Discovery of America. Who discovered America and when? America was discovered by Columbus

Christopher Columbus. Discovery of America.

Biographical information about Christopher Columbus is very scarce. He was born in the fall of 1451 in Genoa, first lived in Italy and, like his father, belonged to a woolen guild. It is unknown where and when he studied, but it has been proven that he read at least four languages ​​(Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Latin). In 1476 he moved to Portugal and lived here for 9 years. According to him, during this time he took part in Portuguese expeditions several times and visited England, Guinea and the Gold Coast. In 1474, Columbus sought advice regarding the shortest sea route to India to the famous Florentine astrologer and geographer Paolo Toscanelli. Toscanelli replied to Columbus: “I know that the existence of such a path can be proven on the basis that the Earth is a sphere.” Toscanelli drew up a map and sent it to Columbus. Toscanelli's mistake was that he did not know how land and water were distributed on the surface of the Earth, and reduced the distance from Europe to Asia across the Atlantic Ocean several times. Columbus made “corrections” to this calculation and came to the conclusion that the distance from Lisbon to Japan is 4500 km. In the words of the famous 18th century French geographer Jean-Baptiste Anville: “It was a great mistake that led to a great discovery.” Columbus made his first proposal to the Portuguese King João II, but was refused. Then Columbus left Portugal and went to Spain. In 1485, Columbus offered his services to Queen Isabella of Spain. In November 1491, a special commission rejected the Genoese project, because considered the navigator’s demands excessive. Columbus headed to France, but was stopped. At that moment, Louis Santahell, the head of the largest trading house, came to Isabella and convinced her to accept Columbus’s project. On April 17, 1492, the king and queen agreed to the draft treaty proposed by Columbus. Here are the two most important articles of this document: “Their Majesties, as masters of the seas and oceans, from now on grant Don Christopher Columbus their admiralship of all the islands and continents that he will personally discover and acquire... Their Majesties appoint Columbus as their viceroy and chief ruler on... the islands and the continents that he... will discover or acquire, and to govern each of them a ruler must be elected (from the candidates presented by Columbus).” And further - “from any and all goods, be they precious metals, stones, gold or silver, spices or other things and goods that will be bought, exchanged, found, or acquired within the said Admiralty ... may he have, and let him retain 1/10 of everything acquired, presenting 9/10 of the parts to their Majesties.”

Generous in their promises, the kings decided to minimize the costs of the expedition. Columbus was provided with two caravels. Their crew, according to the traditional version, was forcibly recruited from the inhabitants of Palas, sentenced to hard labor for insulting the kings, i.e. filled with criminals. Columbus and the Pinson brothers equipped the third caravel at their own expense. The flotilla consisted of three small ships: the Santa Maria, Columbus's flagship, the Pinta, commanded by Martin Pinzón, and the Niña.

On August 3, 1492, Columbus's expedition went to sea, but repairing one of the yachts took a whole month, and only on September 6, 1492, the ships left the island of Homer, and 36 days later, at 2 a.m. on October 12, 1492, land was already visible. It was one of the islands of the Bahamas group. On the island, the Spaniards saw naked people, and Columbus described the first meeting with the people, who 20-30 years later were completely exterminated by the Spanish colonialists: “I gave them red caps and glass rosaries and many other low-value items that gave them great pleasure. They brought us parrots and cotton yarn in skeins and many other things, which they exchanged for other items that we gave them. But it seemed to me that these people were poor. And all the people I saw were still young, their bodies and faces were very beautiful, and their hair was coarse, just like horse hair, only short... And their skin was the same color as the inhabitants Canary Islands, who are neither black nor white... They do not carry and do not know weapons, when I showed them swords, they grabbed the blades and, out of ignorance, cut off their fingers. They don’t have any iron.”

