From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
It is believed that Columbus (Colombo) was born into a poor Genoese family. It should be noted here that now 6 cities in Italy and Spain dispute the honor of being his small homeland.
Studied at the University of Pavia. Around 1470 he marries Doña Felipe Moniz de Palestrello. Her father was a famous navigator from the time of Prince Enrique.
Until 1472, Columbus lived in Genoa, and from 1472 - in Savona. In the 1470s, he participated in sea trading expeditions.
It is believed that as early as 1474, the astronomer and geographer Paolo Toscanelli told him in a letter that, in his opinion, India can be reached by a much shorter sea route if you sail west.
Apparently, already then Columbus thought about his project sea travel to India. Having made his own calculations based on the advice of Toscanelli, he decided that it was most convenient to sail through the Canary Islands, from which, in his opinion, there were about 5 thousand km to Japan.
From 1476, Columbus moved to Portugal, where he lived for nine years.
It is known that in 1477 Columbus visited England, Ireland and Iceland, where he could get acquainted with the data of the Icelanders about the lands in the west. During this time, he also manages to visit Guinea.
The first appeal of Columbus with a proposal to sail to India to the west was in 1475-1480 ( exact time unknown). He addressed it to the government and merchants of his native Genoa. There was no response.
In 1483, he proposes his project to the Portuguese king João II, but after a long study, the project is rejected.
In 1485, Columbus moved to Spain with his son Diego (apparently, he was fleeing persecution - see below).
In the winter of 1485-1486. he finds shelter in the monastery of Santa Maria da Rábida in the status of a beggar.
abbot Juan Perez de Marchena accepted him and actually saved him from starvation. He also organized the first letter to Fernando de Talavera, to his acquaintance - the queen's confessor, with a summary of the ideas of Columbus.
The King of Spain was at that time in Cordoba, where preparations were made for the war with Granada with the personal participation of sovereigns.
During 1486, Columbus establishes connections with royal financial advisers, merchants and bankers.
Only in the winter of 1486 Columbus was presented Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza the Archbishop of Toledo and the Grand Cardinal of Spain, who, in turn, facilitated an audience with the King of Spain.
Sentence Columbus several times studied by theologians, cosmographers, lawyers, monks, courtiers. He is rejected, considering his demands excessive.
March 20 (according to other sources - May 20), 1488 Columbus unexpectedly received a letter from the Portuguese king with an offer to return to Portugal. The most interesting here were the following words of Their Majesty:
And if you fear Our justice for some of your obligations, then know that neither after your arrival, nor during your stay in Portugal, nor after your departure, you will be arrested, detained, charged, convicted, or prosecuted. any reason arising from civil, criminal or any other law.
Columbus sends his proposals to other addresses: from King Henry VII of England in February 1488, he received a favorable answer, but without any specific proposals.
In 1491 in Seville a second personal meeting with Ferdinand and Isabella took place. The result for Columbus was again disappointing:
"In view of the enormous cost and effort required to wage the war, the start of a new enterprise is not possible."
It was decided to return to negotiations after the end of the war.
In 1491 Columbus appeals to the Duke of Medina-Sedonia, the largest magnate, the owner of about 100 merchant ships, but he is also refused.
Finally, in January 1492, the long-awaited event took place: the capture of the Alhambra fortress. Granada fell, the war ended victoriously.
Columbus, apparently greatly overestimated the victorious enthusiasm of the king of Spain: when he formulated the conditions on which he intended to “open” and own new lands (appoint him viceroy of new lands, award him the title of Chief Admiral of the Sea-Ocean), His Majesty recognized the requirements Columbus "excessive and unacceptable", the negotiations were broken off, and the king departed Santa Fe.
Columbus in February 1492 he leaves for Cordoba, and then declares his intention to emigrate to France altogether.
Here, Queen Isabella took a step forward. The idea of the coming liberation of the Holy Sepulcher captured her heart so much that she decided not to give this chance to either Portugal or France. Although the Kingdom of Spain was formed as a result of the dynastic marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, their monarchies retained, however, separate independent administrations, cortes and finances.
"I'll pawn my jewels"- she said.
1492 the royal couple welcome Columbus and his heirs the title of "don" (that is, they make him a nobleman) and confirms that, in case of success of the overseas project, he will be the Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and viceroy of all the lands that he discovers or acquires, and will be able to transfer these titles by inheritance.
True, the money for the equipment of the expedition Columbus had to search independently at the expense of the foregone state tax payments of Her Majesty the Queen of Castile.
In addition, according to the contract, an eighth of the costs had to be borne by Columbus who had no money at all.
However, Columbus was helped by Martin Alonso Pinson. One of the ships - "Pinta" - was his own, and he equipped it at his own expense; he gave money for the second ship to Christopher, so that Columbus could make his formal contribution under the agreement. The money for the third ship, under his own guarantee, was given out by local Marranos (baptized Jews) as an offset of their payments to the budget.
To be continued...
(Christopher Colombo, in Spanish Colon, Colon) - the famous navigator who discovered America.
Little is known about Columbus' life prior to his ascension as a Spanish admiral. Ten Italian cities and towns argued among themselves about the glory of being the birthplace of Columbus. But now it is proven that he was born in Genoa. The year of his birth is less certain; different news about this diverge among themselves for more than 20 years. Roselli de Lorgues, author of a biography of Columbus, proves that he was born about 1435; but more reliable is the news that he was born in 1456. Information about who his father was is also unreliable, but it is more likely than others that he was the son of a wealthy clothier. There is news that Columbus himself was engaged in this craft for up to twenty years. However, Columbus' own statement that he became a sailor from the age of 14 does not fit with this indication, based on data from the Genoese archives. Where Columbus studied as a boy and a young man is unknown; the tradition that he was educated at the universities of Pavia or Pisa is not supported by any documents. Be that as it may, he acquired a certain education for himself: he read and wrote in Latin, was familiar with geometry, astronomy, geography, possessed the art of drawing maps, and was a good calligrapher. There is news that in his youth he sailed in the Mediterranean; on merchant ships - he visited the island of Chios, near the coast of Tunisia, etc. But they were not known to him at all or were known only from vague fairy-tale legends of the Normans sailing from Greenland to Vinland, that is, to the northern part North America. If he had certain information about this discovery of the Normans, then on his first trip he would not have headed from the Canary Islands to the southwest, but would have sailed to the northwest. He could not be interested in stories about Vinland, for he was looking for ways to the rich cultural lands of southern Asia.
Portrait of Christopher Columbus. Artist S. del Piombo, 1519
At that time, the Italians were the best European sailors, and many of them moved to Portugal, which then also began to act as a maritime power. Looking for a job, moved to Lisbon and the brother of Columbus, Bartholomew (Bartolomeo), and Christopher followed him. Columbus stayed in Portugal for about ten years (1470s and 1480s), continuing to sail on merchant ships north to England and south to Guinea, and also engaged, together with his brother, in drawing and selling maps. In Portugal, Columbus married Dona Philippa Moniz and, according to legend, lived for some time on the island of Porto Santo, where Philippa had a small estate. Here in Portugal, Columbus had a firm conviction about the possibility of sailing west to the shores of Asia. In particular, Columbus was influenced by the letter of Paolo Toscanelli, the famous Florentine scientist, cosmographer and physician, to whom he turned for guidance. Toscanelli sent Columbus a map from which one could see that the distance between the western shores of Europe and the eastern shores of Asia, as described by the famous traveler Marco Polo, was not particularly significant. At that time, in general, there were rather vague ideas about the relationship on the earth's surface of the spaces occupied by land and sea; Columbus even believed that the land occupies a much larger space than the sea. In addition to the map and letter of Toscanelli, Columbus was guided in his views by the authority of Marco Polo and Peter d "Aglia, a medieval compiler, from whom Columbus could also get acquainted with the opinions of the ancients - Aristotle, Seneca, Pliny, Ptolemy, about the possibility of the existence of countries overseas, in the west.
