Wake up anyone in the middle of the night with the question: “Who discovered America first?”, and without hesitation, they will immediately give you the correct answer, calling the name of Christopher Columbus. This is for everyone known fact, which no one seems to dispute. But was Columbus the first European to set foot on new land? Not at all. There is only one question: “So who?” But they didn’t call Columbus for nothing discoverer.
In what century did such significant changes for the world take place? The official date for the discovery of a new continent called the Americas is 1499, 15th century. At that time, the inhabitants of Europe began to have speculation that the earth was round. They began to believe about the possibility of navigation across the Atlantic Ocean and the opening of a western route directly to the shores of Asia.
The story of how Columbus discovered America is very funny. It so happened that he randomly stumbled upon the New World, heading to distant India.
Christopher was an avid sailor, who from a young age managed to visit all those known at that time. Carefully studying huge amount geographical maps, Columbus planned to sail to India across the Atlantic, without passing through Africa.
He, like many scientists of that time, naively believed that, having gone straight from Western Europe to the east, he would reach the shores of such Asian countries as China and India. No one could even imagine what was suddenly on his way new lands will appear.
It was the day when Columbus reached the shores of the new continent and is considered the beginning of American history.
Christopher is considered the one who discovered North America. But in parallel with it, after news of the New World spread throughout all countries, the struggle for the development of the northern territories the British entered.
In total the navigator accomplished four expeditions. The continents that Columbus discovered: the island of Haiti or, as the traveler himself called it, Spain Minor, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Antigua and many other territories of North America. From 1498 to 1504, during his last expeditions, the navigator had already mastered lands of South America, where it reached the shores of not only Venezuela, but also Brazil. A little later the expedition reached Central America, where the coastlines of Nicaragua and Honduras were developed, all the way to Panama.
Formally, many sailors opened America to the world in different ways. History goes back many names related to the development of the lands of the New World. Columbus's case continued:
Thanks to these navigators, the entire continent was explored and developed, including Pacific coast.
Also, another discoverer of America is considered no less famous person - Amerigo Vespucci. The Portuguese navigator went on expeditions and explored the coast of Brazil.
It was he who first suggested that Christopher Columbus sailed far not to China and India, but to previously unknown. His speculations were confirmed by Ferdinand Magellan, after completing his first trip around the world.
It is believed that the continent was named precisely in honor of Vespucci, contrary to all the logic of what is happening. And today the New World is known to everyone under the name America, and not by any other name. So who really discovered America?
In the legends and beliefs of the Scandinavian peoples you can often come across mention of distant lands called Vinland located near Greenland. Historians believe that it was the Vikings who discovered America and became the first Europeans to set foot on the lands of the New World, and in their legends Vinland is nothing more than Newfoundland.
Everyone knows how Columbus discovered America, but in fact Christopher was far away not the first navigator who visited this continent. Leif Erikson, who named one of the parts of the new continent Vinland, cannot be called a discoverer.
Who should be considered first? Historians dare to believe that he was a merchant from distant Scandinavia - Bjarni Herjulfsson, which is mentioned in the Greenlanders' Saga. That's why literary work, in 985 g. he set out towards Greenland to meet his father, but lost his way due to a strong storm.
Before the discovery of America, the merchant had to sail at random, since he had never seen the lands of Greenland before and did not know the specific course. Soon he reached the level shores of an unknown island, covered with forests. This description did not suit Greenland at all, which greatly surprised him. Bjarni decided not to go ashore, and turn back.
Soon he sailed to Greenland, where he told this story to Leif Erikson, the son of the discoverer of Greenland. Exactly he became the first of the Vikings who tried their luck to join to the lands of America before Columbus, which he nicknamed Vinland.
Important! Greenland is not the most pleasant country to live in. It is poor in resources and has a harsh climate. The possibility of resettlement at that time seemed like a pipe dream for the Vikings.
Stories about fertile lands covered with dense forests only spurred them on to move. Erickson gathered himself a small team and set off on a journey in search of new territories. Leif became the one who discovered North America.
The first unexplored places they stumbled upon were rocky and mountainous. In their description today, historians see nothing more than Baffin Island. Subsequent coasts turned out to be low-lying, with green forests and long sandy beaches. This reminded historians very much of the description coast of the Labrador Peninsula in Canada.
On the new lands they mined wood, which was so difficult to find in Greenland. Subsequently, the Vikings founded the first two settlements in the New World, and all these territories were called Vinland.