On the island, Columbus was presented with “dry leaves” as a gift, which were greatly appreciated local residents, this is the first mention of tobacco. Columbus gave the island the Christian name San Salvador (Savior). The navigator noticed pieces of gold in the noses of some islanders. From that moment on, he never tires of repeating in his diary that he “with the help of our Lord, will find gold where it is born.” The sailors learned about the island of Cuba from the Indians and soon sailed to its shores. On December 5, Columbus approached the land (the island of Haiti), which he called Hispaniola (Spanish Island). The sailors saw thin gold plates and small ingots among the inhabitants of Hispaniola. The gold rush intensified among the sailors, and Columbus himself was in a fever. He writes in his diary the words of an old Indian man about one island “all gold”, and about other islands where “gold is collected and sifted through a sieve, and then melted and made into various things.” On January 4, 1493, Columbus set sail and arrived in Spain on March 15. He brought the happy news of open lands, some gold and several islanders unprecedented in Europe, who began to be called INDIOS (Indians), because until the end of his days Columbus thought that he had discovered the western coast of India.

The disappointment of the first expedition was greatly mitigated by Columbus's assertion that he had discovered India and only needed to deepen his search to find mountains of diamonds and golden roofs. Large funds were allocated to organize Columbus's second expedition (1493): the flotilla consisted of 17 ships with about 1,500 people. On this voyage, Columbus discovered the Lesser Antilles and founded a colony on Hispaniola.

In 1495 he returned to. The results of Columbus's second voyage disappointed the Spanish government, because the main goal of this expedition was the founding of trading colonies and the export of gold. But there was little gold in Hispaniola, and the colony founded there turned out to be an unsuccessful enterprise. The vast majority of the colonists consisted of Spanish hidalgos left idle after the war with the Moors. This lazy and stormy noble youth was good with a sword, but was incapable of any kind of work. Columbus did not reach the American continent on this journey either. This was done two years later - in 1497, the Genoese Giovanni Cabotto (John Cabot), who lived first in Venice, then in England, sailed from England and in June 1497 sailed to the American mainland. Cabot did not understand the meaning and significance of his discovery, and his journey was soon forgotten. The tireless Columbus set off on his third voyage in May 1498. Now he set the goal that is usually attributed to his first voyage - to penetrate Indian Ocean. Therefore, he took a course with a large deviation to the south, only on this journey did he approach the American continent at the mouth of the Orinoco River, and only now in August 1498, when there were huge masses around him fresh water, the thought flashed through his mind, had he discovered a new, unknown continent? However, this idea did not strengthen with Columbus, and open coast South America was not explored by him. But another thought took hold in the mind of the aging navigator: he decided that to the south of “India” lies nothing more than Eden - paradise, the top of the world. All great rivers originate from here. Illuminated by this insight, Columbus increasingly falls into mystical rapture. He considered himself the first European destined to find his way to earthly paradise, from where, according to the Bible, Adam and Eve were expelled.

Meanwhile, the Portuguese opened a sea route to India and brought spices, fabrics and other precious goods from there. Comparison of Columbus's expensive and, so far, little profitable enterprises with the expeditions of the Portuguese was, of course, not in his favor. During the third expedition, an uprising broke out among the Spaniards on the island of Hispaniola (Haiti). Civil strife began. Columbus and his enemies complained about each other. Ferdinand and Isabella appointed their own governor to the island. He arrived at the scene, arrested Columbus and sent him in chains to Spain, however, here he was quickly released.

Columbus's fourth voyage in 1502 was a direct response to the expedition of Vasco da Gama. On Columbus's part, this was an attempt to get from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean. But everywhere he came across a solid mass of land. Sailing along the Isthmus of Panama, he received information about a large ocean lying on the other side of the earth, and about some kind of “bottleneck” through which it was possible to reach the ocean. The Indians meant the isthmus. Columbus believed that he was in front of the islands, which, in his opinion, blocked his path to the shores of Asia, and persistently looked for a strait between them. IN last years Throughout his life, Columbus tried in vain to restore his rights and privileges. In 1506 he died, almost forgotten by everyone, in poverty. In his will, the great navigator asked to put on his coffin the chains in which he was transported from the New World he discovered. It is still unknown where the grave of the famous sailor is located. Columbus died in Valladolid, then his ashes were transported to Seville, and later transported across the ocean to Hispaniola and buried in the Cathedral of Santo Domingo. Many years later, Columbus's ashes were reburied in Havana, Cuba, but then returned to Seville. It is not known exactly where the true grave of the great navigator is located - Havana and Seville equally lay claim to this honor.