Having considered his plan for a sea expedition, Columbus turned with him to the Portuguese king John II, who, however, after asking his court doctors and dignitaries for an opinion on this matter, rejected his proposal. There is reason to believe that the Portuguese government, which at that time was engaged in exploration along the western coast of Africa, did not want to leave them or split their forces in order to set sail for the unknown west, especially since the distance separating the countries of "spices and aromas ", could turn out to be much more significant than Columbus claimed. Having failed, Columbus moved to Spain with his eldest son Diego (a child of 5-6 years old). It seems that Columbus escaped from Portugal secretly, avoiding any prosecution, leaving there a wife and other children whom he never met again and whom he speaks of in his will as already dead. There are stories that Columbus offered his plan to the Genoese government; but now they have been proven wrong. Genoa, agitated by strife and exhausted by the war with the Turks, did not have the opportunity to engage in such an enterprise as Columbus thought about.
In Spain, Columbus had to live for seven years in moving, searching, vain efforts. His financial situation at that time was not brilliant; he was still engaged in drawing maps, asked for handouts from the court, or enjoyed the hospitality of the Spanish grandees. In the autumn of 1491, having achieved nothing from the Spanish government, Columbus decided to leave Spain, and appeared as a tired wanderer-pedestrian in front of the gates of the Franciscan monastery della Rabida, near Palos, where he asked the porter for water and bread to strengthen his strength. In the monastery, the position of Columbus caused the participation of prior abbot Juan Perez, who believed in the plan of Columbus and came to the conclusion that every effort should be made to ensure that the glory of the great discovery did not pass Spain. Juan Pérez (the Queen's former confessor) wrote a letter to Queen Isabella that had its effect. Formal negotiations were started with Columbus, which almost broke down, however, due to the exorbitant conditions set by him, and which he demanded to be included in a written contract. Finally, the monarchs (Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon) expressed their consent and signed a contract that granted Columbus and his heirs the noble dignity and the title of admiral, in addition, he personally - the title of Viceroy of all the lands and islands that he discovers - the right to leave behind him a tenth of all the valuables that can be obtained within his admiralty - the right to contribute one eighth of the cost of equipping ships and receive, respectively, an eighth of all income, etc. It was decided to organize the expedition in the city of Palos partly at the expense of the queen, partly due to this city. Significant assistance in the first voyage was provided to Columbus by the wealthy Palos sailor M. A. Pinson, who, together with his brother, took command of the two ships; the third ship, a larger one ("Santa Maria"), was commanded by Columbus himself.
Replica of Columbus' Santa Maria
In August 1492, three caravels weighed anchor and headed for the Canary Islands, from where on September 8 they moved west between 27-28 ° latitude. From that day on, Columbus began to keep two diaries, one for himself, the other for the team, and in the latter he reduced the distances traveled by a quarter or a third, as if in order to less frighten his companions. On September 16, ships entered the so-called Sargasso Sea, southwest of the Azores. The weather was generally favorable and most of the time a fair wind (trade wind) blew. If Columbus had kept his course due west, he would have reached the coast of Florida, but he deviated to the southwest and came out to one of the Bahamas.
Signs of land had already appeared a few days before: birds had flown by, floating trunks, reeds, even branches with flowers could be seen on the surface of the sea. On October 11, in the evening, Columbus noticed some kind of moving light in the distance, but it soon disappeared; the next day, early in the morning, one of the sailors was the first to notice the sandy shore, which caused, according to the order given in advance, a volley from the gun. Subsequently, this sailor demanded for himself a reward appointed by the queen to the one who first saw the land, but Columbus declared that he had seen the land before; it came to court, which recognized the right of Columbus - a dark fact that caused, by some of the latest researchers, the accusation of Columbus in "disgusting greed." The whole voyage lasted 33 days - from the Canary Islands and 69 days, if you count from the day you left Palos. To stay for more than a month without seeing the land was, of course, terrifying for the then Spanish sailors; however, the legend of a riot that allegedly rose on the ships against Columbus is not supported by any evidence.
On the morning of October 12, Columbus, with two Pinsons, the "scribe" of the squadron R. Escobedo and treasurer R. Sanchez, landed with an escort ashore and, unfolding the royal banner, took the island into the possession of Spain. A crowd of natives had gathered on the shore, naked, swarthy, with black, long hair, painted over their bodies, armed with spears, with bone and stone tips. According to Columbus, this island was called Gwanaani; Columbus named it San Salvador. Later it was found out that the natives called it "Kayos", hence the subsequent name of the whole group among the Spaniards - "Lucay Islands". At the beginning of the XVI century. the entire population of these islands (Bahamas) was caught, enslaved and transferred to the island of Cuba, where they soon died from overwork. From San Salvador, Columbus went southwest, met other islands of the same group, then reached the land he called "Juana" (after the Spanish infanta) and in which he recognized part of the Asian mainland, while in reality it was an island Cuba. After passing along the northern coast of Cuba some distance to the west and then turning back to the east, Columbus reached the eastern tip of the island and saw another island to the east of it, which he called "Haiti" (Haiti). Here, near Cape Gvariko, Columbus's ship ran into a shallow, got a hole and sank. Columbus was forced to move to a smaller ship - "Ninya", and leave most of the crew on the shore, where a wooden fortification was built in a convenient harbor and a garrison of 40 people was left in it. After that, Columbus went on a small "Nina" back to Spain; another ship of his squadron, the Pinta, overtook him, and, returning earlier to Spain, Pinson tried to inform the first monarchs about the discovery, but was ordered to wait for Columbus. From Palos, Columbus was invited to Barcelona, where Ferdinand and Isabella received him with great honor; the report on the new discovery made a great sensation, which was facilitated by the 6 Indians brought by Columbus, parrots, samples of gold and other West Indian products. At the same time, it was immediately decided to equip a second expedition, in Cadiz; this time, a whole fleet of 17 ships with 1200 or more crew members was put under the command of Columbus.
Columbus before Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Painting by E. Leutze, 1843
The new expedition went to the Canary Islands, then to the west, but along the path of 12 degrees to the south taken on the first trip. 20 days after leaving Ferro Island, one of the Lesser Antilles (La Desirade) was seen, and then the islands of Maria Galante, Dominica, Guadeloupe to the island of Puerto Rico. From here, Columbus went to Hispaniola (Haiti), where the fort he left was destroyed and the entire garrison exterminated by the Indians; I had to found a new city - Isabella - in another place. After lying in a fever for 3 months, Columbus sent 12 ships to Spain with a request for the delivery of supplies, seeds, livestock, and he himself, leaving his brother Diego as governor, went on a new search to the west, along the southern coast of Cuba. In this voyage, Jamaica and many small islands were discovered south of Cuba, but Columbus did not have to make sure of the island character of which, however, contrary winds and the poor condition of the ships forced him to turn back. Returning to Isabella, Columbus was delighted by the arrival of his brother Bartholomew, with three courts, but also saddened by strife among the Spaniards and unrest among the oppressed Indians. Part of the dissatisfied Spaniards managed to return to their homeland without permission and insist there on sending a special commissioner to Hispaniola to investigate cases. Columbus decided to personally defend his actions and went to Spain.
In February 1493, while sailing to Europe from the Americas, the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus began writing a letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. In it, he described his first impressions of the landscape and the people he encountered on his way to the New World.
Mystery of the Columbus letter
Columbus's letter was republished and widely distributed throughout Europe, helping all the inhabitants of the Old World to learn more about his discoveries. Only a few original copies of these editions have survived today. Thanks to a joint US-Italian investigation, one of these rare documents, stolen from a library in Florence, Italy and replaced with a high-quality copy, was recently found in the collection of the US Library of Congress. According to Italian experts, this copy is worth about $ 1 million. The letter was returned to the Italian authorities.
What did the navigator describe in his letter
“I discovered many islands inhabited by people,” Columbus wrote in his letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. “I have taken possession of them for our fortunate king by making a public proclamation and unfolding his standard. No one expressed any resistance." After describing the fertile lands and abundant natural resources, Columbus spoke about the population he encountered. He saw the native population as "shy and timid, unsophisticated and honest" and expressed the hope that they "may become Christian and inclined to love the king and queen and all the people of Spain". 
Columbus's letter was printed and distributed to different languages throughout Europe. Originally written in Spanish, it was republished in Latin translation by the Roman printer Stephen Planck. Eleven editions appeared in 1493, and six more in 1494-1497. It is assumed that no more than eighty copies have survived to this day.
