Sometimes erroneously credited with the notion that the Earth was spherical and that sailing west would permit reaching the Far East, Columbus was but one of many European navigators in
Trang 1events in world history, placing Old World and New
into sustained contact with repercussions that are still
being felt today
Sometimes erroneously credited with the notion
that the Earth was spherical and that sailing west would
permit reaching the Far East, Columbus was but one of
many European navigators in the late 1400s to hold
such views His fame is not based on his pursuit of an
original idea, but on his dogged determination, despite
many setbacks, to achieve his goals, combined with the
striking good fortune to be the first to reach the
Ameri-cas and return with evidence of a world that hitherto
had lain beyond the ken of Europe
As a youth Columbus followed his father’s trade
and worked as a weaver, also spending some of his
time at sea In 1475, in his early 20s, he journeyed
to the eastern Mediterranean The following year he
arrived in England Settling in Lisbon in 1477, he
married and became enmeshed in the heady world of
Portuguese navigators, who at that time were in the
forefront of European efforts to reach India and China
by sea and thus skirt the Muslim-dominated lands of
the Middle East Adopting the conviction, widespread
among experienced navigators, that uncharted lands
lay west across the sea, Columbus for several years
tried and failed to secure the patronage of King João
II of Portugal for his exploratory venture Rebuffed
in Lisbon, Columbus took his scheme to the court at
Castile, the largest and most powerful of the Spanish
Christian kingdoms, and at that time in the final stages
of expelling the Moors from Iberia After eight years,
his persistence finally paid off, when Ferdinand V
and Isabella I of Spain, flush with their victory over
the Moors in Granada, agreed to patronize the scheme
of the Genoese navigator
Setting sail from Palos, Spain, on August 3, 1492,
Columbus commanded three small caravels: the Santa
María, which he himself captained; the Pinta under
experienced navigator Martín Alonso Pinzón; and the
Niña under Vicente Yáñez Pinzón After replenishing
supplies in the Canary Islands, the convoy headed due
west from September 6 to October 7, changing course
to southwest at the suggestion of Martín Pinzón
Quell-ing a small mutiny on October 10, Columbus and his
convoy sighted land on October 12, probably Watling
Island in the Bahamas
Erecting a cross, planting a flag, and claiming the
land for Spain, Columbus christened the island San
Salvador He also interrogated the natives about the
source of the gold ornaments they were wearing As
in subsequent expeditions, gold was paramount in the
litany of marketable commodities from which Colum-bus and his subordinates were seeking to profit After exploring and charting neighboring islands, on Octo-ber 27, the convoy sighted Cuba, and on DecemOcto-ber
5, Hispaniola Earlier, in late November, in an act of
insubordination, Martín Pinzón took the Pinta east in
search of the island of Babeque, reputed to be a source
of gold Columbus did not see Pinzón again until Jan-uary 6, 1493, when they reunited on the north coast
of Hispaniola On December 20, the Santa María and Niña sailed into Acul Bay on the north coast of
His-paniola On December 24, in the midst of Christmas
Eve celebrations, the Santa María drifted onto a coral
reef and was destroyed
Interpreting the wreck as a sign from God,
Colum-bus used what remained of the Santa María to create the
rudiments of the first European settlement in the New World, which he called Villa de la Navidad (Christmas Village) Leaving some 40 men behind at Navidad,
Columbus linked up with the Pinta under Pinzón, and
together they continued exploring the north coast of Hispaniola On January 15, 1493, Columbus decided
to return to Spain After a brief and unexpected stop
in Lisbon, he, Pinzón, their crews, and six native Taí-nos sailed into Palos, Spain, on March 15
Received at the court with great pomp and maj-esty, Columbus was granted a coat of arms and other high honors, including being named Admiral of the Ocean Sea as stipulated in his contract Less than two months later, on April 29, his letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella describing his discoveries was published in Italy, and within the year was circulating widely throughout Europe
The overall effect was electrifying and
distinguish-es Columbus’s voyage from others who may have reached the Americas before him Its political impact was also immediate and profound, ratcheting up the competition between Spain and Portugal in particu-lar Fortunately for Spain, Pope Alexander VI declared Spain’s right to claim all new lands west of a north-south line 100 leagues (less than 500 kilometers) west
of the Azores, into which all of the Americas fell In
1494, the line was modified, to the benefit of Portugal,
in the Treaty of Tordesillas
Columbus made three subsequent voyages to the New World in 1493, 1498, and 1502, making many additional discoveries, none of which, however, com-pared to his first During this period, his reputation at the Spanish court declined markedly, as he proved a great explorer and self-promoter but a very poor administra-tor of the numerous settlements he had founded Indeed
Columbus, Christopher