Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. What made Christopher Columbus famous? The first expedition of Christopher Columbus

Columbus discovered America

The year when this Spanish navigator discovered a new land is indicated in history as 1492. And by the beginning of the eighteenth century, all other areas of North America, for example, Alaska and the regions of the Pacific coast, had already been discovered and explored. It must be said that travelers from Russia also made an important contribution to the exploration of the mainland.

Development

The history of the discovery of North America is quite interesting: it can even be called accidental. At the end of the fifteenth century, a Spanish navigator and his expedition reached the shores of North America. At the same time, he mistakenly believed that he was in India. From this moment begins the countdown of the era when America was discovered and its exploration and exploration began. But some researchers consider this date inaccurate, arguing that the discovery of a new continent occurred much earlier.

The year Columbus discovered America - 1492 - is not an exact date. It turns out that the Spanish navigator had predecessors, and more than one. In the middle of the tenth century, the Normans arrived here after they discovered Greenland. True, they failed to colonize these new lands, since they were repelled by the harsh weather conditions of the north of this continent. In addition, the Normans were also frightened by the remoteness of the new continent from Europe.

According to other sources, this continent was discovered by ancient sailors - the Phoenicians. Some sources call the middle of the first millennium AD the time when America was discovered, and the Chinese as the pioneers. However, this version also does not have clear evidence.

The most reliable information is considered to be about the time when the Vikings discovered America. At the end of the tenth century, the Normans Bjarni Herjulfson and Leif Eriksson found Helluland - “stone”, Markland - “forest” and Vinland - “vineyards” of land, which contemporaries identify with the Labrador Peninsula.

There is evidence that even before Columbus, in the fifteenth century, the northern continent was reached by Bristol and Biscay fishermen, who called it the island of Brazil. However, the time periods of these expeditions cannot be called the milestone in history when America was truly discovered, that is, it was identified as a new continent.

Columbus - a true discoverer

And yet, when answering the question of what year America was discovered, experts most often name the fifteenth century, or rather its end. And Columbus is considered the first to do this. The time when America was discovered coincided in history with the period when Europeans began to spread ideas about the round shape of the Earth and the possibility of reaching India or China along the western route, that is, through the Atlantic Ocean. It was believed that this path was much shorter than the eastern one. Therefore, given the Portuguese monopoly on control of the South Atlantic, obtained by the Treaty of Alcázovaz in 1479, Spain, always striving to gain direct contacts with eastern countries, warmly supported the westward expedition of the Genoese navigator Columbus.

Honor of opening

Christopher Columbus was interested in geography, geometry and astronomy from an early age. From a young age, he took part in sea expeditions and visited almost all the then known oceans. Columbus was married to the daughter of a Portuguese sailor, from whom he received many geographical maps and notes from the time of Henry the Navigator. The future discoverer carefully studied them. His plans were to find a sea route to India, but not bypassing Africa, but directly across the Atlantic. Like some scientists - his contemporaries, Columbus believed that, having gone west from Europe, it would be possible to reach the Asian eastern shores - those places where India and China are located. At the same time, he did not even suspect that on the way he would meet an entire continent, hitherto unknown to Europeans. But it happened. And from this time the history of the discovery of America began.

First expedition

For the first time, Columbus's ships sailed from Palos harbor on August 3, 1492. There were three of them. The expedition proceeded quite calmly to the Canary Islands: this section of the journey was already known to the sailors. But very soon they found themselves in a vast ocean. Gradually the sailors began to become despondent and begin to grumble. But Columbus managed to pacify the rebellious, maintaining hope in them. Soon signs began to appear - harbingers of the proximity of land: unknown birds flew in, tree branches floated up. Finally, after six weeks of sailing, lights appeared at night, and when dawn broke, a green, picturesque island, all covered with vegetation, opened before the sailors. Columbus, having landed on shore, declared this land to be the possession of the Spanish crown. The island was named San Salvador, that is, the Savior. It was one of the small pieces of land included in the Bahamas or Lucayan archipelago.

The land where there is gold

The natives are peaceful and good-natured savages. Noticing the greed of those who sailed for the gold jewelry that hung in the noses and ears of the aborigines, they told with signs that in the south there was a land literally abounding in gold. And Columbus moved on. In the same year, he discovered Cuba, which, although he mistook it for the mainland, or rather, the eastern coast of Asia, he also declared it a Spanish colony. From here the expedition, turning east, landed in Haiti. Moreover, along the entire route the Spaniards met savages who not only willingly exchanged their gold jewelry for simple glass beads and other trinkets, but also constantly pointed to the southern direction when asked about this precious metal. Which Columbus named Hispaniola, or Little Spain, he built a small fortress.

Return

When the ships landed in Palos harbor, all the inhabitants came ashore to greet them with honors. Columbus and Ferdinand and Isabella received him very graciously. The news of the discovery of the New World spread very quickly, and those who wanted to go there with the discoverer gathered just as quickly. At that time, Europeans had no idea what kind of America Christopher Columbus discovered.

Second trip

The history of the discovery of North America, which began in 1492, continued. From September 1493 to June 1496, the second expedition of the Genoese navigator took place. As a result, the Virgin and Windward Islands were discovered, including Antigua, Dominica, Nevis, Montserrat, St. Christopher, as well as Puerto Rico and Jamaica. The Spaniards firmly settled in the lands of Haiti, making them their base and building the fortress of San Domingo in its southeastern part. In 1497, the British entered into competition with them, also trying to find northwestern routes to Asia. For example, the Genoese Cabot, under the English flag, discovered the island of Newfoundland and, according to some reports, came very close to the North American coast: the peninsulas of Labrador and Nova Scotia. Thus, the British began to lay the foundation for their dominance in the North American region.