Counterfeit detection
Back in 2012, Department of Homeland Security Investigators received intelligence that one of Planck's Latin copies had been stolen from a library in Florence, Italy and replaced with a fake. One of the researchers was studying the library's collection when he accidentally discovered a letter tied together with other documents and suspected it was a fake. Around the same time, the National Library in Rome announced that its copy of the 1493 letter had also been stolen and replaced with a forgery. 
Subsequent investigations by US and Spanish officials confirmed that the letter found in the Florence library was in fact a high-quality photocopy, lacking the library's original stamp and the various stitching patterns found on other copies of the original. After confirming the forgery, the agents began to look for the loss. Although they did not know the circumstances of the theft, they were able to determine that rare book was sold in Switzerland back in 1990. Two years later, the document was sold at an auction in New York for $300,000. The letter is currently valued at $1.1 million by Italian authorities. The collector who bought the letter at auction donated it to the Library of Congress back in 2004. 
Work of experts in Washington
The investigation then moved to Washington, where agents worked with library staff and experts to determine the document's authenticity. They found traces of chemical bleach on one of the pages, suggesting that someone was trying to hide the origin of this book by removing the Florence library stamp. Given this and other research findings, the experts concluded that the letter was in fact the original that Planck printed in 1493.
The reaction of the officials of the two countries
The investigation into the theft is still ongoing, but the letter itself was returned to Italy last week, and it was presented to the Italian press during a repatriation ceremony and a press conference held in the library of Rome. The Italian Minister of Culture commented on the situation: "It is interesting that 500 years after the letter was written, it made a trip back and forth from America." 
US Ambassador to Italy John Phillips, who attended the ceremony, called it "a landmark event that shows the level of friendship and cooperation between the two countries." Mr. Phillips did not comment on how Columbus's letter ended up in his country's library of congress. However, United States officials said they purchased the letter from a collector and were unaware of its dubious provenance.
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
origin mystery
The world-famous navigator Christopher Columbus was born into a poor Genoese family in Italy on October 29, 1451 on the island of Corsica - the then possession of the Republic of Genoa. According to another version, the discoverer was born on May 20, 1506 in the Spanish town of Valladolid. In fairness, it should be noted that today 6 cities of both countries dispute the honor of being the birthplace of Columbus.
In his youth, Christopher studied at the University of Pavia, and in 1470 
marries the daughter of the famous navigator Don Felipe Moniz de Palestrello. Bartolome de Las Casas, a contemporary of Christopher Columbus, described his portrait as follows: “He was tall, above average, his face was long and respectful, his nose was aquiline, his eyes were bluish-gray, his skin was white, with redness, his beard and mustache were reddish in his youth. , but in the works they turned gray.
But let us return once again to the question of the origin of Columbus. One Spanish legend says that the navigator was the illegitimate son of the Spanish prince De Vian, and pretended to be a commoner so as not to discredit his father's honor. According to this or another version, Columbus was born in Mallorca and hid the secret of his origin, because. in his youth, in the person of the captain of a corsair ship, he fought against the king of Aragon, the father of the founder of the Spanish state, Ferdinand.
The Italian Encyclopedia states that the Jewish origin of Christopher Columbus is a well-known fact. This version can be disputed by assuming that the so-called "crypto-Jews" (Jews who outwardly observed Christianity) lived in medieval Mallorca, and this explains the presence of "Jewish motives" in the notes of Columbus. By the way, an analysis of Columbus's notes established that the navigator never used the Italian language in his letters, and the stylistic character and handwriting indicate that he was a well-educated and cultured person, and not a self-taught commoner who accidentally discovered the New World.
And, finally, confirmation in favor of the "Jewish" version is the data of Spanish and Portuguese historians, who report that Columbus was a baptized Jew and had nothing to do with Italy, and therefore was engaged in cartography and calligraphy - Jewish professions characteristic of that era.
The development of the world and the youth of Columbus
In the second half of the 15th century, throughout Western Europe, big cities, trade developed, money became a universal medium of exchange, which sharply increased the demand for gold. The latter, the Spaniards believed, could be found in large quantities in India. The development of trade forced many countries to think about new ways of marketing - for example, Portugal was looking for southern sea and western routes. At the same time, in the era of the European Renaissance, theories about the sphericity of the Earth began to appear.
In 1474, the astronomer and geographer Paolo Toscanelli wrote to Columbus about his assumption that India could be reached through the West. Christopher Columbus, who moved to Savona in 1472, already then began to make plans for his sea expeditions, in particular, he was interested in traveling to India. Taking into account the opinion of Toscanelli, Christopher decided to sail to India through the Canary Islands, from which, according to his calculations, about 5 thousand km remained to Japan.
In 1476, Columbus settled in Portugal in order to be closer to information sources about the planned sea routes. For 10 years of his residence in Portugal, the discoverer managed to visit England, Guinea, Ireland and Iceland - also in order to collect more data on lands in the West.
Illuminated by the thirst for new discoveries, Columbus hastened to communicate his decision to sail to India to the government of his native Genoa, but they ignored his initiative. In 1483, Columbus tried to get approval for his project through Juan II, but the Portuguese king also refused the young navigator. Then Columbus, together with his son Diego, moved to Spain, where in the winter of 1485-1486. settled in the monastery of Santa Maria da Rabida in the status of a beggar.
Many historians believe that Columbus was hiding from his pursuers, and in Spain he received, so to speak, political asylum. Father Abbot of the monastery Juan Perez de Marchena not only saved Columbus from starvation, but also, having familiarized himself with Christopher's bright ideas regarding the transformation of the world, wrote a letter to his friend Fernando de Talavera, the confessor of the Queen of Spain. At that time, the king of Spain was extremely busy - he was preparing for war with Granada in the city of Cordoba. Columbus spent the next year in vain attempts to establish contacts with royal financial advisers, merchants and bankers. Finally, in the winter of 1486, the navigator was introduced to the Archbishop of Toledo and the Grand Cardinal of Spain, Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza. The cardinal facilitated an audience with the Spanish king, after which the project was studied by theologians, lawyers, cosmographers, monks and even courtiers for about a year, who eventually rejected the ideas of Columbus, considering his requests to be overly arrogant, and his ideas unrealistic.
In 1488, Columbus received a letter from the Portuguese king, in which he urged him to return to the country and solemnly promised to stop all persecution of his person. In the same year, Columbus received another good letter from King Henry VII of England, who approved of Christopher's ideas for a trip to India, but did not promise or offer anything concrete.
All of Western Europe was busy preparing for the coming war, and not a single government dared to sponsor an experimental project. The latest confirmation of this was the comments of the kings of Castile, Isabella and Ferdinand: "In view of the enormous costs and efforts required to wage war, the start of a new enterprise is not possible."
In January 1492, a joyful event took place - the capture of the Alhambra fortress. Granada fell and the war ended successfully in victory for Spain. Columbus was waiting for this moment, inspired, he came to the king of Spain and offered to appoint himself viceroy of the new lands, award the title of Chief Admiral of the Sea-Ocean, and all this under the banner of discovery and ownership of new lands. His Majesty opposed such insolence, calling Christopher's demands "excessive and unacceptable", and disrupted the negotiations on an unfriendly note.
In 1492, Columbus made a statement about migration to France - apparently for reasons 
try to negotiate with the French king. And then Queen Isabella of Castile unexpectedly takes a step forward: impressed by the idea of liberating the Holy Sepulcher, she offers to pawn her jewelry in order to give money to Columbus for his journey. On April 30, 1492, the royal couple appoints Columbus as their nobleman and announces that if his expedition succeeds, Christopher will officially become Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and Viceroy of all the lands that he discovers. He also has the right to pass on his titles by inheritance. However, royal jewels were not enough for a full-fledged overseas equipment. The queen did not receive taxes from her people, and Columbus himself, who did not have a penny, had to pay 13% of the expenses for the expedition.
Columbus was helped to scrape together the amount to pay off his share by his friend Martin Alonso Pinson, who gave him his own fully equipped ship, the Pinta, as well as money for a second and third ship. As you know, the funds for the 3rd ship were issued under the guarantee of Martin by local marranos - at the expense of their budgetary payments.
