The Spanish monarchs were very hesitant in funding Columbus on his voyage for numerous reasons, but they came to the conclusion, with the help of a few acquaintances, that there could be much to gain and little to lose by helping him. Ferdinand and Isabella decided to support Columbus, because, if he succeeded, he could bring great wealth to Spain and could spread Christianity to the Eastern infidels; friars and court officials recommended recruiting him; and other countries were becoming more daring with their explorations, and Spain didn’t have many experienced sailors who wanted to go on these expeditions, so they had to support this venture for a chance to transform into the maritime leaders.
Ferdinand and Isabella decided to fund Columbus’
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He wouldn’t even be able to meet Isabella if it weren’t for Fray Juan Perez and Fray Antonio de Marchena. “Perez was taken by this idea and furnished Columbus with a letter of introduction to Marchena, a powerful man with a great interest in navigation and a respected reputation as an astronomer. Marchena even arranged Columbus’ first meeting with Queen Isabella.” (Stevens 17). The Talavera commission thought Columbus’ idea was unsound, and the Royal Council wanted Columbus to try, but his expectations and demands were too high. This led Isabella to reject Columbus proposal. But then, Luis de Santangel (Ferdinand’s keeper of the Privy Purse) requested permission to speak to Isabella (Stevens 20). He argued that Columbus’ mission was virtually certain to yield great wealth for Spain while exalting God and the church (Stevens 21). The queen was so impressed with Santangel’s enthusiasm and sincerity that she even offered to pledge her jewels in order to finance the Enterprise. The finance minister assured her that so great a sacrifice would not be necessary, and the monarchs finally approved the plan (Stevens 21). “Four miles outside of the Spanish camp a messenger caught up with Columbus and told him that thanks to the intervention of a court official, Luis de Santangel, the Queen had changed her mind: she would sponsor the voyage”
After seeing that their life’s goal was a victory they agreed to begin Spanish exploration. One of the most important explorer was an Italian man named Christopher Columbus. Isabella is especially remembered as an important figure in time because ...
Christopher Columbus and Alvez Nunez Cabeza de Vaca were both explorers for Spain, but under different rulers and different times. The more famous, Christopher Columbus, came before de Vaca’s time. Columbus sailed a series of four voyages between 1492 and 1504 in search for a route to Asia which led accidentally to his discovery of new land inhabited with Indians. Christopher sailed under the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella for his journey to the “Indies,” whom he was loyal to by claiming everything in their name. De Vaca , followed in Christopher’s footsteps and journeyed to Hispanionola for Spain’s emperor, Charlves V, the grandson of Ferdinand and Isabella. Both, Columbus and de Vaca composed a series of letters addressing the main issue of their journey to the new land, but both were expressed in a different manner, included different material, and were motivated to write for dissimilar reasons.
One question posed by the authors is “How did Columbus’s relationship with the Spanish crown change over time, and why?” In simple terms, Columbus’s relationship with the
Toward the end of pre-colonial times in Europe, due to the fall of Constantinople, many European nations felt the need to find an alternate route to the East Indies. The trade of rare goods such as spices, rice, exotic fruits and silk fabrics were much in demand, but came at extreme prices. In the beginning of the ‘Age of Exploration’, Portugal was in the forefront with the early explorers Henry the Navigator, Zarco and Tristao Vaz Teixeira, and Diogo Silves discovering the Madeira Islands, the Azores, and the exploration of Africa respectively, but King John the II of Portugal was unconvinced by Christopher Columbus’s pleas to fund his plan to sail West to the East Indies. Columbus made many demands for self-profit, including ten percent of any riches with which he returned, and even an ‘Admiralty’. Subsequently, Columbus took his plans to Queen Isabella of Spain. Spain acquiesced, and Columbus set off on his fateful journey. The Roman Catholic Church was very interested in expanding the Christian faith during this time and applied its influence on the monarchy. Religion also played a large personal role as Columbus truly believed that God spoke to him, and guided his hand. Additionally, at this time in Europe, land and food were at a premium. The monarchs of the era were fully aware that the acquisition of more land, slave labor and possible natural resources would greatly increase their power, prestige and subsequent wealth. After learning of Columbus’ successful return and the Treaty of Tordesillas (which divided the New World between Spain and Portugal), King Henry VII of England threw his hat into the ring and sent John Cabot sailing from Bristol on an attempt to find a shorter route to the ‘Indies’. Not to be left out in ...
In 1492, Christopher Columbus was a self-made man who worked his way up to being the Captain of a merchant vessel. He gained the support of the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, for an expedition to the Indies. With the support of the Spanish monarchy, he set off to find a new and faster trade route to the Indies. Upon the arrival of his first voyage, Columbus wrote a letter to Luis de Santangel, a “royal official and an early supporter of his venture,” in February 1493 (35). The epistle, letter, entitled “Letter to Luis de Santangel Regarding the First Voyage” was copied and then distributed in Spain before being translated and spread throughout Europe. The Letter is held in such regard with the people as it is considered the first printed description of the new world. Through his description of the nature of the islands, Columbus decided the future fate of the islands. His description of the vast beauty of the nature around him, declares both the economic and nationalistic motivations for colonizing the new world.
