CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS AND HIS GEOGRAPHICAL DISCOVERIES.

Christopher Columbus (Genoa, 26 August ~ 31 October 1451 – Valladolid, 20 May 1506) was an Italian navigator and explorer of the Republic of Genoa, one of the most important protagonists of the great European geographical discoveries at the turn of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. He  owes his fame to the travels that led to the European colonization of the Americas. Lots of  toponyms in the New World are inspired by his name, for example the South American country of Colombia.

When he was young, he developed the idea of ​​the existence of an overseas land (according to him Asia) during his voyages as a sea captain of merchant ships. Convinced of the accuracy of his theses, Columbus first asked for funding to start the new route to King John II of Portugal, but when he was denied the funds he tried with the kings of Castile and Aragon. After some negotiations, and above all thanks to the support of Isabella of Castile, they agreed to finance the enterprise and to grant him some privileges in case of a positive outcome. He sailed from Palos de la Frontera on 3rd August 1492, and  he  arrived in  San Salvador on 12th October of the same year.

This first voyage was followed by three others of lesser fortune. He died in Valladolid in 1506.