The beginning of discoveries
Over the next 12 years, Christopher Columbus undertook as many as 4 expeditions by decree of the King of Spain. Columbus recorded his impressions and new information about the world obtained from his travels in a logbook, part of which was copied by Bartolome de Las Casas. Thanks to these surviving copies, many details of the expeditions have survived to this day.
So, on the first expedition, traveling with his three ships - Pinta, Santa Maria and Nina, 
and a team of 90 people, Columbus discovered America. New lands, the islands of the Caribbean (Bahamas, Haiti and Cuba), Christopher at first considered East Asia. More for a long time Europeans seriously called them "Western India", because the islands had to sail to the West, as opposed to India and Indonesia proper, which in Europe were called "East India". Despite the confusion, after the first significant journey of Columbus began the expansion of Spain into the New World.
The second flotilla of Christopher consisted of 17 ships and a crew of about 2000 people - sailors, priests, officials, service nobles, courtiers. Animals were accommodated on several ships - a large cattle, donkeys, horses, pigs. Also, people brought with them the seeds of agricultural crops for the settlement of future lands. This time Haiti was completely conquered: having barely landed on the shore, the Europeans began to mercilessly exterminate the local population. During the second expedition, almost the entire coast of Cuba was explored - the Lesser Antilles, the Virgin Islands, the islands of Puerto Rico, Jamaica. At the same time, Columbus continued to believe that he was in Western India.
Little money was found for the third voyage, so Columbus' flotilla consisted of only 
of 6 ships and 300 crew members, which also included Spanish criminals. Believing that gold could be found closer to the equator, on May 30, 1498, Columbus left the mouth of the Guadalquivir River with his flotilla and decided to stay closer to the South. Three ships went from the Canary Islands towards Haiti, and three more Columbus led to the South-West, to the Cape Verde Islands. Two months after the start of the third expedition, Columbus discovered the island of Trinidad and, without stopping there, went around it from the South, ending up in the Orinoco Delta and the Gulf of Paria. Not having time to complete the exploration of nearby lands, the navigator fell seriously ill and was forced to turn north, to Santo Domingo.
Having sailed to Haiti, Christopher Columbus discovered that the colonists had raised an armed rebellion against Bartolome during his absence. As a result, Columbus had to go for the introduction of a system of enslavement of the Indians for the rebellious colonists, each of whom was given a solid piece of land.
While Columbus dealt with the colonists, the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama opened the sea route to the real India. Returning from India with a cargo of spices, Vasco began to denounce Columbus that he was a deceiver, and the lands he had discovered were not India at all. The Spanish royal treasury did not receive income from its new colony for a long time and in 1499 abolished Columbus' monopoly on the discovery of lands. A year later, the royal couple, suspecting Columbus of a conspiracy against the country and an exceptional desire to seize new lands themselves, sent their representative Francisco Bovadilla to Haiti. He took all the power on the island into his own hands, arrested Christopher Columbus along with his brothers, put them in shackles and delivered them to Spain. However, rather quickly, local financiers managed to convince the king to drop the charges against the navigator.
Columbus did not tend to give up even in a very difficult situation. He obtained permission from the king for a new expedition, justifying this with a desire to find a way from the lands he had discovered to South Asia. Once, observing a strong sea current off the coast of Cuba, going west through the Caribbean Sea, Columbus realized that such a path exists.
On the fourth expedition, he took with him his 13-year-old son Hernando and his brother Bartolome. During the last expedition, Christopher discovered Central America - the mainland south of Cuba, proving that the Atlantic Ocean separates from the South Sea, as the Indians called it, "an insurmountable barrier." Columbus also became the first to tell about the Indian peoples who inhabited the shores of the South Sea.
Death and eternal memory
Upon returning to Seville, Columbus was very seriously ill. He did not have the strength and former energy to seek the restoration of his rights and privileges from the kings, and he spent all the money on travel comrades. On May 20, 1506, the last words of the great navigator were: “Into your hands, Lord, I entrust my spirit,” and in the same year he was buried in Seville. Interestingly, after the death of Columbus, Emperor Charles V took the initiative to fulfill the dying wish of the navigator and bury him in Western India. The ashes of Columbus in 1540 were first delivered to Haiti in Santo Domingo, then, at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, part of the islands passed from the Spaniards to the French, and the ashes were transported to Cuba in the Cathedral of Havana. After the Spaniards were expelled from Havana in 1889, the ashes of the navigator were again returned to Santo Domingo, and then to Seville.
Like most geniuses, Columbus was recognized only after his death, when in the middle of the 16th century, after the conquest of Mexico, Peru and the states in the north of the Andes, ships with a huge amount of silver and gold went to Europe.
El Salvador's currency was named after Christopher Columbus (Cristóbal Colón in Spanish) 
- Salvadoran colon. On all issued denominations of all years and all denominations on reverse side a portrait of a young or elderly Columbus was placed. Also named in honor of the navigator: the state in South America Colombia, Mount Cristobal Colon in Colombia, District of Columbia in the USA, British Columbia in Canada, Columbia River in the USA and Canada, Columbia Pictures, cities in the USA Columbus and Columbia, shuttle Columbia, ISS module Columbus, city in the Panama Canal zone Colón, province in Panama Colón, Department in Honduras Colón, Argentinian football club from Santa Fe Colon, the main opera house of Argentina, the Colon Theater, the Columbus Theater in the book by Ilf and Petrov "12 Chairs".
Current page: 33 (total book has 37 pages)
I was especially distressed by the fact that a person was sent to me to conduct an investigation, who was well versed in the fact that if the conclusions of this investigation turned out to be unfavorable for me, then he would remain the ruler.
Had it pleased God that Their Highnesses had sent Bobadilla, or any other, two years earlier, I am convinced that I would now be delivered from reproach and dishonor. My honor would have been intact and much would not have been lost. God is just, and by his grace it will become known by whom and for what exactly all this is being done.
In Castile I am judged as if I were the ruler of Sicily, or of a city, or of a settlement, with an established mode of government (puesto en regimento), where the laws can be fully respected, without fear of losing everything; I was deeply offended. I must be judged as a military leader who came from Spain to India to conquer warlike and numerous peoples, with customs and beliefs very different from our peoples, living in forests and mountains, without permanent settlements. Here, by the will of God, I gave into the possession of the king and queen, our lords, another world, whereby Spain, which yesterday was reputed to be poor, has now become the richest [country in the world].
I must be judged as a military leader who from ancient times to this day bears weapons without taking them off for one hour, and I must be judged by knights of the sword and men of action, and not by letter-eaters, unless they are Greeks and Romans, or in our time men like them from among so numerous and so noble men of Spain. Any other judgment will cause me great offense, for in the Indies there are neither cities nor settlements.
Now the gates are open to gold and pearls, and it is safe to expect an influx of precious stones and spices and a thousand other things. And if this great misfortune did not befall me, I could make a great journey in the name of God, I could establish relations with all Happy Arabia, right up to Mecca, as I wrote to their highnesses with Antonio de Torres, answering the [request] for the division of the sea and lands with Portugal, after which I could reach Calicut, as I spoke about in the monastery of Mehorada.
As for the gold that I was supposed to give to their highnesses, the news of it came to me on Christmas day, when I was very depressed by the struggle with bad Christians and Indians and was ready to give up everything in order to save my life. Then the Lord comforted me miraculously and said to me: “Be of good cheer! Don't be discouraged, don't be afraid; I foresaw everything, the seven years of the time set for finding gold have not yet passed, and in this and in everything you will be rewarded. On this day I learned that 80 leagues of land had been discovered and there were deposits everywhere in it; but now it turned out that all that land was a continuous mine: some in one day collected gold for 70 castellano, others for 120, it came to the point that they collected 250 castellano a day.
A collection of 50–60 castellanos (and some have 15 to 50 castellanos) is considered a good day's booty, and many continue to collect as much; on average, it is mined in the amount of 6 to 12 castellano, and those who collect less are unhappy. Everyone is sure that even the whole of Castile will come here, everyone, even the most inexperienced person, will be able to collect gold here daily for at least 1 or 2 castellano. And now the situation remains the same. True, each of them has an Indian with him, but the whole enterprise rests on Christians.
