EDITOR: Jeremiah Cox
SUMMARY: ‘In 1892, the U.S. celebrated a Columbian centennial: the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s journey to the Americas. At the time, the country’s recognition of him was a source of pride for many Italian Americans and Italian immigrants. But Scandinavian immigrants and Americans of northern European descent wanted to celebrate Erikson instead.’
‘Around the time of the centennial, a Roman Catholic organization called the Knights of Columbus and several Italian American groups began to lobby Congress to recognize Columbus Day. In 1907, the founder of Colorado’s first Italian newspaper helped establish the first official Columbus Day in his state, and within a few years, 15 states had adopted the holiday. By the time it became a federal holiday in 1971, most states already recognized Columbus Day.’
THOUGHTS: Even though it has been proven that Columbus was not the first to discover America, as is commonly taught in schools in the US, it is believed that he had more of an impact in the European settling of the country. Also, thanks to a large, well-funded, religiously supported lobby group, Columbus was raised to near-sainthood while Leif Erikson is brushed over in most American public schools.
Little, Becky. “Why Do We Celebrate Columbus Day and Not Leif Erikson Day?” National Geographic, National Geographic Society, 11 Oct. 2015, news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/10/151011-columbus-day-leif-erikson-italian-americans-holiday-history/
SUMMARY: ‘…master navigator and admiral whose four transatlantic voyages (1492–93, 1493–96, 1498–1500, and 1502–04) opened the way for European exploration, exploitation, and colonization of the Americas. He has long been called the “discoverer” of the New World, although Vikings such as Leif Eriksson had visited North America five centuries earlier. Columbus made his transatlantic voyages under the sponsorship of Ferdinand II and Isabella I, the Catholic Monarchs of Aragon, Castile, and Leon in Spain.’
‘…he died a disappointed man.’
‘Numerous books about Columbus appeared in the 1990s, and the insights of archaeologists and anthropologists began to complement those of sailors and historians. This effort gave rise to considerable debate. There was also a major shift in approach and interpretation; the older pro-European understanding gave way to one shaped from the perspective of the inhabitants of the Americas themselves. According to the older understanding, the “discovery” of the Americas was a great triumph, one in which Columbus played the part of hero in accomplishing the four voyages, in being the means of bringing great material profit to Spain and to other European countries, and in opening up the Americas to European settlement. The more recent perspective, however, has concentrated on the destructive side of the European conquest, emphasizing, for example, the disastrous impact of the slave trade and the ravages of imported disease on the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean region and the American continents.’
‘Christian missionary and anti-Islamic fervour, the power of Castile and Aragon, the fear of Portugal, the lust for gold, the desire for adventure, the hope of conquests, and Europe’s genuine need for a reliable supply of herbs and spices for cooking, preserving, and medicine all combined to produce an explosion of energy that launched the first voyage.’
THOUGHTS: Columbus was, as the cliché goes, in the right place at the right time. He served time as a merchant marine and cartographer, but had no real qualifications to captain such a voyage. He was merely someone who took advantage of the times. He knew the right people, and used economic disparity brought about by an ongoing holy war to elevate himself to a position where he could end the war by converting the people of India to Christianity and recruiting them into their side of the crusade.
Flint, Valerie I.J. “Christopher Columbus.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 21 Apr. 2017, www.britannica.com/biography/Christopher-Columbus
SUMMARY: ‘…and he said that they should be witnesses that, in the presence of all, he would take, as in fact he did take, possession of the said island for the king and for the queen his lords, making the declarations that were required, and which at more length are contained in the testimonials made there in writing.’
‘…in order that they would be friendly to us-because I recognized that they were people who would be better freed and converted to our Holy Faith by love than by force…’
‘…many other things of small value, in which they took so much pleasure and became so much our friends that it was a marvel. Later they came swimming to the ships’ launches where we were and brought us parrots and cotton thread in balls and javelins and many other things, and they traded them to us for other things which we gave them, such as small glass beads and bells. In sum, they took everything and gave of what they had very willingly. But it seemed to me that they were a people very poor in everything. All of them go around as naked as their mothers bore them; and the women also, although I did not see more than one quite young girl. And all those that I saw were young people, for none did I see of more than 30 years of age.’
THOUGHTS: Again, we see the pervasiveness of religion and its motivation in his journals. He arrived on inhabited foreign land, claimed it for his monarchs, and then talked about stealing away natives so that they can be used as interpreters for their future slaves. He came upon these inquisitive, friendly peoples with a completely foreign culture and assumed them to be simple, in the old meaning.
Midiriyanto, Fnu. “Christopher Columbus’ Journal.” Academia.edu – Share Research, Academia, www.academia.edu/22964909/Christopher_Columbus_Journal
SUMMARY: ‘His first voyage into the Atlantic Ocean in 1476 nearly cost him his life as the commercial fleet he was sailing with was attacked by French privateers off the coast of Portugal. His ship was burned and Columbus had to swim to the Portuguese shore. He made his way to Lisbon, Portugal, where he eventually settled and married Felipa Perestrello.’
‘The Asian islands near China and India were fabled for their spices and gold, making them an attractive destination for Europeans. Since Muslim domination of the trade routes through the Middle East made travel eastward difficult, Columbus devised a route to sail west across the Atlantic to reach Asia, believing it would be quicker and safer. He estimated the earth to be a sphere and the distance between the Canary Islands and Japan to be about 2,300 miles.’
THOUGHTS: If not for some French pirates, there’s a very good chance Columbus never would have sailed to America. Of course, this could be said of many other events that took place during his life, but this was the biggest. That was the event which settled him in to a life in Portugal and allowed him to make the connections to request ships and men for a voyage west. This biography also supports the economic motivation behind his journey in that he was looking to establish trade routes with Asia over water, bypassing the Muslim controlled Middle East.
Biography.com editors. “Christopher Columbus.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 1 Aug. 2017, www.biography.com/people/christopher-columbus-9254209
