By whom and when was America discovered? Discovery of America: when and how Christopher Columbus discovered America

America is a part of the world whose official discovery is credited to Columbus, but its history is full of dark spots.

The modern United States plays a key role in political strife and has a serious influence on other countries and the world economy. But the way is so high level was long and thorny. It all started with the discovery of America.

Christopher Columbus was a Spanish navigator who discovered two new continents for Europeans. He made 4 expeditions, each sent by kings, hoping to find a short trade route with India.

The first expedition consisted of three ships with a total complement of 91 people. She ended up on the island of San Salvador on October 12, 1492.

The second expedition, consisting of 17 ships and 1,500 people, lasted from 1493 to 1496. During this time, Columbus discovered Dominica, Guadeloupe, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and about 20 other minor Antilles. In June, he already reported to the government about his amazing findings.

The third expedition, which included 6 ships, set off in 1498, and two years later returned to their native shores. Several more lands were discovered, including Trinidad, Margarita, the Araya and Paria peninsulas.

The last expedition, sailing in 1502, included 4 ships. Within two years, the islands of Martinique, Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica were discovered. Columbus was wrecked near Jamaica, and help arrived only a year later. The travelers arrived in their native Castile in November 1504.

Date when America was discovered - Vikings in 1000

Erik the Red was known as a great Viking. His son, Leif Erikson, was the first to set foot on American soil. After spending the winter in its vastness, Erickson and his expedition returned to Greenland. This happened around the year 1000.

Two years later, brother Torvald Erikson, the second son of Erik the Red, founded his settlement on the territory discovered by his brother. Less than a month later, his men were attacked by local Indians, killing Thorvald and forcing the others to return home.

Subsequently, Erik the Red's daughter Freydis and his daughter-in-law Gudrid also tried to conquer new spaces. The latter even managed to trade with the Indians, offering various goods. But the Viking settlement was never able to survive in America for more than 10 years, despite constant attempts.

When did Amerigo Vespucci discover America?

Amerigo Vespucci, after whom, according to some historians, the continents are named, first visited New World as a navigator. The route of Alonso de Ojeda's expedition was chosen using a map created by Christopher Columbus. Along with him, Amerigo Vespucci took about a hundred slaves who were indigenous to America.

Vespucci visited the new territory twice more - in 1501-1502 and from 1503 to 1504. If the Spaniard Christopher wanted to stock up on gold, then the Florentine Amerigo wanted to discover as many new lands as possible in order to gain fame and preserve his name in history.

What does Wikipedia say about the dates of the discovery of America?

The famous Wikipedia talks about the discovery of the American continents in unprecedented detail. In the vastness of the world encyclopedia you can find information about all the expeditions to the New World, about each of the possible discoverers, and the further history of the Indians.

Wikipedia names the date of the discovery of America as October 12, 1492, speaking about Christopher Columbus.

It was he who managed not only to discover new territories, but to capture them on his map. Amerigo Vespucci was able to provide Europeans with a more complete picture of what the continents look like. Although his “complete” map was significantly different from the modern one.

In what year after the discovery did the settlement of America begin?

The settlement of American soil began many thousands of years before its official discovery. It is believed that the ancestors of the Indians were the Eskimos, Inuits, and Aleuts. The Vikings, as you know, also tried to take over the territories of the New World. But they failed - the indigenous people protected it too zealously.

After the discoveries of Columbus and Vespucci, almost 50 years passed before the first European settlements appeared.

In the American city of St. Augustine, the first small settlement of Spaniards was organized in 1565.

In 1585, the first British colony of Roanoke was created, which was destroyed by the Indians. The next attempt by the British was a colony in Virginia, which appeared in 1607.

And finally, the first colony in New England was the settlement located in Plymouth in 1620. This year is recognized as the official date of colonization of the New World.

Possible discoverers before Christopher Columbus

There are many people on the list of possible discoverers. Historians cannot find reliable facts about this, but there are sources indicating that the information is still correct.