Now see how wise Bobadilla was in giving away everything for free, including a tithe worth one cuento; at the same time, no one demanded these distributions from him, but he did not inform even their highnesses about this. But not only in this damage caused to them.
I know that the mistakes were not made by me with malicious intent, and I hope that Their Highnesses will believe what I say. I see and know that they will be merciful to one who, by the machinations of [enemies], has been removed from the service of kings. I believe, and I am quite sure of it, that Their Highnesses will treat me better and show more indulgence, knowing that I made mistakes through ignorance or coercion, and so they will do when they find out about everything afterwards. After all, I am their humble servant, they themselves will appreciate my work and the benefits that each day of my service brought them. All of them will weigh, as the Holy Scripture teaches us, which says that on the day of the Last Judgment both good and evil will be compared.
If they nevertheless order others to try me, which I do not expect, and order an investigation to be carried out in the Indies, I implore them in the humblest manner to send two trustworthy and respected persons there at my expense, and they, I am sure, will easily establish what is now going to in Hispaniola, five marks of gold in 4 hours. Be that as it may, it is necessary that the truth be established.
Arriving in Santo Domingo, the commander settled in my house and appropriated everything he found there. Well, goodbye! Perhaps he needed it. A pirate would never do that to a merchant. I feel especially sorry for my papers: I didn’t manage to get any of them back, and he hid away those papers that I needed most for justification.
What a fair and worthy investigator! Everything he did was, as everyone tells me, a violation of the law and a manifestation of despotism. Our Lord, all-powerful and all-knowing, always punishes evil, especially ingratitude and excesses.
[Translated from text printed in Hakluyt Society, v. 70, Select documents illustrating the four voyages of C. Columbus, London, 1933, and checked against the text of that document, cited in Raccolta, parte I, v. II, p. 64–74.]
FOURTH JOURNEY
Instruction of the King and Queen to Christopher Columbus [Organization of the fourth voyage]
To King and Queen [to] Don Christopher Columbus, our admiral of the islands and the mainland that lie in the sea-ocean towards the Indies, we inform you: what you must do, in the name of God, on the journey on which you are embarking at our command, consists of the following:
First of all, you must prepare the ships for sailing as soon as possible, since everything that was necessary to prepare for your departure has already been prepared, and the people who will go with you have received a salary, and now is the most favorable time for sailing, and so the long journey you are about to embark on must begin before winter comes.
You must follow the direct route in your navigation, unless contrary winds prevent you, in order to discover the islands and the mainland that lie in the Indies, in the part that belongs to our possessions. And if it pleases God that you make a discovery or find these islands, then you should anchor near them and enter the shores of these islands and the mainland, as far as possible ensuring the safety of your stay there for you and for the people you take with you. .
And you must, for us and in our name, take possession of these islands and the mainland that you discover, and tell us how large these islands are, and draw up a memorandum about them and about the people inhabiting them, and about what they are, so that we can have a full account of everything.
On the islands and mainland that you will discover, you must learn everything about gold, silver, pearls, precious stones and spices and other valuables that are there, and establish how much they are and what their origin is. And about everything you must draw up a report, sealed with the signature of our notary and official, whom we command to go with you on the road so that we can check everything that is on these islands and the mainland.
You must order on our behalf that no one dare exchange for any goods or other things gold, silver, pearls, spices and other valuables, of whatever kind they may be, with the exception of those items that you personally indicate and outline in the presence of our notary and an official who is to write down the names of all those who participate in the auction, and oblige them to honestly and conscientiously present to you and the specified notary everything that they acquire, and so that nothing is hidden at the same time . And let it be known to everyone that for every hidden thing, the guilty will be punished and they will be deprived of all their property and our favors.
Everything that is mined and acquired in these islands and the mainland - whether gold, silver, pearls, precious stones and spices or other valuables - must be handed over to Francisco de Porras in your presence and in the presence of our notary and official whom we send , and who must keep a book to record everything that is being handed over. And this book will be signed by you and our notary and the person who receives the valuables, so that the maintenance of this book and the preparation of the report will be the responsibility of the aforementioned Francisco de Porras, and so that we know how much is surrendered to him.
Of the people you take with you, you must leave on the islands that you open, such as you see fit to set aside for this purpose. And you must see to it that they are well provided for and that they remain safe.
All captains, maestres, sailors, pilots, warriors who are on ships sailing with you are obliged to obey your orders and carry them out as if these orders were given by us. But you must treat these people as persons in our service, and from the day you arrive, you must resolve all cases, civil and criminal, relating to these people. And we command them to obey you in accordance with what was said about it.
In addition, if God so wills, and you happen to return, you are obliged to arrive together with our notary and officer mentioned, and you must give us the most complete and detailed account of everything that you discover, and of the peoples inhabiting the islands and the mainland, which you will find. And you must not bring slaves; but if anyone wishes to go voluntarily to Castile as an interpreter, in order to return later, you may take him with you.
In the same way, considering that nothing should be hidden by the people who are on the ships, it is necessary that before you sail you oblige everyone to show everything that he brought to the ship. And it is incumbent on our notary and official to draw up an inventory of property, which should be signed by you and him: thanks to this, when you, if God wills, land [in Castile], it will be possible to establish whether people have more property on ships than they have previously indicated. And everything that they [secretly] bring will be taken from them and will go to our treasury, and besides that, they will be punished, which was mentioned above.
Everything that is said here, we order you to carry out and perform according to this instruction, without deviating from it in anything. And if, in order to replenish our treasury, it is necessary to do something in excess of what was discussed above, it is necessary to do it in such a way that our benefit is best observed, because we give you authority for this by our instructions.
And we command the aforementioned captains, maestra, sailors, pilots and soldiers to do everything that you order them on our behalf, in accordance with this instruction of ours, under pain of punishments that you determine and assign to them on our behalf. And we give you the authority to apply this right both to them personally and to their property.
I am a king;
I am queen.
By order of the king and queen
- Miguel Perez de Guzman.
[The translation is based on the text of a document printed in Сolección de los documentos inèditos… de Indias]
Letter from Columbus to the King and Queen of Jamaica 392
A copy of the letter written by Don Christopher Columbus, Viceroy and Admiral of the Indies, to the most Christian and all-powerful king and queen of Spain, our masters, and in which he notifies them of what happened during his journey, and tells about the lands, regions, cities, rivers and other curiosities and about where there are deposits of gold in large quantities, and about other treasures and values
Columbus's letter to the kings of Spain, which tells the story of his fourth voyage, was written on the island of Jamaica on July 7, 1503. In 1505, an Italian translation appeared in Venice called "The Rarest Letter" (Lettera rarissima). The Spanish text of this letter was first published by Navarrete in his Coleccion de los viajes y descubrimientos, t. I. Navarrete (as well as the compilers of subsequent collections of documents relating to Columbus) used a copy that is kept in the National Library of Madrid.
This letter was written by Columbus at the time when he, having completed a difficult and long voyage off the coast of Central America, arrived in Jamaica and was forced to remain on this island, since his ships could no longer continue their journey. Sick, exhausted by a long transition, the admiral at that time was no longer the ruler of the lands he had discovered. Three years ago, he lost the post of viceroy and ruler of the Indies and remained only the owner of high-profile titles, with which real income items and real rights to manage "islands and the mainland in the sea-ocean" were no longer associated. This letter indicates that the geographical concepts of Columbus remained unchanged during his fourth voyage.
Just like ten years ago, he continues to assert that the newly discovered lands are the southeastern shores of Asia. In Veragua, that is, in present-day Panama, he is looking for the mines of King Solomon, and he still calls Cuba the land of Manga, or Mago, that is, the southern province of "Cataya". As before, as in the old days, Columbus dreams of the gold of the newly discovered lands. Genuine pathos breathes those lines of his letter, where he sings of gold - “Gold is perfection. Gold creates treasures, and whoever owns it can do whatever he wants, and is even able to enter human souls into paradise. Here Columbus appears before us as a singer of the "idyllic" era of primitive accumulation, the era when, in a feverish pursuit of gold, bands of conquistadors ravaged and drowned the lands of the New World in blood.
