Christopher Columbus 3
The records of Genoa indicate that Christopher Columbus was the son of Domenico Colombo and Suzanna Fontanarossa. Columbus was born as Cristoforo Columbo in Genoa somewhere between August and October of 1451. His parents had a modest livelihood. Columbus was the eldest child of three--two brothers appear in records under the Hispanic names of Bartolome and Diego. He had little education, and got a job working at sea with Domenico when he was young. Later, he learned to read Latin and write Castilian.Between the years of 1475 and 1479, Columbus made a few significant voyages and finally landed in Genoa where he gave testimony in a lawsuit. He later returned to Portugal where he wed Felipa Perestrelo e Monis, the daughter of Bartolomeu Perestrelo. While living in Lisbon, Columbus encountered evidence of possible western lands in the Atlantic. This probably is what made him consider a voyage of investigation. Felipa died in Porto Santo soon after giving birth to Columbus's only legitimate son, Diego. Columbus's curiosities of a westward route to Asia led him to propose a voyage in the Atlantic, which would be a shorter way of reaching the orient then circumnavigation of Africa. He asked for aid and was rejected more than once by m
Columbus decided to explore the Caribbean. In 1494 he took three ships and followed Cuba's coast nearly to the western end. Indians told him of Jamaica not too far to the south, and he turned that way, discovered the island, and had many fights with the hostile natives. He returned to Cuba and sailed to Bahia Cortes, where the leaky ships and complaints from the crew forced him to go back. Columbus found the Spanish settlers back in Hispaniola nearly impossible to govern. So many complaints against him reached the Castilian court that he decided to go to Spain and clear his name. Bartolome governed the colony in his absence. Columbus traveled the Atlantic on a more northerly route and reached Europe safely. He prepared for his second voyage. Columbus set sail from Caldiz with 17 ships and 1200 men in September of 1493. He discovered the West Indies. When he reached the Navidad settlement on Hispaniola, he found it destroyed. The Spaniards had made themselves hated and Chief Caonabo had them exterminated. Another settlement, Isabela, was also destroyed. From there, Columbus sent home most of his ships while retaining most of the men. He dispatched expeditions into the center of the island in search of gold. He soon made himself governor of Hispaniola, in hopes that it would be a trading post for commerce with rich Oriental empires he expected to discover. Columbus left Hispaniolan affairs in bad condition two years ago and was in a hurry to return and relieve his hard-pressed brother.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Chief Caonabo, America August, Santa Maria, Andres Martin, Bahia Cortes, Spain November, Diego Columbus's, Bartolome Diego, Gulf Darien, Palos Pinzon, santa maria, coast nearly, columbus sent, columbus decided,
Approximate Word count = 1010
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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