Old World Meets New: Columbus and the Forging of America

The first European to reach America was a Viking, Leif Erikson around the year 1000. But little of his achievement remained. Five centuries later, Christopher Columbus pioneered his way here and established something lasting. His discovery opened the floodgates of European exploration and set in motion the chain of events that would produce the United States.

Key Takeaways

• Columbus sought a western sea route to Asia; he could not have known the Americas stood in the way

• After being turned down by Portugal, Columbus won backing from Spain's Ferdinand and Isabella in 1492, the same year Spain completed the Reconquista

• On October 12, 1492, Rodrigo de Triana spotted land; Columbus knelt and named the island San Salvador

• Columbus made four voyages in total; he died in 1506 never knowing he had reached a new continent

• His name shaped American geography and culture: the District of Columbia, Columbia University, Columbia Records, NASA's first space shuttle

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FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: Why did Columbus sail west instead of east?

Columbus believed he could reach Asia, and its coveted gold and spices, by sailing west across the Atlantic. He could not have known that the North and South American continents stood in the way. The more conventional eastern route to Asia was blocked after the Ottoman Empire conquered Constantinople in 1453, cutting off the Silk Road.

Q2: What did Columbus actually discover?

On October 12, 1492, Columbus landed on an island in the Bahamas he named San Salvador. He later landed on Cuba (which he thought was Japan) and Hispaniola. He made four voyages in total but died in 1506 believing he had reached Asia, never knowing he had found a new continent.

Q3: How did Columbus's name shape America?

The District of Columbia is home to America's capital. 33 of the 50 states have a town or city named Columbus. Columbus Day is a national holiday. Columbia University, Columbia Records, CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System), Columbia Pictures, and NASA's first space shuttle Columbia all bear his name, a lasting tribute to the man who forged the bond between the Old World and the New.

Columbus's Vision and the Road to Spain's Yes

The first European to reach America was a Viking. Long before Europeans arrived, the continent was home to the first Americans, indigenous peoples whose civilizations spanned thousands of years. Around the year 1000, Leif Erikson discovered modern-day Newfoundland. But little or nothing of his achievement remained. Five centuries later, Christopher Columbus pioneered his way here and established something lasting. Braving unknown waters, Columbus discovered land unknown to the rest of the world. His achievement opened the floodgates of European exploration and led to the settlement of mainland North and South America.

Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451. His father was a weaver, but young Columbus was destined to make seafaring voyages, not wool. In his 20s, he sailed for the Portuguese merchant marine, reaching distant places as far away as Britain and Iceland. By the early 1480s, Columbus developed an ambition that defined the rest of his life. He envisioned an expedition to find a direct sea route west to Asia, the exotic land full of coveted gold and spices. In 1453, the network of trade routes to Asia known as the Silk Road had been interrupted when the Ottoman Empire conquered Constantinople. Almost everyone in Europe called for an eastern sea route. Not Columbus. Go west, he thought, directly across the Atlantic. He could not have known that the North and South American continents stood in the way. In 1484, Columbus sought funding from Portugal's John II. The king turned him down. Two years later, he turned to Spain's King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. At the time, the two monarchs were heavily invested in completing the centuries-long Reconquista, a war intended to expel the Moors from Spain. In 1492, the Spanish won the great battle at the city of Granada, ending Islamic rule in the Iberian Peninsula. Again, Columbus asked Ferdinand and Isabella to fund his voyage. This time, they said yes. Columbus also promised to bring Christianity to Asia, a major draw for his Catholic patrons.

The Voyage and the Discovery

On August 3rd, 1492, Columbus and his crew of about 90 Spaniards set sail from Palos, Spain in three ships, two small ones, the Niña and the Pinta, and a larger one, the Santa María, which Columbus captained. Just off the coast of Morocco, the expedition hovered in the Canary Islands for one month. On September 6th, the three ships ventured west, crossing the vast Atlantic toward unknown waters. Several weeks in, the crew began to grumble. They feared low provisions. Worse yet, they feared never seeing Spain again. As mutiny brewed, Columbus promised his captains that if land was not spotted soon, he would turn back. On October 12th, the dare paid off. At 2 in the morning, the Pinta's lookout, Rodrigo de Triana, spotted lights.

The expedition had discovered land. Columbus stepped into a long boat and rode to the island. Once ashore, he knelt and prayed. He christened the island San Salvador, Spanish for Holy Savior. Believing he had reached the Indies, Columbus called the natives Indians. They were members of the Arawak tribe. But the name Indian eventually spread across the hemisphere and has stuck for all these centuries. In late October, Columbus landed on Cuba, an island he thought was Japan. On December 6th, he reached another island. He called it Hispaniola, its name to this day. In January of 1493, Columbus returned to Spain, leaving behind 39 men on Hispaniola and the first European fort in the Americas. The monarchs declared him a hero. Spain would send him on three more voyages.

Columbus's Legacy

Columbus died in 1506, two years after his final trip. Though he never knew it, the continent he found would soon bear another man's name. He had not found a route to the East Indies. He had found neither an abundance of gold or silver, nor the spices coveted in Europe. While Columbus did not introduce slavery to the new world, it was already pervasive among native tribes, he was the first European to enslave natives. He ruled his settlements poorly.

Between his third and fourth voyages, Columbus was arrested, imprisoned in Santo Domingo, and returned to Spain, where he was stripped of his titles and endured protracted legal troubles. On his fourth and final voyage, Columbus reached modern-day Panama. He did not know it, but he was just miles from the Pacific Ocean. Still, what Columbus achieved was monumental. His discovery of unknown lands and unknown peoples bridged one human existence across the entire earth. In his wake came waves of changes that transformed the western hemisphere, old world explorations and conquest into the new world accelerated. Among the first was Spain's push into Florida. Christianity spread across both continents. The Spanish and Portuguese languages prevailed in most of South America, Spanish in much of the north. The name Columbus shaped the American landscape. The District of Columbia is home to America's capital. 33 of the 50 states have a town or city named Columbus. Columbus Day marks the national calendar. Columbia Records, the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), and Columbia Pictures all played significant roles in forging the American imagination. NASA named its first space shuttle Columbia, a monument to the pioneer who bridged the old world to the new.

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