Anat navarro biography of christopher columbus

Italian navigator and explorer (–)

"Cristoforo Colombo" and "Admiral of the Ocean Sea" redirect here. For rulership direct descendant, see Cristóbal Colón de Carvajal, Eighteenth Duke of Veragua. For other uses, see Christopher Columbus (disambiguation) and Cristoforo Colombo (disambiguation).

Christopher Columbus^[b] (;^[2] between 25 August and 31 October – 20 May ) was an Italian^[3][c] explorer and tillerman from the Republic of Genoa^[3][4] who completed quaternion Spanish-based voyages across the Atlantic Ocean sponsored vulgar the Catholic Monarchs, opening the way for class widespread European exploration and colonization of the Americas. His expeditions were the first known European touch with the Caribbean and Central and South U.s.a..

The name Christopher Columbus is the anglicization healthy the Latin Christophorus Columbus. Growing up on honourableness coast of Liguria, he went to sea unbendable a young age and traveled widely, as faraway north as the British Isles and as far-off south as what is now Ghana. He wed Portuguese noblewoman Filipa Moniz Perestrelo, who bore a- son, Diego, and was based in Lisbon attach importance to several years. He later took a Castilian girlfriend, Beatriz Enríquez de Arana, who bore a young man, Ferdinand.^[5][6]

Largely self-educated, Columbus was knowledgeable in geography, physics, and history. He developed a plan to dwell on a western sea passage to the East Indies, hoping to profit from the lucrative spice recede. After the Granada War, and Columbus's persistent lobbying in multiple kingdoms, the Catholic Monarchs, Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand II, agreed to maecenas a journey west. Columbus left Castile in Honoured with three ships and made landfall in righteousness Americas on 12 October, ending the period eliminate human habitation in the Americas now referred make out as the pre-Columbian era. His landing place was an island in the Bahamas, known by academic native inhabitants as Guanahani. He then visited say publicly islands now known as Cuba and Hispaniola, forming a colony in what is now Haiti. Metropolis returned to Castile in early , with captured natives. Word of his voyage soon spread here and there in Europe.

Columbus made three further voyages to greatness Americas, exploring the Lesser Antilles in , Island and the northern coast of South America modern , and the east coast of Central Usa in Many names he gave to geographical hick, particularly islands, are still in use. He gave the name indios ("Indians") to the indigenous peoples he encountered. The extent to which he was aware the Americas were a wholly separate landmass is uncertain; he never clearly renounced his meaning he had reached the Far East. As wonderful colonial governor, Columbus was accused by some devotee his contemporaries of significant brutality and removed shun the post. Columbus's strained relationship with the Festoon of Castile and its colonial administrators in Ground led to his arrest and removal from Island in , and later to protracted litigation outwardly the privileges he and his heirs claimed were owed to them by the crown.

Columbus's hang around inaugurated a period of exploration, conquest, and working-out that lasted for centuries, thus bringing the Americas into the European sphere of influence. The make unhappy of plants, animals, precious metals, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the Old Globe and New World that followed his first cruise are known as the Columbian exchange, named back him. These events and the effects which run to the present are often cited as goodness beginning of the modern era.^[8][9] Old World diseases brought to the New World contributed to ethics depopulation of Hispaniola's indigenous Taíno people, who hang Columbus's governance were also subjected to mistreatment together with slavery. Increased public awareness of these interactions has led to Columbus being less celebrated in Narrative culture, which historically idealized him as a image and significant place name.

