Christopher Columbus Summary

Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in fourteen-hundred-ninty-two. He came over from Spain in three ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria and discovered America, or at least that was what I was taught in elementary school. Since then there has been much controversy going on over the issue of weather or not Christopher Columbus really “discovered” America because when he landed in San Salvador he was not alone. Native Americans already inhabited the land and they had been there long before Columbus, but this doesn’t mean that he should be atacked stripped of his dignity.

The letter Christopher Columbus wrote back to Spain to report his findings in the New World sparked intrigued me and sparked my imagination. Why I have been so absorbed in this letter I can not explain. This letter is supposed to be about describing an unknown land, a land that has not been seen by anyone besides the natives, but it seems that there is more to it than that. Columbus is known in elementary schools as the man who found the New World, and is regarded as a hero. To the contrary, historians who have done more research on Columbus say that he was driven by fame and fortune and that he was tyrannical in his ways with the indigenous peoples of the places that he came to find. I feel that the contradictory tones Columbus uses

It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory

Christopher Columbus was a well-known traveler who originated from Italy. Christopher Columbus had a legacy that was troubled with disagreements for reason of his treatment towards the native population. His journeys encouraged mass amount of Europeans to obtain interest in taking over the Americas. Throughout his letter written to Sant’ Angel, Columbus explains his emotion in being very satisfied with the results he has revised throughout his first voyage. Christopher Columbus then goes into detail concerning his appreciation to the royal King and Queen, Ferdinand and Isabella as he mentions, “I passed over the Indies with the fleet which the most illustrious King and Queen, our lords, gave to me” (Columbus 8). Christopher Columbus creates a powerful image for the King and Queen because he trusts that the maintenance of Ferdinand and Isabella throughout his journey was an incredible aspect that resulted in his spectacular accomplishment.

The arrival of Columbus lead to the decline of the Arawaks because of many factors. Columbus took advantage of the Arawaks’ land, resources, and people. As Zinn mentioned, the Arawaks lived in Bahama Island (which Columbus arrived on) and they were known to be very kind and generous. The Arawaks had great agriculture and weaving skills; they had farms of corn, yams, cassava. But lacked on having working animals and iron. What intrigued Columbus the most was their gold earrings. With no iron and real tools of defense, the Arawaks became defenseless.

The full measure of Columbus's failure as a colonizer was not yet apparent when he returned to Castile in 1496. Yet by the end of six or seven years of his governorship, with his own, the monarchs', and the settlers' objectives all still unachieved, and Hispaniola suffering an apparently interminable series of rebellions not only by the Indians but by the colonists too, Columbus was to be superseded and disgraced, and shipped home to Spain in chains.1 Overall, Fernandez-Armesto depicted Columbus as an annoyingly eccentric person incapable of succeeding. Although, he discovered the Americas, he failed to be a leader to his crew and the natives. Instead, he was on the lookout for ways of manipulating the motives for profit.

For my compare and contrast paper I decide to write about Christopher Columbus because he is big in geography and his name is known throughout the world, and not only in the United States, and he did a lot in his lifetime. And I know every student will learn about him in schools. Christopher Columbus is mentioned in Davis’ book; however, I also decide to do my own research as well.

Christopher Columbus set out on his voyage in 1942 on the West Indian islands, to find a new world for the Europeans. When he landed on the Caribbean Island the Indian Natives that lived there were at first scared but greeted him in a friendly manner. The conquest and settlement of the Western Hemisphere opened new opportunities for other Europeans such as the French, Dutch, English and Spanish to come to the island and colonize the Indian's land. For the Europeans to colonize and move in on Native land they had to find a way to interact with the Indians. Through their interaction they found cultural understandings and confusions that were documented by both the Europeans and the Indians. In the book, "Major Problems in American Colonial

When Columbus saw the people on this land, he assumed they were people from the West Indies, therefore he called them  “Indians”. In Columbus’ letter to Lord Sanchez, he described the people as “savages, [who are] naturally timid and full of fear” (document 13).  In document 2, his letter to Santangel, he goes so far as to say that when he tried to establish trading relationships with the Indians they acted primitive and uncivilized. Columbus also states in document 2 that he hopes they will become fond of the Spanish and establish trade relationships as had been requested. Obviously this would be a difficult feat because of the lack of coherence between cultures. Columbus worked very hard to ensure the development of trade relations.  As seen in document 9, Columbus writes many letters back to the King and Queen of Spain reporting on the status of his mission and updates on the relations with the people. One key detail from this document is Columbus’ opening line where he includes the statement “in obedience to your Highness's’ commands.”  This is significant because it shows that Columbus is working under the King and Queen's commands and that he is not entirely to blame for his actions. Columbus should not be held responsible due to the fact that he was abiding the orders of the King and

1). The Admiral and the crew offered tokens of small value, such as strings of beads (later in time, the same price as for the whole of Manhattan Island) – and received “parrots, balls of cotton thread, javelins, and many more such things” in return (Id.). Columbus remarked on the beauty and youth of the natives, noting they were unabashedly naked, “not with prominent bellies,” and seemingly none over the age of thirty (Id.). Yet, all of Columbus’ written remarks and observations were superficial. Not once did Columbus attempt to discern the true culture, society, indigenous faith(s), and/or rights of these native people to maintain their lives and ownership of the lands they occupied. They greeted Columbus in peace. Columbus came to

Christopher Columbus is a very important person in our country's history. He found the "New World," the one we live in today. He started the society that makes us who we are today, the society that allowed our ancestors to come to America and start the life that we live now. This whole world owes their lives to him. Columbus should always be remembered as a very important and very good person in history.

Everyone knows the saying Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492. However, there is a lot more to Christopher Columbus than what everyone was taught in elementary school through high school. Columbus is thought to be a hero, but just being classified as a hero is a fallacy. Several works including Christopher Columbus and the Enterprise of the Indies and The Lies my Teacher Told Me have been published about the real Christopher Columbus and his legacy.

Christopher Columbus wrote this letter in the hopes of outlining his discoveries to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand. They along with other backers helped him in his pursuit of finding a quicker route to the Chinese trade markets. Columbus wanted many things from his voyage, fame and fortune being the front runners. The King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella wanted the the fame and fortune like Columbus, and also the ability to bring their religion to many lands all over the globe. His crew set sail from Spain in the three well known ships listed as the Pinta, Nina, and Santa Maria. Columbus sailed from new island to new island for many months on end, in what we now know as the modern day Caribbean. Christopher Columbus’s efforts were groundbreaking, and his letter served to further his efforts of another voyage by showcasing his success of discovering the Indies, routes, the people, and their natural resources. The promise of new trade routes, silver, spices, silk, and other merchandise were replaced with his belief he “conquered” new islands, set up a colony, and brought back a small supply of gold and slaves.

We all know the story of how Christopher Columbus rediscovered the Caribbean but if we forgot here is a little summary of what happened....

Christopher Columbus’s successful voyage and discoveries are shown in great details throughout his First Letter to Luis De Sant Angel. Throughout this letter, we see from Columbus’s word choices the accomplishments he achieved through statements made such as “You will