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Christopher columbus historical impact
Christopher columbus historical impact
Christopher columbus impact essay
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There are two different sides to this man’s story. He was both a good man and an evil one. Who is this man that I am talking about? Everyone in the world knows this man as Christopher Columbus. The things he did are even being talked about today! You may think you know everything about him, but I bet you don’t. Actually, I bet you don’t know much about him. For this paper, I chose Christopher Columbus and here is what I learned. Christopher Columbus in a very small town known as Genoa, Italy on October 31, 1431 . Ok, his name wasn’t actually Christopher Columbus it is just easier to say than his actual name to us. His actual name was Christoforo Columbo. His dad Domenico had the only job he could get as a wool merchant. And his mom was known …show more content…
as Susanna Fontanarossa, and she was the daughter of a governor. He had three brothers, but only one sister, and out of all those siblings, he was the oldest out of them all. His family wasn’t the richest of all of Spain, but they weren’t completely poor, actually they were straight in the middle class, that would explain his love for gold. Since his family wasn’t rich he almost never talked about his parents or what they did. As a kid, Christopher didn’t have the things that most kids had in those days had. When he was only fourteen he had to drop out of school, and had to teach himself. Out of all the subjects, and all the things he could do, his favorite thing to do was read. Out of all the books that he read, the one that he loved the most was “The Adventures of Marco Polo.” His dad was at sea a lot when he was a kid so eventually Christopher just started going with him. When he was older he worked with his dad, mainly as a ship boy. His whole family was Catholic, so was Christopher Columbus, and that explains some of the things he did in his later life. Christopher Columbus was young when he first learned to navigate, nineteen to be exact, most kids today don’t learn skills like that until later on in their lives. When he was twenty Christopher Columbus lived through a shipwreck that was pretty bad, and even though he was badly injured, he swam, on an a paddle, for six miles, to get to shore. Before he got married, he opened a map making business with his brother Bartholomew. Christopher Columbus was pretty young when he got married, his wife’s name was Felipa Pastorella Monic. Sadly, Felipa died while their son, Diego, was being born, Christopher Columbus felt terrible and alone. Less than a year later, Christopher Columbus met a woman who wasn’t rich she was definitely a peasant. He never married this woman because she wasn’t royal at all, but she took care of his first born, and gave him his second son, Fernando. Even though I have mentioned a lot of things there is even more that Christopher Columbus is famous for, but the thing he is most famous for; his voyage West when he discovered America of course. Well, first of all most people say that he discovered North America, but that is completely wrong, he actually discovered the islands around South America and Central America. But before he went on his voyage there were a few things that happened. He was so poor that he had to beg leaders of different countries for the money so he could go on his journey to somewhere they never thought he would reach. Once he even beat up a bishop that he needed on his side for money. Finally, one day, one of the leaders gave him money to go on his journey. Most people think it was just so he would be quiet. Luckily, he was able to build three ships with the money he got, they were the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Christopher Columbus was the captain of the Santa Maria, but his favorite ship was actually the Nina. Even though there were a lot of men on the boats, all women and girls were not allowed, so any of their wives had to stay home. They were on the ships for a long time sailing west because they were trying to find a new route to the East Indies. One thing that most people don’t know about Christopher Columbus and his voyage is that he did not go to prove that the Earth is not flat like most explorers, he went to steal gold from other countries and gain power and glory. Even though the crew was very doubtful about it, he reached the South American countries on October 12, 1492. Christopher Columbus put flags down and told the Indians that the countries were now Spain property. Christopher Columbus decided to name the people he met Indians, but their original names were the Tainos. The Indians were so nice to Christopher Columbus, but he was so mean and rude to them. Christopher Columbus stole land, and put flags down and was literally saying this land is Spain’s no matter what you say. Christopher Columbus told his men from the ship to give the Tainos weapons, because it would be easier to “kill them with kindness” so they would change to be catholic easier. He had a translator that did not know what language the Indians were speaking, so Christopher Columbus tried communicating in sign language. Christopher Columbus did some terrible things when he was on his first trip to these countries.