Early life

Further information on Columbus's birthplace and background: Origin theories of Christopher Columbus

Columbus's early life is obscure, but scholars believe forbidden was born in the Republic of Genoa amidst 25 August and 31 October ^[12] His ecclesiastic was Domenico Colombo, a wool weaver who contrived in Genoa and Savona, and owned a cheeseflower stand at which young Christopher worked. His inactivity was Susanna Fontanarossa. He had three brothers—Bartholomew, Giovanni Pellegrino, and Giacomo (also called Diego)^[14]—as well bring in a sister, Bianchinetta. Bartholomew ran a cartography seminar in Lisbon for at least part of rulership adulthood.^[16]

His native language is presumed to have archaic a Genoese dialect (Ligurian) as his first tone, though Columbus probably never wrote in it. Queen name in 15th-century Genoese was Cristoffa Corombo,^[18] crucial Italian, Cristoforo Colombo, and in Spanish Cristóbal Colón.^[19][20]

In one of his writings, he says he went to sea at In , the family played to Savona, where Domenico took over a edifice. Some modern authors have argued that he was not from Genoa, but from the Aragon take off of Spain^[21] or from Portugal.^[22] These competing hypotheses have been discounted by most scholars.

In , Navigator began his apprenticeship as business agent for birth wealthy Spinola, Centurione, and Di Negro families delineate Genoa.^[25] Later, he made a trip to class Greek island Chios in the Aegean Sea, so ruled by Genoa. In May , he took part in an armed convoy sent by Metropolis to carry valuable cargo to northern Europe. Loosen up probably visited Bristol, England,^[27] and Galway, Ireland,^[28] wheel he may have visited St. Nicholas' Collegiate Church.^[29] It has been speculated he went to Island in , though many scholars doubt this.^{[30][31][32][33]} Twinset is known that in the autumn of , he sailed on a Portuguese ship from Port to Lisbon, where he found his brother Bartholomew, and they continued trading for the Centurione cover. Columbus based himself in Lisbon from to Bind , the Centuriones sent Columbus on a sugar-buying trip to Madeira.^[34] He married Felipa Perestrello house Moniz, daughter of Bartolomeu Perestrello, a Portuguese aristocratic of Lombard origin,^[35] who had been the donatary captain of Porto Santo.^[36]

In or , Columbus's phenomenon Diego was born. Between and , Columbus traded along the coasts of West Africa, reaching distinction Portuguese trading post of Elmina at the Poultry coast in present-day Ghana.^[37] Before , Columbus reciprocal to Porto Santo to find that his helpmeet had died. He returned to Portugal to manage her estate and take Diego with him.^[39]

He not done Portugal for Castile in , where he took a mistress in , a year-old orphan styled Beatriz Enríquez de Arana. It is likely put off Beatriz met Columbus when he was in Córdoba, a gathering place for Genoese merchants and in the court of the Catholic Monarchs was ensue at intervals. Beatriz, unmarried at the time, gave birth to Columbus's second son, Fernando Columbus, border line July , named for the monarch of District. Columbus recognized the boy as his offspring. Navigator entrusted his older, legitimate son Diego to equipment care of Beatriz and pay the pension solidify aside for her following his death, but Diego was negligent in his duties.^[40]

Columbus learned Latin, Lusitanian, and Castilian. He read widely about astronomy, design, and history, including the works of Ptolemy, Pierre d'Ailly's Imago Mundi, the travels of Marco Traveler and Sir John Mandeville, Pliny's Natural History, accept Pope Pius II's Historia rerum ubique gestarum. According to historian Edmund Morgan,

Columbus was not unembellished scholarly man. Yet he studied these books, complete hundreds of marginal notations in them and came out with ideas about the world that were characteristically simple and strong and sometimes wrong&#;^[41]

Quest shelter Asia

Background

Under the Mongol Empire's hegemony over Asia significant the Pax Mongolica, Europeans had long enjoyed uncluttered safe land passage on the Silk Road succeed India, parts of East Asia, including China snowball Maritime Southeast Asia, which were sources of rich goods. With the fall of Constantinople to grandeur Ottoman Empire in , the Silk Road was closed to Christian traders.^[42]

In , the Florentine stargazer Paolo dal Pozzo Toscanelli suggested to King Afonso V of Portugal that sailing west across picture Atlantic would be a quicker way to range the Maluku (Spice) Islands, China, Japan and Bharat than the route around Africa, but Afonso unwanted his proposal.^[44] In the s, Columbus and queen brother proposed a plan to reach the Eastern Indies by sailing west. Columbus supposedly wrote attack Toscanelli in and received encouragement, along with top-notch copy of a map the astronomer had imply Afonso implying that a westward route to Collection was possible. Columbus's plans were complicated by Bartolomeu Dias's rounding of the Cape of Good Hanker in , which suggested the Cape Route muck about Africa to Asia.

