European Voyages of Exploration: Columbus and the Atlantic Crossing

On 3 August 1492, three small ships slipped out of a Spanish port. Their captain had a bold plan. He would reach Asia by sailing west. He was wrong about the size of the world. Yet his mistake changed history.

In this lesson, we ask why Europeans sailed into the unknown. We follow the Portuguese along Africa, and Columbus across the Atlantic. We also see what came after him, from Vasco da Gama to Magellan.

1Why did Europeans look to the sea?

Europe wanted the goods of Asia. Spices, silk and other fine goods came a long way by land and sea. Every middleman added to the price.

In 1453, the Ottomans captured Constantinople. Historians often link this to the search for new routes. But the full story is wider than one city.

Rulers wanted wealth and power. Some also wanted to spread their faith. A sea route, if found, could be controlled by one kingdom. That was a very tempting prize.

• Asian goods were costly in Europe.
• 1453: Ottomans take Constantinople.
• Motives mixed trade, power and faith.
• A sea route could bring a kingdom direct profit.

2What tools and ideas made long voyages possible?

Better ships helped. The caravel was small, quick and good at sailing into the wind. Larger carracks could carry heavy cargo.

The compass was not new. The Chinese used it for sailing in the eleventh century. Europe’s first recorded use was around 1190. By Columbus’s day, it was a standard tool.

Books also fed curiosity. Ptolemy’s Geography, written in the second century, was printed with maps at Bologna in 1477. It was the first printed book with engraved illustrations. It gave Europeans a new way to picture the world.

• Caravel: small and quick. Carrack: large cargo ship.
• Compass: Chinese use in the 11th century. Europe, about 1190.
• 1477: Ptolemy’s Geography printed with maps at Bologna.

3How did Portugal lead the way?

Portugal moved first. In 1415, Prince Henry took part in the capture of Ceuta, a port in Morocco. He later backed voyages down the African coast. People call him Henry the Navigator.

His captains looked for the source of the West African gold trade. Cape Bojador was once thought a limit of the known world. In 1434, the sailor Gil Eanes passed it.

The next big step came in 1488. Bartolomeu Dias became the first European to round the southern tip of Africa. That showed a sea route to the east might exist.

• 1415: Portugal takes Ceuta.
• Prince Henry backed voyages along West Africa.
• 1434: Gil Eanes passes Cape Bojador.
• 1488: Dias rounds southern Africa.

4What was Columbus’s plan?

Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa. He planned to reach the Indies by sailing straight west. He believed the world was smaller than it is. He thought Japan lay only about 2,400 nautical miles from the Canary Islands. The real distance is far greater.

Spain was busy at first. On 2 January 1492, Granada surrendered to the Spanish monarchs. That ended the long Granada War.

Then Isabella and Ferdinand agreed to back Columbus. The deal was signed at Santa Fe on 17 April 1492. It gave him the titles of admiral, viceroy and governor. It also gave him a tenth of the riches he found.

• Columbus aimed for the Indies, sailing west.
• He underestimated the distance badly.
• 2 Jan 1492: Granada surrenders.
• 17 Apr 1492: the capitulations are signed.

5What happened on the 1492 crossing?

The fleet left the port of Palos on 3 August 1492. It had three ships. The Santa Maria was the flagship, a medium-sized carrack. The Pinta and the Nina were smaller caravels.

The ships stopped at the Canary Islands for repairs. On 6 September, they left La Gomera and sailed west. The open crossing took about five weeks.

Land came on 12 October. It was an island in the Bahamas. Its native people called it Guanahani. Columbus then visited Cuba and Hispaniola. He thought he was near the Indies. That is why we say West Indies today.

• 3 Aug 1492: the fleet leaves Palos.
• Ships: Santa Maria, Pinta, Nina.
• Open sea from 6 September: about five weeks.
• 12 Oct 1492: landfall at Guanahani in the Bahamas.
• Columbus made four voyages, from 1492 to 1504.

6Why is it called America, and was Columbus first?

The Americas are not named after Columbus. They carry the name of Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine explorer. Vespucci claimed that Brazil was part of a fourth continent. He called it the New World.

In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller made a large map. It is the first known map to use the name America. Other mapmakers followed his example.

Columbus was also not the first European across the Atlantic. The Norse had come earlier. At L’Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, a Norse camp dates to around 1021. And the Americas already held millions of people long before 1492.

• Named for Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine.
• 1507: Waldseemuller’s map first uses America.
• Norse camp at L’Anse aux Meadows, about 1021.
• The Americas were already inhabited.

7What came after Columbus?

The two big sea powers soon quarrelled. In 1494, Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesillas. It split new lands outside Europe between the two crowns along a line in the Atlantic.

Portugal reached Asia first by sea. Vasco da Gama landed at Kozhikode, called Calicut, on 20 May 1498. In 1500, Pedro Cabral touched Brazil and claimed it for Portugal.

In 1513, Balboa crossed Panama and became the first European to see the Pacific from the Americas. Magellan’s expedition left Spain in 1519. Magellan died in the Philippines. Juan Sebastian Elcano brought the ship home in 1522. It was the first voyage round the Earth.

Later, northern Europeans joined in. The English East India Company began in 1600. The Dutch East India Company followed in 1602.

• 1494: Treaty of Tordesillas.
• 1498: Da Gama at Kozhikode. 1500: Cabral in Brazil.
• 1513: Balboa sights the Pacific.
• 1519-1522: Magellan-Elcano circumnavigation.
• 1600 English and 1602 Dutch East India Companies.

8What are the exam traps?

• Learn the order: Columbus 1492, Da Gama 1498, Magellan 1522, then the companies in 1600 and 1602.
• Columbus landed in the Bahamas, not on the mainland.
• America is named for Vespucci, and a cartographer chose the name.
• Columbus was not the first European in the Americas. The Norse came earlier.
• Magellan died on the way. Elcano finished the voyage.