Christopher

Columbus
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Suus Flipsen and Ilse Vloet

THV2D

Mr. Aerts
Index:
1. Cristopher Columbus
2. His first plans
3. The first voyage
4. The first one who discovers America
5. Opinions over Columbus
6. Our opinion About Columbus day
1. Christopher Columbus

Cristopher Columbus was born in 1451. He was born in the Italian city Guena. He works as a trader
and sails through the Mediterranean Sea. He was only 12 years old when he was on his first ship. In
1476 the ship he was on got attacked by a French pirate. The ship sinks but Columbus survives! He
was stranded on the Portuguese coast. In Portugal, he starts working for his brother. He became a
mapmaker. In Portugal, he also marries his first wife called Felipe Moniz Perestrello. They got a son
called Diego but after a few years, Felipe passes away.

Columbus was convinced that the world was round and that it was possible to reach Asia via the
West. He wants to make this journey himself so in 1484 he goes to the Portuguese king for support.
But he doesn’t get this support. So, a year later he moves to Spain to ask king Ferdinand and Queen
Isabella for support. But they were too busy getting the African people out of their country. In the
meantime, Columbus gets another son called Ferdinand with someone called Beatriz Enriquez. He
never marries her. After the Spanish king and queen were done fighting the Africans. They are
starting to get interested in Columbus’ plans. In the meantime, Columbus gets another son called
Ferdinand. He gets this son from Beatriz Enriquez. He never married Beatriz.

Columbus was a busy man that had a lot of misfortune, but he never gave up!
2. His first plans

Columbus was convinced that the world was round. So, he came up with a plan: reaching India via
the West. If this worked out it would mean endless wealth and appreciation for him. So, he goes to
the Portuguese king with his plan. But the king isn’t interested at all! So, a year later he goes to Spain
and tries it again. He went to the king and queen, and they did approve his plan. In August 1492
Columbus leaves to the west with 3 ships and 90 crew members. All have no idea what’s waiting for
them and no idea how big the world actually is.

3. The first voyage

With 3 ships and 90 crewmates, Columbus leaves to the west. He writes every little detail in his diary.
In October 1492 there finally is land in sight. When they are close enough to the land, they see that
there are already people living there. Because Columbus thinks he is in India the calls the local people
‘Indians’. The island where Columbus arrived, he called ‘San Salvador’. After visiting San Salvador, he
also visits the island ‘Cuba’, which Columbus thinks is Japan. But then something went wrong. After
one of the crewmates had heard of a ‘gold island’ he leaves with one of the ships. This man was
called Martín Alonso Pinzón. But Columbus follows him, and he ends up in Hispaniola. There he starts
his first small village called ‘La Navidad’ or ‘the new world.’ By coincidence, Columbus finds back
Pinzón and together they sail back to Europe. In Mach 1493 they get back in Lisbon.
4. The first one who discovers America

Five hundred years before Christopher Columbus explored with his ship the Santa
Maria America there was already someone who discovered it, called Leif Eriksson.
He discovered North America in the year: 1000 A.D. And, when Columbus ‘discovered’ it,
there were already people living in America. Columbus called them Indians because he
thought he was in India. Right now, there are still living Indians in West America. Also,
10% of the population in Alaska, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and South Dakota are Indian.
America promised the Indians that they can have their own culture if it is not a problem
for the Americans.

5. Opinions over Columbus

The people who think that Christopher Columbus is good will say:
-Because he found a new land here the Europeans can trade with. Due to this discovery, the world
became a lot bigger for trading. And he made an image bridge between the new and the old world.
So that does mean that he had made a contact with the eastern and western hemispheres.
The people who think that Christopher Columbus was bad:
-Yes, he discovered America but, he forced the Indians to find gold for Columbus and his crew. He
also wanted to make slaves of them. When you did not do what he said you would be punished and
sometimes would be murdered for that. But in areas where there was not that much gold, the
Indians must give Columbus cotton instead of gold. Because of the bad circumstances, 50.000 Indians
committed suicide.
6. Our opinions about Columbus day

Ilse: I think it should be a national holiday but that it isn’t to celebrate it but to memorize this fact in
American history. This had an impact on America nowadays. In the Netherlands, we memorize for
example the victims of the second world war on 4 May and celebrate the liberation, the end of the
second world war. But I think that if it would be a national holiday we also need to memorize it, like
on a tv or something like that.

Suus: I think it shouldn’t be a national holiday because Columbus wasn’t even the first to discover
America. He also caused a lot of war, and he used a lot of slaves. So, I think that it would be better to
just talk a lot about him (because he is very important in history) but not celebrate him. But I do get
that some people find him very important because he did a lot for the economy and trade of Europe.

Source list:

1: Christoffel Columbus – Ontdekking van Amerika (1492) | Historiek

2. Christoffel Columbus – Ontdekking van Amerika (1492) | Historiek
3. Christoffel Columbus – Ontdekking van Amerika (1492) | Historiek
4: https://www.npr.org/2007/10/08/15040888/coming-to-america-who-was-first#:~:text=Before
%20Columbus,-For%20a%20long&text=We%20know%20now%20that%20Columbus,America
%20and%20established%20a%20settlement
5: https://www.ipl.org/essay/Why-Is-Christopher-Columbus-Considered-A-Hero-
P3BZ5JFBG5PV#:~:text=The%20first%20reason%20that%20Christopher,person%20who%20found
%20new%20land.
https://www.vox.com/2014/10/13/6957875/christopher-columbus-murderer-tyrant-scoundrel
6: /