Originally named Christopher Colombo, Columbus will be forever remembered as the man that brought Europe to the new world. However, there are plenty of smaller details mainstreams history neglects to mention, that Columbus experienced on his historic journey. For one Columbus discovered the New World totally by accident, he originally set out from Spain to find a faster way to Asia, Where the European powers went to trade for valuable commodities such as silk and spices. In fact, the original destination Columbus was traveling to was Japan; instead the voyager landed on in island in what is now called the Bahamas. While nowadays it is widely noted that Columbus was not the first European explorer to reach the New World, or even the first explorer to …show more content…
reach it, his voyages would cement further influence on the new continent from European powers. At the time all the nations of Europe were searching for ways to boost their economies, in the past this was done through invading nations and taking their resources. But during the medieval era, Europeans discovered the treasures of the lands in the Far East. Now instead of the Europe’s nations trying to muscle over each other, a race had begun to see who could reach the east faster and in turn who could acquire these valuables faster.
Columbus comes into the picture when he proposes that traveling across the Atlantic sea westward, would land him on the opposite side of the continent in Asia. Originally the idea to sail west was the idea of an astronomer named Paolo Dal Pozzo Toscanelli, his proposal however was rejected. Instead Columbus and his brother had heard of Toscanelli’s idea and decided to pursue it themselves. Columbus himself actually took the idea to King John II of Portugal twice in order to gain financial support, however, both times the king denied Columbus. Eventually his endeavor gained the attention of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella, who granted Columbus the not only a fleet of ships but royalties from and land he discovered. He was also promised the rank of “Grand Admiral of the Ocean” should he prove his theory correct. While Columbus did not prove westward travel into Asia was possible he did discover a new continent rich with resources, perfect for the imperialistic European powers desiring for anyway to make their economies even
stronger. When Columbus returned he told the Monarchs of Spain of the strange land to the west where he encountered “Indians”, who were actually the Native American people. As promised the Spanish granted Columbus the royalties of the land he discovered, granting him his title and granting him is governorship of the discovered land. Columbus also Latinizes his name changing it from Colombo to Columbus. However the fame and fortune was short lived for Columbus. Columbus was arrested in 1500 and dismissed from his post. Columbus’ sons expected foul play from the Spanish Monarchy, the result was a series of court cases today known as Pleitos Colombinos (Columbian lawsuits). Ultimately, Columbus and his sons were unsuccessful, they achieved a small marquee on the island of Jamaica, and the recognition of their ownership of the isle of Hispaniola, but Columbus had to pay substantial fees to the Spanish Monarchy. Columbus died at the age of 53 on May 20, 1506, he had succumbed to Reiter’s Syndrome; the symptoms of which resemble influenza, with added fevers bleeding from eyes, and severe gout attacks. Because of Columbus Europe began its expansion into the New World, and while many may attribute Columbus to the genocide of the indigenous Carib people, the undisputed fact is that Columbus’ journey would forever change the West.
Columbus and Champlain were both devoted to the success of their expeditions; however, Columbus had far more selfish intentions. Columbus was an Italian who sought aid for a journey that would travel across the Atlantic Ocean in search for riches in the East. His support did not come easy as he was rejected by the courts of Portugal, France, and England. Ultimately, Columbus was able to gain authorization and funding for a voyage to begin in 1492 by the Spanish monarchs King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel. After starting the long awaited expedition in April, Columbus was able to reach the West Indies by October of that year. Upon encountering the New World, Columbus immediately claimed the land along with its natives for his Spanish sovereigns.
Some of the problems when studying history are the texts and documents that have been discovered are only from perspective. Furthermore, on occasion that one perspective is all there may be for historians to study. A good example of this textual imbalance can be found from the texts about the discovery of the New World; more specifically, the letters of Christopher Columbus and Pêro Vaz de Caminha during their voyages to the New World. Plenty of the text from this time is written from the perspective of the Europeans, as the Indigenous population did not have any written text. What this means is that it provided only one perspective, which can drastically hinder how history is interpreted. Columbus’s letter of his first voyage to the Caribbean
Would you like to be captured and become a slave for some main that came to your land? I doubt that anyone would like for this to happen so could you image the many slaves killed and forced to work for Christopher Columbus. Also, I highly doubt that anyone would like to hop on a ship and go somewhere in Europe that you don’t even know. The natives were good people, and they were a part of the world too. I believe that Christopher Columbus was a villain for coming to the natives land unwanted, he also only wanted to find gold and seize power, and because Columbus in my mind was a hypocrite.
Christopher Columbus one of the most famous explorers with an extraordinary legacy was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451. He was an Italian explorer and navigator and is very well known for his four voyages and his “discovery” of the New World. Columbus began sailing when he was just a teenager in the Mediterranean and Aegean seas. Later, he moved to Lisbon, Portugal and then Spain where he spent the rest of his life. Columbus’ purpose was to find a passage to Asia by sailing West, but during his voyage he ended up in the Caribbeans and South America. Columbus propose was turned down by King John of Portugal and the rulers of England and France. After several years of being declined, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella funded Columbus’ voyage due
Christopher Columbus was a famous navigator and explorer who was born in 1451 in Genoa, Italy. Columbus wanted to claim land for Spain so he could be rich and spread religion. He originally set out to find the East Indies for many reasons. One was that he hoped to establish trade routes and colonies in order to gain wealth. Another was that there were now bigger guns that could be strapped on ships so he felt that his voyage had more of a chance of being successful. The main reasons for his exploration was that he wanted to find a western route to Asia to find the riches that Marco Polo talked about in his book. So basically he was not courageous, he was just greedy. He intended on arriving in Japan on his first voyage, but instead, he arrived at the Bahamas archipelago. He ended up making numerous voyages and claiming the lands he visited for the Spanish Empire. Columbus continued voyages creating the first lasting European conta...