People today tell us that the Tainos were the ones who did the bad stuff, but it was Christopher Columbus and his men. Columbus was being rude and mean to the Tainos, and so were the people helping him. The Tainos were trying to protect themselves and killed some of his men. When Christopher Columbus found out about what happened, he did something worse that kill the Tainos, he cut off their noses and their ears. In my opinion that is just disgusting. Why would anyone want to do something that horrible? He did a lot of terrible things to the Tainos, and stole fifteen thousand of them. All of the Tainos that he stole, he took them back to Spain and used them as slaves. As payback for what he did, the Tainos gave him fool’s gold. Christopher Columbus went on two other voyages, and on the third one he got stranded and had to be rescued. Even though he got stranded, he still decided to finish his journey, and go the rest of the way. He did things even worse than before on his third voyage. The things he did were so bad that Spain went to America, brought him back in chains, and threw him in prison. The funny thing is when he was in jail, he dressed in a brown robe, acted like a monk, and did nothing but complain. Depending on who you are depends are if you will say if this was good or bad news. They let him out of jail after only four
weeks! Christopher Columbus died when he was fifty four from many different diseases like Reiter's syndrome, Arthritis, eye inflammation, and some people even say that he had some mental illnesses. The exact date he died was May 20, 1506. One of the last things he said was, “Gold is most excellent. Gold is treasure, and whoever has it may do what he wishes in the world.” (Krull) Christopher Columbus is very famous for the things he did. He is definitely more famous now than before. You might be wondering how I know. Well for one, every year we celebrate Columbus Day on the second Monday of October. In Ohio they named the state capital Columbus after him. Also in Columbus, Ohio there is a museum where you can go on a replica that they made look like the Santa Maria, and you can check out some things that are a lot alike the real one, but of course it isn’t. When I lived there I went and saw it and in my opinion it was really cool. I went in second grade on a field trip. He definitely made a long term contribution to the world. Some of the things he gave to the world were good, but some were also bad. Not only did he help Spain come to America, but he helped Spain go to many other countries as well. On the down side, he stole gold and money from many different countries when the gold did not belong to him or Spain. In conclusion, Christopher Columbus was not a perfect man, but he was not an absolutely terrible one either. Everything he did in his life made some difference in the world in one way or another. It might have been the way he worked on everything, or even just the way he brushed his hair. Christopher Columbus is still remembered today and I believe he will be remembered forever.
Columbus’s “intentions were far from selfless.” (Myint, 2015, Para. 5). The greed was immense as Columbus believed in the entitlement of ten percent of all the treasures that were plundered. Nothing was shared with the crew. Natives were also mutilated and enslaved. If the natives did no collect enough money they lost limbs, some also lost their lives. A hero would not hurt innocent people trying to survive.
Although Columbus was increasing the wealth and strength of Spain, he was “a catastrophe for the indigenous inhabitants of the lands” (Belasco 67). He had no remorse for the natives as he proceeded to establish plantations, enslave them, slaughter them, and create a new colony called Espanola on their lands. According to Schuman, Howard, Barry Schwartz, and Hannah d’Arcy, Christopher Columbus “deserves condemnation for having brought slavery, disease, and death...
Who is Christopher Columbus? You may already have prior knowledge of him, but if you do not, Christopher Columbus was a Spanish explorer who made four voyages to the Americas. His voyages led to the Columbian Exchange and colonization. Many cultures, ideas, technology, and foods were spread between the Americas, the “New World,” and Europe, Africa, and Asia, the “Old World”. Even though many great things were exchanged between the Old World and the New World, many diseases from Europe were introduced to the Natives. Does this make Christopher Columbus a hero, or a villain? The answer is not that debatable. A closer look must be taken at Christopher Columbus 's life to be able to judge such things. This essay will take a look at his life,
Christopher Columbus does not deserve to be honored as a hero with his own holiday. Close to 500 years, people have praised Christopher Columbus and also celebrated him as though he was the one who truly founded America. Teachers teach students that he was a great man, also how he found treasures and land known as America. Students are also taught about the names of his three ships he used on his first voyage. However, they did not teach us the truth about Christopher Columbus, and his so called “discovery”.