The bitterness of experienced hardships and wounded pride determine the manner and style of this letter. Reproaches against countless enemies, transparent allusions to the ingratitude of the king and queen are replaced by confused descriptions of the path traveled and references to biblical texts. Sometimes it seems that the mind refuses to serve Columbus. His speech becomes incoherent, like the babble of a holy fool. A more complete picture of the fourth voyage is given by the following sources: “The History of the Life of Admiral” Ferdinand Columbus, who accompanied his father on this voyage, the report of the notary of the Columbus flotilla - Diego de Porras, the testament of Diego Mendez, a participant in this voyage (which we place in this book), “History Indium" by Las Casas and "Decades of the New World" by Peter Martyr. All these authors are contemporaries of the events of the era of great discoveries.
FROM the noblest, highest and almighty sovereigns, the king and queen, our lords. From Cadiz I reached Canaria in four days, and from there to India in 16 days. 393
Columbus left Cadiz on May 9, 1502. His flotilla consisted of four ships: the flagship - "Captains" (Captain Diego Tristan, later killed in a skirmish with the Indians), "Santiago de Palos" (Captain Francisco de Porras), "Gallega" ( Captain Pedro de Terreros) and "Viscaynes" (Captain Genoese Bartolomeo Fresco or Fieschi). The flotilla arrived in Gran Canaria on 20 May and reached the Indies on 15 June.
From the Indies, I wrote that I intended to speed up the voyage, while my ships were in good condition and there were people and equipment, and that my route lay to the island of Jamaica.
I wrote this on the island of Dominica 394
It is not known whether Columbus visited Dominica on this voyage. None of the participants in this trip, who left notes about it, mentions Dominica. Some of them indicate that Columbus proceeded from the Canary Islands to Martinique, while others believe that the first island in the Indies, which the flotilla approached, was Guadalupe.
Before I arrived in Dominica, the weather left nothing to be desired. But on the night when I arrived there, a storm broke out and, moreover, of great force, and since then the bad weather has pursued me constantly.
Arriving in Hispaniola, I sent letters and asked that they show me mercy and at my expense give me a new ship, because one of my ships became unseaworthy and could not carry sails.
These letters have been sent, and your highnesses will know about everything if the said messages are delivered into your hands.
I was ordered, on behalf of the local authorities, not to approach the shore and not to land on land. 395
Shortly before going on his last voyage, Columbus asked Ferdinand and Isabella for permission to move to Hispaniola. The king and queen refused this request and ordered the governor of the island not to allow Columbus to land on the shores of Hispaniola. The local authorities on Hispaniola did just that, and Columbus was deprived of the opportunity to revisit the island he had discovered.
The people who were with me lost heart, for they were afraid that I would carry them further. They said that if danger befell them, no one would be able to help them; moreover, they will be treated badly 396
The notary of the flotilla, Diego de Porras, indicates that three sailors from the Gallega crew fled the ship and took refuge on the island.
Each of them claimed that the commander 397
Nicholas Ovando, commander of Lares, of the spiritual order of Alcantara from April 1502 to 1509 - governor of the Indies. A cruel and unscrupulous ruler who, at the cost of exterminating and enslaving the Indians, established Spanish rule in Hispaniola. For more details on his activities, see the afterword "Discovery of America and the birth of a system of exploitation of its indigenous population."
[Ovando] wants to keep the lands that I will open. The storm was terrible, and that night it scattered all my ships 398
It was a hurricane of unprecedented strength that destroyed the flotilla in the Antilles waters, which went to Spain under the command of Antonio de Torres. During this hurricane, the sworn enemies of Columbus, Bobadilla and Roldan, died on the ships of the Torres flotilla. Columbus considered their death "God's punishment."
People went to the extreme, having lost all hope of salvation, and waited for death. On each of the ships it was thought that all the other ships were lost. Wouldn’t any mortal in my place, even if he were Job, fall into despair, seeing that at the hour when it was a question of my salvation and the salvation of my son, brother, friends, it was forbidden for me to approach the land, to the harbors, which I acquired by the providence of God for Spain in a bloody sweat!?
So, I will tell about the ships that the storm took away from me, leaving me alone. The Lord was pleased to return them to me. The "faulty" ship mentioned above 399
The “faulty” ship is probably the caravel “Santiago de Palos”.
He was taken to the sea, and this turned out to be a salvation for him from death. Near the island, "Gallega" lost the boat, and all the ships - most of the supplies they had on them. The ship on which I was, although it was thrown in all directions, the Lord saved, and it did not suffer any damage. On the unseaworthy ship was my brother, and after God, he had the honor of saving the ship.
It was with great difficulty that I made it to Jamaica in that storm. Then the storm subsided, the sea calmed down, and a strong current carried me to the Queen's Garden, and the land did not come across on the way. From there, at the first opportunity, I headed for the mainland, where contrary winds and strong currents met. I fought them for 60 days and still got no more than 70 leagues.
During all these days I never entered the harbors and could not enter them, and the storm did not stop, the rain, thunder and lightning continued uninterruptedly, so that it seemed as if the doomsday had come.
I reached Cape Gracias a Dios [Thanks be to God], and then the Lord sent me favorable winds and currents. It was September 12th.
For 88 days, a terrible storm did not stop - such a force that both the sun and the stars were hidden from view.
The ships began to leak, the sails were torn, the rigging and anchors were lost, boats, ropes and a lot of equipment perished. The people were afflicted with ailments and dejected, many turned to religion, and there was no one left who would not make some kind of vow or undertake to make a pilgrimage. Often people confessed their sins to each other. They often had to see storms, but not so protracted and cruel. Many of those who seemed strong in spirit fell into despondency, and so it was throughout this time.
The illness of the son who was with me tormented my soul, and it was all the more bitter for me to realize that at the tender age of thirteen he had to endure great hardships for such a long time. But God gave him such strength that he inspired everyone else and behaved as if he had spent 80 years sailing. He comforted me too, but I fell seriously ill and more than once was close to death. From a small superstructure, which I ordered to be built on deck, I directed the course of the ship.
My brother was on a ship that was in great danger. Great was my grief, and I experienced it with particular acuteness, for I took him with me against his will.
Such is my fate - twenty years of service, spent in labors and dangers, have brought me little benefit, for now I have no roof over my head in Castile, and there is nowhere for me to find food, except in a tavern or in a tavern, and often I have no a penny to pay the bill.
Another grief tore my heart - this is the concern for my son Don Diego, whom I left in Spain as an orphan, deprived of the honor and property taken from me, although I am sure that just and grateful sovereigns will compensate him with interest. 400
Diego Columbus was at that time a page at the royal court. As in other places, where Columbus complains about his poverty and deprivation, here he admits exaggerations when he says that his eldest son was left a homeless orphan.
I have reached the land of Kariai 401
Columbus speaks of the "land of Cariay" (tierra de Cariay) and is similarly mentioned by Diego de Porras. However, other historians - contemporaries of Columbus - indicate that this was the name of an Indian village on the coast of the mainland, near the island of Kiviri. The region or village of Cariay was located on the Mosquito Coast in present-day Honduras.
There is an extremely interesting remark about the country of Siamba from Peter Martyr, who says that this province was divided into two regions - Thaya and Maya. Here, for the first time, the word "Maya" is mentioned - the name of the people who inhabited the Yucatan Peninsula and part of the current Republic of Guatemala, whose culture amazes archaeologists. Columbus was not in Siamba, and he himself notes that he only heard about its gold mines from the Indians of the coastal area. The name Siamba itself is by no means Indian. In the time of Columbus, this was the name of the part of eastern Asia west of Sipango.
Where he lingered to repair damage to ships, replenish food supplies and give people rest, for they were exhausted by illnesses.
I myself, as I said before, was close to death more than once. Here I learned about the gold mines of the Siamba region, which I was looking for. Two Indians accompanied me to Karambara 402
Karambaru (by Diego de Porras and in the materials of the Columbus-Serevaro litigation) is an area on the Atlantic coast of the Republic of Panama, most likely the Chiriqui lagoon.
Where people were naked and wore golden mirrors around their necks, not wanting to sell or exchange them. I was told many places on the coast where they say there is gold and there are mines. The last of these places was Veragua, about 25 leagues from my camp.
