This time - Christopher Columbus, aka Cristobal Colon, aka Cristoforo Colombo.
There were no lifetime portraits of Columbus, but a description of his appearance made by Bartolome de Las Casas remained:
He was tall, above average, his face was long and commanding respect, his nose was aquiline, his eyes were bluish-gray, his skin was white, with redness, his beard and mustache were reddish in his youth, but turned gray in his works.
Bartolome himself in 1493, when he saw Columbus, was only 9 years old, the description was made many decades later, so its reliability should not be absolute. However, at least there's a catch.
Let me remind you that the exact date of Columbus's birth is unknown (it is usually believed that he was born in 1451), and he died in 1506.
Chronologically, the earliest is this portrait, presumably depicting Columbus:
Lorenzo Lotto, 1512
Unfortunately, I did not find a color reproduction. Who and when identified Columbus in this portrait - I do not know. Perhaps this happened already in the 19th century.
Sebastiano del Piombo, 1519.
The inscription on the portrait indicates that this is indeed Christopher Columbus, but whether this inscription is authentic is not known for certain. It can be assumed that Sebastiano del Piombo really created this portrait as an image of the discoverer of America, but was guided by his ideas about his appearance. The dress and hairstyle are consistent with the time of the portrait, not the late 15th century, when Columbus was about the same age as the man depicted by del Piombo.
Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, c. 1520-1525
The portrait does not indicate that this is Christopher Columbus, but such an inscription is on copies from this portrait created in the 16th century. For example, here:
Portraits by Sebastiano del Piombo and Ridolfo Ghirlandaio have become canonical portraits of Columbus. The third version of the canon, and perhaps the most famous:
Unknown artist, 16th century
The inscription testifies that it is Christopher Columbus. There is a version that this is a portrait of Paolo Toscanelli, who gave Columbus the idea to get to the Indies by the western route. But there were no reliable portraits of Toscanelli either, and he lived even earlier than Columbus. And the news of the correspondence between Columbus and Toscanelli is apocryphal.
Christofano del Altissimo, 1556
Cristofano del Altissimo became famous as the author of portraits of various famous people, both reliable and apocryphal. I will assume that the portrait of Columbus painted by him is rather a copy from the previous portrait than vice versa, or both of them go back to some one source.
The man depicted in these portraits is very reminiscent of the scientist Giovanni Agostino della Torre, whom Lorenzo Lotto depicted with his son Niccolò in 1515:
The headdress of della Torre is the same as that of the man from the portrait of Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, and there is an outward resemblance between them. I do not presume to claim that it was Giovanni della Torre who served as the prototype for Columbus, but I will put forward the hypothesis that initially a person was identified with Columbus from portraits by an unknown artist and Cristofano del Altissimo (probably they were already created as portraits of Columbus), and then the name navigator was assigned to the man from the portrait of Ghirlandaio, perhaps due to the similarity with the previous ones. This man is dressed and cut more in the fashion of the early 16th century than the end of the 15th.
I note that all the mentioned portraits taken together cannot depict the same person in any way, but the portraits of Lorenzo Lotto, Ridolfo Ghirlandaio, Cristofano del Altissimo and a portrait similar to the last one by an unknown artist can, but with a big stretch.
And here is a non-canonical image of Columbus:
Alejo Fernandez. Fragment of the central part of the altar, known as the Madonna of a Fair Wind, or the Patroness of Navigators (About him), c. 1531-1536
Whole altar:
The person depicted in profile most closely matches the description of Bartolome de Las Casas, more precisely, less than other portraits contradict him. In particular, he has a beard and long hair, in the fashion of the late 15th century. It is important that the portrait was created by a Spanish, artist, and not Italian, like all the previous ones, and it cannot be completely ruled out that Fernandez used a lifetime profile portrait of Columbus. However, this version is somewhat contradicted by the too rich attire of "Columbus"
There are many more images of Columbus that do not fit into the canon given by the three portraits mentioned here, but their claims to authenticity are even more doubtful.
See also:(Christopher Colombo, in Spanish Colon, Colon) - the famous navigator who discovered America.