All heroes have flaws, but if those flaws include murder, rape, and kidnapping, that person is really a villain disguised as a hero. Most people look fondly on Christopher Columbus since he traveled to the unknown and started the colonization of America that lead to the countries that we know today. Columbus is not a hero, however, since he did not discover the Americas, he treated the Native Americans inhumanly, and even in his own time, Columbus was a criminal.
It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory voyage from King John II of Portugal, but he was refused. In 1485, Columbus took his son Diego and went to Spain to get some help.
Christopher Columbus was a renaissance explorer in 1492. he was sent by queen Isabelle and king Ferdinand of Spain to look for a trade route to east Asia
Under the monarchy of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, Spain was provided with many advantages in its conquest of the Western Hemisphere. Spanish monarchs supported several explorers ' expeditions and one of them was Christopher Columbus. In 1492 Columbus was on the look out for a better, cheaper, and faster route to Asia in order to acquire better trade goods, expand Spanish empires, and spread Christianity. It was also his last chance to sail and prove to the Spanish monarchs that he was capable of finding riches for them. Instead, he sailed west where he ran into the Western Hemisphere and discovered new lands and new people, where he thought he found India.
Christopher Columbus had two main motives for trying to find a sea route around the world to Asia. Columbus’ first reason was that he wanted the fame. He believed that the earth was round and according to his theory, the earth was only 18,000 miles in circumference (Symcox, 9). He believed that it would be faster to sail around the world to Asia than sailing around Africa. He wanted to be the first person credited for sailing around the earth to Asia. Columbus also wanted to make a name for his family. The second reason Columbus wanted to sail around the world was simple. He wanted to make money. Columbus’ want for fame and fortune drove him to create a sea route to Asia.
In 1484, Christopher Columbus attempted to interest King John II of Portugal in his voyage to explore the West. His attempt was a fail, but that did not make him lose his hope. About eight years later he went to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, attempting his service in leading such an extraordinary voyage. After the death of the last Muslim Spain agreed to finance the voyage and named Columbus as the admiral and governor of any lands he should find. In 1492 Columbus received his approval; he started his voyage to explode the west on August 3, 1492. Columbus first landing was in the Bahamas, later he discovered the Northeast coast of Cuba, eastward to the islands of Hispaniola, which now is known as Haiti and Dominican Republic. When discovering the eastward islands of Hispaniola, Columbus lost his flagship name Santa Maria, one of his famous three shi...
When Columbus landed on the beaches of the Watling Islands of the Bahamas in October, 1492, he had inadvertently opened up a whole new world for the Europeans, Asians, and other countries of the Eastern hemisphere. Although Columbus was not the first man to truly discover the Americas, he can be credited as the man who made their existence known worldwide. The discovery of the Americas launched an era of discovery and exploration, especially in Europe. Many new foods and animals were brought to the Old World from the Americas. This would not have been possible with out Christopher Columbus. In addition, Columbus’s explorations eventually led to a period of economical growth in Europe. It is important that we take time to remember Columbus’s achievements on Columbus Day.
Christopher Columbus, born in Genoa, Italy some time between the 26th of August and 31st of October in 1451 (Flint, Valerie I.J. "Christopher Columbus: Italian Explorer."), discovered the rich environment of a country we now know as the United States of America. When Columbus set out of Spain on August 13 in 1942 he was looking for a trade route between India and Asia, but what he found was a new land. Although the land he found was already inhabited, his discovery “marked the beginning of centuries of trans-Atlantic conquest and colonization”. Near the end of the 15th century, it was extremely difficult to move across Europe and Asia without encountering armies from various nations on land. The brave yet somewhat uncoordinated Columbus had a different idea, to acquire fame and wealth, and to sail west across the
Before the most famous historic voyage to the Americas Christopher Columbus had no support to go on his expedition. Christopher Columbus tried to get support from the King of Portugal John II, but he was turned down. Spain finally agreed to sponsor his voyage in 1492 across the Atlantic Ocean. By agreeing to sponsor Christopher Columbus voyage they believed they would have gained leverage in what they were trying to do in Spain. The Reconquista made the Spaniards very powerful. By Christopher Columbus finding new land with people and gold it convinced King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to continue to support his voyages. Even though the king and queen believed that allowing him to go on the voyages benefited them it actually allowed Christopher
In the years leading up to and including 1491 European explorers had been researching and studying the world, however they lacked a real understanding of the true size and geography of our planet. When explorers finally began setting out on their expeditions in the late 1400’s, the world began to experience serious change. Before Columbus is credited with the discovery of America in 1492, the Americas were untouched by Europeans, but within a few hundred years permanent settlements would be founded on American soil despite the presence of the native people.