Christopher Columbus was born in 1451 in Genoa, Italy to a middle-class family. He studied many subjects like astronomy, geography, and history. Columbus proposed sailing west to reach Asia to King John II of Portugal and others, but they denied funding due to believing his estimated distances were too short. Eventually, Columbus gained funding from King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. Between 1492 and 1503, Columbus made four voyages to areas of Central America and islands near Florida, marking the beginning of European exploration and colonization of the Americas.

1. Christopher Columbus By: Josh Kessner History 140 Professor Arguello

2. Early Life Born in October 1451 in Genoa, Columbus’s father was a middle-class wool weaver Columbus was born in modern day Italy but his known signature by hand was Spanish and it read Cristobal Colon While in Spain in 1487, Columbus found a new mistress by the name of Beatriz Enriquez de Arana He learned Latin, Portuguese, and Castilian Columbus studied many subjects such as astronomy, geography, and history

3. The Campaign to the Orient Columbus had proposed his plan of travel to John II, the King of Portugal Also, Columbus tried proposing his plan to Asia by western route to many other places but they had all denied him the funding. This was due to the fact that many of the places thought that the distance Columbus had estimated was far too short Overtime, after funding and investments, Columbus finally found funding and gained a contract with King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella

4. Voyages Between the years of 1492 and 1503 Columbus made four trip voyages to the Americas under the sponsorship of the Crown of Castile The areas that he ended up exploring were parts of central America and islands close to modern day Florida These voyages marked the beginning of European exploration and colonization of the American continents