Little is known about Columbus' life prior to his ascension as a Spanish admiral. Ten Italian cities and towns argued among themselves about the glory of being the birthplace of Columbus. But now it is proven that he was born in Genoa. The year of his birth is less certain; different news about this diverge among themselves for more than 20 years. Roselli de Lorgues, author of a biography of Columbus, proves that he was born about 1435; but more reliable is the news that he was born in 1456. Information about who his father was is also unreliable, but it is more likely than others that he was the son of a wealthy clothier. There is news that Columbus himself was engaged in this craft for up to twenty years. However, Columbus' own statement that he became a sailor from the age of 14 does not fit with this indication, based on data from the Genoese archives. Where Columbus studied as a boy and a young man is unknown; the tradition that he was educated at the universities of Pavia or Pisa is not supported by any documents. Be that as it may, he acquired a certain education for himself: he read and wrote in Latin, was familiar with geometry, astronomy, geography, possessed the art of drawing maps, and was a good calligrapher. There is news that in his youth he sailed in the Mediterranean; on merchant ships - he visited the island of Chios, near the coast of Tunisia, etc. But they were not known to him at all or were known only from vague fairy-tale legends of the Normans sailing from Greenland to Vinland, that is, to the northern part of North America. If he had certain information about this discovery of the Normans, then on his first trip he would not have headed from the Canary Islands to the southwest, but would have sailed to the northwest. He could not be interested in stories about Vinland, for he was looking for ways to the rich cultural lands of southern Asia.
Portrait of Christopher Columbus. Artist S. del Piombo, 1519
At that time, the Italians were the best European sailors, and many of them moved to Portugal, which then also began to act as a maritime power. Looking for a job, moved to Lisbon and the brother of Columbus, Bartholomew (Bartolomeo), and Christopher followed him. Columbus stayed in Portugal for about ten years (1470s and 1480s), continuing to sail on merchant ships north to England and south to Guinea, and also engaged, together with his brother, in drawing and selling maps. In Portugal, Columbus married Dona Philippa Moniz and, according to legend, lived for some time on the island of Porto Santo, where Philippa had a small estate. Here in Portugal, Columbus had a firm conviction about the possibility of sailing west to the shores of Asia. In particular, Columbus was influenced by the letter of Paolo Toscanelli, the famous Florentine scientist, cosmographer and physician, to whom he turned for guidance. Toscanelli sent Columbus a map from which one could see that the distance between the western coasts of Europe and the eastern shores of Asia, as described by the famous traveler Marco Polo, was not particularly significant. At that time, in general, there were rather vague ideas about the attitude to earth's surface spaces occupied by land and sea; Columbus even believed that the land occupies a much larger space than the sea. In addition to the map and letter of Toscanelli, Columbus was guided in his views by the authority of Marco Polo and Peter d'Aglia, a medieval compiler, from whom Columbus could get acquainted with the opinions of the ancients - Aristotle, Seneca, Pliny, Ptolemy, about the possibility of the existence of countries overseas, in the west.
Having considered his plan for a sea expedition, Columbus turned with him to the Portuguese king John II, who, however, after asking his court doctors and dignitaries for an opinion on this matter, rejected his proposal. There is reason to believe that the Portuguese government, which at that time was engaged in exploration along the western coast of Africa, did not want to leave them or split their forces in order to set sail for the unknown west, especially since the distance separating the countries of "spices and aromas ", could turn out to be much more significant than Columbus claimed. Having failed, Columbus moved to Spain with his eldest son Diego (a child of 5-6 years old). It seems that Columbus escaped from Portugal secretly, avoiding any prosecution, leaving there a wife and other children whom he never met again and whom he refers to in his will as having already died. There are stories that Columbus offered his plan to the Genoese government; but now they have been proven wrong. Genoa, agitated by strife and exhausted by the war with the Turks, did not have the opportunity to engage in such an enterprise as Columbus thought about.
In Spain, Columbus had to live for seven years in moving, searching, vain efforts. His financial situation at that time was not brilliant; he was still engaged in drawing maps, asked for handouts from the court, or enjoyed the hospitality of the Spanish grandees. In the autumn of 1491, having achieved nothing from the Spanish government, Columbus decided to leave Spain, and appeared as a tired wanderer-pedestrian in front of the gates of the Franciscan monastery della Rabida, near Palos, where he asked the porter for water and bread to strengthen his strength. In the monastery, the position of Columbus caused the participation of prior abbot Juan Perez, who believed in the plan of Columbus and came to the conclusion that every effort should be made to ensure that the glory of the great discovery did not pass Spain. Juan Pérez (the Queen's former confessor) wrote a letter to Queen Isabella that had its effect. Formal negotiations were started with Columbus, which almost broke off, however, due to the exorbitant conditions set by him, and which he demanded to be included in a written contract. Finally, the monarchs (Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon) expressed their consent and signed a contract that granted Columbus and his heirs the noble dignity and the title of admiral, in addition, he personally - the title of Viceroy of all the lands and islands that he discovers - the right to leave a tenth of all the valuables that can be obtained within his admiralty - the right to contribute one eighth of the cost of equipping ships and receive, respectively, an eighth of all income, etc. It was decided to organize the expedition in the city of Palos, partly at the expense of the queen, partly due to this city. Significant assistance in the first voyage was provided to Columbus by the wealthy Palos sailor M. A. Pinson, who, together with his brother, took command of the two ships; the third ship, a larger one ("Santa Maria"), was commanded by Columbus himself.