Among the hypothetical discoverers it is worth highlighting:

  • Phoenicians - 370 BC;
  • ancient Egyptians;
  • Hui Shen, who was a Buddhist monk who made the first, as it turned out, trip around the world - 5th century;
  • Irish monk Brendan, who followed in the footsteps of Shen - 6th century;
  • Malay Sultan Abubakar II - 1330;
  • Chinese explorer Zheng He - 1420;
  • Portuguese Joao Corterial - 1471.

These people had pure intentions, did not seek fame and gold, and therefore did not tell the general public about their discovery. They were not trying to bring evidence or enslave Native Americans. Perhaps that is why their names are not familiar to most contemporaries, and the more cruel and gold-hungry Christopher Columbus is indicated as the discoverer of the new land.

The fate of the Native Americans

The history of the discovery of America is presented in modern history as a joyful event that laid the foundation for a new nation of “emigrants.” But it also became a nightmare for many Indians, who had to endure unspeakable horrors created by the conquerors.

The Spaniards killed several thousand native Americans and took several hundred into slavery. They made fun of the Indians and killed them with extreme cruelty, not even sparing babies. The “Whites” who arrived on the new lands sprinkled them with blood, reducing the joyful discovery to a bloody massacre.

One of those who observed the fate of the Indians, the priest Bartolome de Las Casas, who arrived with Columbus, tried to protect the Indians, even went to the Spanish court in the hope of their pardon. As a result, the court decided whether it was worth calling the Indians people at all, whether they had a soul.

The negative attitude is explained by the fact that Columbus left his crew to look after the New World and went home. When he returned, he saw all his people dead. As it turned out, the Spaniards became impudent, beating the men and raping the women of the tribe, as well as killing the rebellious. The Indians, who initially considered the “whites” to be gods, quickly realized how things were and began to defend themselves. This is what led to further tragic incidents.

In any case, the discovery of America- a worthy event, which today is considered one of the loudest in the history of civilization.

The first expedition of Christopher Columbus (1492-1493) consisting of 91 people on the ships "Santa Maria", "Pinta", "Nina" left Palos de la Frontera on August 3, 1492, and turned from the Canary Islands to West (September 9), crossed Atlantic Ocean in the subtropical zone and reached the island of San Salvador in the Bahamas archipelago, where Christopher Columbus landed on October 12, 1492 (the official date of the discovery of America). On October 14-24, Christopher Columbus visited a number of other Bahamas, and from October 28 to December 5, he discovered and explored a section of the northeastern coast of Cuba. On December 6, Columbus reached Fr. Haiti and moved along the northern coast. On the night of December 25, the flagship Santa Maria landed on a reef, but the people escaped. Columbus on the ship Niña completed his exploration of the northern coast of Haiti on January 4-16, 1493 and returned to Castile on March 15.

2nd expedition

The 2nd expedition (1493-1496), which Christopher Columbus led already with the rank of admiral and as viceroy of the newly discovered lands, consisted of 17 ships with a crew of over 1.5 thousand people. On November 3, 1493, Columbus discovered the islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe, turning to the North-West, about 20 more Lesser Antilles, including Antigua and the Virgin Islands, and on November 19 - the island of Puerto Rico and approached north shore Haiti. On March 12-29, 1494, Columbus, in search of gold, made an aggressive campaign into Haiti, and crossed the Cordillera Central ridge. On April 29-May 3, Columbus with 3 ships sailed along the southeastern coast of Cuba, turned south from Cape Cruz and discovered the island on May 5. Jamaica. Returning to Cape Cruz on May 15, Columbus passed along south coast Cuba to 84° west longitude, discovered the Jardines de la Reina archipelago, the Zapata Peninsula and the island of Pinos. On June 24, Christopher Columbus turned east and explored the entire South coast Haiti. In 1495, Christopher Columbus continued his conquest of Haiti; On March 10, 1496 he left the island and returned to Castile on June 11.

