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Biography Activity netw rks

The Age of Exploration

Christopher Columbus (1451–1506)

Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy

Pixtal/Age Fotostock, America

and spent much of his adolescence at sea.
Trading voyages took him north, perhaps to
Iceland, and south along the coast of Africa. In
1485, Columbus began to seek financing to find a
fast trade route to India. He went twice to the
king of Portugal, to lenders in Genoa and Venice,
and even to the English king, but without
success. Finally in 1492, his third appeal before
the king and queen of Spain succeeded. On
October 12, 1492, he landed on what he thought
was an Asian island. It was actually modern day
Watling’s Island in the Bahamas. Columbus died
convinced he had found a new route to China
(which would have been on the way to India, his
goal in 1485). Instead, his voyages led to the
European colonization of the Americas.

More About the Image: This anonymous

portrait, created some time between 1890 and
1940, is in the collection of the U.S. Library of

Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission is granted to reproduce for classroom use.
Congress.

1. Drawing Conclusions How would you describe Columbus?

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2. Drawing Inferences How did the experiences of Columbus’ youth

influence his decision to try to sail to Asia?

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