The continent discovered by Columbus was named America after another navigator, Amerigo Vespucci. Amerigo Vespucci was also from Genoa, was a sailor, served in Spain and Portugal. Vespucci's world fame is based on two dubious (as Magidovich I.P. believes) letters of 1503 and 1504. The first letter was addressed to the Medici, in which Vespucci spoke about his voyage in 1501-1502. The second letter was addressed to Comrade Vespucci, in which he wrote that back in 1497 (a year before Columbus), at the head of an expedition he explored an unknown continent. In 1507, Vespucci's letters were studied by a geographer, and here for the first time this part of the world was called America. It is unlikely that the geographer wanted to diminish the glory of Columbus with this statement. For him, as for other educated people of the early 16th century, Columbus and Vespucci discovered new lands in different parts of the world:

a) Columbus discovered old light(Asia);

b) Vespucci – New World(America).

It is not for nothing that Columbus’s relatives had nothing against this name and Vespucci himself. Soviet researcher Joseph Petrovich Magidovich in his work “The History of the Discovery and Exploration of Central and South America” claims that Vespucci did not discover America at all and did not participate in any expeditions of 1497-1498. Among modern Western scientists today there are Colombians and anti-Colombians. The first believe that the main merit of the discovery of America should belong to Christopher Columbus, the second do not agree with this statement, their arguments are different: the Vikings, John Cabot, Vespucci are also discoverers. It seems to us that Columbus's feat was in sailing open ocean, he was the first to go “nowhere”.

23.03.2016

The name of the American continent is strongly associated with the name of Christopher Columbus, the famous discoverer of the New World. There is evidence that even before the 15th century, Europeans managed to reach the shores of America. These were the Vikings who sailed to the coast of the Labrador Peninsula in the 10th century. However, their travels did not have much practical significance for Europe; they were generally unknown to contemporaries. Therefore, the honor of being considered the first person to cross the Atlantic Ocean and reach a new continent began to belong to Columbus. Although the question is still sometimes asked: “Who was the first to discover America - Christopher Columbus or Amerigo Vespucci?” So, first things first...

In 1492, Christopher Columbus, trying to get to India by a short route from the eastern side, discovered the islands of Central America. Columbus hatched the project of an expedition to the west for ten years, and it took about eight more to find organizers and sponsors. He proposed the idea to Genoese merchants, Portuguese, French, English rulers, and, more than once, to the Spanish royal couple.

Ultimately, it was the Catholic monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand, who agreed to patronize Columbus, gave him a title of nobility and promised a monopoly on income from the territories that he managed to discover. On his first voyage in 1492-1494, this Spanish subject (although he was Italian by origin) discovered the islands: Haiti (Hispaniola), Cuba, San Salvador (one of the Bahamas).

Columbus returned to his homeland in full confidence that he had achieved East Asia, mistaking Cuba for a Chinese peninsula. In the next sea ​​voyage Several thousand people on 17 ships have already set off to the shores of the still unexplored islands. In search of gold and other treasures, Europeans began to seize the islands and subjugate the natives, who were called Indians.

The maps included Dominica, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Montserrat, Antigua, Puerto Rico and other names. But mainland"India" has still not been discovered, as well as the gold promised to the king. Having learned about the dissatisfaction of his patrons, Columbus was forced to return to Spain in order to somehow justify himself. He managed to regain the favor of the rulers and gain the right to sole exploration of the lands of the West Indies.

The third expedition in 1498 turned out to be more modest; it was possible to raise funds to send only six ships. But this time Columbus was able to explore about 300 km of mainland Central America. Once at the mouth of the Orinoco River, he realized that such large river must flow from a large land mass. But he was unable to continue the expedition due to illness.

In 1499, Vasco da Gama triumphantly returned to Portugal, opening the sea route to real India. Columbus, after such news, completely lost the trust of the Spanish monarchs and was even taken into custody. He was soon released under the patronage of influential friends who financed the expeditions. However, the monopoly on land development was taken away from Columbus. And the supply of settlers in the West Indies (as this region was still called) was entrusted to the new manager of the finances of the Florentine trading house - Amerigo Vespucci.

