' accidental discovery of the Americas changed world history. Columbus' willingness and ability to sail so far into…
country, in every district in the world, the name Christopher Columbus is known and recognized amongst many. Many view him as an outstanding navigator and explorer while others tend to look at him as a terminator and destroyer. Columbus is supposedly one of the most biographical man in the fifteenth Christopher Columbus Century and onwards. It can be said also that Columbus was an adventurer classified as a modern man. “Christopher Columbus belonged to an age that was past, yet he became…
12.01.10 Eng 24- D18D Fall semester Exposing Christopher Columbus Have you wondered how Christopher Columbus became so popular? Or maybe challenged what you know about him? Well if not I have, after reading “LIES MY TEACHER TOLD ME” by JAMES W. LOEW I felt like my views of a hero were based on lies of omission. I felt growing up when teachers taught student from the textbook they made us believe that Christopher Columbus was a well rounded, respectable Hero but now that I am older…
Christopher Columbus’ reasoning behind his expedition to North America as we now know it has a deeper, more selfish meaning than what he would have us believe. He spends the beginning third of his letter affirming the value of continuing the venture into “the Indies”, speaking of gold bearing rivers, simple Indians willing to trade gold for tidbits of leather, fertile soil, and God’s spirit willing them to take it all. He also began to do something strategic that would force some level of commitment…
Christopher Columbus was the first man who thought that the earth was round. So Spain believed him and funded his voyage west. This all happened in 1492. Many people think Columbus is a hero; but in reality he is a villain. Christopher Columbus is a villain because he brought diseases to Hispaniola, and took Taino as slaves. To begin, Christopher Columbus is a villain because he killed a lot of people. To demonstrate, on document #3, Zinn says “By…
Miranda Downs Week 4 Essay In 1492, Columbus Sailed The Ocean Blue August 3, 1492, Columbus sailed from port of Palos, Spain, with three ships, one larger ship, Santa María, nicknamed Gallega (the Gallician), and two smaller vessels, Santa Clara, nicknamed Niña (the Girl), and the Pinta (the Painted). As it is so often stated, the rest is history. For centuries, the history books have lead many people to believe the misconception that Columbus was America’s great discoverer. Unfortunately, this…
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus got his first look at the Atlantic ocean when he was working as a sailor on a commercial vessels. When he was young he spent most of his time learning to sail and make maps. By 1477 he was working in Portugal and later joined the Portuguese merchant fleet. When Columbus worked as a merchant sailor Portugal was trying to find an eastern route to Asia because the route around Africa was taking too long. Columbus thought it would be quicker to sail west…
Part A. One story that is taught to us from the time we are little till even now, as young adults, is the story of Christopher Columbus, sailing the ocean blue. Our hero, our lionhearted victor who discovered our country, our home. We would sing songs when we were in kindergarten, put on plays to show how Columbus valiantly fought to secure our land. Sure a few natives died, but what was a few deaths of people whom which we don’t even know compared to the security of a land of plenty for us to…
Christopher Columbus’s Voyage to the America’s Daisha Madden December 4, 2014 Mr. Basoco Word Count: Cristóbal Calón better yet know as Christopher Columbus was born October 30, 1451. He was born in the Republic of Genoa, which is today a part of Italy. He was born to the parts of Domenico Colombo, who was a wool-weaver, and Susanna Fontanarossa. Not much information was given on Christopher Columbus’s childhood but it is evident that he grew up very educated and had great parents and a good…