Third and fourth expeditions

It began in May 1498 and ended in November 1500. As a result, the mouth of the Orinoco was also opened. In August 1498, Columbus landed on the coast already on the Paria Peninsula, and in 1499 the Spaniards reached the shores of Guiana and Venezuela, after which - Brazil and the mouth of the Amazon. And during the last - fourth - journey from May 1502 to November 1504, Columbus discovered Central America. His ships sailed along the coasts of Honduras and Nicaragua, reaching from Costa Rica and Panama all the way to the Gulf of Darien.

New continent

In the same year, another navigator, whose expeditions took place under the Portuguese flag, also explored the Brazilian coast. Having reached Cape Cananea, he put forward the hypothesis that the lands that Columbus discovered were not China, or even India, but a completely new continent. This idea was confirmed after the first trip around the world by F. Magellan. However, contrary to logic, the name America was assigned to the new continent - on behalf of Vespucci.

True, there is some reason to believe that the new continent was named in honor of the Bristol philanthropist Richard America from England, who financed the second transatlantic voyage in 1497, and Amerigo Vespucci after that took his nickname in honor of the continent named so. To prove this theory, researchers cite the facts that Cabot reached the shores of Labrador two years earlier, and therefore became the officially registered first European to set foot on American soil.

In the mid-sixteenth century, Jacques Cartier, a French navigator, reached the shores of Canada, giving the territory its modern name.

Other contenders

The exploration of the continent of North America was continued by such navigators as John Davis, Alexander Mackenzie, Henry Hudson and William Baffin. It was thanks to their research that the continent was studied right up to the Pacific coast.

However, history knows many other names of sailors who landed on American soil even before Columbus. These are Hui Shen, a Thai monk who visited this region in the fifth century, Abubakar, the Sultan of Mali, who sailed to the American coast in the fourteenth century, the Earl of Orkney de Saint-Clair, the Chinese explorer Zhee He, the Portuguese Juan Corterial, etc.

But, in spite of everything, Christopher Columbus is the person whose discoveries had an unconditional impact on the entire history of mankind.

Fifteen years after the time when America was discovered by the ships of this navigator, the very first geographical map of the continent was compiled. Its author was Martin Waldseemüller. Today it, being the property of the United States, is stored in Washington.

Christopher Columbus (autumn 1451, Republic of Genoa - May 20, 1506, Valladolid, Spain) - Spanish navigator of Italian origin, who in 1492 discovered America for Europeans.
Columbus was the first reliably known traveler to cross the Atlantic Ocean in the subtropical and tropical zones of the northern hemisphere and the first European to sail in the Caribbean Sea. He laid the foundation for the exploration of South and Central America. He discovered all of the Greater Antilles - the central part of the Bahamas archipelago, the Lesser Antilles, as well as a number of small islands in the Caribbean Sea and the island of Trinidad off the coast of South America. Columbus can be called the discoverer of America with reservations, because even in the Middle Ages, Europeans in the person of the Icelandic Vikings visited North America. Since there was no information about these campaigns outside Scandinavia, it was Columbus’s expeditions that first made information about the lands in the west public and marked the beginning of the colonization of America by Europeans.
Columbus made 4 voyages to America:
First voyage (August 2, 1492 - March 15, 1493).
Second voyage (September 25, 1493 - June 11, 1496).
Third voyage (May 30, 1498 - November 25, 1500).
Fourth voyage (May 9, 1502 - November 1504).
Biography
Christopher Columbus- navigator, Viceroy of the Indies (1492), discoverer of the Sargasso Sea and the Caribbean Sea, the Bahamas and Antilles, part of the northern coast of South America and the Caribbean coastline of Central America.
In 1492-1493, Columbus led a Spanish expedition to find the shortest sea route to India; on 3 caravels (“Santa Maria”, “Pinta” and “Nina”) crossed the Atlantic Ocean, discovered the Sargasso Sea and reached the island of Samana on October 12, 1492, and later the ancient Bahamas, Cuba, and Haiti. In subsequent expeditions (1493-1496, 1498-1500, 1502-1504) he discovered the Greater Antilles, part of the Lesser Antilles and the coasts of South and Central America and the Caribbean Sea.
Christopher Columbus born in the fall of 1451 in Genoa, Genoese by origin. He was above average height, strong and well-built. His reddish hair in his youth turned gray early, making him look older than his years. Vibrant blue eyes and an aquiline nose stood out on his long, wrinkled, weather-beaten face with a beard. He was distinguished by faith in divine providence and omens, and at the same time, rare practicality, painful pride and suspicion, and a passion for gold. He had a sharp mind, the gift of persuasion and versatile knowledge. Christopher Columbus was married twice and had two sons from these marriages.