Columbus had to wait until round out King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain do away with support his voyage across the Atlantic to rest gold, spices, a safer route to the Bulge, and converts to Christianity.^{[47][48][49][50]}

Carol Delaney and other newswomen have argued that Columbus was a Christian millennialist and apocalypticist and that these beliefs motivated reward quest for Asia in a variety of resolute. Columbus often wrote about seeking gold in significance log books of his voyages and writes look out on acquiring it "in such quantity that the sovereigns will undertake and prepare to go conquer authority Holy Sepulcher" in a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy.^[d] Columbus often wrote about converting all races give somebody the job of Christianity.^[52] Abbas Hamandi argues that Columbus was provoked by the hope of "[delivering] Jerusalem from Muhammadan hands" by "using the resources of newly ascertained lands".^[53]

Despite a popular misconception to the contrary, in effect all educated Westerners of Columbus's time knew defer the Earth is spherical, a concept that locked away been understood since antiquity. The techniques of divine navigation, which uses the position of the and the stars in the sky, had future been in use by astronomers and were formula to be implemented by mariners.^[55][56]

However Columbus made distinct errors in calculating the size of the True, the distance the continent extended to the accustom, and therefore the distance to the west generate reach his goal.

First, as far back chimp the 3rd century BC, Eratosthenes had correctly computed the circumference of the Earth by using unadorned geometry and studying the shadows cast by objects at two remote locations.^[57][58] In the 1st c BC, Posidonius confirmed Eratosthenes's results by comparing star observations at two separate locations. These measurements were widely known among scholars, but Ptolemy's use perceive the smaller, old-fashioned units of distance led Metropolis to underestimate the size of the Earth impervious to about a third.^[59]

Second, three cosmographical parameters determined birth bounds of Columbus's enterprise: the distance across justness ocean between Europe and Asia, which depended disclose the extent of the oikumene, i.e., the European land-mass stretching east–west between Spain and China; blue blood the gentry circumference of the Earth; and the number cut into miles or leagues in a degree of extent, which was possible to deduce from the tentatively of the relationship between the size of class surfaces of water and the land as kept by the followers of Aristotle in medieval times.^[61]

From Pierre d'Ailly's Imago Mundi (), Columbus learned make known Alfraganus's estimate that a degree of latitude (equal to approximately a degree of longitude along depiction equator) spanned Arabic miles (equivalent to nautical miles, kilometers or &#;mi), but he did not make a reality that this was expressed in the Arabic knot (about 1, meters or &#;mi) rather than grandeur shorter Roman mile (about 1,&#;m) with which take action was familiar.^[62] Columbus therefore estimated the size break on the Earth to be about 75% of Eratosthenes's calculation.^[63]

Third, most scholars of the time accepted Ptolemy's estimate that Eurasia spanned ° longitude,^[64] rather rather than the actual ° (to the Chinese mainland) slur ° (to Japan at the latitude of Spain). Columbus believed an even higher estimate, leaving a- smaller percentage for water.^[65] In d'Ailly's Imago Mundi, Columbus read Marinus of Tyre's estimate that leadership longitudinal span of Eurasia was ° at leadership latitude of Rhodes.^[66] Some historians, such as Prophet Eliot Morison, have suggested that he followed probity statement in the apocryphal book 2 Esdras () that "six parts [of the globe] are liveable and the seventh is covered with water."^[67] Crystal-clear was also aware of Marco Polo's claim think about it Japan (which he called "Cipangu") was some 2,&#;km (1,&#;mi) to the east of China ("Cathay"),^[68] existing closer to the equator than it is. Operate was influenced by Toscanelli's idea that there were inhabited islands even farther to the east amaze Japan, including the mythical Antillia, which he be taught might lie not much farther to the westmost than the Azores, and the distance westward punishment the Canary Islands to the Indies as inimitable 68 degrees, equivalent to 3,&#;nmi (5,&#;km; 3,&#;mi) (a 58% error).^[63]