Replica of Columbus' Santa Maria
In August 1492, three caravels weighed anchor and headed for the Canary Islands, from where on September 8 they moved west between 27-28 ° latitude. From that day on, Columbus began to keep two diaries, one for himself, the other for the team, and in the latter he reduced the distances traveled by a quarter or a third, as if in order to less frighten his companions. On September 16, ships entered the so-called Sargasso Sea, southwest of the Azores. The weather was generally favorable and most of the time a fair wind (trade wind) blew. If Columbus had kept his course due west, he would have reached the coast of Florida, but he deviated to the southwest and came out to one of the Bahamas.
Signs of land had already appeared a few days before: birds had flown by, floating trunks, reeds, even branches with flowers could be seen on the surface of the sea. On October 11, in the evening, Columbus noticed some kind of moving light in the distance, but it soon disappeared; the next day, early in the morning, one of the sailors was the first to notice the sandy shore, which caused, according to the order given in advance, a volley from the gun. Subsequently, this sailor demanded for himself a reward appointed by the queen to the one who first saw the land, but Columbus declared that he had seen the land before; it came to court, which recognized the right of Columbus - a dark fact that caused, by some of the latest researchers, the accusation of Columbus in "disgusting greed." The whole voyage lasted 33 days - from the Canary Islands and 69 days, if you count from the day you left Palos. To stay for more than a month without seeing the land was, of course, terrifying for the then Spanish sailors; however, the legend of a riot that allegedly rose on the ships against Columbus is not supported by any evidence.
On the morning of October 12, Columbus, with two Pinsons, the "scribe" of the squadron R. Escobedo and the treasurer R. Sanchez, landed with an escort ashore and, unfolding the royal banner, took the island into the possession of Spain. A crowd of natives had gathered on the shore, naked, swarthy, with black, long hair, painted over their bodies, armed with spears, with bone and stone tips. According to Columbus, this island was called Gwanaani; Columbus named it San Salvador. Later it was found out that the natives called it "Kayos", hence the subsequent name of the whole group among the Spaniards - "Lucay Islands". At the beginning of the XVI century. the entire population of these islands (Bahamas) was caught, enslaved and transferred to the island of Cuba, where they soon died from overwork. From San Salvador, Columbus went southwest, met other islands of the same group, then reached the land he called "Juana" (after the Spanish Infanta) and in which he recognized part of the Asian mainland, while in reality it was an island Cuba. After passing along the northern coast of Cuba some distance to the west and then turning back to the east, Columbus reached the eastern tip of the island and saw another island to the east of it, which he called "Haiti" (Haiti). Here, near Cape Gvariko, Columbus's ship ran into a shallow, got a hole and sank. Columbus was forced to move to a smaller ship - "Ninya", and leave most of the crew on the shore, where a wooden fortification was built in a convenient harbor and a garrison of 40 people was left in it. After that, Columbus went on a small "Nina" back to Spain; another ship of his squadron, the Pinta, overtook him, and, returning earlier to Spain, Pinson tried to inform the first monarchs about the discovery, but was ordered to wait for Columbus. From Palos, Columbus was invited to Barcelona, where Ferdinand and Isabella received him with great honor; the report on the new discovery made a great sensation, which was facilitated by the 6 Indians brought by Columbus, parrots, samples of gold and other West Indian products. At the same time, it was immediately decided to equip a second expedition, in Cadiz; this time, a whole fleet of 17 ships with 1200 or more crew members was put under the command of Columbus.
Columbus before Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Painting by E. Leutze, 1843
The new expedition went to the Canary Islands, then to the west, but along the path of 12 degrees to the south taken on the first trip. 20 days after leaving Ferro Island, one of the Lesser Antilles (La Desirade) was seen, and then the islands of Maria Galante, Dominica, Guadeloupe to the island of Puerto Rico. From here, Columbus went to Hispaniola (Haiti), where the fort he left was destroyed and the entire garrison exterminated by the Indians; I had to found a new city - Isabella - in another place. After lying in a fever for 3 months, Columbus sent 12 ships to Spain with a request for the delivery of supplies, seeds, livestock, and he himself, leaving his brother, Diego, as governor, went on a new search to the west, along the southern coast of Cuba. In this voyage, Jamaica and many small islands were discovered south of Cuba, but Columbus did not have to be convinced of the island character of which, however, because contrary winds and the poor condition of the ships forced him to turn back. Returning to Isabella, Columbus was delighted by the arrival of his brother Bartholomew, with three courts, but also saddened by strife among the Spaniards and unrest among the oppressed Indians. Part of the dissatisfied Spaniards managed to return to their homeland without permission and insist there on sending a special commissioner to Hispaniola to investigate cases. Columbus decided to personally defend his actions and went to Spain.