Vespucci was an employee of the trading house that sponsored Columbus's second and third expeditions. The navigator's successes aroused curiosity in the Florentine, and when such an opportunity arose, he himself set off on a long journey across the Atlantic Ocean. On the voyage of 1499, he received a position as navigator on the ship of Admiral Alonso de Ojeda. Using maps compiled by Columbus, Ojeda easily led his crew to the coast of the mainland.

They reached land on the territory of modern Suriname. Moving along the coast, the travelers reached the Bay of Maracaibo, where Vespucci saw houses standing in the water on stilts. He called this country “Little Venice” - Venezuela. In 1500, a map of the West Indies was published, where, among others, all the names given by Amerigo Vespucci during the expedition of Alonso de Ojeda were plotted. The author of the map was the pilot Juan de la Cosa.

Vespucci, returning from his first trip, moved from Spanish Cadiz to Lisbon, from where, already under the patronage of the Portuguese king, he visited the shores of the new continent twice more. Information about Vespucci's travels is preserved in letters to his patron Lorenzo Medici and the gonfaloniere (guardian of justice) of the Florentine Republic and longtime friend Pietro Soderini. These texts aroused keen interest in Europe and were translated into French, German, Italian and Spanish (the originals were written in Latin).

The German cartographer and publisher Martin Waldseemüller published the book “Introduction to Cosmography”, where he also published Vespucci’s letters, in which he called open lands New World. The publisher himself was so delighted with the travels described that he suggested naming the mainland in honor of Amerigo. The public supported this idea. This is how America acquired its modern name.

The achievements of Columbus quickly faded into the background among his contemporaries, because after him much more large-scale discoveries began to occur in the continental regions of the New World. However, when looking at the events of more than five hundred years ago, the primacy of Christopher Columbus in the exploration of America is no longer in doubt.

What Christopher Columbus did, you will learn from this article.

What did Christopher Columbus discover? Discoveries of Christopher Columbus

The navigator is the most mysterious personality of the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries and travel. His life is full of mysteries, dark spots, inexplicable coincidences and actions. And all because humanity became interested in the navigator 150 years after his death - important documents had already been lost, and Columbus’s life remained shrouded in speculation and gossip. Plus, Columbus himself hid his origin (for unknown reasons), the motives of his actions and thoughts. The only thing that is known is the year 1451 - the year of his birth and the place of birth - the Genoese Republic.

He made 4 expeditions, which were supplied by the Spanish king:

• The first expedition - 1492-1493.
• Second expedition - 1493-1496.
• Third expedition - 1498 - 1500.
• The fourth expedition - 1502 - 1504.

During four expeditions, the navigator discovered many new territories and two seas - Sargasso and Caribbean.

Lands discovered by Christopher Columbus

It is interesting that all the time the navigator thought that he had discovered India, and beyond it he would find rich Japan and China. But that was not the case. He is responsible for the discovery and exploration of the New World. The islands discovered by Christopher Columbus are the Bahamas and Antilles, Saman, Haiti and Dominica, the Lesser Antilles, Cuba and Trinidad, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, Guadeloupe and Margarita. He is the pioneer of the lands of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, as well as northern shore South America and the Caribbean part of Central America.

Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus

But the most important thing is that during his expedition, Christopher Columbus discovered America. This happened on October 12, 1492, when he landed on the island of San Salvador.

And it all started like this: on August 3, 1492, the expedition of a European navigator consisting of the ships “Santa Maria”, “Nina” and “Pinta” set out on a long journey. In September the Sargasso Sea was discovered. They walked through Germany for three weeks. On October 7, 1492, Columbus's team changed its course to the southwest, believing that they had missed Japan, which they so wanted to discover. After 5 days, the expedition came across an island named San Salvador by Christopher Columbus in honor of the savior Christ. This date, October 12, 1492, is considered the official day of the discovery of America.

A day later, Columbus landed and planted the Castilian banner. Thus, he formally became the owner of the island. Having explored the nearby islands, the navigator sincerely believed that these were the environs of Japan, India and China. At first, the open lands were called the West Indies. Christopher Columbus returned to Spain on March 15, 1493 on the ship Niña. As a gift to King Ferdinand II of Aragon, he brought gold, natives, plants unknown to Europeans - potatoes, corn, tobacco, as well as bird feathers and fruits.