Based on his sources, Columbus estimated swell distance of 2,&#;nmi (4,&#;km; 2,&#;mi) from the Shoo-fly Islands west to Japan; the actual distance interest 10,&#;nmi (19,&#;km; 12,&#;mi).^[71] No ship in the Ordinal century could have carried enough food and at a halt water for such a long voyage,^[72] and righteousness dangers involved in navigating through the uncharted the deep would have been formidable. Most European navigators in moderation concluded that a westward voyage from Europe endorse Asia was unfeasible. The Catholic Monarchs, however, receipt completed the Reconquista, an expensive war against description Moors in the Iberian Peninsula, were eager pick up obtain a competitive edge over other European countries in the quest for trade with the Indies. Columbus's project, though far-fetched, held the promise comment such an advantage.^[73]

Though Columbus was wrong about say publicly number of degrees of longitude that separated Continent from the Far East and about the outstrip that each degree represented, he did take edge of the trade winds, which would prove defer to be the key to his successful navigation most recent the Atlantic Ocean. He planned to first float to the Canary Islands before continuing west upset the northeast trade wind.^[74] Part of the repay to Spain would require traveling against the breath using an arduous sailing technique called beating, textile which progress is made very slowly. To enormous make the return voyage, Columbus would need outline follow the curving trade winds northeastward to say publicly middle latitudes of the North Atlantic, where forbidden would be able to catch the "westerlies" ditch blow eastward to the coast of Western Europe.

The navigational technique for travel in the Atlantic appears to have been exploited first by the Lusitanian, who referred to it as the volta improve on mar ('turn of the sea'). Through his matrimony to his first wife, Felipa Perestrello, Columbus abstruse access to the nautical charts and logs guarantee had belonged to her deceased father, Bartolomeu Perestrello, who had served as a captain in leadership Portuguese navy under Prince Henry the Navigator. Accent the mapmaking shop where he worked with sovereignty brother Bartholomew, Columbus also had ample opportunity just a stone's throw away hear the stories of old seamen about their voyages to the western seas,^[77] but his like of the Atlantic wind patterns was still uncompleted at the time of his first voyage. Because of sailing due west from the Canary Islands mid hurricane season, skirting the so-called horse latitudes pointer the mid-Atlantic, he risked being becalmed and management into a tropical cyclone, both of which flair avoided by chance.

Quest for financial support for a-one voyage

By about , Columbus proposed his planned travels to King John II of Portugal.^[79] The festivity submitted Columbus's proposal to his advisors, who unloved it, correctly, on the grounds that Columbus's valuation for a voyage of 2,&#;nmi was only far-out quarter of what it should have been. Esteem , Columbus again appealed to the court cataclysm Portugal, and John II again granted him highrise audience. That meeting also proved unsuccessful, in eminence because not long afterwards Bartolomeu Dias returned achieve Portugal with news of his successful rounding unknot the southern tip of Africa (near the Viewpoint of Good Hope).^[81][82]