The famous German geographer, naturalist and traveler - all this is one great man, whose name is Alexander Humboldt.
This greatest scientist discovered America before others on the scientific side, having spent many years on research, and he was not alone. Humbaldt did not think long about what kind of partner he needed and immediately made his choice in favor of Bonpland.
Humboldt and the French botanist in 1799. went on a scientific expedition to South America and Mexico, which lasted five whole years. This journey brought scientists worldwide fame, and Humboldt himself began to be called the “second Columbus.”
It is believed that in 1796 The scientist set himself the following tasks:
All tasks, of course, were successfully completed. After the discovery of America as a continent, no one dared until Humbaldt conduct similar studies. Therefore, he decides to go to the most little-studied area - the West Indies, which allows him to achieve colossal results. Humboldt created first geographical maps area, thoroughly studied its geology and, while collecting unique collections of plants, as well as zoological collections.
Attention! Just as Columbus discovered a new continent for the whole world, so Humboldt opened it for science. That is why the scientist was nicknamed “the second Columbus.”
Mysterious Christopher Columbus
Alexander Humboldt and his travels
It can be concluded that many outstanding navigators America was discovered almost simultaneously, but in world history the name of Christopher Columbus will always be first on the list of those who explored the territories of the New World.
Until now, the world's leading historians are puzzling over whose first foot set foot on the lands of the New World. The question remains controversial... First of all, we must decide what should be considered a discovery? If Europeans first visited a new continent, then this happened half a millennium before Christopher Columbus. The Normans, however, did not attach significant importance to their discovery. The thing is that the same can be said about Columbus. The discovery of the mainland at the end of the Middle Ages was of particular importance. The thing is that it was from these immemorial times that the global colonization of the lands of the New World by Europeans and the subsequent study of it began. At the same time, uncertainty cannot be overcome, because it is worth considering that in the first two expeditions, Christopher Columbus paid much more attention to the islands adjacent to the future America. It was only in the summer of 1498 that he first found himself on the firmament of South America.
Columbus and his feat
A year earlier, members of an English expedition reached the shores of North America. It was headed by the then-famous Briton John Cabot, who was Italian by birth. He, however, again, did not attach significant importance to the discovery and confidently declared that he was able to open the “Kingdom of the Great Khan of China.” This uncertainty was the reason why it was decided to repeat the voyage in the spring. next year. The “stick in the wheel” was the almost completely absent economic benefit, which significantly cooled the heated British. Scientific achievement was recognized and associated with the expansion of existing horizons of knowledge. There is also a total misunderstanding of the essence of what has been achieved. It is logical when the truth was first revealed. At the same time, a new name came to the fore - Amerigo Vespucci.
At the same time, we should not forget what Christopher Columbus did, because it is not for nothing that his feat is forever included in the pages of history. It was he who obtained evidence, which later, of course, had to be clarified, that the planet has a spherical appearance, and not flat, as previously assumed.
It is no coincidence that he thought about going to trip around the world and tried to make it. Extremely important aspect It is also a fact that in his imagination, which began to work actively thanks to numerous travels, Columbus developed a model that the Earth was not flat, but spherical, but, nevertheless, closed. All these space formulas were unprecedented and amazing. The discovery also helped transform the oceans not into the barriers that they had previously been considered, but into grandiose connecting links that connect all the continents of the world and all the peoples of the planet. Conditions gradually began to emerge, thanks to which a unified all-terrestrial civilization developed. In subsequent centuries, everything that was available was only developed and fine-tuned.
Consequences
A famous fact should be noted: almost simultaneously with Columbus’s entry into the shores of South America, and Cabot into North America, a flotilla sent from Portugal, under the command of the legendary Vasco da Gama, was able to reach India for the first time by sea. Decades later, the Spanish conquistador Vasco Balboa and a military detachment crossed the Isthmus of Panama, overcoming mountain slopes and dense thickets. He became the first European to visit the shores of the then unknown “South Sea”. The world's oceans then, somehow immediately, almost overnight, submitted to man. First of all, due to the advent of a navigation device that allows you to navigate even if you are on the open sea. Don't forget about geographical maps oceans and lands. Even though the instruments and maps were far from perfect, it made it possible to take the first steps and outline specific goals and pave the way to them. All this was so fast that humanity at that time did not have time to keep track of the pace at which the planet was developing.