This voyage and all that Columbus wrote seems to have been done in greed. Columbus flattered the King and Queen repeatedly to win them over for his desired future endeavors. The first letter written to the King and Queen of Spain began immediately with overly exaggerated praise. In this matter, he could have directly addressed them with one endearing term rather than “Most Christian, High, Excellent, and Powerful Princes, King and Queen of Spain” (Halsall). He then describes his intent to “perform the embassy…discharge the orders… [and] keep an account…Sovereign Princes” as he prepares to write his journal. With this in mind, the demand of writing a journal and keeping track of his journey will keep him from sleeping and cause “many trials” all for “Your Highness.” When land was found, Columbus was the one who “bore the royal standard” when he went to shore and “took possession…for the King and Queen.
Religion played a major role in expansion for both the Portuguese and the Spanish due to their extensive anti-Muslim crusade. Due to the over zealous religious fervor of the Christian Iberians, Christianity and thus the Iberians expanded into parts of western Europe during the crusades as Christians tried to convert the Muslims who were occupying this area. The Iberians did not stop with the European mainland; they were also expanding overseas. They were interested in the fertile land of the Canary Islands, Madeira, Azores and Cape Verde. These islands would also prove to be strategic acquisitions for the Iberians, as they would eventually provide the Iberians with bases and ports to be used for commerce. Throughout the 15th century the Spanish and Portuguese had been exploring lands throughout the Atlantic which drove Queen Isabella of Spain to commission Christopher Columbus in 1492 to “Discover and acquire islands and mainland in the ocean sea” (p.340) which eventually led to the discovery of North America.
It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory voyage from King John II of Portugal, but he was refused. In 1485, Columbus took his son Diego and went to Spain to get some help.
Queen Isabella also took part in the voyage with Christopher Columbus. She gave him support when he was about to leave for sea. Christopher Columbus discovered the New World, which led to the establishment of a Spanish empire in America. Isabella supported many people, but Christopher Columbus was her most important (Maltby par 2). I don’t think he could have done that voyage without her.
Christopher Columbus was a renaissance explorer in 1492. he was sent by queen Isabelle and king Ferdinand of Spain to look for a trade route to east Asia
Christopher Columbus discoveries enlightened the globe and started a new age of exploration. Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand believed columbus would be very successful in discovering places that were rich in minerals and resources.They chose to sponsor and support Christopher Columbus’s voyage because of his capabilities and discoveries he could achieve. Christopher Columbus discoveries enlightened the globe and started a new age of exploration, changed the history of the whole globe. There was many advantage about working in between foreign affairs, one being Christopher Columbus skills and knowledge that gave Spain money and power. A disadvantage of working in between foreign affairs will be the other side not fulfilling their agreement. There are many qualifications Christopher Columbus had that made him a good candidate the voyage. Christopher Columbus was a brilliant vessel to the earth and left a legacy behind him for explorers and sailors around the
First it was too risky of an expedition to put money towards and give your men for that trip and secondly who is to say that Columbus was really actually going on this voyage. You can tell that a lot of people liked to play things safe to where they knew what would happen. In the end King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella ended up getting very lucky. Not only were they able to convert many people to Christianity, but they also were able to collect gold without even having to do
In the year of 1492, the Queen and King of Spain developed thoughts of strengthening their power and seeking new sources of wealth. This being stated the Queen and King had agreed on financing Christopher Columbus’s expedition, hoping it would bring the kingdom wealth (Ellis 2004). On October 12 Columbus had discovered a new location, due to this discovery; Latin America had been colonized by the Spanish conquistadors sent by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella. Overall, Latin America had been colonized for the sake of seeking wealth (Ellis 2004). Obtaining gold was the simple way of gaining wealth. Gold was the resource that attracted Spaniards to the Island of Hispaniola, because it was also King Ferdinand's interest (De la Riva 2003 ). Thus it ended up becoming the ultimate goal of the Christian Spaniards sent to Hispaniola to acquire gold and swell themselves in riches. (Las Casas 1552).Trading was also the key to getting wealthy; the more resources available for trade the more wealth will be gained. Resources in the New World attracted the Spanish conquistadors to Latin America; it was also what he...
Columbus and Champlain were both devoted to the success of their expeditions; however, Columbus had far more selfish intentions. Columbus was an Italian who sought aid for a journey that would travel across the Atlantic Ocean in search for riches in the East. His support did not come easy as he was rejected by the courts of Portugal, France, and England. Ultimately, Columbus was able to gain authorization and funding for a voyage to begin in 1492 by the Spanish monarchs King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel. After starting the long awaited expedition in April, Columbus was able to reach the West Indies by October of that year. Upon encountering the New World, Columbus immediately claimed the land along with its natives for his Spanish sovereigns.
Many people have heard of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. However, only some know of all the things they accomplished. They might be best known for funding the voyages of Christopher Columbus, but they also greatly contributed to the unity of Spain (“Isabella l”). Together, they brought many kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula together to form what Spain is today. Through Spain’s unification, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella strengthened Spain into an economic and dominant world power, enabling the spread of Christianity and the colonization of a New World.