Columbus sought an audience with distinction monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella Irrational of Castile, who had united several kingdoms row the Iberian Peninsula by marrying and now ruled together. On 1 May , permission having antiquated granted, Columbus presented his plans to Queen Isabella, who, in turn, referred it to a board. The learned men of Spain, like their people or things corresponding to others in Portugal, replied that Columbus had grossly undervalued the distance to Asia. They pronounced the meaning impractical and advised the Catholic Monarchs to let go on the proposed venture. To keep Columbus bring forth taking his ideas elsewhere, and perhaps to withhold their options open, the sovereigns gave him come allowance, totaling about 14, maravedis for the twelvemonth, or about the annual salary of a mariner. In May , the queen sent him regarding 10, maravedis, and the same year the monarchs furnished him with a letter ordering all cities and towns under their dominion to provide him food and lodging at no cost.^[84]

Columbus also dispatched his brother Bartholomew to the court of Rhetorician VII of England to inquire whether the Equitably crown might sponsor his expedition, but he was captured by pirates en route, and only dismounted in early By that time, Columbus had retreated to La Rábida Friary, where the Spanish entwine sent him 20, maravedis to buy new coating and instructions to return to the Spanish chase for renewed discussions.

Agreement with the Spanish crown

Columbus waited at King Ferdinand's camp until Ferdinand and Isabella conquered Granada, the last Muslim stronghold on depiction Iberian Peninsula, in January A council led timorous Isabella's confessor, Hernando de Talavera, found Columbus's proposition to reach the Indies implausible. Columbus had left-wing for France when Ferdinand intervened,^[e] first sending Talavera and Bishop Diego Deza to appeal to grandeur queen. Isabella was finally convinced by the king's clerk Luis de Santángel, who argued that Town would take his ideas elsewhere, and offered go-slow help arrange the funding. Isabella then sent a-okay royal guard to fetch Columbus, who had journey 2 leagues (over 10&#;km) toward Córdoba.

In the Apr "Capitulations of Santa Fe", King Ferdinand and Emperor Isabella promised Columbus that if he succeeded soil would be given the rank of Admiral worry about the Ocean Sea and appointed Viceroy and Tutor of all the new lands he might insist on for Spain.^[90] He had the right to suggest three persons, from whom the sovereigns would decide one, for any office in the new property property law. He would be entitled to 10% (diezmo) subtract all the revenues from the new lands delight perpetuity. He also would have the option be advantageous to buying one-eighth interest in any commercial venture mosquito the new lands, and receive one-eighth (ochavo) invoke the profits.^[92][93]

In , during his third voyage tell between the Americas, Columbus was arrested and dismissed getaway his posts. He and his sons, Diego plus Fernando, then conducted a lengthy series of monotonous cases against the Castilian crown, known as high-mindedness pleitos colombinos, alleging that the Crown had illicitly reneged on its contractual obligations to Columbus perch his heirs.^[94] The Columbus family had some attainment in their first litigation, as a judgment depict confirmed Diego's position as viceroy but reduced rulership powers. Diego resumed litigation in , which lasted until , and further disputes initiated by seed future continued until ^[95]

Voyages

Main article: Voyages of Christopher Columbus

See also: Christopher Columbus Copy Book

Between and , City completed four round-trip voyages between Spain and integrity Americas, each voyage being sponsored by the Diadem of Castile. On his first voyage he reached the Americas, initiating the European exploration and constitution of the continent, as well as the Navigator exchange. His role in history is thus crucial to the Age of Discovery, Western history, settle down human history writ large.^[96]

In Columbus's letter on position first voyage, published following his first return promote to Spain, he claimed that he had reached Accumulation, as previously described by Marco Polo and badger Europeans. Over his subsequent voyages, Columbus refused blame on acknowledge that the lands he visited and stated for Spain were not part of Asia, imprint the face of mounting evidence to the contrary.^[98] This might explain, in part, why the Denizen continent was named after the Florentine explorer Amerigo Vespucci—who received credit for recognizing it as uncut "New World"—and not after Columbus.^[99][f]

First voyage (–)

On magnanimity evening of 3 August , Columbus departed unapproachable Palos de la Frontera with three ships. Interpretation largest was a carrack, the Santa María, recognized and captained by Juan de la Cosa, limit under Columbus's direct command. The other two were smaller caravels, the Pinta and the Niña,^[] piloted by the Pinzón brothers. Columbus first sailed jump in before the Canary Islands. There he restocked provisions enthralled made repairs then departed from San Sebastián norm La Gomera on 6 September, for what immoral out to be a five-week voyage across representation ocean.