Christopher Columbus spent three quarters of his life sailing. Among the great figures of world civilization, few can compare with Columbus in the number of publications devoted to his life, and at the same time in the abundance of “blank spots” in his biography. It can be more or less confidently stated that he was Genoese by origin and around 1465 he joined the Genoese fleet, and after some time was seriously wounded. Until 1485, Christopher sailed on Portuguese ships, lived in Lisbon and on the islands of Madeira and Porto Santo, engaged in trade, mapping and self-education. It is not clear when and where he drafted the western, in his opinion, the shortest sea route from Europe to India; the project was based on the ancient doctrine of the sphericity of the Earth and on the incorrect calculations of scientists of the 15th century. In 1485, after the Portuguese king refused to support this project, Columbus moved to Castile, where, with the help of Andalusian merchants and bankers, he organized a government naval expedition under his command.
Christopher Columbus's first expedition of 1492-1493 consisting of 90 people on three ships - "Santa Maria", "Pinta" and "Nina" - left Palos on August 3, 1492, turned west from the Canary Islands, crossed the Atlantic Ocean, opening the Sargasso Sea, and reached an island in the Bahamas archipelago, named by the traveler San Salvador, where Columbus landed on October 12, 1492. For a long time, Watling Island was considered San Salvador. However, our contemporary American geographer J. Judge in 1986 processed all the collected materials on a computer and came to the conclusion: the first American land Columbus saw was the island of Samana. On October 14–24, Columbus approached several more Bahamian islands, and on October 28–December 5 he discovered part of the northeastern coast of Cuba. On December 6 he reached the island of Haiti and moved along the northern coast. On the night of December 25, the flagship Santa Maria landed on a reef, but the crew escaped. For the first time in the history of navigation, by order of Columbus, Indian hammocks were adapted for sailor berths. Columbus returned to Castile on the Niña on March 15, 1499. The political resonance of the voyage of H. Columbus was the “papal meridian”: the head of the Catholic Church established a demarcation line in the Atlantic, which showed rival Spain and Portugal different directions for the discovery of new lands.
Second expedition (1493-96), which was headed by Admiral Columbus, as viceroy of the newly discovered lands, consisted of 17 ships with a crew of 1.5-2.5 thousand people. On November 3-15, 1493, Columbus discovered the islands of Dominica, Guadeloupe and about 20 Lesser Antilles, and on November 19, the island of Puerto Rico. In March 1494, in search of gold, he made a military campaign deep into the island of Haiti, and in the summer he discovered the southeastern and southern coasts of Cuba, the islands of Juventud and Jamaica.
For 40 days, Columbus explored the southern coast of Haiti, which he continued to conquer in 1495. But in the spring of 1496 he sailed home, completing his second voyage on June 11 in Castile. Columbus announced the opening of a new route to Asia. The colonization of new lands by free settlers that soon began was very costly for the Spanish crown, and Columbus proposed populating the islands with criminals, cutting their sentences in half. With fire and sword, plundering and destroying the country of ancient culture, the military detachments of Cortez passed through the land of the Aztecs - Mexico, and the troops of Pizarro - through the land of the Incas - Peru.
Columbus's third expedition (1498-1500) consisted of six ships, three of which he himself led across the Atlantic. On July 31, 1498, the island of Trinidad was discovered, entered the Gulf of Paria, discovered the mouth of the western branch of the Orinoco Delta and the Paria Peninsula, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America. Having entered the Caribbean Sea, he approached the Araya Peninsula, discovered Margarita Island on August 15, and arrived in Haiti on August 31. In 1500, following a denunciation, Christopher Columbus was arrested and shackled (which he then kept for the rest of his life) and sent to Castile, where his release awaited him. Having obtained permission to continue the search for the western route to India, Columbus on four ships (the fourth expedition, 1502-1504) reached the island of Martinique on June 15, 1502, and the Gulf of Honduras on July 30, where he first met representatives of the ancient Mayan civilization, but did not attach any importance to this. From August 1, 1502 to May 1, 1503, he opened 2,000 km of the Caribbean coast of Central America (to the Gulf of Uraba). Not finding a passage to the west, he turned north and on June 25, 1503, was wrecked off the coast of Jamaica. Help from Santo Domingo came only a year later. Columbus returned to Castile on November 7, 1504, already seriously ill.
last years of life
Illness, fruitless and painful negotiations with the king on the restoration of rights, and lack of money undermined Columbus's last strength, and on May 20, 1506 he died in Valladolid. His discoveries were accompanied by the colonization of lands, the founding of Spanish settlements, brutal enslavement and mass extermination of the indigenous population, called “Indians,” by troops of conquistadors. Christopher Columbus was not the discoverer of America: the islands and coasts of North America were visited by Normans hundreds of years before him. However, only Columbus's discoveries had world-historical significance. The fact that he found a new part of the world was finally proven by Magellan's voyage. The name Colubma is borne by: a state in South America, a province of Canada, a Federal District and a river in the USA, the capital of Sri Lanka, as well as many rivers, mountains, lakes, waterfalls, capes, cities, parks, squares, streets and bridges in different countries.
Truth and fiction in the biography of Christopher Columbus
Columbus was born into a poor family. Indeed, his family was not rich, but this did not prevent Columbus from receiving a good education - according to some sources, he graduated from the University of Pavia. Her marriage to Dona Felipe Moniz de Palestrello most likely played a significant role, since her father was a famous navigator during the time of Prince Enrique.
The traveler who gave the world the New World died without knowing that he had found the wrong continent that he was looking for. In those days, there was an assumption that in order to get to India, China or Japan, one had to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The entire expedition of Columbus was organized precisely to open a new direct route to the Far East. Geographer Paolo Toscanelli calculated that it was necessary to sail 5,600 km to reach the shore, which coincided with Columbus's calculations. As a result, having discovered the New World during his first voyage, Columbus believed until the last that he landed on the border with China.

Columbus did not equip his first expedition for long. This is wrong. Quite a lot of time passed from the moment he conceived the expedition until it was equipped. Until 1485, Columbus served on Genoese and Portuguese ships, visited Ireland, England, and Madeira. At this time, in addition to trading, he was intensively engaged in self-education. He conducted extensive correspondence with famous scientists and cartographers of the time, compiled maps, and studied shipping routes. Most likely, it was in those years that he came up with the idea of ​​​​reaching India by the Western route. Presumably in the period from 1475-1480. (there are no exact data) he sent the first proposal to the merchants and government of Genoa. He had to write many more such letters; for about 10 years he received only refusals. Moreover, having been shipwrecked off the coast of Portugal, he tried for a long time to persuade the Portuguese king and only after several wasted years headed to Spain. As a result, he was able to go on his first expedition only in 1492, thanks to the support of the Spanish Queen Isabella.