We hope that from this article you learned how the discoveries of Christopher Columbus became famous throughout the world.

The history of the discovery of America is quite amazing. These events took place at the end of the 15th century due to the rapid development of navigation and shipping in Europe. In many ways, we can say that the discovery of the American continent happened completely by accident and the motives were very banal - the search for gold, wealth, large trading cities.

In the 15th century, ancient tribes lived on the territory of modern America who were very good-natured and hospitable. In Europe, in those days, even then the states were quite developed and modern. Each country tried to expand its sphere of influence and find new sources of replenishment of the state treasury. At the end of the 15th century, trade and the development of new colonies flourished.

Who discovered America?

In the 15th century, ancient tribes lived on the territory of modern America who were very good-natured and hospitable. In Europe, even then the states were quite developed and modern. Each country tried to expand its sphere of influence and find new sources of replenishment of the state treasury.

When you ask any adult or child who discovered America, we will hear about Columbus. It was Christopher Columbus who gave impetus to the active search and development of new lands.

Christopher Columbus is the great Spanish navigator. Information about where he was born and spent his childhood is limited and contradictory. It is known that as a young man, Christopher was interested in cartography. He was married to the daughter of a navigator. In 1470, the geographer and astronomer Toscanelli informed Columbus of his assumptions that the route to India was shorter if one sailed west. Apparently, then Columbus began to hatch his idea of ​​​​a short route to India, and according to his calculations, it was necessary to sail through the Canary Islands, and Japan would be close there.
Since 1475, Columbus has been trying to implement the idea and make an expedition. The purpose of the expedition is to find a new trade route to India across the Atlantic Ocean. To do this, he turned to the government and merchants of Genoa, but they did not support him. The second attempt to find funding for the expedition was made by the Portuguese King João II, however, even here, after a long study of the project, he was refused.

For the last time, he came to the Spanish king with his project. At the beginning, his project was considered for a long time, there were even several meetings and commissions, this lasted several years. His idea was supported by bishops and Catholic kings. But Columbus received final support for his project after the victory of Spain in the city of Granada, which was liberated from the Arab presence.

The expedition was organized on the condition that Columbus, if successful, would receive not only the gifts and riches of new lands, but also receive, in addition to the status of a nobleman, the title: Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and Viceroy of all the lands that he discovers. For Spain, a successful expedition promised not only the development of new lands, but also the opportunity to trade directly with India, since according to the treaty concluded with Portugal, Spanish ships were prohibited from entering the waters of the western coast of Africa.

When and how did Columbus discover America?

Historians consider 1942 to be the year of the discovery of America, although these are rather approximate data. Discovering new lands and islands, Columbus had no idea that this was another continent, which would later be called the “New World”. The traveler undertook 4 expeditions. He arrived to new and new lands, believing that these were the lands of “Western India”. For quite a long time everyone in Europe thought so. However, another traveler Vasco da Gama declared Columbus a deceiver, since it was Gamma who found a direct route to India and brought gifts and spices from there.

What America did Christopher Columbus discover? It can be said that thanks to his expeditions since 1492, Columbus discovered both North and South America. To be more precise, islands were discovered that are now considered either South or North America.

Who discovered America first?

Although historically it is believed that it was Columbus who discovered America, but in fact this is not entirely true.

There is evidence that the “New World” was previously visited by the Scandinavians (Leif Eriksson in 1000, Thorfinn Karlsefni in 1008); this journey became known from the manuscripts “The Saga of Eric the Red” and “The Saga of the Greenlanders”. There are other “discoverers of America,” but the scientific community does not take them seriously because there is no reliable data. For example, America was previously visited by an African traveler from Mali - Abu Bakr II, a Scottish nobleman Henry Sinclair, and a Chinese traveler Zheng He.

Why was America called America?

The first widely known and recorded fact is the visit of this part of the “New World” by the traveler and navigator Amerigo Vespucci. It is noteworthy that it was he who put forward the assumption that this was not India or China, but a completely new, previously unknown continent. It is believed that this is why the name America was assigned to the new land, and not its discoverer, Columbus.