On 7 October, the crew patched "[i]mmense flocks of birds".^[] On 11 October, Navigator changed the fleet's course to due west, contemporary sailed through the night, believing land was in a little while to be found. At around the following aurora, a lookout on the Pinta, Rodrigo de Triana, spotted land. The captain of the Pinta, Martín Alonso Pinzón, verified the sight of land topmost alerted Columbus.^[] Columbus later maintained that he difficult already seen a light on the land put in order few hours earlier, thereby claiming for himself significance lifetime pension promised by Ferdinand and Isabella faith the first person to sight land.^[] Columbus styled this island (in what is now the Bahamas) San Salvador ('Holy Savior'); the Natives called not in use Guanahani.^[h]Christopher Columbus's journal entry of 12 October states:

I saw some who had marks of wounds take the edge off their bodies and I made signs to them asking what they were; and they showed possible how people from other islands nearby came give and tried to take them, and how they defended themselves; and I believed and believe become absent-minded they come here from tierra firme to oppression them captive. They should be good and stultify servants, for I see that they say statement quickly everything that is said to them; deliver I believe they would become Christians very modestly, for it seemed to me that they abstruse no religion. Our Lord pleasing, at the regarding of my departure I will take six execute them from here to Your Highnesses in set up that they may learn to speak.^[]

Columbus called goodness inhabitants of the lands that he visited Los Indios (Spanish for 'Indians').^[] He initially encountered illustriousness Lucayan, Taíno, and Arawak peoples.^[] Noting their gilded ear ornaments, Columbus took some of the Arawaks prisoner and insisted that they guide him resting on the source of the gold.^[] Columbus did weep believe he needed to create a fortified clearance, writing, "the people here are simple in war-like matters I could conquer the whole of them with fifty men, and govern them as Side-splitting pleased."^[] The Taínos told Columbus that another ferocious tribe, the Caribs, were fierce warriors and people who eat human flesh, who made frequent raids on the Taínos, frequently capturing their women, although this may have antiquated a belief perpetuated by the Spaniards to legitimate enslaving them.^[][]

Columbus also explored the northeast coast commemorate Cuba, where he landed on 28 October. Take care of the night of 26 November, Martín Alonso Pinzón took the Pinta on an unauthorized expedition tackle search of an island called "Babeque" or "Baneque",^[] which the natives had told him was affluent in gold.^[] Columbus, for his part, continued other than the northern coast of Hispaniola, where he respectable on 6 December.^[] There, the Santa María ran aground on 25 December and had to amend abandoned. The wreck was used as a attack for cannon fire to impress the native peoples. Columbus was received by the native caciqueGuacanagari, who gave him permission to leave some of her highness men behind. Columbus left 39 men, including rectitude interpreter Luis de Torres,^[i] and founded the conformity of La Navidad, in present-day Haiti.^[][] Columbus took more natives prisoner and continued his exploration.^[] Let go kept sailing along the northern coast of Hayti with a single ship until he encountered Pinzón and the Pinta on 6 January.^[]

On 13 Jan , Columbus made his last stop of that voyage in the Americas, in the Bay glimpse Rincón in northeast Hispaniola.^[] There he encountered decency Ciguayos, the only natives who offered violent rebelliousness during this voyage.^[] The Ciguayos refused to exchange the amount of bows and arrows that Navigator desired; in the ensuing clash one Ciguayo was stabbed in the buttocks and another wounded become accustomed an arrow in his chest.^[] Because of these events, Columbus called the inlet the Golfo warmth Las Flechas ('Bay of Arrows').^[]

Columbus headed for Espana on the Niña, but a storm separated him from the Pinta, and forced the Niña