Columbus's return from his first expedition aggravated the political situation. When Columbus returned in 1493, having discovered new lands, this message excited minds and aggravated the situation between Spain and Portugal. Until this time, the main discoverer of all new routes to Africa was Portugal. She was given all the lands south of the Canary Islands. But the Spanish King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella were not going to give up Spain's rights to the newly discovered lands, and therefore turned to Pope Alexander VI. The Pope decided that 600 km west of the Azores a vertical line should be drawn on the map (the so-called papal meridian), to the east of which all lands would belong to Portugal, and to the west to Spain. However, the Portuguese king did not agree with this decision, since in this case Portuguese ships could not sail to the south and east without entering Spanish territory. As a result, the Spaniards made concessions and moved the vertical line 1600 km to the west. Spain could not even imagine how fatal this decision would be. Literally 7 years later, in 1500, the Portuguese navigator Pedro Cabral, sailing to India, came across land that was not marked on the map. As it turned out, the line drawn on the map cut off this piece in favor of Portugal, which immediately laid claim to its rights. As a result, even before America was recognized as a new continent, the future Brazil began to belong to Portugal.
Thanks to Columbus, the local residents began to be called Indians. Columbus was looking for India and when he reached the Bahamas, he was completely sure that he had found it. Therefore, he began to call the local residents Indians. This name has stuck with the indigenous people to this day.
Columbus was able to equip the second expedition thanks to boasting. No one can confirm this for certain. But it is known that upon his return to Barcelona, ​​Columbus actually boasted of his achievements. Moreover, he repeatedly demonstrated gold jewelry obtained from local tribes, while speaking about the riches of the Indian land. His vanity sometimes lifted him so high that he began to talk about future negotiations with the Great Khan. Therefore, it is not at all surprising that the king and queen of Spain could succumb to the speeches of Columbus. In any case, they very quickly, with the support of the Pope, organized a second expedition (from 1493 to 1496).
Columbus was a pirate. This is a controversial proposition. However, there are some facts that do not characterize his best features. In his reports from the second expedition, he asks to send ships with livestock, supplies, and tools from Spain. He further writes: “Payment... can be made by slaves from among the cannibals, cruel people... well-built and very intelligent.” This means that he caught local residents as slaves for Spain. In fact, all of his activities in the new lands boiled down to robbery and robbery, which is typical of pirates, although it cannot be denied that this may be a consequence of the upbringing of the era. Of course, you can blame Columbus for all the further troubles of the American continent, but this is unlikely to be fair. No one is obliged to answer for the sins of others.

Columbus had a monopoly on all discovered lands. Indeed, upon arrival from the first expedition, Columbus (Don Cristoval Colon) was given the title of admiral of the sea, viceroy and governor of the islands discovered in India. His monopoly was unquestioned until after the second expedition it became clear that the new territories were too vast and one person was not able to rule them. In 1499, the kings abolished Columbus's monopoly on the discovery of new lands. This was primarily due to the fact that in 1498 the Portuguese Vasco da Gama sailed by sea to real India and began trade relations with it. Against the backdrop of his achievements, Columbus, with his complicated situation, small profits for the treasury and conflicts in new territories, seemed like a liar. In an instant, he lost all the privileges he had won.
Christopher Columbus gloriously completed all three of his expeditions. The first expedition brought glory to Columbus. The second, for which 17 ships were allocated, brought doubts about the riches of the open lands. The third expedition became fatal for Columbus. During it, he lost all rights to the lands. Francisco Bobadilla, sent to Hispaniola with unlimited powers, arrested the admiral and his brothers Bartalomeo and Diego. They were shackled. Columbus was put in shackles by his own cook. They were imprisoned in the Sandoming Fortress. Columbus was accused of "cruelty and inability to govern the country." Two months later they were sent in chains to Spain. Only two years later the kings dropped the charges against Columbus. He was awarded 2,000 gold pieces, but the promise to return his property and money was not fulfilled.
Christopher Columbus was buried with honors. Columbus returned from the fourth expedition seriously ill. He still hoped to defend his rights, but with the death of his patron, Queen Isabella, this hope faded. At the end of his life he needed money. In 1505, an order was given for the sale of all movable and immovable property of Columbus in Hispaniola to pay off creditors. On May 20, 1506, the great navigator passed away. No one noticed his death. His discoveries were almost forgotten amid the conquests of the Portuguese. His death was recorded only 27 years later. At the end of his life, all his dreams of wealth, mined gold and honors suffered complete collapse...

Christopher Columbus is the discoverer of South and Central America. Columbus Expeditions.