3rd expedition

The 3rd expedition (1498-1500) consisted of 6 ships, 3 of which Christopher Columbus himself led across the Atlantic Ocean near 10° north latitude. On July 31, 1498, he discovered the island of Trinidad, entered the Gulf of Paria from the south, discovered the mouth of the western branch of the Orinoco River delta and the Paria Peninsula, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America. Having then entered the Caribbean Sea, Christopher Columbus approached the Araya Peninsula, discovered Margarita Island on August 15, and arrived in the city of Santo Domingo (on the island of Haiti) on August 31. In 1500, Christopher Columbus was arrested following a denunciation and sent to Castile, where he was released.

4th expedition

4th expedition (1502-1504). Having obtained permission to continue the search for the western route to India, Columbus with 4 ships reached the island of Martinique on June 15, 1502, the Gulf of Honduras on July 30, and opened from August 1, 1502 to May 1, 1503 the Caribbean coast of Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama to the Gulf of Uraba. Turning then to the North, on June 25, 1503 he was wrecked off the island of Jamaica; help from Santo Domingo came only a year later. Christopher Columbus returned to Castile on November 7, 1504.

Discoverer Candidates

  • The first people to settle in America were the indigenous Indians, who moved there about 30 thousand years ago from Asia along the Bering Isthmus.
  • In the 10th century, around 1000, the Vikings led by Leif Eriksson. L'Anse aux Meadows contains the remains of a Viking settlement on the continent.
  • In 1492 - Christopher Columbus (Genoese in the service of Spain); Columbus himself believed that he had discovered the route to Asia (hence the names West Indies, Indians).
  • In 1507, cartographer M. Waldseemüller proposed that open lands were named America in honor of the New World explorer Amerigo Vespucci - this is considered the moment from which America was recognized as an independent continent.
  • There is sufficient reason to believe that the continent was named after the surname of an English philanthropist Richard America from Bristol, who financed John Cabot's second transatlantic expedition in 1497, and Vespucci took his nickname in honor of the already named continent. In May 1497, Cabot reached the shores of Labrador, becoming the first officially registered European to set foot on American soil, two years before Vespucci (we are talking about North America). Cabot compiled a map of the coast of North America - from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland. In the Bristol calendar for that year we read: “... on the day of St. John the Baptist, the land of America was found by merchants from Bristol, who arrived on a ship from Bristol with the name “Matthew” (“metic”).

Hypothetical

In addition, hypotheses were put forward about the visit to America and contact with its civilization by sailors before Columbus, representing various civilizations of the Old World (for more details, see Contacts with America before Columbus). Here are just a few of these hypothetical contacts:

  • in 371 BC e. - Phoenicians
  • in the 5th century - Hui Shen (Taiwanese Buddhist monk, who made a trip to the country of Fusan in the 5th century, identified in different versions with Japan or America)
  • in the 6th century - Saint Brendan (Irish monk)
  • in the 12th century - Madog ap Owain Gwynedd (a Welsh prince, according to legend, visited America in 1170)
  • there are versions according to which, at least from the 13th century, America was known to the Templar Order
  • in 1331 - Abubakar II (Sultan of Mali)
  • OK. 1398 - Henry Sinclair (de St. Clair), Earl of Orkney (c. 1345 - c. 1400)
  • in 1421 - Zheng He (Chinese explorer)
  • in 1472 - João Corterial (Portuguese)

Thor Heyerdahl's version about the Egyptians visiting America is also known. As part of the evidence there were expeditions on boats Ra and Ra-2, built using ancient technologies. The first boat failed to reach the Caribbean islands, but was only a few hundred kilometers short. The second expedition achieved its goal.

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Notes

Literature

  • Bakeless D. America through the eyes of discoverers / Trans. from English 3. M. Kanevsky. - M.: Mysl, 1969. - 408 p.: ill.
  • Magidovich I. P. History of the discovery and exploration of North America. - M.: Geographgiz, 1962.
  • Magidovich I. P. History of the discovery and exploration of Central and South America. - M.: Mysl, 1963.
  • John Lloyd and John Mitchinson. The Book of General Delusions. - Phantom Press, 2009.