Christopher Columbus was a man who much credit was given to for a very small deed. In fact he discovered a new world, but that world was only new to him and the men of his previous generations. What about the many Native Americans whose fathers and father’s fathers shed their blood for the land in which they had lived for so many years. How could one such as Christopher Columbus who was looking for freedom and hope cause so much bondage and destruction? One man’s victory turned out to be devastation for millions.
What he and his men did to the Indigenous people is told in horrifying detail by the Dominican priest Bartolome de Las Casas, “whose writings give the most thorough account of the Spanish-Indian encounter.” Las Casas witnessed firsthand Columbus’ soldiers stabbing Natives for sport, dashing babies’ heads on rocks, and sexually abusing Indigenous women. His testimony was corroborated by other eyewitnesses, such as a group of Dominican friars, who addressed the Spanish monarchy in 1519, hoping to bring an end to the atrocities. At the very least, Columbus was complicit in the actions of his men. He cared so little for the welfare of the Indigenous people that he let his soldiers commit reprehensible acts that would be considered crimes against humanity in the present day. Christopher Columbus’ actions suggest he had no issue with serving as an enabler of the horrifying actions committed by his men against the Indigenous
It is important to remember that Columbus was only the man who gave the orders, they were actually carried out by his men. Even after hearing people like Father Bartolomé de las Casas plead on behalf of the Tainos, Columbus’ men still decided to follow orders and torture, enslave, and murder millions of Tainos. Father de las Casas’ writing says that the Tainos are “gentle lambs” and when Columbus’ men attack the Tainos, they “tear the natives to shreds, murder them and inflict upon them untold misery, suffering and distress, tormenting, harrying and persecuting them mercilessly.” Father de las Casas writing is reliable because he witnessed these horrible actions firsthand. Christopher Columbus, when writing to the King and Queen, even says, “Of these [weapons] they do not dare to make use, for many times it has happened that I have sent ashore two or three men to some town to have speech with them, and countless people have come out to them, and as soon as they have seen my men approaching, they have fled, a father not even waiting for his son.” Columbus was on the island of Hispaniola and knew firsthand that his men had no reason to kill the Tainos because there was no way that they would fight back or stand a chance against them. Because Columbus’ men chose to follow Columbus’ orders and attack and kill the Tainos when they had
In 1492, Christopher Columbus unintentionally discovered America, when he landed in the Caribbean Islands, while looking for a direct sea route to Asia. Despite the fact that Columbus believed he had found a direct sea route to India, he has been called the discoverer of America and hailed as a hero. More recently, however, he has been called a villain, with accusations saying that not only did he not discover America, but also that he was the cause of slavery and oppression in the Americas. These allegations are absurd and lack logical evidence.
Along the Columbus journey bits of gold were found amongst the Native Indians which led to Columbus concluding that there was more (Zinn, 2009, p.481). The Native’s were turned into servants looking for a certain amount of gold for Columbus. If they had not met the daily quota their arms were to be cut off (Zinn, 2009, p.481). This is just part of the brutality that Columbus had put upon the Natives. More cruelty can be seen when Columbus sent five hundred Natives as slaves to the King and Queen in Spain. Also stabbing of Indians was done as a sport and those that resisted against the Spaniards were hunted down as animals (Zinn, 2009, p.482). Zinn shows that the Columbus story is one of the many myths of Western civilization. All the stories about Columbus especially in the USA since, it is a celebration are seen as a heroic adventure. However, many teachers argue that children should not be told such a violent story filled with horrific history (Zinn, 2009, p.485). It is important to teach children at a young age the truth about the Columbus story, so that they know what a monster he
For generations upon generations, students have been taught about the “hero” Christopher Columbus who had discovered our new world. However, to say he was a hero would not exactly be the truth; Columbus was an eccentric man who cared much more about his profits than the well being and even lives of the natives. It is documented in journals that he and his crew had slaughtered entire villages at a time, and that he had even killed people just for the point of testing how sharp his sword was. Not only did Columbus and his crew have a thing for violence, on multiple accounts crew members wrote down every single successful rape of women; and used the voyage to help begin a slave export for the royalty of Spain.
