How Did Christopher Columbus Change The World

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Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492. Or at least on his first time around. Christopher Columbus was a young man who is credited by society to have “discovered” the new world. Columbus was born in 1451, about 40 years before he would discover the new world. He moved from his homeland to portugal where he married Felipa Perestrello. In 1480, he fathered a child with her, Diego, and when she died, he fathered another son with Beatriz Enriquez de Arana, with which he named Fernando. Columbus had started sailing since he was a teenager. By the time he decided to find a western route to asia, he was an experienced explorer. However, finding a sponsor was not easy. He was rejected immediately by the portuguese king and was turned away by the Genoans and Venetians. He was finally greeted with success in Spain, where King Ferdinand of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castille granted him three boats and crew members. Columbus sailed for 36 days before seeing land. They had landed on an island that was part of the present day Bahamas. Columbus believed he had landed in the east indies, and therefore, he called the natives “Indians.” He claimed the land for Spain, and exchanged with the natives. His success in finding and exploring his “new” route was great. He continued on his route which took him to present day Haiti and the Dominican Republic. He encountered some difficulty on the way. His main ship the Santa Maria wrecked in Haiti. However, he used the lumber to build a new settlement on that same coast. He left 39 crew members behind to occupy the land. He sailed back to Spain with great hope that he would be allowed to take another voyage. The King and Queen were very happy with his success and didn’t hesitate when he asked for another trip. He came to find his settlement destroyed, and his crew members dead. He enslaved the natives against the queen’s wishes and forced them to rebuild the settlement. He also tried to impose the catholic religion among the slaves. He left his brothers Bartholomew and Diego to rule the settlement, and left to explore more territories. …show more content…
Columbus never regained his titles, nor his wealth. He is seen as a villain and a hero. He failed to find his promised route to asia. Christopher Columbus was an important explorer who shaped the world with his attempt to find a shorter route to the Indies. He instead encountered the Bahamas and its natives, explored the land, and exchanged diseases and valuable items with the natives. He opened up trade between the europeans and americans. He changed the world dramatically, acting as the catalyst for a new generation where religion was as widespread as the diseases he brought to and from the americas and europe. For example, smallpox, which greatly affected the americas population. He helped agriculture by spreading different plants across the oceans–namely potatoes, tomatoes, corn, wheat, and sugarcane. He, however, denied the world the history of the native americans, by destroying their culture with his spaniard superiority. Though he is seen as both a hero and a villain, his achievements in the world still stand. In his quest for a new route to asia, he instead encountered the americas, where he then explored the new land, and established trade with the natives there, with whom he exchanged goods, riches, and

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