An excerpt characterizing the Discovery of America

While Boris continued to make mazurka figures, he was constantly tormented by the thought of what news Balashev had brought and how to find out about it before others.
In the figure where he had to choose ladies, whispering to Helen that he wanted to take Countess Pototskaya, who seemed to have gone out onto the balcony, he, sliding his feet along the parquet floor, ran out the exit door into the garden and, noticing the sovereign entering the terrace with Balashev , paused. The Emperor and Balashev headed towards the door. Boris, in a hurry, as if not having time to move away, respectfully pressed himself against the lintel and bowed his head.
With the emotion of a personally insulted man, the Emperor finished the following words:
- Enter Russia without declaring war. “I will make peace only when not a single armed enemy remains on my land,” he said. It seemed to Boris that the sovereign was pleased to express these words: he was pleased with the form of expression of his thoughts, but was dissatisfied with the fact that Boris heard them.
- So that no one knows anything! – the sovereign added, frowning. Boris realized that this applied to him, and, closing his eyes, bowed his head slightly. The Emperor again entered the hall and remained at the ball for about half an hour.
Boris was the first to learn the news about the crossing of the Neman by French troops and thanks to this he had the opportunity to show some important persons that he knew many things hidden from others, and through this he had the opportunity to rise higher in the opinion of these persons.

The unexpected news about the French crossing the Neman was especially unexpected after a month of unfulfilled anticipation, and at a ball! The Emperor, at the first minute of receiving the news, under the influence of indignation and insult, found what later became famous, a saying that he himself liked and fully expressed his feelings. Returning home from the ball, the sovereign at two o'clock in the morning sent for secretary Shishkov and ordered to write an order to the troops and a rescript to Field Marshal Prince Saltykov, in which he certainly demanded that the words be placed that he would not make peace until at least one the armed Frenchman will remain on Russian soil.
The next day the following letter was written to Napoleon.
“Monsieur mon frere. J"ai appris hier que malgre la loyaute avec laquelle j"ai maintenu mes engagements envers Votre Majeste, ses troupes ont franchis les frontieres de la Russie, et je recois a l"instant de Petersbourg une note par laquelle le comte Lauriston, pour cause de cette aggression, annonce que Votre Majeste s"est consideree comme en etat de guerre avec moi des le moment ou le prince Kourakine a fait la demande de ses passeports. Les motifs sur lesquels le duc de Bassano fondait son refus de les lui delivrer, n "auraient jamais pu me faire supposer que cette demarche servirait jamais de pretexte a l" aggression. En effet cet ambassadeur n"y a jamais ete autorise comme il l"a declare lui meme, et aussitot que j"en fus informe, je lui ai fait connaitre combien je le desapprouvais en lui donnant l"ordre de rester a son poste. Si Votre Majeste n"est pas intentionnee de verser le sang de nos peuples pour un malentendu de ce genre et qu"elle consente a retirer ses troupes du territoire russe, je regarderai ce qui s"est passe comme non avenu, et un accommodement entre nous sera possible. Dans le cas contraire, Votre Majeste, je me verrai force de repousser une attaque que rien n"a provoquee de ma part. Il depend encore de Votre Majeste d"eviter a l"humanite les calamites d"une nouvelle guerre.
Je suis, etc.
(signe) Alexandre.”
[“My lord brother! Yesterday it dawned on me that, despite the straightforwardness with which I observed my obligations towards Your Imperial Majesty, your troops crossed the Russian borders, and only now have I received a note from St. Petersburg, with which Count Lauriston informs me about this invasion, that Your Majesty considers yourself to be on hostile terms with me from the time Prince Kurakin demanded his passports. The reasons on which the Duke of Bassano based his refusal to issue these passports could never have led me to suppose that the act of my ambassador served as a reason for the attack. And in fact, he did not have a command from me to do this, as he himself announced; and as soon as I learned about this, I immediately expressed my displeasure to Prince Kurakin, ordering him to carry out the duties entrusted to him as before. If Your Majesty is not inclined to shed the blood of our subjects because of such a misunderstanding and if you agree to withdraw your troops from Russian possessions, then I will ignore everything that happened, and an agreement between us will be possible. Otherwise, I will be forced to repel an attack that was not provoked by anything on my part. Your Majesty, you still have the opportunity to save humanity from the scourge of a new war.
(signed) Alexander.” ]