Christopher Columbus is a medieval navigator who discovered the Sargasso and Caribbean seas, the Antilles, the Bahamas and the American continent for Europeans, the first famous traveler to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
According to various sources, Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Genoa, in what is now Corsica. Six Italian and Spanish cities claim the right to be called his homeland. Almost nothing is reliably known about the childhood and youth of the navigator, and the origin of the Columbus family is just as vague.
Some researchers call Columbus an Italian, others believe that his parents were baptized Jews, Marranos. This assumption explains the incredible level of education at that time that Christopher, who came from a family of an ordinary weaver and a housewife, received.
According to some historians and biographers, Columbus studied at home until the age of 14, while he had brilliant knowledge in mathematics, knew several languages, including Latin. The boy had three younger brothers and a sister, all of whom were taught by visiting teachers. One of the brothers, Giovanni, died in childhood, sister Bianchella grew up and married, and Bartolomeo and Giacomo accompanied Columbus on his wanderings.
Most likely, Columbus was given all possible assistance by fellow believers, rich Genoese financiers from the Marranos. With their help, a young man from a poor family got into the University of Padua.
Being an educated person, Columbus was familiar with the teachings of the ancient Greek philosophers and thinkers, who depicted the Earth as a ball, and not a flat pancake, as was believed in the Middle Ages. However, such thoughts, like the Jewish origin during the Inquisition, which raged in Europe, had to be carefully hidden.
At the university, Columbus became friends with students and teachers. One of his close friends was the astronomer Toscanelli. According to his calculations, it turned out that to the cherished India, full of untold riches, it was much closer to sail in a westerly direction, and not in an eastern one, skirting Africa. Later, Christopher made his own calculations, which, being incorrect, confirmed Toscanelli's hypothesis. Thus was born the dream of a western journey, and Columbus devoted his whole life to it.
Even before entering the university, at the age of fourteen, Christopher Columbus experienced the hardships of sea travel. The father arranged for his son to work on one of the trading schooners to learn the art of navigation, trade skills, and from that moment the biography of Columbus the navigator started.
Columbus made his first voyages as a cabin boy in the Mediterranean Sea, where trade and economic routes between Europe and Asia intersected. At the same time, European merchants knew about the riches and gold placers of Asia and India from the words of the Arabs, who resold them wonderful silks and spices from these countries.
The young man listened to extraordinary stories from the mouths of eastern merchants and was inflamed with a dream to reach the shores of India in order to find her treasures and get rich.
Expeditions
In the 70s of the 15th century, Columbus married Felipe Moniz from a wealthy Italo-Portuguese family. The father-in-law of Christopher, who settled in Lisbon and sailed under the Portuguese flag, was also a navigator. After his death, he left sea charts, diaries and other documents that were inherited by Columbus. According to them, the traveler continued to study geography, at the same time studying the works of Piccolomini, Pierre de Ailly,.
Christopher Columbus took part in the so-called northern expedition, in which his path passed through the British Isles and Iceland. Presumably, there the navigator heard the Scandinavian sagas and stories about the Vikings, Erik the Red and Leyve Eriksson, who reached the coast of the "Great Land" by crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
The route that made it possible to get to India by the western route was compiled by Columbus in 1475. He presented an ambitious plan to conquer the new land to the court of the Genoese merchants, but did not meet with support.
A few years later, in 1483, Christopher made a similar proposal to the Portuguese king João II. The king assembled a scientific council, which reviewed the Genoese project and found his calculations incorrect. Frustrated, but resilient, Columbus left Portugal and moved to Castile.
In 1485, the navigator requested an audience with the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella of Castile. The couple received him favorably, listened to Columbus, who tempted them with the treasures of India, and, just like the Portuguese ruler, convened scientists for advice. The commission did not support the navigator, since the possibility of a western path implied the sphericity of the Earth, which was contrary to the teachings of the church. Columbus was almost declared a heretic, but the king and queen had mercy and decided to postpone the final decision until the end of the war with the Moors.
Columbus, who was driven not so much by a thirst for discovery as by a desire to get rich, carefully hiding the details of the planned trip, sent messages to the English and French monarchs. Charles and Henry did not answer the letters, being too busy with domestic politics, but the Portuguese king sent an invitation to the navigator to continue discussing the expedition.
