Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus is a very well know explorer for his feat of discovering the now called America. He was born in Italy, but lived in both Portugal and Spain, and patrons King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. He lived from 1451 to 1506, and was from a family impoverished family. His dad was a wool trader, and had 5 children. Christopher Columbus spent his early years traveling around. He went to Iceland when he was 16, and later sailed the seas as a pirate. His ship was sunk in a battle, so he swam back to shore and found his brother who was working as a cartographer in Lisbon. Christopher Columbus went and pleaded the King of France, the king of Britain and the King of Portugal, but they all denied. The only king who accepted his offer was King Ferdinand, and that was because a priest pleaded him and said that he could convert the people there to Christians. In 1492, Christopher Columbus leaves in search of the Indies. He leaves on 3 ships, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria, which was the ship Columbus boarded. They sailed west, and the first sight of land they saw was the island they called San Salvador, which was an island in the Bahamas. Christopher thought this was the Passage to china. Then, they sailed to Cuba, and the coast of Hispaniola. Christopher Columbus's ship sunk there, and he established the first settlement. In 1492, he returned to spain.