The Columbus Journey Toward Discovering The New World

Páginas: 4 (789 palabras) Publicado: 12 de octubre de 2011
The Columbus journey toward discovering the New World

Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Genoa, a little city of seamen and sailors recognized as an important commercial port in the worldknown at the time. In spite of this, it still was very difficult to have contact with Asia or India through a land route, due to the battles out by the Muslim conquest of Constantinople. So the searchfor an alternate route to supply Europe with Asia in the East Indies became a passion for the young Columbus.

Despite not learning to read or write, Columbus was converted into one of the mostfamous navigators and cartographers in history. He began to sail since he was a child so he learned from experience to read and interpret maps that used to circulate in the navigators environment, thusbecoming one of the best seamen for the time. In Portugal, Christopher Columbus was considered one of the best sailors in maritime expedition, who instead of following the coastline that had been doneuntil then, he began to experience and gain an understanding about ocean sailing.

Columbus was interested in the work of the cosmographer Toscanelli, who claimed that the Atlantic was the shortestroute to China. He saw in this a key to open the closed route again. Besides, and influenced by the stories of Marco Polo about the splendor of China, he began to look for more writings of the ancientcosmographers. According to Toscanelli writings, Asia was closer than what geographers believed, and Columbus started to think that the earth was smaller than thought at that time. With this thinking,he began to look for support to allow him to make his trip to the Indian and demonstrate that his idea could work.

In 1484 he presented his plan to King John II of Portugal, who expressed rejectiondespite the good reasons that Columbus explained to make the trip. Then, he traveled to Spain in 1485 and after a year of arriving, he obtained an audience with the kings Ferdinand and Isabella, in...
Leer documento completo

Regístrate para leer el documento completo.

Estos documentos también te pueden resultar útiles

  • The new world order
  • The New World
  • THE NEW 7 WONDERS OF THE WORLD
  • Management In The New World
  • Analisis the new world order
  • The new world order in architecture
  • The world
  • The World

Conviértase en miembro formal de Buenas Tareas

INSCRÍBETE - ES GRATIS