When Christopher announced this in Spain, Ferdinand and Isabella agreed to equip a squadron of ships to search for a western route to India, although the impoverished Spanish treasury had no funds for this enterprise. The monarchs promised Columbus a title of nobility, the title of admiral and viceroy of all the lands that he had to discover, and he had to borrow money from Andalusian bankers and merchants.
Four Expeditions of Columbus
- The first expedition of Christopher Columbus took place in 1492-1493. On three ships, the Pinta caravels (the property of Martin Alonso Pinson) and Nina and the four-masted sailing ship Santa Maria, the navigator passed through the Canary Islands, crossed the Atlantic Ocean, opening the Sargasso Sea along the way, and reached the Bahamas. On October 12, 1492, Columbus set foot on the island of Saman, which he named San Salvador. This date is considered the day of the discovery of America.
- The second expedition of Columbus took place in 1493-1496. In this campaign, the Lesser Antilles, Dominica, Haiti, Cuba, Jamaica were discovered.
- The third expedition refers to the period from 1498 to 1500. A flotilla of six ships reached the islands of Trinidad and Margarita, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America, and ended in Haiti.
- During the fourth expedition, Christopher Columbus sailed to Martinique, visited the Gulf of Honduras and explored the coast Central America along the Caribbean Sea.
Discovery of America
The process of discovering the New World dragged on for many years. The most amazing thing is that Columbus, being a convinced discoverer and an experienced navigator, believed until the end of his days that he had opened the way to Asia. He considered the Bahamas, discovered in the first expedition, to be part of Japan, after which wonderful China was to open, and after it, the cherished India.
What did Columbus discover and why did the new continent get the name of another traveler? The list of discoveries made by the great traveler and navigator includes San Salvador, Cuba and Haiti, belonging to the Bahamas, the Sargasso Sea.
Seventeen ships, led by the flagship Maria Galante, went on the second expedition. This type of ship with a displacement of two hundred tons and other ships carried not only sailors, but also colonialists, livestock, and supplies. All this time, Columbus was convinced that he had discovered the Western Indies. At the same time, the Antilles, Dominica and Guadeloupe were discovered.
The third expedition brought the ships of Columbus to the continent, but the navigator was disappointed: he never found India with its gold placers. From this journey, Columbus returned in shackles, accused of a false denunciation. Before entering the port, the fetters were removed from him, but the navigator lost the promised titles and titles.
The last journey of Christopher Columbus ended with a crash off the coast of Jamaica and a serious illness of the leader of the campaign. He returned home sick, unhappy and broken by failures. Amerigo Vespucci was a close associate and follower of Columbus, who undertook four voyages to the New World. A whole continent is named after him, and the name of Columbus, who never reached India, is one country in South America.
Personal life
According to the biographers of Christopher Columbus, the first of whom was his own son, the navigator was married twice. The first marriage with Felipe Moniz was legal. The wife gave birth to a son, Diego. In 1488 Columbus had a second son, Fernando, from a relationship with a woman named Beatriz Henriques de Arana.
The navigator equally took care of both sons, and even took the youngest with him on an expedition when the boy was thirteen years old. Fernando was the first to write a biography of the famous traveler.
Christopher Columbus with his wife Felipe Moniz Subsequently, both sons of Columbus became influential people and took high positions. Diego was the fourth Viceroy of New Spain and Admiral of the Indies, and his descendants were titled Marquesses of Jamaica and Dukes of Veragua.
Fernando Columbus, who became a writer and scientist, enjoyed the favor of the Spanish emperor, lived in a marble palace and had an annual income of up to 200,000 francs. These titles and wealth went to the descendants of Columbus in recognition of his services to the crown by the Spanish monarchs.
Death
After the discovery of America from the last expedition, Columbus returned to Spain a terminally ill, aged man. In 1506, the discoverer of the New World died in poverty in a small house in Valladolid. Columbus used his savings to pay the debts of the members of the last expedition.
Tomb of Christopher Columbus Soon after the death of Christopher Columbus, the first ships began to arrive from America, loaded with gold, which the navigator so dreamed of. Many historians agree that Columbus knew that he had discovered not Asia or India, but a new, unexplored continent, but did not want to share glory and treasures with anyone, to which there was one step left.
The appearance of the enterprising discoverer of America is known from photos in history books. Several films have been made about Columbus, the last film being co-produced by France, England, Spain and the USA “1492: The Conquest of Paradise”. Monuments to this great man were erected in Barcelona and Granada, and his ashes were transported from Seville to Haiti.
autumn 1451, the island of Corsica, the Republic of Genoa (according to one version) - May 20, 1506, Valladolid, Spain
Christopher Columbus - Spanish navigator and discoverer of new lands. He is best known for his discovery of America (1492).