On June 13, at two o'clock in the morning, the sovereign, calling Balashev to him and reading him his letter to Napoleon, ordered him to take this letter and personally hand it over to the French emperor. Sending Balashev away, the sovereign again repeated to him the words that he would not make peace until at least one armed enemy remained on Russian soil, and ordered that these words be conveyed to Napoleon without fail. The Emperor did not write these words in the letter, because he felt with his tact that these words were inconvenient to convey at the moment when the last attempt at reconciliation was being made; but he certainly ordered Balashev to hand them over to Napoleon personally.
Having left on the night of June 13th to 14th, Balashev, accompanied by a trumpeter and two Cossacks, arrived at dawn in the village of Rykonty, at the French outposts on this side of the Neman. He was stopped by French cavalry sentries.
A French hussar non-commissioned officer, in a crimson uniform and a shaggy hat, shouted at Balashev as he approached, ordering him to stop. Balashev did not stop immediately, but continued to walk along the road.
The non-commissioned officer, frowning and muttering some kind of curse, advanced with the chest of his horse towards Balashev, took up his saber and rudely shouted at the Russian general, asking him: is he deaf, that he does not hear what is being said to him. Balashev identified himself. The non-commissioned officer sent the soldier to the officer.
Not paying attention to Balashev, the non-commissioned officer began to talk with his comrades about his regimental affairs and did not look at the Russian general.
It was unusually strange for Balashev, after being close to the highest power and might, after a conversation three hours ago with the sovereign and generally accustomed to honors from his service, to see here, on Russian soil, this hostile and, most importantly, disrespectful attitude toward himself of brute force.
The sun was just beginning to rise from behind the clouds; the air was fresh and dewy. On the way, the herd was driven out of the village. In the fields, one by one, like bubbles in water, the larks burst into life with a hooting sound.
Balashev looked around him, waiting for the arrival of an officer from the village. The Russian Cossacks, the trumpeter, and the French hussars silently looked at each other from time to time.
A French hussar colonel, apparently just out of bed, rode out of the village on a beautiful, well-fed gray horse, accompanied by two hussars. The officer, the soldiers and their horses wore an air of contentment and panache.

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 middle of the tenth century, the Normans arrived here after they discovered Greenland. True, they failed to colonize these new lands, since they were repelled by harsh weather 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 round shape Land 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 over South Atlantic, received by the Treaty of Alcázovaz in 1479, Spain, always striving 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 he would meet an entire continent on the way, until then known 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. Before Canary Islands The expedition proceeded quite calmly: 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, opened before the sailors. 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 a continent, or rather, for east coast Asia, also declared 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 the southern 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 mouth of the Orinoco was also opened. 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 a 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.

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 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 peninsula of China. On the next sea voyage, several thousand people on 17 ships set off to the shores of the still unexplored islands. In search of gold and other treasures, Europeans began to conquer the islands and subjugate the natives, who were called Indians.

The maps included Dominica, Guadeloupe, Jamaica, Montserrat, Antigua, Puerto Rico and other names. But the mainland of “India” had 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, which included, among others, all the names given by Amerigo Vespucci during the expedition of Alonso de Ojeda. 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 published letters from Vespucci, in which he called the discovered lands the New World. The publisher himself was so delighted with the travels described that he proposed 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.

