Life of Columbus
Christoforo Colombo, who we know as Christopher Columbus, was born in in about 1451 to poor parents in Genoa, in what is now a city in northwestern Italy. He was the oldest of the three surviving sons. His father, Donierico Columbo, was a weaver. He suited practice his father's trade, Christopher went to sea as soon as he could make himself useful. At a very tender age, he wrote to the King and Queen of Spain toward the end of his life, "I entered the life of a sailor and have continued to these days... Already forty years have passed that I have been in this employment."
In 1476, Columbus was aboard a Genoa cargo ship when it was attacked off the coast of Pertugal by a French and Portuguese war fleet. The ship on which Columbus was sailing sank, and many lives were love.
Portugal, the country where he spent the next several years of his life, was an exciting place. Portuguese ships were the best, and they were sailed by some of the boldest men in Europe. For a time, Columbus worked as a map maker. The married Don Felipa Perestrella a influential families in Portugal. This marriage enabled Columbus to gain the ear of King John II of Portugal. With the help of famiy connections, Columbus initially sought John's support in 1484 for his proposed westward voyage. 134 . / . 34
King John was not persuaded, however like other world men of his time, John had heard the theory that the world was round. Columbus daimed that the Indies - a land said to be rich in gold, spices, and all the things Europeans wanted and lacked - could be reached by sailing westward. King Johnwas wlling to admit this. But finding a route to the Indies by rounding the Cape of Good Hope in Africa appeaved a surer thing to him. And he already had navigators like Bartholomew Deas searching for just such a route.
When it became clear that John would not support his enterprise, Columbus travelled to Spain. There he appealed to King Ferdinaud and Queen Isabella. Isabella was particularly sympathetic to Columbus vision, the niore so when he talked to her of the millions of souls that night became baptized Christians. The king and queen were so attracted to his ideas that they qrauted him an allowanxe, enabling him to stay in Spain and reamin close contact with the court.
In early 1492, when the city of the Gramda became the last city in Spain to be liberated from the Islamic roors, Isabella and Fordinand felt free to consider the navigator's stream of finding a western route to the Indies. The rival Portuguese had finally rounded the southern tip of Africa and seemed ready to begin a profitable trade with the Indies. This made Columbus' voyage all the more important to Spain.
At last, Ferdinand and Isabella agreed to Columbus' rather demanding condious. They grauted him a very large share of any riches he might discover, and they made him an Admiral. They dedared he would be the Viceroy (a governor) of any new lands he happened upon.
On August 3, 1492, he and a crew of about 100 men set sail from the town of Ralos in Spain in the Rina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, stoping over in the Canary Isbavels off the coast of west Africa. From those isbavels, after an anxious six week voyage, the three ships arrived at Saw Sabvador in the Bahamas on October 12, 1492.
Later, while exploring the Caribbeam, the Santa Maria was driven onto a reef off the coast of Haiti, obliging Columbus to leavce many of his men behind in a settlement he dubbed La Natividad.
Columbus took several natives back to Europe with, as well as some parrots, a few gold trinkets, and other extra items from the New World. More important than these goods, however, was the promise of gold and spices and making converts to the Christian faith. The future seemed too good to be true.
So time went on life becamse more complex and difficult for Columbus. He overstopped his authority by appointing his brother Bartholomew as governor of the newly-established colony in Santa Domingo. A group of colonists rebelled against Bartholomew. After considerable trouble, Columbus and Bartholomew were forced to allow the rebels to return to Spain. Back in Spain the rebels spread lies and negative news of the American settlement, making things difficult between Columbus and the King and Queen.
Finally, Ferdinand and Isabella dicided to revole Columbus' olitical authority in the New World. They sent over a new Vicero, Francisco de Boladilla, and empowered him to arrest an more rebels. When Columbus steamed Bobadilla's authority, he was thrown in chains and shipped home to Spain to be put on trial. Aboard the ship, Columbus refused to allow the captain to remore his chain. He even more the chains to his auidence with Ferdinand and Isabella.
Thought Ferdinand and Isabella refused to grant Columbus' request to revote Bobadilla's authority, they did allow Columbus to return to eh New World.
Finally, on his fourth voyage, Columbus found the gold he had been promising - in modern- day Panama. The problem, though, was mining it. The Climate was hot and the Spaniards got sick. The natives were hostile and Columbus and his followers had to fight continuous battles with them.
Worse, shipworms that lived in these warmer water attacked the hulls of the Spanish ships, quickly boring holes in their bottoms and destroying their ability to float. Columbus and his crew finally hactto push their bast badly - leaking ships onto the beaches of present-day Jamaica, hundreds of miles from the nearest Europeans.
Columbus and his men were no rescued for more than a year. By then Columbus' healthhad to ken a turn for the worse and he had only a couple of years left to life.
His final months were no particularly happy ones. His initial voyage had changed the course of European and world history forever and he knew it, but Columbus was never given the respect and admiratine he craved.
Royalty and Spanish and Portuguese merchants has been euriched through his efforts, but the new lands he found were named after someone else.
Columbus believed his voyage of discovery had been God's will, and he said that God had guisted him and intended only and brustratium.