Columbus discovered America

The year this Spanish navigator discovered new land, is indicated in history as the 1492nd. And by the beginning of the eighteenth century, all other areas of North America, for example, Alaska and the regions of the Pacific coast, had already been discovered and explored. It must be said that travelers from Russia also made an important contribution to the exploration of the mainland.

Development

The history of the discovery of North America is quite interesting: it can even be called accidental. At the end of the fifteenth century, a Spanish navigator and his expedition reached the shores of North America. At the same time, he mistakenly believed that he was in India. From this moment begins the countdown of the era when America was discovered and its exploration and exploration began. But some researchers consider this date inaccurate, arguing that the discovery of a new continent occurred much earlier.

The year Columbus discovered America - 1492 - is not an exact date. It turns out that the Spanish navigator had predecessors, and more than one. In the mid-tenth century, the Normans arrived here after discovering Greenland. True, they failed to colonize these new lands, since they were repelled by the harsh weather conditions of the north of this continent. In addition, the Normans were also frightened by the remoteness of the new continent from Europe.

According to other sources, this continent was discovered by ancient sailors - the Phoenicians. Some sources call the middle of the first millennium AD the time when America was discovered, and the Chinese as the pioneers. However, this version also does not have clear evidence.

The most reliable information is considered to be about the time when the Vikings discovered America. At the end of the tenth century, the Normans Bjarni Herjulfson and Leif Eriksson found Helluland - “stone”, Markland - “forest” and Vinland - “vineyards” of land, which contemporaries identify with the Labrador Peninsula.

There is evidence that even before Columbus, in the fifteenth century, the northern continent was reached by Bristol and Biscay fishermen, who called it the island of Brazil. However, the time periods of these expeditions cannot be called the milestone in history when America was truly discovered, that is, it was identified as a new continent.

Columbus - a true discoverer

And yet, when answering the question of what year America was discovered, experts most often name the fifteenth century, or rather its end. And Columbus is considered the first to do this. The time when America was discovered coincided in history with the period when Europeans began to spread ideas about the round shape of the Earth and the possibility of reaching India or China along the western route, that is, through the Atlantic Ocean. It was believed that this path was much shorter than the eastern one. Therefore, given the Portuguese monopoly on control of the South Atlantic, obtained by the Treaty of Alcázovaz in 1479, Spain, always eager to gain direct contacts with eastern countries, warmly supported the expedition of the Genoese navigator Columbus in a western direction.

Honor of opening

Christopher Columbus was interested in geography, geometry and astronomy from an early age. From a young age, he took part in sea expeditions and visited almost all the then known oceans. Columbus was married to the daughter of a Portuguese sailor, from whom he received many geographical maps and notes from the time of Henry the Navigator. The future discoverer carefully studied them. His plans were to find a sea route to India, but not bypassing Africa, but directly across the Atlantic. Like some scientists - his contemporaries, Columbus believed that, having gone west from Europe, it would be possible to reach the Asian eastern shores - those places where India and China are located. At the same time, he did not even suspect that on the way he would meet an entire continent, hitherto unknown to Europeans. But it happened. And from this time the history of the discovery of America began.

First expedition

For the first time, Columbus's ships sailed from Palos harbor on August 3, 1492. There were three of them. The expedition proceeded quite calmly to the Canary Islands: this section of the journey was already known to the sailors. But very soon they found themselves in a vast ocean. Gradually the sailors began to become despondent and begin to grumble. But Columbus managed to pacify the rebellious, maintaining hope in them. Soon signs began to appear - harbingers of the proximity of land: unknown birds flew in, tree branches floated up. Finally, after six weeks of sailing, lights appeared at night, and when dawn broke, a green picturesque island, all covered with vegetation. Columbus, having landed on shore, declared this land to be the possession of the Spanish crown. The island was named San Salvador, that is, the Savior. It was one of the small pieces of land included in the Bahamas or Lucayan archipelago.