Columbus was the first of the reliably known travelers to cross the Atlantic Ocean in the subtropical and tropical strip northern hemisphere and was the first European to sail in the Caribbean. He laid the foundation for the discovery of the mainland of South America and the isthmuses of Central America. He discovered all the Greater Antilles - the central part of the Bahamas, the Lesser Antilles (from Dominica to the Virgin Islands inclusive), as well as a number of small islands in the Caribbean and the island of Trinidad off the coast of South America.
Since Europeans represented by the Icelandic Vikings (Leif Eriksson and others) visited North America as early as the 11th century, Columbus, strictly speaking, cannot be called the discoverer of America. However, since the expeditions of Columbus were essential to the subsequent colonization of the Americas, this terminology is widely used.
Italian by birth. Born in Genoa between August 25 and October 31, 1451 in the family of woolen weaver Domenico Colombo.
In 1470 he began to actively participate in commercial transactions (until 1473 under the leadership of his father). In 1474-1479 he made several voyages as part of the trading expeditions of the Genoese company Centurione Negro: he visited the island of Chios, England, Ireland, the islands of Porto Santo and Madeira. In 1476 he settled in Portugal. In 1482-1484 he visited the Azores and the Guinean coast (fort Sao Jorge da Mina).
Columbus was born into a poor Genoese family: father - Domenico Colombo, mother - Susanna Fontanarossa. In addition to Christopher, there were other children in the family: Giovanni (died in childhood, in 1484), Bartolomeo, Giacomo, Bianchella (married Giacomo Bavarello). Studied at the University of Pavia. Around 1470 he marries Doña Felipe Moniz de Palestrello. Her father was a famous navigator from the time of Prince Enrique. Until 1472, Columbus lived in Genoa, and from 1472 - in Savona. In the 1470s, he participated in sea trading expeditions. It is believed that as early as 1474, the astronomer and geographer Paolo Toscanelli told him in a letter that, in his opinion, India can be reached by a much shorter sea route if you sail west. Apparently, already then Columbus was thinking about his project of a sea voyage to India. Having made his own calculations based on the advice of Toscanelli, he decided that it was most convenient to sail through the Canary Islands, from which, in his opinion, there were about five thousand kilometers to Japan.
Christopher Columbus
From 1476, Columbus moved to Portugal, where he lived for nine years. It is known that in 1477 Columbus visited England, Ireland and Iceland, where he could get acquainted with the data of the Icelanders about the lands in the west. During this time, he also manages to visit Guinea as part of the expedition of Diogo de Azambuja, who went there in 1481 to build the fortress of Elmina (Sao Jorge da Mina)
The first appeal of Columbus with a proposal to sail to India to the west was in 1475-1480. He addressed it to the government and merchants of his native Genoa. There was no response.
1480s - during this period, the Portuguese were preoccupied with finding a sea route to Asia. The interest in this part of the world is explained quite simply: at that time, Asian spices alone often replaced money, but there were also incense, silk, carpets, luxury items ... There was no land route to Asia then - it was blocked by the powerful Ottoman Empire. I had to buy spices, silk and other exotic oriental goods from Arab merchants, losing big profits. The Portuguese saw only one route: round Africa, climb to Indian Ocean, and at the beginning of the decade, the king of Portugal, João II, equipped and sent an appropriate expedition. Columbus offered an alternative: reach Asia by moving west. Columbus's theory was based on the navigator's own calculations. But in fairness, it must be said that Columbus was not an innovator - the idea of a western route to India was put forward in the ancient world by Aristotle and Protagoras.
Cristobal Colon
Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio .: This Portrait was made by the Florentine painter Ridolfo Ghirlandaio (1483-1561). This illustration may be considered to be in the public domain. This portrait was executed in the first half of the sixteenth century, after the death of Columbus. It is displayed in a showcase of the Museum of the sea and navigation of Genoa, "It Padiglione del Mare e della Navigazione."
In 1483, he proposes his project to the Portuguese king João II, but after a long study, the project is rejected.
In 1485, Columbus moved to Spain with his son Diego (apparently, he was fleeing persecution. In the winter of 1485-1486, he finds shelter in the monastery of Santa Maria da Rabida in the status of a beggar. Abbot Juan Perez de Marchena accepted him and actually saved from starvation. He also organized the first letter to Fernando de Talavera, his friend, the queen's confessor, with a summary of the ideas of Columbus. The king of Spain was at that time in the city of Cordoba, where preparations were made for the war with Granada with the personal participation of sovereigns. Columbus establishes contacts with royal financial advisers, merchants and bankers in 1486. It was not until the winter of 1486 that Columbus was introduced to Pedro González de Mendoza, Archbishop of Toledo and Grand Cardinal of Spain, who in turn facilitated an audience with the King of Spain. theologians, cosmographers, jurists, monks, courtiers reject him, considering his demands excessive.