I set out on my journey, intending to carefully explore all these places, but I had not gone halfway before I learned that there were gold mines at a distance of two days' march from here. I decided to send people there to get acquainted. On the eve of St. Simon and Judas, when they were about to go on a campaign, there was such a commotion on the sea that I had to sail at the behest of the wind. The Indian who was supposed to show the way to the mines was with me all the time.
In all the places I visited, I was convinced of the correctness of what I heard. This confirmed my opinion that there is a region of Siguare, which, judging by the descriptions of the Indians, lies to the west, nine days from our journey. They claim that there is gold without counting and people in those places wear large coral bracelets on their arms and legs and cover tables, chairs and caskets with coral mosaics. They also said that women in those places wear coral necklaces that hang from their heads on their shoulders. About everything that is said here, people in these places were of the same opinion and told me so much that I could be satisfied with a tenth of everything they said.
They all know pepper. In Siguara, fairs and markets are customary. The local people told me about this and showed me how barter is conducted there. They also said that there were pawnshops on the ships in that direction, arrows and bows, swords and cuirasses, and that people there were dressed and owned beautiful houses, and that there were horses, and these horses they used during the war, and that many of them wear rich robes. They reported that the sea washes Siguare and that the river Ganges flows from it ten days' journey. Siguare seems to be in the same position in relation to Veragua as Tortosa is to Fuenterrabia or Pisa is to Venice. 403
Veragua is a region in the eastern part of the current Republic of Costa Rica and in the western part of the Republic of Panama, located on the Atlantic coast. It is named after one of the local rivers. The name is of Indian origin, although in the Spanish transmission it probably sounds quite different than in the language of its native inhabitants. In the description of the country of Siguare, echoes of the news that reached Columbus about the lands of the Mayan people are felt. The name is inexplicable, although there have been attempts to prove that Columbus used the geographical nomenclature of Marco Polo. There is no doubt, however, that when describing this country, Columbus was sure that it was located in Asia ("the river Ganges flows from it ten days' journey"). It is extremely curious that Columbus, speaking of the country of Siguara, notes that from the west it is washed by the sea. A comparison of its opposite shores with the relative location of Tortosa and Fuenterrabia, and Pisa, and Venice indicate that Columbus considered the newly discovered lands to be a peninsula of Southeast Asia, protruding into the Great Gulf (Sinus Magnus) of the Indian Ocean.
When I left Karambaru and arrived at the places in question, I found the same customs among the people here. But they gave gold mirrors for three rattles, although these mirrors were equal in weight to 10-15 ducats. The customs of these people are the same as those of Hispaniola. They collect gold in various ways, although all these methods are nothing compared to those used by Christians.
Everything I say here, I have heard with my own ears. I know that in 1494 I sailed on the line of 24 degrees west to the limit of nine hours and could not make a mistake because I watched eclipses 404
The meaning of this paragraph is as follows: being on the parallel of 24 ° N. sh. Columbus reached 135° W. e. from the point of departure; a time difference of nine hours corresponds exactly to 135°. Of course, Columbus is wrong in his calculations. In 1494, while sailing off the coast of Hispaniola, he was only at a distance of 70-71 ° from Cadiz, and the time difference between this point and the place where his ships were located did not exceed five hours. However, in the description of the second trip, Las Casas notes that Columbus, during a lunar eclipse in September 1494, determined the time difference between Cadiz and the point where he was observing at 5 hours 23 minutes.
Further, we are talking here about the degree distances given by the ancient geographers Marin of Tire and Ptolemy. The unit of measurement - "line" - corresponds to the distance within which there is an hourly time difference. Therefore, with a normal degree grid, the "line" corresponds to 15 ° (360: 24). Marin assumed that the length (from west to east) of the earth's land is 225 °, or 15 lines, and Ptolemy, reducing this distance to 180 °, reduced it to 12 lines. The second part of the phrase, where it refers to Ethiopia, seems to be highly controversial, since there are discrepancies in various editions of this document.
The Sun was in the constellation Libra, the Moon was in the constellation Aries. Everything that I heard from the lips of people, I learned more from books. Ptolemy believed that he did the right thing by correcting Marin, and now the latter's statements are considered closer to the truth.
Ptolemy places Katigara 12 lines from his west, which he thinks is 2 ⅓ degrees from Cape San Vicente in Portugal. Marin included the Earth and its limits in the interval of 15 lines. Marin believed that Ethiopia extended beyond the equator by 24 degrees, and now, when the Portuguese began to swim in those places, his opinion was fully confirmed. Ptolemy says that the southernmost land must be 15 ⅓ degrees lower. The world is small. Of its seven parts, six are occupied by dry land, and only the seventh is covered by water.
All this has now been proven by experience, and I wrote about it in other letters with references to the Holy Scripture and the authorities of the Holy Church regarding the location of the earthly paradise. 405
See the letter to the king and queen about the results of the third voyage.
And I say that the world is not great, contrary to the opinions of ignorant people, and that there are 56 ⅔ miles in one degree of the equatorial line. This can be proven very easily. However, I will leave it at that, for it is not my intention to speculate on such subjects; I desire only one thing: to give an account of my difficult and vicissitudes voyage, which at the same time turned out to be the noblest enterprise, promising huge benefits 406
The essence of this paragraph is that Columbus determines the length of Ethiopia (Africa), going from north to south, at 39 ⅓ ° (24 ° north of the equator and 15 ⅓ ° south of the equator). Above, he gives estimates of the latitudinal extent of the world then known to Europeans (according to Marin 225 °, according to Ptolemy 180 °) and draws a curious conclusion - “the world is small” ... This place is extremely significant. In this statement, the whole essence of the geographical concept of Columbus, a symbol of his faith, for the sake of which he sometimes consciously, and sometimes unconsciously sacrifices the geographical data he received in practice. Indeed, if the length of the land is 225°, then the width of the ocean does not exceed 135°. Therefore, the distance from Cadiz to the eastern coast of Asia, traversed in a westerly direction by water, should not be more than 135 °. But, according to Columbus, Cuba and Veragua are parts of Asia. Consequently, neither one nor the other land can (because the pillars of ancient geography cannot be mistaken!) be at a distance of 70-80 ° from Spain. And although, observing an eclipse near Hispaniola in September 1494, Columbus found that the time difference between Cadiz and this island is 5 hours 23 minutes, but in this letter, in order not to undermine the authority of Marina Tire, he calculates the time difference in nine o'clock. In the Procrustean bed of the ancient conception, he thus mercilessly squeezes in the facts, distorting them at will.
Perhaps instinctively, Columbus feels that with his own voyages he dealt a crushing blow to the entire system of medieval geographical representations, that all of his Practical activities is a denial of the already outdated cosmographic hypotheses more than a thousand years ago. And so he resorts to the protection of Ptolemy and Marina of Tire to the authority of the “holy church” and by referring to biblical texts he tries to neutralize and interpret in the traditional manner the results of his own discoveries. It is extremely curious that Columbus considers the length of the “degree of the equatorial line” to be only 84 km (56 ⅔ Italian miles). Meanwhile, since the time of Eratosthenes it has been known that this value is equal to 110 km (apparently, Eratosthenes obtained this value of a degree by accident, since with his technique of measurement such accuracy could not be). Not only Greek, but also Arab scientists in their estimates of the length of the degree distance were close to the conclusions of Eratosthenes.
So, on the eve of the day of Simon and Judas, I was carried away by the will of the wind, and I was not able to resist it. In one of the harbors I took refuge for ten days, fleeing from the fury of the sea and the sky. There I decided not to return to the gold mines, considering that they had already been found in essence. As I moved on, it was raining. I arrived at the harbor of Food (Puerto de los Bastimentos) 407
Probably the same bay on the shores of which the city of Nombre de Dios was subsequently founded - the most important port of Spanish America and a transit point from where Castilian goods were transported by pack to the Pacific coast of the Isthmus of Panama and then sent to Peru and Chile. The admiral left this bay on November 23, 1503 and on November 26 entered Retrete Bay.