Christopher Columbus biography

1 expedition. Discovery of America by Columbus in 1492

• Christopher Columbus assembled his first expedition from three ships - the Santa Maria (a three-masted flagship 25 m long, with a displacement of 120 tons, captain of the ship Columbus), the Pinta caravels (captain - Martin Alonso Pinzon) and Niña (captain - Vicente Yanez Pinson) with a displacement of 55 tons and 87 expedition personnel.
  The flotilla left Palos on August 3, 1492, turned west from the Canary Islands, crossed the Atlantic Ocean, opening the Sargasso Sea and reached an island in the Bahamas archipelago (Pinta sailor Rodrigo de Triana was the first to see American soil October 12, 1492). Columbus landed on the shore, which the locals call Guanahani, planted a banner on it, declared the open land the property of the Spanish king and formally took possession of the island. He named the island San Salvador.
  For a long time (1940 -1982), Watling Island was considered San Salvador. However, our contemporary American geographer George Judge in 1986 processed all the collected materials on a computer and came to the conclusion: the first American land Columbus saw was the island of Samana (120 km southeast of Watling).
  On October 14-24, Columbus approached several more Bahamian islands, and on October 28 - December 5, he discovered part of the northeastern coast of Cuba. On December 6 he reached the island of Haiti and moved along the northern coast. On the night of December 25, the flagship Santa Maria landed on a reef, but the crew escaped. For the first time in the history of navigation, by order of Columbus, Indian hammocks were adapted for sailor berths.
  Columbus returned to Castile on the Niña on March 15, 1493. From America, Columbus brought seven captive American natives, who in Europe were called Indians, as well as some gold and plants and fruits never seen before in the Old World, including the annual plant corn (in Haiti it is called maize), tomatoes, peppers, tobacco (“ dry leaves, which were especially valued by the locals"), pineapples, cocoa and potatoes (due to its beautiful pink and white flowers). The political resonance of Columbus’s voyage was the “papal meridian”: the head of the Catholic Church established a demarcation line in the Atlantic, indicating different directions for the discovery of new lands for rival Spain and Portugal.

  Christopher Columbus first landed on the shores of the New World: in San Salvador, Wisconsin, October 12, 1492.
  Author of the painting: Spanish artist Tolin Puebla, Theophilus Dioscorus Dioscoro Teofilo Puebla Tolin (1831-1901)
  Publisher: American company Currier and Ives (engravings, lithographs, popular prints), publication 1892.

  
  

2nd expedition of Christopher Columbus (1493 - 1496)

• The second expedition (1493-96), led by Admiral Columbus, as viceroy of the newly discovered lands, consisted of 17 ships with a crew of 1.5-2.5 thousand people. On November 3-15, 1493, Columbus discovered the islands of Dominica, Guadeloupe and about 20 Lesser Antilles, and on November 19, the island of Puerto Rico. In March 1494, in search of gold, he made a military campaign deep into the island of Haiti, and in the summer he discovered the southeastern and southern coasts of Cuba, the islands of Juventud and Jamaica. For 40 days, Columbus explored the southern coast of Haiti, which he continued to conquer in 1495. But in the spring of 1496 he sailed home, completing his second voyage on June 11 in Castile. Columbus announced the opening of a new route to Asia. The colonization of new lands by free settlers that soon began was very costly for the Spanish crown, and Columbus proposed populating the islands with criminals, cutting their sentences in half. With fire and sword, plundering and destroying the country of ancient culture, the military detachments of Cortez passed through the land of the Aztecs - Mexico, and the troops of Pizarro - through the land of the Incas - Peru.

3rd expedition of Christopher Columbus (1498 - 1499)

• The third expedition (1498-99) consisted of six ships, three of which Columbus himself led across the Atlantic. On July 31, 1498, he discovered the island of Trinidad, entered the Gulf of Paria, discovered the mouth of the western branch of the Orinoco delta and the Paria Peninsula, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America. Having entered the Caribbean Sea, he approached the Araya Peninsula, discovered Margarita Island on August 15, and arrived in Haiti on August 31. In 1500, following a denunciation, Christopher Columbus was arrested and, shackled (which he later kept all his life), was sent to Castile, where his release awaited him.

4th expedition of Christopher Columbus (1502 - 1504)

The Lord has made me a messenger of the new heavens and the new earth,
created by him, the very ones that St. wrote about in the Apocalypse.
John... and the Lord showed me the way there.

Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus (born approximately August 26 and October 31, 1451, died May 20, 1506) - Italian navigator who discovered America in 1492.

Columbus is an eternal figure. Even schoolchildren nowadays, who find it difficult to answer who Stalin is and why Lenin lies on Red Square, can connect such concepts as Columbus and America. And some, perhaps, will be able to tell the sad story of his life - the life of a discoverer without discoveries, great, fearless, deluded... For, as Jules Verne argued, if Columbus had not had these three qualities, he might not have dared to overcome the endless expanse of the sea and go in search of lands previously mentioned only in myths and sagas.

The story of Columbus is an ongoing story of mystery. Absolutely everything is in doubt - the date of his birth, his origin and the city where he was born. 7 Greek cities argued for the right to consider themselves the birthplace of Homer. Columbus was luckier. At various times and in various places, 26 claimants (14 Italian cities and 12 nations) made such claims, entering into litigation with Genoa.

More than 40 years ago, Genoa seemed to finally win this centuries-old process. But to this day, the voices of lawyers for false versions about the homeland and nationality of Columbus do not cease. Until 1571, no one doubted the origins of Columbus. He himself more than once called himself a Genoese. Ferdinando Colon was the first to question the Genoese origin of Columbus. He was guided by “noble” intentions to introduce noble ancestors into the genealogy of the great navigator. Genoa was not suitable for such experiments: this surname was not included in the lists of even plebeian families. Therefore, the author took Columbus’s grandfathers to the Italian city of Piacenza, where noble people from the local Columbus family lived in the 14th and 15th centuries. The example of Ferdinand Colon inspired historians of subsequent centuries to undertake similar searches.

Childhood. Adolescence. Youth

Christopher Columbus was born into the family of a weaver who also sold cheese and wine. The embarrassment that occurred at the wedding of Cristoforo’s sister Bianchinetta speaks about the financial situation of the family and the not entirely honest father of the navigator Domenico Colombo. The son-in-law, a cheese merchant, accused Domenico of not paying the dowry promised for his daughter. Notarial acts of those times confirm that the family's situation was actually depressing. In particular, major disagreements with creditors arose over the house where they settled 4 years after the birth of Cristoforo.