The land where there is gold

The natives are peaceful and good-natured savages. Noticing the greed of those who sailed for the gold jewelry that hung in the noses and ears of the aborigines, they told with signs that in the south there was a land literally abounding in gold. And Columbus moved on. In the same year, he discovered Cuba, which, although he mistook it for the mainland, or rather, the eastern coast of Asia, he also declared it a Spanish colony. From here the expedition, turning east, landed in Haiti. Moreover, along the entire route the Spaniards met savages who not only willingly exchanged their gold jewelry for simple glass beads and other trinkets, but also constantly pointed to south direction, when asked about this precious metal. Which Columbus named Hispaniola, or Little Spain, he built a small fortress.

Return

When the ships landed in Palos harbor, all the inhabitants came ashore to greet them with honors. Columbus and Ferdinand and Isabella received him very graciously. The news of the discovery of the New World spread very quickly, and those who wanted to go there with the discoverer gathered just as quickly. At that time, Europeans had no idea what kind of America Christopher Columbus discovered.

Second trip

The history of the discovery of North America, which began in 1492, continued. From September 1493 to June 1496, the second expedition of the Genoese navigator took place. As a result, the Virgin and Windward Islands were discovered, including Antigua, Dominica, Nevis, Montserrat, St. Christopher, as well as Puerto Rico and Jamaica. The Spaniards firmly settled in the lands of Haiti, making them their base and building the fortress of San Domingo in its southeastern part. In 1497, the British entered into competition with them, also trying to find northwestern routes to Asia. For example, the Genoese Cabot, under the English flag, discovered the island of Newfoundland and, according to some reports, came very close to the North American coast: the peninsulas of Labrador and Nova Scotia. Thus, the British began to lay the foundation for their dominance in the North American region.

Third and fourth expeditions

It began in May 1498 and ended in November 1500. As a result, the island of Trinidad and the mouth of the Orinoco were discovered. In August 1498, Columbus landed on the coast already on the Paria Peninsula, and in 1499 the Spaniards reached the shores of Guiana and Venezuela, after which - Brazil and the mouth of the Amazon. And during the last - fourth - journey from May 1502 to November 1504, Columbus discovered Central America. His ships sailed along the coasts of Honduras and Nicaragua, reaching from Costa Rica and Panama all the way to the Gulf of Darien.

New continent

In the same year, another navigator, whose expeditions took place under the Portuguese flag, also explored the Brazilian coast. Having reached Cape Cananea, he put forward the hypothesis that the lands that Columbus discovered were not China, or even India, but a completely new continent. This idea was confirmed after the first trip around the world perfected by F. Magellan. However, contrary to logic, the name America was assigned to the new continent - on behalf of Vespucci.

True, there is some reason to believe that the new continent was named in honor of the Bristol philanthropist Richard America from England, who financed the second transatlantic voyage in 1497, and Amerigo Vespucci after that took his nickname in honor of the continent named so. To prove this theory, researchers cite the facts that Cabot reached the shores of Labrador two years earlier, and therefore became the officially registered first European to set foot on American soil.

In the mid-sixteenth century, Jacques Cartier, a French navigator, reached the shores of Canada, giving the territory its modern name.

Other contenders

The exploration of the continent of North America was continued by such navigators as John Davis, Alexander Mackenzie, Henry Hudson and William Baffin. It was thanks to their research that the continent was studied right up to the Pacific coast.

However, history knows many other names of sailors who landed on American soil even before Columbus. These are Hui Shen, a Thai monk who visited this region in the fifth century, Abubakar, the Sultan of Mali, who sailed to the American coast in the fourteenth century, the Earl of Orkney de Saint-Clair, the Chinese explorer Zhee He, the Portuguese Juan Corterial, etc.

But, in spite of everything, Christopher Columbus is the person whose discoveries had an unconditional impact on the entire history of mankind.

Fifteen years after the time when the ships of this navigator discovered America, the very first geographic map mainland. Its author was Martin Waldseemüller. Today it, being the property of the United States, is stored in Washington.

The lands were the most common: the founding of cities, the discovery of deposits of gold and wealth. In the 15th century, navigation was actively developing, and expeditions were set up in search of the unexplored continent. What was on the continent before the arrival of Europeans, when Columbus discovered America, and under what circumstances did this happen?

The story of the great discovery

By the 15th century European states had a high level of development. Each country tried to expand its sphere of influence, searching for additional sources of profit to replenish the treasury. New colonies were formed.