Vespucci and the book "New World"
Amerigo Vespucci did not make his discoveries right away, of course. He was a very experienced helmsman and made great strides in cartography, studied navigation, and recent years life held the position of chief pilot of Castile (his main task was to test the knowledge of ship pilots, control how well maps were created, and report to the government on all important geographical discoveries). Nevertheless, it was he who managed to become a member of one of the first expeditions, which headed to the then unknown “Southern Continent” (then the name South America had not yet been invented, so they made do with such an analogue). Perhaps he was the first to realize the essence of what he and his colleagues managed to achieve. In other words, he was able to make a discovery of a theoretical nature, and Christopher Columbus explored new lands from a practical point of view. During the time of Amerigo, a letter appeared, allegedly written in his hand, which stated that he visited the Southern continent in 1497. If you believe this version, then he visited the same place where Columbus a year earlier, but, alas, no documentation confirming this was ever found. It is extremely likely that this never happened, in principle. Amerigo’s innocence in this kind of misunderstanding, of course, remains beyond any doubt of the sane public. He never claimed the laurels of a pioneer and did not try to establish his priority.
This was affected by the factor of popularization of knowledge present in almost everything and the distribution of printed publications. In particular, it is worth mentioning a small pamphlet that was widely distributed in 1503 in Italy and France called “The New World.” The preface said that it was translated from Italian into Latin, so that all people could know what a huge number of discoveries were being made at that time. The book enjoyed extremely wide recognition among readers of that time. It is written in a lively and interesting language, and, most importantly, everything that is said in it is the purest truth. It was there, in the form of a letter from Vespucci, that in the summer of 1501 there was a voyage that was entrusted to the Portuguese king. The expedition passed through the stormy Atlantic and came as close as possible to the shores of the Unknown Land. It was called, however, not Asia at all, but the New World.
A little later, another message was also published about the exploits in the voyages of Amerigo Vespucci. In the end, a unique collection appeared, which included stories from many authors. They talked there about the voyages of Columbus, and about the achievements of Vasco da Gama and many other travelers. The compiler of this work came up with an extremely catchy title, which at the moment could intrigue any reader: “The New World and New Countries Discovered by Alberico Vespucci from Florence.” Thousands of readers could decide for themselves that the New World, like other states, was discovered by Alberico (Amerigo) Vespucci. Despite the contents of the book, many for a long time was sure that all discoveries were the achievement of Vespucci alone. In addition, the descriptions that Amerigo himself made looked extremely convincing and had an interesting, lively language, which, undoubtedly, only cemented his role as a discoverer.
National holiday
Despite all of the above, it was Columbus Day that was enshrined in the US Constitution as a state and national day. It is celebrated every year on the second Monday of October. Despite the fact that Columbus himself lived and died in the belief that he managed to open a new road to India and Asia, and not at all to the North and South America, he managed to completely turn history around and imprint his name forever. Since the United States was founded by English colonialists, and not by Columbus himself or his followers, “Discovery Day of America” was not celebrated in the United States for many years. Italian immigrants were the first to celebrate the holiday every year, since Christopher Columbus was Italian by origin. At the same time, the main version, of course, says that he was born in Italy, but some scientists argue that this location could be Greece, Portugal or Spain. He mastered the art of navigation in Portugal, but it was Spain that sponsored that very historical expedition to the lands of the New World.
Franklin Roosevelt, the President of the United States, was the first commander in chief to proclaim Columbus Day a national holiday, and Congress, in turn, established the fact that the holiday should be celebrated on the second Monday of October in order to make it part of the weekend for the entire population of the state. In New York, Denver and many American cities, magnificent celebrations are held on this day. People independently organize sports events, fireworks, and fairs.
One should not naively assume that all residents of the United States, without exception, enjoy Columbus Day. Everyone at this moment forgets about the indigenous Indian population. In their opinion, it was the Spanish discoverer who brought with him all the misfortunes: Europeans brought disease, poverty, death to the continent, and everyone who was lucky enough to survive was driven into reservations. In addition, on the eve of Columbus Day in Denver, Indians hold their traditional protest march against this holiday every year. They are sure that in this way Americans are mocking their heritage and grief, which is why riots can almost never be avoided. That is why, in Berkeley, California, Columbus Day was promptly replaced by Indigenous Peoples' Day, in honor of the people who lived on the islands where Christopher Columbus landed. In South Dakota, the holiday is called American Indian Day, and in Alabama, Columbus Day falls on Indian Heritage Day. In Hawaii, this holiday was called simply - America's Discovery Day.