And I entered there not of my own free will - a storm and a strong current forced me to do this, and they kept me here for 14 days. Then I went on, but the weather was still bad. Before I had gone more than 15 leagues, the wind and the current began to drive me back with fury. Returning to the harbor from which I had just left, I discovered on the way the bay of Retrete 408
The bay of Retrete (literally - "latrine") is located to the east of Nombre de Dios. Apparently, this is the bay that now bears the name of the harbor of Escrivanos (the harbor of the Scribes). A passage 3–4 m deep leads into it, dotted with pitfalls. Its width varies from 30 to 100 m.
Which I entered when I was in great danger and when I was in great anxiety; and I and my people were extremely tired, and the ships were pretty battered.
Here I stayed 15 days, to which I was forced by severe bad weather; when it seemed to me that the storm was coming to an end, it broke out with renewed vigor. Here I changed my original intention - to return to the gold mines - and decided not to do anything until the weather was favorable for further sailing.
When I, again setting off to sea, went four leagues from the bay, a storm broke out, and it exhausted me so much that I no longer knew what to do. My wound has reopened 409
Las Casas notes that Columbus suffered from gout. It is difficult to say whether Columbus' illness was really caused by the wound, since neither the admiral himself in his previous letters, nor his contemporaries mention wounds and mutilations. Perhaps the word "wound" is used here figuratively.
For nine days I was as if lost, having lost hope that I would be able to survive.
No one has ever seen such a sea - stormy, menacing, heaving, covered with foam. The wind did not allow either to go forward or to land on any ledge of land. Here, in a blood-colored sea that boiled like water in a cauldron over a great fire, I lingered for a while.
I have never seen such a formidable sky. Day and night it blazed like a forge, and the lightning spewed out flames with such force that I often wondered how the masts and sails could have survived. The lightning flashed so brightly and was so terrible that everyone thought that the ships were about to sink. And all this time, the heavens continuously oozed water, and it seemed that it was not rain, but a true flood. And the people were so weary that they dreamed of death, wanting to get rid of such torments. Twice they lost ships, boats, anchors, ropes, and they were bare, because they lost their sails.
With God's permission, I returned to Gordo Bay, where I repaired the damage to the ships as best I could. Then he again went towards the land of Veragua.
In this voyage, although I decided on everything, to the extreme, contrary winds and currents annoyed me. I had already reached the very places where I had been before, but here again contrary winds and currents prevented me. I had to return to the harbor again, because I dared not wait any longer for the opposition of Saturn and Mars - we were already badly beaten on this dangerous coast. The opposition of the mentioned planets, in most cases, entails a storm and bad weather.
On Christmas Day, at Mass, I again returned to the place from which I had recently got out with such difficulty. When did it pass New Year I resumed the fight. And although by that time the weather had become good, the ships were unable to continue sailing, many people died, while others lay sick. On the day of the baptism, I arrived in Veragua completely lifeless. There the Lord sent me a river and a safe harbor 410
Columbus entered on January 6, 1504, into a bay lying at the mouth of the Guikure, or Iebra River (Las Casas calls this river the Iebra, Ferdinand Columbus - Guikure, Diego de Porras - Irebra). Now it is called Belen (Bethlehem).
; however, at the entrance to it, the depth was no more than ten spans.
I entered with great difficulty, but the next day the storm began again. If the storm had caught me beyond the bay, I could not have entered it because of the shallows. It rained non-stop until February, so there was no way to land or resupply. And so, when I already felt safe, on January 24, the water suddenly rose violently in the river. The anchor ropes were torn, the anchorages were destroyed, and the storm scattered the ships in all directions: they had never been in such great danger.
God help me, as he always did. I do not know if there is a person in the world who would endure great torment. On the 6th of February, in the rain, I sent 70 men inland, and five leagues from the coast they found much gold. The Indians who went with them led them to a high hill, and there, pointing to the surrounding countryside, they said that gold is everywhere and that the gold mines lie in the west, at a distance of twenty days' march, and they listed the names of all cities and villages, and in which direction there are a lot of them and in which there are few.
Then I learned that Cybian, who gave these Indians, ordered to show us only the distant mines belonging to his enemy, while in his own village any person could, if desired, collect in ten days such an amount of gold that he could hardly have been able to. carry the child. I am bringing with me the Indians, his subordinates, the witnesses of all this. Our boats reached the place where the village was located.
My brother returned with the Indians and with the people whom I sent ashore, and they all brought gold, and they collected it during their four hours in this village. The number was very, very large, especially considering that none of them [the people sent for gold] had seen before not only gold deposits, but also gold. Most were sailors, and they all served on ships as grumets. 411
For the Grumets, see the commentary "Ships Santa Maria, Nina, and Pinta."
I had a lot of materials for buildings and a lot of supplies. I founded a settlement here and generously endowed Kibian - that was the name of the ruler of these places. However, I realized that the agreement between the Indians and my people would be short-lived. The Indians are savages, our people are bold, and I have founded a settlement in the domain of Cybian. When he saw that we had built houses and carried on a brisk trade, he decided to burn the village and exterminate us all.
However, things did not turn out the way he wanted - he himself was captured, and with him his wives, sons and servants. Kibian, however, did not stay in prison for long. He and his sons managed to escape, although he was placed under the supervision of a man worthy of trust, and his sons were entrusted with the special care of the ship's master 412
More details about the capture of Kibian are reported in the will of Diego Mendez. Columbus admits that his companions were to blame for the clash with the Indians, but justifies the treacherous capture of Cybian by the Spaniards.
In January, the mouth of the river became impassable due to silt, and in April we found that the hulls of the ships were so worm-eaten that the ships could no longer float on the water.
At this time, a passage opened at the mouth of the river, through which, with great difficulty, three ships were able to get into the sea without any cargo. Then the boats returned along the river to stock up on salt and fresh water. On the sea, a commotion arose, and the sea became stormy, preventing the boats from leaving the river. The Indians fled in great numbers to the place where the boats were, and, attacking our people, killed them. My brother, and with him some of our sailors, were on the ship, which remained on the river.
Only I alone remained on the dangerous shore, tormented by a cruel fever, in a state of complete exhaustion, having lost all hope of avoiding death.
I climbed to the highest place on the ship and, shedding tears, my voice trembling with excitement, turning to all directions of the world, appealed for help to the commanders of your highnesses. But no one answered me.
Moaning, I fell asleep and heard a voice full of compassion, saying: “Oh, fool, not quick in matters of faith and in serving your Lord, the lord of all things! Did God do more for Moses or for his servant David? Since your birth, he has not left you with his worries. When you grew up and matured, which gave him satisfaction, he made it so that your name began to sound miraculously on Earth. India - the richest parts of the world - he gave you possession. You divided them as you pleased, and he gave you authority to do so.
He gave you the keys to the outpost of the Ocean, fastened with powerful chains, and subjugated so many lands to you, and among Christians you gained honor and glory. Did he do more for the people of Israel when he brought them out of Egypt, or for David when he turned them from a shepherd into a king of the Jews? Turn to him, and you will understand where your delusion lies. His mercy is boundless, your old age will not prevent you from doing great things.
Abraham was a hundred years old when he conceived Isaac, but Sarah was not a young girl either. You cry out in disbelief for help. Tell me, who caused you so much grief - God or light? God never breaks his vows or takes away his gifts. And he does not say, after the service is served to him, that his intentions were different and that he understands them differently now.
And he does not force him to endure torment in order to show his power. Not a single word of his will be in vain - and everything he promises is fulfilled with a vengeance. That is his custom. This is what your creator has done for you and what he is doing for everyone. Now he shows you what is the reward for the labors and dangers that you endured in the service of others. 413
Columbus in this place absolutely unequivocally reproaches Ferdinand and Isabella with black ingratitude. To give more credibility to his complaints, he invents a conversation with God, whom the admiral considers the inspirer of all profitable overseas enterprises.
As if in oblivion, I listened to all this, but I could not find words to answer such a truthful speech and only lamented my sins. And the one who spoke to me like that ended his speech, crying out - "cast aside fear, believe: all these hardships are written on marble and have their own reason."
I got up when I could, and at the end of nine days the weather was good, though not good enough to get the ships out of the river. I gathered all the people that were on land, and all the rest that I could gather, for there were not enough of them to keep a part of them in place while continuing the voyage. I myself would stay with my people to keep the settlement founded here, if it were possible to let your highnesses know about it.