Although Cristoforo spent his childhood at his father's loom, the boy's interests were directed in a different direction. The greatest impression on the child was made by the harbor, where people with different skin colors, in burnouses, caftans, and European dress, crowded and called to each other. Cristoforo did not remain an outside observer for long. Already at the age of 14 he sailed as a cabin boy to Portofino, and later to Corsica. In those days, on the Ligurian coast, the most common form of trade was barter in kind. Domenico Colombo also took part in it, and his son helped: he accompanied a small Latin-rigged ship loaded with fabrics to nearby shopping centers, and from there delivered cheese and wine.

In Lisbon, he met the girl Felipa Moniz da Perestrello and soon married her. For Christopher Columbus, this marriage was a happy lot. He entered a noble Portuguese house and became related to people who took a direct part in the overseas campaigns organized by Prince Henry the Navigator and his successors.

Felipa's father in his youth was included in the retinue of Henry the Navigator. Columbus gained access to various documents that recorded the history of Portuguese voyages in the Atlantic. In the winter of 1476–1477, Columbus left his wife and went to England and Ireland; in 1478 he ended up in Madeira. Columbus completed his elementary school of practical navigation in Porto Santo and Madeira, traveling to the Azores, and then completed a course in marine science on Guinean expeditions. In his leisure hours, he studied geography, mathematics, and Latin, but only to the extent that it was necessary for his purely practical purposes. And more than once Columbus admitted that he was not very sophisticated in science.

But what especially struck the imagination of the young sailor was Marco Polo’s book, which spoke about the gold-roofed palaces of Sipangu (Japan), the pomp and splendor of the Great Khan’s court, and the homeland of spices - India. Columbus had no doubt that the Earth was spherical, but it seemed to him that this ball was much smaller than in reality. This is why he believed that Japan was relatively close to the Azores.

Stay in Portugal

Columbus's landing in America

Columbus decided to get to India by the western route and in 1484 outlined his plan to the king of Portugal. Columbus's idea was simple. It was based on two premises: one completely true and one false. The first (true) one is that the Earth is a ball; and the second (false) - that most of the earth's surface is occupied by land - a single massif of three continents, Asia, Europe and Africa; the smaller one is by sea, because of this the distance between the western shores of Europe and the eastern tip of Asia is small, and in a short period of time it is possible, following the western route, to reach India, Japan and China - this corresponded to the geographical ideas of the era of Columbus.

The idea of ​​the possibility of such a voyage was expressed by Aristotle and Seneca, Pliny the Elder, Strabo and Plutarch, and in the Middle Ages the theory of the One Ocean was consecrated by the church. It was recognized by the Arab world and its great geographers: Masudi, al-Biruni, Idrisi.

While living in Portugal, Columbus proposed his project to King João II. This happened at the end of 1483 or at the beginning of 1484. The timing for presenting the project was not chosen very well. In 1483–1484, John II thought least of all about long-distance expeditions. The king extinguished the rebellions of the Portuguese magnates and dealt with the conspirators. He attached greater importance to further discoveries in Africa, but was much less interested in Atlantic voyages in a western direction.

The history of the negotiations between Columbus and King John II is not entirely clear. It is known that Columbus asked for a lot in recompense for his services. It's obscenely much. As much as no mortal had ever asked from the crowned kings before. He demanded the title of Chief Admiral of the Ocean and a noble rank, the position of viceroy of the newly discovered lands, a tenth of the income from these territories, an eighth of the profits from future trade with new countries and golden spurs.

He subsequently included all these conditions, except for the golden spurs, in his agreement. King Juan never made rash decisions. He conveyed Columbus's proposal to the "Mathematical Junta" - a small Lisbon academy in which outstanding scientists and mathematicians sat. It is not known exactly what decision the council made. At least it was unfavorable - it happened in 1485. That same year, Columbus's wife died, and his financial situation sharply worsened.

Stay in Spain

1485, summer - he decided to leave Portugal for Castile. Columbus took his seven-year-old son Diego with him and sent his brother Bartolomeo to England in the hope that he would be interested in the project of the western route of Henry VII. From Lisbon, Christopher Columbus headed to Paloia to join Diego's wife's relatives in the neighboring city of Huelva. Exhausted by long wanderings, with a small child in his arms, Columbus decided to seek refuge in a monastery, near which his strength finally abandoned him.

So Columbus ended up in the Rabidou monastery and, in a fit of revelation, poured out his soul to the abbot Antonio de Marchena, a powerful man at the Spanish court. Columbus's project delighted Antonio. He gave Columbus letters of recommendation to those close to the royal family - he had connections at court.

Inspired by the warm reception at the monastery, Columbus went to Cordoba. There temporarily resided the court of their Highnesses (the Castilian and Aragonese kings bore the title of Highnesses until 1519) - Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon.

However, in Spain, Cristobal Colon (as Columbus was called in Spain) faced many years of need, humiliation and disappointment. Royal advisers believed that Columbus's project was impossible.

In addition, all the forces and attention of the Spanish rulers were absorbed in the fight against the remnant of Moorish rule in Spain - the small Moorish state in Grenada. Columbus was refused. Then he proposed his plan to England, and then again to Portugal, but nowhere was it taken seriously.

Only after the Spaniards took Grenada was Columba, after much trouble, able to obtain three small ships from Spain for his voyage.

