History of Christopher Colombus

Christopher Danish

History 135-American Civilization-Mr.Romi

5/8/2014

      Extra Credit paper on Christopher Columbus

The best available information suggests that Christopher Columbus (Cristoforo Colombo in Italian) was born in Genoa in 1451.From the Catholic Encyclopedia we find his father was a poor weaver; he had at least two brothers-Bartholomew and Diego. Christopher had little education and, only as an adult, learned to read and write. Before Columbus was sixteen, he sailed to the south of Guinea. While he was a young boy, he learned a lot about astronomy and ways to be a navigator. In the year of 1475, which would make him 24, he married a Portuguese woman. (Doña Felipa Moniz) Christopher left because his heart was set on becoming a navigator. He made the statement in a Letter to the King Ferdinand saying he begun to navigate at the age of fourteen. He offered his own personal information and arguments about what he saw and thought about his new discoveries of Bahamans and his homeward voyage. In the text "Letter to Luis de Santangel,” Columbus writes about his overwhelming achievement with all his trips on the ocean sea. Columbus wrote several exploration narratives during his journeys to and from the new land and back home.

Columbus's "Letter to Luis de Santangel" was written during an exciting time in history. Columbus wrote to Luis de Santangel, who was an early supporter for Columbus' voyages, because he knew that Santangel would appreciate the descriptions he had to offer and he had seen. This was one of the first documentations about the new world of America. The letter begins with an extremely confident, proud and exciting remark. "As I know that you will have pleasure from the great victory that our Lord hath given me in my voyage, I write you this” from the website www.americanjouneys.org. This sentence by Columbus describes how he believes God has labeled his first voyage as being a great victory. I believe the first voyage is a great victory because of the way Columbus describes the new world as being paradise. Columbus had made it seem like he had found the best place on earth, and to this day I couldn’t agree with him more, that he has. Columbus would not have been as enthusiastic and proud in his writings if he did not believe the discovery of the new world was a gigantic achievement. Columbus would also write about the shore of the new world and describe how the inlets of the coast make for great harbors. This was an important detail for explorers during that time in history because ports and inlets allowed explorers and the people of the land to trade and travel easier. Columbus knew that harbors were a very significant part of land and it was a reason why an area would be described as marvelous. Columbus also wrote and told people about the significant number of metals he found in the mines in the new world. They used these metals for making tools, cooking, and eating utensils, or even some sort of tradable material. Columbus knew that an abundance of resources was a sure sign of good land, and how his people could make use of it.