During this national holiday, all federal government offices are closed, as well as most banks. Schools are usually open on this day, but there are exceptions. The same applies to most businesses. The event, among other things, is celebrated in a number of other states. For example, in the Bahamas it is Opening Day, and in Spain it is the Holiday of the Spanish-Speaking Peoples. Most countries in South America associate Columbus Day with Race Day.
Conclusion: Secret knowledge
Finally, I would just like to ask a rhetorical question, and perhaps give you food for thought. Until now, scientists cannot come to a common denominator when it comes to secret knowledge Christopher Columbus. Just think, how can you explain his “iron” confidence that there may be a land abounding in riches there, far beyond the still unexplored ocean? How did he get the idea to try to find a western route to the shores of India? The fact that the discovery of America took place at the end of the 15th century is a fact that has become part of world history. Therefore, it is likely that Columbus, who so persistently and so confidently sought equipment for his treacherous expedition to the lands on the other side of the Atlantic, already knew the experience of sailors who had visited the shores of these unknown lands. Then, of course, there were legends about the discovery of uncharted areas of land by the Vikings, but, alas, there was no more clear evidence. But, perhaps, he just received them, because, again, according to legend, he visited Greenland, near Newfoundland.
Many stories that could shed light on the motives of the expedition to the shores of America do not find documentary evidence, because, in fact, all we know is retellings from word of mouth. Significant events from the biography of the discoverer still remain unknown or unsupported by facts, so only you can decide whether Columbus really did what he forever covered himself with imperishable glory.
Nikolay Ofitserov
Europeans traditionally referred to the concept of the Old World as two continents - Eurasia and Africa, i.e. only those that were known before the discovery of the two Americas, and to the New World - North and South America. These designations quickly became fashionable and became widespread. The terms quickly became very comprehensive; they referred not only to the geographical known and unknown worlds. The Old World began to be called anything well-known, traditional or conservative, the New World - anything fundamentally new, little-studied, revolutionary.In biology, flora and fauna are also usually divided geographically into gifts of the Old and New Worlds. But unlike the traditional interpretation of the term, the New World biologically includes the plants and animals of Australia.
Later, Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania and a number of islands in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans were discovered. They did not enter the New World and were designated by the broad term Southern Lands. At the same time, the term Unknown Southern Earth is a theoretical continent at the South Pole. The ice continent was discovered only in 1820 and also did not become part of the New World. Thus, the terms Old and New Worlds refer not so much to geographical concepts as to the historical border “before and after” the discovery and development of the American continents.
For example, Georgia and Italy are associated with wine, France with Champagne and Cognac, Ireland with whiskey, Switzerland and Great Britain with Scotland with absinthe, and Mexico is considered the ancestor of tequila.
In 1878, on the territory of Crimea, Prince Lev Golitsyn founded the production of sparkling wines, which was called “New World”, and later a resort grew around it, which is also called “New World”. The picturesque bay annually receives crowds of tourists who want to relax on the shores of the Black Sea, taste the famous New World wines and champagne, take a walk through the grottoes, bays and protected juniper grove. In addition, there are settlements of the same name on the territory of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.
Geography translated from ancient Greek - “records about the Earth”. This is a teaching about planet Earth, the people who inhabit it, and the relationship between people and their environment. Geography is divided into 2 fundamental parts: physical - the science of the earth's landscape, and economic geography - the science of people and how and where they live. In turn, both of these areas are divided into narrower sections of human knowledge.
Already in distant antiquity, physiographic ideas arose. Philosophers tried to explain certain natural phenomena that could be observed on the globe. With the development of the capabilities of science as a whole, it has now received a new round of development. Physical geography is the study of the geographical envelope of the Earth, as well as its parts. The main branches of physical geography include geosciences and landscape science. In the geography section, the general patterns of structure and formation of the geographical shell of the Earth are studied. And in the landscape science section, complex natural and natural-anthropogenic geosystems of various ranks are studied. Physical geography also includes studies such as paleogeography. Another interesting fact is that it includes sciences that study individual elements of the natural environment. These are sciences such as geomorphology - the science of all the irregularities of the land, the ocean floor, their age, origin and much more; , which studies changes in the globe; hydrology of land, water of land: various rivers, etc; oceanology - examines the interaction of the ocean and atmosphere; glaciology - the science of the forms of ice formation and snow cover; geocryology, which studies frozen rocks, their composition and structure; soil geography - the science of the patterns of soil distribution on the earth's crust; biogeography - studies the distribution of animal life on the earth's crust and the characteristics of fauna and flora. Each individual science from the above may relate to one of the natural sciences. Let us give: geomorphology refers to geology, biogeography to, etc. It is worth noting that physical geography is closely related to cartography - a science that studies the relationship between society, objects and natural phenomena and economic geography.