First expedition (1492 - 1493)

With incredible difficulty, he managed to assemble a team, and, in the end, on August 3, 1492, a small squadron left the Spanish port of Paloe and went west to look for India.

The sea was calm and deserted, the wind was blowing fair. The ships sailed like this for more than a month. On September 15, Columbus and his companions saw a green stripe in the distance. However, their joy soon gave way to grief. This was not the long-awaited land, this is how the Sargasso Sea began - a giant accumulation of algae. On September 18–20, the sailors saw flocks of birds flying to the west. “Finally,” the sailors thought, “the land is close!” But this time, too, the travelers were disappointed. The crew began to worry. In order not to frighten people with the distance traveled, Columbus began to downplay the distance traveled in the ship's log.

On October 11, at 10 o'clock in the evening, Columbus, eagerly peering into the darkness of the night, saw a light flickering in the distance, and on the morning of October 12, 1492, sailor Rodrigo de Triana shouted: “Earth!” The sails on the ships were removed.

In front of the travelers was a small island overgrown with palm trees. Naked people were running along the sand along the shore. Columbus put on a scarlet dress over his armor and, with the royal flag in his hands, went ashore to the New World. This was Watling Island from the Bahamas group of islands. The natives called it Guanagani, and Columbus called it San Salvador. This is how America was discovered.

Expedition routes of Christopher Columbus

True, Columbus was sure until the end of his days that he had not discovered any “New World”, but had only found a way to India. And with his light hand, the natives of the New World began to be called Indians. The natives of the newly discovered island were tall, handsome people. They did not wear clothes, their bodies were colorfully painted. Some of the natives had shiny sticks stuck through their noses, which delighted Columbus: it was gold! This means that not far away was the country of golden palaces - Sipangu.

In search of the golden Sipangu, Columbus left Guanagani and went further, discovering island after island. Everywhere the Spaniards were amazed by the lush tropical vegetation, the beauty of the islands scattered in the blue ocean, the friendliness and meekness of the natives, who in exchange for trinkets, molasses and beautiful rags gave the Spaniards gold, colorful birds and hammocks never seen before by the Spaniards. On October 20, Columbus reached Cuba.

The Cuban population was more cultured than the inhabitants of the Bahamas. In Cuba, Columbus found statues, large buildings, bales of cotton, and for the first time saw cultivated plants - tobacco and potatoes, products of the New World, which later conquered the whole world. All this further strengthened Columbus's confidence that Sipangu and India were somewhere nearby.

1492, December 4 - Columbus discovered the island of Haiti (the Spaniards then called it Hispaniola). On this island, Columbus built the fort of La Navidad (“Christmas”), left a 40-man garrison there, and on January 16, 1493, headed for Europe on two ships: his largest ship, the Santa Maria, was wrecked on December 24.

On the way back, a terrible storm broke out, and the ships lost sight of each other. Only on February 18, 1493 did the exhausted sailors see the Azores, and on February 25 they reached Lisbon. On March 15, Columbus returned to the port of Paloe after an 8-month absence. Thus ended the first expedition of Christopher Columbus.

The traveler was received with delight in Spain. He was granted a coat of arms depicting a map of the newly discovered islands and with the motto:
“For Castile and Leon, the New World was discovered by Colon.”

Second expedition (1493 - 1496)

A new expedition was quickly organized, and already on September 25, 1493, Christopher Columbus set off on a second expedition. This time he led 17 ships. 1,500 people went with him, lured by stories of easy money in the newly discovered lands.

On the morning of November 2, after a rather tiring voyage, the sailors saw a high mountain in the distance. This was the island of Dominica. It was covered with forest, the wind brought spicy aromas from the shore. The next day, another mountainous island, Guadeloupe, was discovered. There, the Spaniards, instead of the peaceful and gentle inhabitants of the Bahamas, met warlike and cruel cannibals, Indians from the Carib tribe. A battle took place between the Spaniards and the Caribs.

Having discovered the island of Puerto Rico, Columbus sailed to Hispaniola on November 22, 1493. At night, the ships approached the place where the fort they founded on their first voyage stood.

Everything was quiet. There was not a single light on the shore. The arrivals fired a volley from bombards, but only the echo rolled in the distance. In the morning, Columbus learned that the Spaniards, with their cruelty and greed, had so antagonized the Indians that one night they suddenly attacked the fortress and burned it, killing the rapists. This is how America met Columbus on his second voyage!

Columbus's second expedition was unsuccessful: the discoveries were insignificant; despite a thorough search, little gold was found; Diseases were rampant in the newly built colony of Isabella.

When Columbus set out in search of new lands (during this voyage he discovered the island of Jamaica), the Indians on Hispaniola, outraged by the oppression of the Spaniards, rebelled again. The Spaniards were able to suppress the uprising and brutally dealt with the rebels. Hundreds of them were enslaved, sent to Spain, or forced to do backbreaking work on plantations and mines.

1496, March 10 - Columbus set off on his return journey, and on June 11, 1496, his ships entered the harbor of Cadiz.

American writer Washington Irving spoke about Columbus's return from the second expedition:

“These unfortunates crawled out, exhausted by illness in the colony and the severe hardships of the journey. Their yellow faces, in the expression of one ancient writer, were a parody of the gold that was the object of their aspirations, and all their stories about the New World were reduced to complaints of illness, poverty and disappointment.

Third expedition (1498 - 1500)

Return of Christopher Columbus from his voyage

In Spain, Columbus was not only received very coldly, but also deprived of many privileges. Only after lengthy and humiliating efforts was he able to equip ships for the third expedition in the summer of 1498.

This time, Columbus and his crew had to endure prolonged calm and terrible heat. On July 31, the ships approached the large island of Trinidad, and soon a grass-covered shore appeared in front of Columbus.

