Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451 into a family of weavers. As a child he helped his father, and then as a young lad went to sea. He became an experienced sailor and moved to Portugal to find support for a journey he was planning.
Columbus did not have ships or money. He visited the courts of the kings and queens of Europe, asking for help. Finally Ferdinand and Isabella, the king and queen of Spain, agreed to give him money and three ships, the Pinta, the Nina and the Santa Maria. The ships were small, and between them could carry 90 men.
Columbus believed the earth was round, and that by sailing west he would find a quicker route to the East. He believed the earth was smaller than it is, and had no idea that America existed. In 1492, Columbus sailed from Spain with his three ships to find a route to India.
After 10 weeks on the Atlantic Ocean, they sighted land and arrived on a small island in the Bahamas. Columbus named it San Salvador and claimed it for the king and queen of Spain. Columbus called everyone he met on the islands Indians because he was sure he had reached India. But he was wrong. He had reached a group of islands near America.
On Christmas Day 1492, the Santa Maria wrecked on a rock. Columbus transferred to the Nina, and left 39 crew members of the Santa Maria on the island of Hispaniola (now the Dominican Republic) to start a new settlement. He returned to Spain in March 1493, taking captured natives to prove he had reached a New World. He was warmly received by the royal court, and made Admiral of the Ocean Sea and Governor of the Indies.
Columbus made three more journeys across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean, still in search of India and the wealthy cities that he believed were nearby. Although he landed on the South American mainland, he never set foot on the mainland of North America.
He died in 1506.