Christopher Columbus, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing slightly right.
On April 20, 1488, Columbus unexpectedly received a letter from the Portuguese king with an offer to return to Portugal. The most interesting here were the following words of Their Majesty:
“And if you fear Our justice for some of your obligations, then know that neither after your arrival, nor during your stay in Portugal, nor after your departure, you will be arrested, detained, charged, convicted, or persecuted. for any reason arising from civil, criminal or any other law. »
Columbus sends his proposals to other addresses: from King Henry VII of England in February 1488, he received a favorable answer, but without any specific proposals.
Columbus and the Indian Maiden
1488 - a certain Beatriz Henriquez de Arana gives birth to Columbus's son Fernando. Columbus not only recognized the child, but also did not forget him later, after thirteen years he took him on one of his expeditions. It was Fernando who would later write a biography of his father, which would become the main source of information about the great navigator.
1492 - Spain is liberated from the Moors, and King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella finally make a final decision about funding the search for a western route to Asia. In case of failure, they lost only the funds invested in the enterprise. In case of success, dizzying prospects opened up before Spain. Columbus was promised: a noble rank, the titles of admiral, viceroy and governor-general of all the islands and continents discovered on the expedition.
Christopher Columbus kneeling in front of Queen Isabella I.
On April 30, 1492, the royal couple grants Columbus and his heirs the title of “don” (that is, they make him a nobleman) and confirms that, if the overseas project is successful, he will be Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and Viceroy of all the lands that he discovers or will acquire, and be able to pass on these titles by inheritance. True, Columbus had to look for money to equip the expedition on his own due to the lost state tax payments of Her Majesty the Queen of Castile. In addition, according to the agreement, Columbus himself, who did not have a penny, had to bear an eighth of the costs.
Christopher Columbus being greeted by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella on his return to Spain.
However, Columbus was helped by Martin Alonso Pinson. One of the ships - "Pinta" - was his own, and he equipped it at his own expense; he gave money for the second ship to Christopher, so that Columbus could make his formal contribution under the agreement. The money for the third ship, under his own guarantee, was given out by local Marranos (baptized Jews) as an offset of their payments to the budget. Among them was the rabbi and royal treasurer, the Castilian tutor Abraham Senior (Coronel) and his son-in-law Mayer Melomedes.
Between 1492 and 1504, Christopher Columbus undertook four exploratory expeditions at the behest of the Spanish king. He described the events of these expeditions in his logbook. Unfortunately, the original of the journal has not been preserved, but Bartolome de Las Casas made a partial copy of this journal, which has survived to this day, thanks to which many details of the expeditions described have become known.
Map of the four expeditions of Columbus
First journey (August 3, 1492 - March 15, 1493).
Second journey (September 25, 1493 - June 11, 1496).
Third journey (May 30, 1498 - November 25, 1500).
Fourth journey (May 9, 1502 - November 1504).
Dagli Orti "PINTA", "NINA" AND "SANTA MARIA" - the ships on which Christopher Columbus made his first voyage to the shores of America
First journey (1492-1493).
Early in the morning of August 3, 1492, the Columbus flotilla of three ships (the caravels Pinta and Nina and the four-masted sailing ship (nao) Santa Maria) with a crew of 90 people. left the port of Palos de la Frontera (near the confluence of the Rio Tinto in the Gulf of Cadiz).
On August 9, she approached the Canary Islands. After the repair of the "Pint" on the island of Homer, on September 6, 1492, heading west, the ships began crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Having passed the Sargasso Sea, Columbus turned to the southwest on October 7. On October 12, the Spaniards reached the island of Guanahani (modern Watling) in the Bahamas - the first land they encountered in the Western Hemisphere. Columbus Island called San Salvador (St. Savior), and its inhabitants - Indians, believing that he was off the coast of India. This day is considered the official date of the discovery of America.
Columbus declares open land the property of the Spanish king
Having learned from the natives about the existence of a rich island in the south, Columbus left the Bahamas on October 24 and sailed further to the southwest. On October 28, the flotilla approached the shores of Cuba, named by Columbus "Juan". Then the Spaniards, inspired by the stories of local Indians, spent a month looking for the golden island of Baneke (modern Great Inagua).
The Landing of Columbus. Christopher Columbus and others showing objects to Native American men and women on shore.
On November 21, the captain of the Pinta M.A. Pinson took his ship away, deciding to search for this island on his own. Having lost hope of finding Baneke, Columbus turned east with the two remaining ships and on December 5 reached the northwestern tip of the island of Bohio (modern Haiti), which he named Hispaniola ("Spanish"). Moving along the northern coast of Hispaniola, on December 25, the expedition approached the Holy Cape (modern Cap Haitien), where the Santa Maria crashed and sank. This forced Columbus to leave part of the team (39 people) in the fort Navidad (“Christmas”) he founded and set off on the Nina on the way back (January 2, 1493). On January 6, he met "Pint".