For more than five centuries Americans have lifted Christopher Columbus to heights of greatness and god-like. We celebrate his life as though he was a man that had done us a great favor. In resent years Christopher Columbus has come under scrutiny, his life and works being questioned more than celebrated. There have be many great men and women that contributed to the building of our great nation but they do not receive anywhere as much recognition as Columbus. When a person begins to study the actual accounts of the "finding of the New World" they begin to wonder if Columbus should adored or hated for his actions. As a child I was taught that Columbus was a great man that had accomplished great things for the sake of humanity, but in reality his agenda was not to better humanity but to better himself. He found the Americas by mere chance and he did not even know of what he found. We give him credit for "finding" the Americas but history tells of the people, that he called Indians, already inhabiting the foreign land. So you decide whether or not Christopher Columbus should be revered a hero.
My personal opinion? Villain. Christopher Columbus was a nasty man who was motivated by greed. “The information that Columbus wanted most was: Where is the Gold” (Zinn 4)? He logged in his journal his first encounter with the Arawak people, stating “As soon as I arrived in the Indies, I took some of the natives by force in order that they might give me information of whatever there is in these parts” (Zinn 4). Their crime? “They wore tiny gold ornaments in their ears” (Zinn 5). Columbus would stop at nothing to gain what he most desired. Horrible as he was, he ultimately paved the way for America as we know it. All things happen for a reason, right?
Christopher Columbus unintentionally discovered America, when he landed in the Caribbean Islands. He had left Spain in search of Asia and India. When he and his crew arrived at what now is Haiti for his second voyage, they demanded food, gold, and anything else they wanted from the Indians, even sex with their women. Columbus punished those who committed offenses against him. Rape and enslavement had been brought upon the natives. When the natives of the land, known as the Arawaks, tried to fight back, it led to a massacre of their people in which by Columbus? order, meant crossbows, small cannons, lances, and swords to destroy them. Even wild hunting dogs were released to rip up the Arawaks, whom by the end of the day were dead or ready to ship to Spain as slaves. None of this was ever taught to students.
Most people in the current times believe that Columbus wanted to find a new trade route. Columbus didn't care about foreign goods or trade, he wanted gold (Inman, Matthew). In an effort to find it, Columbus enslaved the Lucayan people as a free source of labor that could easily be controlled. If the natives disobeyed orders, they were tortured and sometimes killed. Columbus and his men forced the natives to mine gold for him and the few times they were able to fulfill their quota, they were rewarded with clay tokens to be worn around their necks. However, if they failed to, often times the native's hands were cut off and were worn around their necks instead (Inman, Matthew). Columbus’ legacy paved the way for other explorers to enslave and torture the natives, thus, the native culture slowly declined.
...nimous personality, Christopher Columbus. For Columbus his actions were justified because slavery was permissible by Spain. Christopher Columbus took advantage of what was presented to him and made a name for himself, bringing back gold, slaves and the discovery of a new world for his motherland. Along with this, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella promised him 10% of all newfound land. While slavery may not been seen permissible by many, this is how things were five centuries ago. Columbus had violated the rights of many innocent people for his own personal gain and that of his country. Ultimately pegging the Native Americans against him, the common result with most conquistadors and the Native Americans of the region they arrived on. As a consequence of European oppression, forced labor, starvation, and infections many of people they enslaved ended up dying.