Before the discovery, tribes lived on the continent. The aborigines were distinguished by their friendly character, which was conducive to the rapid development of the territory.

Christopher Columbus, while still a teenager, discovered the hobby of cartography. A Spanish navigator once learned from the astronomer and geographer Toscanelli that if he sailed westward, he could reach India much faster. It was 1470. And the idea came just in time, since Columbus was looking for another route that would allow him to reach India in a short time. He assumed that it was necessary to build a route through the Canary Islands.

In 1475, the Spaniard organized an expedition, the purpose of which was to search for fast way by sea to India across the Atlantic Ocean. He reported this to the government with a request to support his idea, but received no help. The second time Columbus wrote to King João II of Portugal, however, he was also rejected. He then turned again to the Spanish government. Several commission meetings were held on this issue, which lasted for years. The final positive decision on financing was made after the victory of Spanish troops in the city of Granada, liberated from Arab occupation.

If a new route to India was discovered, Columbus was promised not only wealth, but also a noble title: Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and Viceroy of the lands he would discover. Since Spanish ships were prohibited from entering the waters on the west coast of Africa, this step was beneficial for the government in order to conclude a direct trade agreement with India.

In what year did Columbus discover America?

Officially, the year of the discovery of America in history is recognized as 1942. Having discovered undeveloped lands, Columbus did not imagine that he had discovered a continent that would be called the “New World”. In what year the Spaniards discovered America can be said tentatively, since a total of four campaigns were undertaken. Each time the navigator found new lands, believing that this was the territory of Western India.

Columbus began to think that he was following the wrong route after Vasco de Gama's expedition. The traveler arrived in India and returned in a short time with rich goods, accusing Christopher of deception.

It later turned out that Columbus discovered the islands and continental parts of North and South America.

Which traveler discovered America earlier?

It is not entirely true to say that Columbus became the discoverer of America. Before this, the Scandinavians landed on the lands: in 1000 - Leif Eriksson and in 1008 - Thorfinn Karlsefni. This is evidenced by the historical records “The Saga of the Greenlanders” and “The Saga of Eric the Red”. There is other information about travel to the “New World”. Traveler Abu Bakr II, a resident of the Celestial Empire Zheng He and a nobleman from Scotland Henry Sinclair arrived from Mali to America.

There is historical evidence indicating that in the 10th century the New World was visited by the Normans after the discovery of Greenland. However, they were unable to develop the territories due to heavy weather conditions, unsuitable for Agriculture. In addition, the journey from Europe was very long.

Visits to the mainland by the navigator Amerigo Vespucci, after whom the continent was named.

The continents known today as North and South America were discovered in prehistory. Before European explorers arrived in the Americas, tens of millions of indigenous people lived here. The lands of America were repeatedly “discovered” by peoples coming from different corners world for many generations, dating back to the Stone Age, when a group of hunters first visited a land that was truly the unexplored New World.

It becomes curious why it is then believed that America was discovered by Christopher Columbus. In addition, other theories are widespread regarding who first discovered America: Irish monks (6th century), Vikings (10th century), sailors from China (15th century), etc.

The first settlers in America

Tribal migration route from Asia to North America

The first people to settle in America came there from Asia, probably about 15 thousand years ago. During the Pleistocene era, the melting ice sheets of the Laurentian and Cordilleran glaciers formed a narrow corridor and land bridge between Russia and Alaska. Land bridge between west coast Alaska and Siberia, known as the Bering Isthmus, opened due to falling ocean levels and connected the continents of Asia and North America.

Interesting fact: In place of the Bering Isthmus, the current Bering Strait was formed, separating Asia and North America. The strait was named after the Russian naval officer Vitus Bering, who crossed it in 1728.

The settlement of America by indigenous peoples

The ancient settlers of America - the Paleo-Indians - passed through the Bering Isthmus from Asia to America following the movement of large animals. These migrations occurred before the Laurentian and Cordilleran glaciers closed and closed the corridor. The settlement of America continued further by sea or by ice. After the ice plates melted and the Ice Age ended, the settlers who came to the Americas became isolated from other continents. Thus, the American continents were first discovered by nomadic Asian tribes about 15 thousand years ago, who initially populated North America, then spread to Central and South America and subsequently became Native American peoples.