On January 16, both ships headed northeast, using a favorable current - the Gulf Stream. On February 11-14, they fell into a severe storm, during which the Pint was lost.
On February 15, Nina reached the island of Santa Maria in the Azores, but only on February 18 did she manage to land on the shore. The Portuguese governor of the island tried to detain the ship by force, but ran into the determined resistance of Columbus and let the travelers go.
On February 24, Nina left the Azores. On February 26, she again fell into a storm, which washed her on the coast of Portugal on March 4 near the mouth of the Tagus (Tajo). Juan II gave an audience to Columbus, at which he informed the king about the discovery of a western route to India and reproached him for refusing to support his project in 1484. Despite the advice of the courtiers to kill the admiral, Juan II did not dare to go into conflict with Spain, and on March 13, the Nina was able to sail home. March 15, on the 225th day of the voyage, she returned to Palos. Later, "Pinta" also came there. Isabella and Ferdinand gave Columbus a solemn reception and gave permission for a new expedition.
First Voyage, Departure for the New World, August 3, 1492
Second journey (1493-1496).
On September 25, 1493, Columbus' flotilla of 17 caravels (except for ship crews, there were soldiers, officials, monks and colonists on board) left Cadiz and reached the Canary Islands on October 2.
On October 11, Columbus began crossing the Atlantic, heading more southerly than on his first voyage, as he planned to reach Hispaniola from the southeast. On November 3, the ships approached one of the Lesser Antilles, which Columbus gave the name Dominica (it was Sunday - “the day of the Lord”); Aboriginal people who practiced ritual cannibalism, he called "cannibals." Then sailors discovered a number of other islands in the northern part of the Lesser Antilles archipelago - Montserrat, Antigua, Nevis, San Cristobal (modern St. Christopher), San Eustasio (modern Sint Eustatius), Santa Cruz and the "Islands of Eleven Thousand Virgins "(Virgin Islands), and the large island of Boriken, renamed by the admiral to San Juan Batista (modern Puerto Rico).
Approaching the eastern tip of Hispaniola, the flotilla moved along its northern coast and on November 27 reached Fort Navidad, which was ruined; not a single colonist survived. To the east of the fort (in a very unfortunate location), Columbus founded a new settlement, naming it La Isabela in honor of the Queen of Spain. In January 1494, he sent an expedition inland under the command of A. de Ojeda, who obtained a huge amount of gold objects from the Indians. On February 2, the admiral sent twelve ships with booty home. In the spring of 1494, the Spaniards switched to a policy of systematic robbery and extermination of the local population.
Cristobal Colon apaciguando una rebelion a bordo.
Cristoforo Colombo in mezzo agli indigen
Leaving his brother Diego to manage Hispaniola, Columbus sailed west on April 24, 1494 with three ships, continuing to search for a route to Asia (China). April 29, he approached the eastern tip of Cuba. Moving along its southern coast, the flotilla reached Guantanamo Bay, and then turned south and on May 5 anchored off the northern coast of Jamaica. Faced with the open hostility of the natives, Columbus returned to the Cuban coast, headed west and reached Cortez Bay near the western tip of the island. Deciding that the Malacca Peninsula was in front of him, he turned back (June 13). Bypassing Jamaica from the south, the flotilla returned to La Isabela on September 29.
Christopher Columbus and his crew leaving the port of Palos, Spain, for the New World; crowd of well wishers looks on.
Throughout 1495, Columbus suppressed the uprising of the Indians that broke out in Hispaniola. In the same year, under the influence of complaints about the admiral from the colonists who fled to Spain, Ferdinand and Isabella deprived him of his monopoly on discovering overseas lands and sent their plenipotentiary J. Aguado to the island. After a conflict with J. Aguado, Columbus left Hispaniola on March 10, 1496, transferring power to his brother Bartolome. On June 11 he arrived in Cadiz.
Columbus and son at the convention of La Rábída, approaching prior Juan Pérez, who is surrounded by poor people.
The First Sight of the New World
Third journey (1498-1500).
Although Ferdinand and Isabella had serious doubts about the profitability of the discoveries of Columbus, the preparation by the Portuguese of a flotilla under the command of Vasco da Gama for a decisive throw into the Indian Ocean around the Cape of Good Hope forced them to agree to organize a third expedition to the west.
The Landing of Columbus at San Salvador, October 12, 1492.
The Landing of Columbus, 1492.
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