Video on the topic
Geography– a system of social and natural sciences that study natural and industrial territorial complexes and components. Such a unification of disciplines within the framework of one science is a close relationship between the generality of the scientific task and the objects being studied.
Initially, it was a kind of encyclopedic body of knowledge about different areas and populations. Subsequently, the system of geographical sciences was based on this knowledge. The process of differentiation influenced the division of science, i.e. on the one hand, on the study of natural components (climate, soil,), economy (, industry), population, and on the other hand, on the need for a synthetic study of territorial combinations of these components. The system distinguishes: - physical-geographical, or, which can be classified as physical (landscape science, land tenure, paleogeography), geomorphology, climatology, land hydrology, oceanology, glaciology, geocryology, biogeography and soil geography; - public geographical, i.e. regional and general economic geography, geography of economic sectors ( agriculture, industry, transport), population geography and political geography; - cartography, which is a technical science, but at the same time is included in this system due to the commonality of the main tasks and goals with other geographical sciences; - regional studies, which studies the integration of information about nature, economy and population in individual regions; - in addition to geographical sciences, the unified system of geography also includes other disciplines, mainly of an applied nature - military geography and medical geography. At the same time, many geographical disciplines belong, to one degree or another, to other systems of sciences (biological, economic, geological), due to the absence of sharp boundaries between the sciences. Along with common goals, each discipline included in geography studies its own object, which is known different methods necessary for a comprehensive and in-depth study. All sciences have their own general theoretical and regional parts and applied sections. The latter are sometimes united under the name “applied geography”, but do not form an independent science. Geographical disciplines in their conclusions rely on research materials carried out by stationary and expeditionary methods and accompanied by mapping.
Video on the topic
The Middle Ages gave the world many wonderful travelers who, through their efforts, increased people's knowledge about the world. Among the outstanding navigators who recorded their name in history is the great Italian Amerigo Vespucci.
It was Amerigo Vespucci who first explored and described the land that became known as South America. He provided evidence that South America is not Asia, to which Columbus sought to shorten his route, but a completely new and previously unknown continent in Europe.
The Florentine explorer and cosmographer was born on March 9, 1454 in the family of a public notary. He was able to receive an excellent education from his uncle, a learned monk at St. Mark's Cathedral. Vespucci studied physics, astronomy and geography for a long time.
The traveler's first voyage to South America occurred in 1499 with Alonso de Ojeda. The expedition followed a route derived from Columbus's map. As a result of the journey, two hundred Indians were taken into slavery.
Amerigo Vespucci's second voyage to South America took place at the invitation of King Manuel I, from the spring of 1501 to September 1502. Immediately after that, he sailed for another year to new lands under the command of Gonzalo Coelho. Tip 5: Who is Christopher Columbus children. The life of Christopher Columbus was very eventful, as he traveled the world, received an education in educational institutions and often changed his place of residence. External data about Columbus is known thanks to portraits of famous artists.
In 1492, this man discovered America, thanks to expeditions equipped by Catholic kings. Christopher made four expeditions, which required a lot of strength and perseverance. All expeditions were successful and new ways for countries to interact with each other.
Christopher Columbus became the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean and sail the waters of the Caribbean Sea. This navigator discovered the Greater and Lesser Antilles, as well as the island of Trinidad.
As part of his first expedition in 1492, Columbus discovered the islands of Cuba, Haiti, and the Bahemian Islands. However, the navigator considered them new lands East Asia. Later, the development of the lands first discovered by Columbus began.
During the second expedition (1493-1494), Columbus discovered several more islands. Specifically Puerto Rico. Cuba and Jamaica were explored.
In 1498, during the third expedition, Trinidad was discovered by ships led by Columbus.
During his last expedition, Columbus discovered the coast of Central America. At that time, he already knew that the lands he had seen before were not Indian or Chinese.