Christopher Columbus mistook it for an island, but in reality it was the mainland of South America. Even when Columbus arrived at the mouth of the Orinoco, he did not understand that there was a huge continent in front of him.

At that time, the situation in Hispaniola was tense: the colonists quarreled among themselves; relations with the natives were damaged; The Indians responded to the oppression with uprisings, and the Spaniards sent one punitive expedition after another to them.

The intrigues that had long been waged against Columbus at the Spanish court finally had their effect: in August 1500, a new government commissioner, Babadilla, arrived on the island of Hispaniola. He demoted Columbus and, shackling him and his brother Bartolomeo, sent him to Spain.

The appearance of the famous traveler in shackles caused such indignation among the Spaniards that the government was forced to immediately release him. The shackles were removed, but the mortally insulted admiral did not part with them until the end of his days and ordered them to be placed in his coffin.

Almost all privileges were taken away from Columbus, and expeditions began to be equipped to America without his participation.

Fourth Expedition (1502 - 1504)

Only in 1502 was Columbus able to set off on four ships on his fourth and final expedition. This time he passed along the coast of Central America, from Honduras to Panama. This was his most unsuccessful journey. The travelers endured all sorts of hardships, and in 1504 the admiral returned to Spain on one ship.

The end of Columbus's life was spent in struggle. The admiral began to dream about the liberation of Jerusalem and Mount Zion. At the end of November 1504, he sent a lengthy letter to the royal couple, in which he outlined his “crusader” creed.

Death of Columbus and posthumous voyage

Columbus was often sick.

“Exhausted by gout, grieving over the death of his property, tormented by other sorrows, he gave his soul with the king for the rights and privileges promised to him. Before his death, he still considered himself the king of India and advised the king on how best to rule overseas lands. He gave his soul to God on the day of the Ascension, May 20, 1506 in Valladolid, accepting the holy gifts with great humility.”

The admiral was buried in the church of the Valladolid Franciscan monastery. And in 1507 or 1509, the admiral set off on his longest journey. It lasted 390 years. Initially, his ashes were transported to Seville. In the middle of the 16th century, his remains were brought from Seville to Santo Domingo (Haiti). Columbus's brother Bartolomeo, his son Diego and grandson Luis were also buried there.

1792 - Spain ceded the eastern half of the island of Hispaniola to France. The commander of the Spanish flotilla ordered the admiral's ashes to be delivered to Havana. The fourth funeral took place there. 1898 - Spain lost Cuba. The Spanish government decided to transfer the admiral's ashes to Seville again. Now he rests in the Seville Cathedral.

What was Christopher Columbus looking for? What hopes drew him to the West? The treaty concluded by Columbus with Ferdinand and Isabella does not make this clear.

“Since you, Christopher Columbus, are setting out at our command on our ships and with our subjects to discover and conquer certain islands and a continent in the ocean... it is fair and reasonable... that you should be rewarded for this.”

What islands? What continent? Columbus took his secret with him to the grave.

What Christopher Columbus did, you will learn from this article.

What did Christopher Columbus discover? Discoveries of Christopher Columbus

The navigator is the most mysterious person of the era of Great Geographical Discoveries and travels. His life is full of mysteries, dark spots, inexplicable coincidences and actions. And all because humanity became interested in the navigator 150 years after his death - important documents had already been lost, and Columbus’s life remained shrouded in speculation and gossip. Plus, Columbus himself hid his origin (for unknown reasons), the motives of his actions and thoughts. The only thing that is known is the year 1451 - the year of his birth and the place of birth - the Genoese Republic.

He made 4 expeditions, which were supplied by the Spanish king:

• The first expedition - 1492-1493.
• Second expedition - 1493-1496.
• Third expedition - 1498 - 1500.
• The fourth expedition - 1502 - 1504.

During four expeditions, the navigator discovered many new territories and two seas - Sargasso and Caribbean.

Lands discovered by Christopher Columbus

It is interesting that all the time the navigator thought that he had discovered India, and beyond it he would find rich Japan and China. But that was not the case. He is responsible for the discovery and exploration of the New World. The islands discovered by Christopher Columbus are the Bahamas and Antilles, Saman, Haiti and Dominica, the Lesser Antilles, Cuba and Trinidad, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe and Margarita. He is the pioneer of the lands of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, as well as the northern coast of South America and the Caribbean part of Central America.

Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus

But the most important thing is that during his expedition, Christopher Columbus discovered America. This happened on October 12, 1492, when he landed on the island of San Salvador.

And it all started like this: on August 3, 1492, the expedition of a European navigator consisting of the ships “Santa Maria”, “Nina” and “Pinta” set out on a long journey. In September the Sargasso Sea was discovered. They walked through Germany for three weeks. On October 7, 1492, Columbus's team changed its course to the southwest, believing that they had missed Japan, which they so wanted to discover. After 5 days, the expedition came across an island named San Salvador by Christopher Columbus in honor of the savior Christ. This date, October 12, 1492, is considered the official day of the discovery of America.

A day later, Columbus landed and planted the Castilian banner. Thus, he formally became the owner of the island. Having explored the nearby islands, the navigator sincerely believed that these were the environs of Japan, India and China. At first, the open lands were called the West Indies. Christopher Columbus returned to Spain on March 15, 1493 on the ship Niña. As a gift to King Ferdinand II of Aragon, he brought gold, natives, plants unknown to Europeans - potatoes, corn, tobacco, as well as bird feathers and fruits.

We hope that from this article you learned how the discoveries of Christopher Columbus became famous throughout the world.