The question of who discovered America is probably the most difficult in the sense that it is difficult to dot all the i’s. You’ll say, “Christopher Columbus,” and the answer will be, “Then why isn’t America called Columbia?” And you will instantly get lost. And if such a question were to come up on the exam, it would be a disaster! Let's look at this question: who was actually the first to discover this incredible continent?

All versions

When we talk about the discovery of North and South America, we must not forget for whom the arrival of European navigators on the continent was a discovery. This was a discovery for the Europeans, who had been pottering around in their Europe for more than a thousand years: first they had Hellenic civilization there (Greece and), then it came dark Middle Ages. They were busy burning witches at the stake, and far from searching for new lands.

After all, long before the Europeans (and before Columbus), America was discovered (for themselves):

  • 15,000 (fifteen thousand) years ago, back in the Ice Age, enterprising guys from Asia were most likely looking for warm places. Along the glacier that now connects Eurasia and North America Bering Strait, they came to the continent. And they became a local, autochthonous population. And Columbus called the local aborigines Indians because he thought he had discovered India!
  • In the 6th century, the Irish, led by Saint Brendan, sailed to North America. It is unclear why the Irish would suddenly look for the New World, and there was no exact evidence of this fact. Until, in 1976, the desperate explorer Tim Siverin built an exact copy of the Irish boat and sailed here from Ireland under his own power!
  • In the 10th century, the Vikings, who were avid sailors and most likely looking for prey, sailed here. So the search for prey led far to the southwest of Greenland, and they ended up here. Perhaps the first Vikings founded the first European settlements here! So in 1960, archaeologist Helge Ingstad discovered traces of such a settlement in Canada!
  • In the 15th century, the Chinese, before Columbus, discovered South America. So said British naval officer Gavin Menzies. The Chinese also looked for India to get rich and, according to the British theory, colonized South America.

I think it now becomes clear to you for whom Columbus (if it was really him) discovered America - for the Europeans.

Discovery of America

The reasons that pushed Europeans to search for new lands were prosaic: the European market was overflowing with goods, colonies were needed to sell them. Europe was actively moving towards colonial capitalism. You can find other reasons in our article.

Spain is the strongest state in that Medieval Europe- was no exception. The crown actively sponsored all the expeditions of various scoundrels who promised to open new lands for it. Since the name of the navigator who discovered America is Christopher Columbus, let’s take a closer look at his personality.

Christopher Columbus, famous navigator (1451 - 1506)

Christopher was actually from Genoa. In his youth he studied at the University of Pavia. Around 1474, the famous geographer and astronomer Paolo Toscanelli fired a bullet at Columbus in a letter that the route to India was actually shorter than all sorts of court scoundrels believed. From that time on, Christopher became interested in this event - to find a way to the legendary India. Next, Christopher traveled throughout Europe, collecting information about the location of this very India. As a result, in the mid-80s of the 15th century, he drew up his project - the path to there.

All discussions about this project came to nothing. Even a meeting with the king and queen yielded nothing. Columbus intends to move to France in the early 90s and try his luck there. But Queen Isabella still realized what Spain could lose. As a result, the expedition was finally equipped.

America was discovered by Europeans during the first expedition of 1492-1493. It consisted of three ships: Santa Maria, Niña and Pinta. The year 1492 is considered the year of the discovery of America.

Amerigo Vespucci (1454 - 1512)

The remaining three expeditions were exploratory: Europeans explored a new area. Until the end of his life, Columbus himself was sure that he had discovered India. So why did the New World come to be called America? Who discovered it: Columbus or Vespucci?

The fact is that in 1499, a cheerful old man, Amerigo Vespucci, set off on one of the expeditions to the New World. The old man was on his way to assess the financial capabilities of the New World, took notes and, most importantly, compiled a serious map of the new continent.

Therefore, in 1507, cartographer Martin Waldseemüller proposed naming new continents after this cheerful old man. That's why America is called that.

Best regards, Andrey Puchkov

 

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