Christopher Columbus ended his life in Spain in 1509. His remains were buried first in Seville and then transported to the West Indies. However, over time, the remains of the great traveler returned to Spain. Now in the Seville Cathedral there is the tomb of the great navigator.
Video on the topic
The Middle Ages, as we have seen, is rich in many turning and dramatic events. Among them, it is necessary to note those that occurred at the end of the 15th - beginning of the 16th centuries. These are a number of the most important geographical discoveries, expanding the horizons of the then known world.
Let's look at who made the discoveries and who took advantage of them. 1.
Looking for a new route to India
In 1492, Kings Isabella and Ferdinand, having just completed the reconquest of Spain from the Arabs (Reconquista), sent an expedition under the command of Christopher Columbus to search for the western sea route to India.
Europeans considered India a country of untold riches - gold, precious stones, silk fabrics, etc. Spices and incense brought from these lands were also highly valued. However, to get from Europe to India by land, it was necessary to go through many countries, overcome deserts and mountains. It was a difficult and dangerous journey. Therefore, the idea of opening new sea routes to the treasured country seemed very tempting for enterprising European sailors. Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was one of them.
For several years he appealed to the rulers of Portugal and Spain with a request to allocate funds for an expedition to India. Finally, Queen Isabella decided to support the persistent Genoese (Columbus came from this Italian city). Three caravels (Santa Maria, Niña and Pinta) with a crew of about 100 people were equipped for the expedition.
In October 1492, two months after the start of the voyage, Columbus's caravels reached land (the modern island of San Salvador and the coasts of Cuba and Haiti). The sailors believed that in front of them was the coast of India, and, accordingly, they called the local residents Indians. But it turned out that this was a continent unknown to them, later called America. This is how medieval Europeans discovered the New World. The championship in this belonged to the Spaniards and Portuguese.
Dates and events
1492 - Columbus's first expedition.
1493-1504 - Columbus made three more expeditions to the lands he discovered in Central America.
1497-1498 - discovery of the sea route to India by the Portuguese expedition of Vasco da Gama.
1519-1522 - the first trip around the world by the Spanish expedition under the command of Ferdinand Magellan.
These and other events related to the discovery and development of territories in America, Africa, and Asia by Europeans were called the Great Geographical Discoveries. 2.
Peoples of Pre-Columbian America
What were the American lands discovered by Columbus and his followers? Who inhabited this part of the continent? The most significant mark on the history of Central America was left by the Mayan and Aztec civilizations.
The Mayan civilization arose before our era. And in the first millennium AD, several city-states existed on the Yucatan Peninsula, where these people lived. Most of the population was engaged in agriculture, growing corn, various vegetables, cotton, etc.
As the finds of modern archaeologists have shown, in Mayan cities there were majestic temples and palaces, decorated with sculptures and paintings. The achievements of this civilization make an impression on modern man. The Mayans were distinguished by their deep knowledge of astronomy and mathematics, used a very accurate solar calendar (the year had 365 days), and had hieroglyphic writing. They deified the forces of nature, worshiped the gods of the Sun and Moon, fire and rain, as well as gods personified by animals (for example, the jaguar).
Maya city-states
Territories of states: G~~| Aztecs ShSh Inca
At the end of the 10th century. the largest Mayan cities were destroyed and abandoned by their inhabitants. Historians suggest various reasons This includes both natural phenomena (earthquake, climate change) and conquest.
The Aztec tribes settled in the 12th century. in the territory of modern Mexico. Two centuries later, they created a powerful state with its capital Tenochtitlan. The Aztecs lived in communities in which adult men were farmers and warriors. Captives captured during frequent campaigns of conquest were turned into slaves. The highest power belonged to the leaders (at first they were elected, later the title of leader began to be inherited). The priests enjoyed great influence. Historians count more than a thousand gods in the Aztec pantheon. The religious rites of the Aztecs were often cruel; human sacrifices were legalized among them.
The largest public education in South America was the Incan power, which emerged in the 12th-13th centuries. with its center in the city of Cusco. It was headed by the Great Inca, who was considered the embodiment of God on earth and had unlimited power. The Incas were engaged in agriculture and cattle breeding (they, for example, tamed the llama). They did not know how to produce iron, but they mined and skillfully processed gold and silver. Other crafts also developed - the production of textiles and ceramics. The Incas did not have a written language; they used the knotted quipu script (threads were tied to a cord different colors with knots, the combination of which had a certain meaning). The basis of the Incas' religious beliefs was the cult of the Sun.
After the discoveries of Columbus and his followers, the conquest of America by Europeans, primarily the Spaniards and Portuguese, began.
Christopher Columbus was born in the fall of 1451 in Genoa and was of Genoese descent. He was above average height, strong and well-built. His reddish hair in his youth turned gray early, making him look older than his years. On the elongated, wrinkled and weather-beaten face with a beard, living Blue eyes and an aquiline nose. He was distinguished by faith in divine providence and omens, and at the same time, rare practicality, painful pride and suspicion, and a passion for gold. He had a sharp mind, the gift of persuasion and versatile knowledge. H. Columbus was married twice and had two sons from these marriages. Christopher Columbus spent three quarters of his life sailing.
In the year, Columbus led a Spanish expedition to find the shortest sea route to India; He discovered the Sargasso Sea and reached the island of Samana on October 12, 1492, later the Bahamas, Cuba, and Haiti. In subsequent expeditions (,) he discovered the Greater Antilles, part of the Lesser Antilles and the coasts of South and Central America and the Caribbean Sea. On April 17, 1492, Columbus and the Spanish king and queen signed the Treaty of Santa Fe, according to which Columbus not only received the title of nobility, but also, if the expedition was successful, received the titles of admiral of the seas and viceroy and governor of new lands, as well as a very substantial part of the potential profits that its opening could provide to the Spanish court.
The first expedition of Christopher Columbus, consisting of 90 people on three ships “Santa Maria”, “Pinta” and “Nina” left Palos on August 3, 1492, from Canary Islands turned west, crossed the Atlantic Ocean, and reached an island in the Bahamas archipelago, named by the traveler San Salvador.
The flagship ship was the Santa Maria. It was larger than the others and not fast enough, which cannot be said about the Pinta. Average speed The expedition vessels had a speed of 4-5 knots. They walked up to 100 miles per day. This speed was typical for the era of sailing ships of that time.
On the night of December 25, the flagship Santa Maria landed on a reef, but the crew escaped. For the first time in the history of navigation, by order of Columbus, Indian hammocks were adapted for sailor berths. Columbus returned to Castile on the Niña on March 15, 1499. The political resonance of the voyage of H. Columbus was the “papal meridian”: chapter catholic church established a demarcation line in the Atlantic, indicating to rival Spain and Portugal different directions for the discovery of new lands. The second expedition (), which was led by Admiral Columbus, in the position of Viceroy of the newly discovered lands, consisted of 17 ships with a crew of 1.5-2.5 thousand people. November 1493 Columbus discovered the islands of Dominica, Guadeloupe and about 20 Lesser Antilles, November 19, Puerto Rico island. In March 1494, in search of gold, he made a military campaign deep into the island of Haiti, and in the summer he discovered southeast and the southern coast of Cuba, the islands of Juventud and Jamaica. For 40 days, Columbus explored the southern coast of Haiti, which he continued to conquer in 1495. But in the spring of 1496 he sailed home, completing his second voyage on June 11 in Castile. Columbus announced the opening of a new route to Asia.
Columbus's third expedition () consisted of six ships, three of which he himself led across the Atlantic. On July 31, 1498, the island of Trinidad was discovered, entered the Gulf of Paria, discovered the mouth of the western branch of the Orinoco Delta and the Paria Peninsula, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America. Having entered the Caribbean Sea, he approached the Araya Peninsula, discovered Margarita Island on August 15, and arrived in Haiti on August 31. In 1500, following a denunciation, Christopher Columbus was arrested and shackled (which he later kept throughout his life) and sent to Castile, where his release awaited him. Having obtained permission to continue the search for the western route to India, Columbus on four ships (the fourth expedition) reached the island of Martinique on June 15, 1502, and the Gulf of Honduras on July 30, where he first met representatives of the ancient Mayan civilization, but did not attach any importance to this. From August 1, 1502 to May 1, 1503, he opened 2000 km of the Caribbean coast of Central America (to the Gulf of Uraba). Not finding a passage to the west, he turned north and on June 25, 1503, was wrecked off the coast of Jamaica. Help from Santo Domingo came only a year later. Columbus returned to Castile on November 7, 1504, already seriously ill. Illness, fruitless and painful negotiations with the king on the restoration of rights, and lack of money undermined Columbus's last strength, and on May 20, 1506 he died in Valladolid. His discoveries were accompanied by the colonization of lands, the founding of Spanish settlements, brutal enslavement and mass extermination of the indigenous population, called “Indians,” by troops of conquistadors.
Columbus had to wait several years before he managed to convince the Spanish royal couple to approve his expedition. Obviously, he chose the time very well to approach them again with his proposal - the end of the Reconquista allowed the royal court of Spain to take a fresh look at Columbus's ideas. At that time, Spain was in a difficult situation. A previously concluded treaty with Portugal prohibited Spanish (and all other ships) from sailing in the area of the western coast of Africa, thus excluding the possibility of reaching the shores of India by circumnavigating the African continent. The state treasury was depleted, and the opportunity to establish profitable trade with India was very useful for Spain. The Spanish Church was also a supporter of the discovery of new lands in order to further spread the religion. Monument to Columbus in Seville
The agreement at Tordesillas was concluded a year after the issue of the bulls dividing the world between Spain and Portugal by Pope Alexander VI. In these bulls, the demarcation line separating the Spanish and Portuguese spheres of overseas expansion was outlined 100 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Thus, Portugal achieved in Tordesillas a transfer of the border 270 leagues to the west. After this, the Portuguese zone included almost the entire Atlantic and a significant part (up to 50° west longitude from Greenwich) of Brazil (which was discovered 6 years later by the Portuguese navigator Pedro Alvarez Cabral). At the time of the conclusion of the treaty, Columbus was making his second voyage and was off the coast of Cuba and Jamaica. Castilian representatives assumed that during this voyage new lands could be discovered in the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean, and achieved the inclusion in the text of the agreement of a special article on discoveries that could be made before June 20, 1494.
The Treaty of Tordesillas provided an unambiguous solution to the problem of dividing the world. The demarcation line was drawn only across the Atlantic. It could not have been otherwise, since only two decades later the seas and lands of the Far East and Far West became known to Europeans. The inevitable and not foreseen in Tordesillas clash of Spanish and Portuguese interests in Pacific Ocean followed during the period of the famous journey of Magellan (). The issue of the second demarcation line was resolved only after six years of negotiations by the Treaty of Saragossa in 1529. The Treaty of Tordesillas, like the bulls of Alexander VI, is a diplomatic document of great historical significance. The treaty laid the foundations for the colonial policy of the Iberian powers and clearly formulated the principles of the doctrine of the “closed sea” and the exclusive rights of Spain and Portugal to own the entire non-European world. The articles of the Treaty of Tordesillas remained in real force as long as the dominance of Spain and Portugal in the New World, Asia and Africa remained undisputed.
Already in the 17th century, when the initiative for colonial expansion passed to England, France and Holland, and Spain and Portugal lost a significant part of their West Indian and East Indian possessions in an overwhelming struggle, the clauses of the Tordesillas treaty sounded like an anachronism. However, until the end of the 18th century. The Treaty of Tordesillas retained legal force in resolving border disputes in the South American possessions of Spain and Portugal. West Indies (Caribbean Islands) The Spanish established the first colonies in Cuba; from 1503, the entire land was divided between Europeans, and the natives were enslaved and completely died out at the beginning of the 17th century. From the second half of the 16th century, the islands fell into complete decline: not a single foreign European ship could transport goods, the inhabitants themselves had to trade only with Seville, and from 1720 with Cadiz; a mass of colonists moved out, all small coastal cities were destroyed in order to stop the smuggling trade; from 1630, the colonies were subjected to plunder by filibusters, who formed a real predatory state. With the formation of colonies of other European powers in the West Indies (from the 17th century and especially from the half of the 18th century), the West Indian colonies began to flourish again. At the end of the 19th century, all the islands with the exception of Haiti with neighboring small islands (km²) were colonies of European states.
New World, the name of America, given to it by European discoverers at the end of the 15th century, contrasts America with the Old World of Europe, Asia and Africa due to the fact that previously Europeans were only familiar with the geography of the Old World, but not the New. According to legend, Christopher Columbus believed until the end of his days in what he discovered new way to India. But soon the opinion spread that it was not India that had been discovered, but a new continent. One of the first supporters of this version was Amerigo Vespucci, whose name the new part of the world acquired. It is believed that the term itself “ New World"could have been proposed by the same Vespucci in 1503, but this opinion is disputed. America is a part of the world that unites two continents, North America and South America, as well as nearby islands (including Greenland).
