Columbus' letter, stolen decades ago, is returned to Italy. The official version of the preparation of the Columbus expedition

(Christopher Colombo, in Spanish Colon, Colon) - the famous navigator who discovered America.

Little is known about Columbus' life prior to his ascension as a Spanish admiral. Ten Italian cities and towns argued among themselves about the glory of being the birthplace of Columbus. But now it is proven that he was born in Genoa. The year of his birth is less certain; different news about this diverge among themselves for more than 20 years. Roselli de Lorgues, author of a biography of Columbus, proves that he was born about 1435; but more reliable is the news that he was born in 1456. Information about who his father was is also unreliable, but it is more likely than others that he was the son of a wealthy clothier. There is news that Columbus himself was engaged in this craft for up to twenty years. However, Columbus' own statement that he became a sailor from the age of 14 does not fit with this indication, based on data from the Genoese archives. Where Columbus studied as a boy and a young man is unknown; the tradition that he was educated at the universities of Pavia or Pisa is not supported by any documents. Be that as it may, he acquired a certain education for himself: he read and wrote in Latin, was familiar with geometry, astronomy, geography, possessed the art of drawing maps, and was a good calligrapher. There is news that in his youth he sailed in the Mediterranean; on merchant ships - he visited the island of Chios, near the coast of Tunisia, etc. But they were not known to him at all or were known only from vague fairy-tale legends of the Normans sailing from Greenland to Vinland, that is, to the northern part North America. If he had certain information about this discovery of the Normans, then on his first trip he would not have headed from the Canary Islands to the southwest, but would have sailed to the northwest. He could not be interested in stories about Vinland, for he was looking for ways to the rich cultural lands of southern Asia.

Portrait of Christopher Columbus. Artist S. del Piombo, 1519

At that time, the Italians were the best European sailors, and many of them moved to Portugal, which then also began to act as a maritime power. Looking for a job, moved to Lisbon and the brother of Columbus, Bartholomew (Bartolomeo), and Christopher followed him. Columbus stayed in Portugal for about ten years (1470s and 1480s), continuing to sail on merchant ships north to England and south to Guinea, and also engaged, together with his brother, in drawing and selling maps. In Portugal, Columbus married Dona Philippa Moniz and, according to legend, lived for some time on the island of Porto Santo, where Philippa had a small estate. Here in Portugal, Columbus had a firm conviction about the possibility of sailing west to the shores of Asia. In particular, Columbus was influenced by the letter of Paolo Toscanelli, the famous Florentine scientist, cosmographer and physician, to whom he turned for guidance. Toscanelli sent Columbus a map from which one could see that the distance between the western shores of Europe and the eastern shores of Asia, as described by the famous traveler Marco Polo, was not particularly significant. At that time, in general, there were rather vague ideas about the relationship on the earth's surface of the spaces occupied by land and sea; Columbus even believed that the land occupies a much larger area than the sea. In addition to the map and letter of Toscanelli, Columbus was guided in his views by the authority of Marco Polo and Peter d "Aglia, a medieval compiler, from whom Columbus could also get acquainted with the opinions of the ancients - Aristotle, Seneca, Pliny, Ptolemy, about the possibility of the existence of countries overseas, in the west.

Having considered his plan for a sea expedition, Columbus turned with him to the Portuguese king John II, who, however, after asking his court doctors and dignitaries for an opinion on this matter, rejected his proposal. There is reason to believe that the Portuguese government, which at that time was engaged in exploration along the western coast of Africa, did not want to leave them or split their forces in order to set sail for the unknown west, especially since the distance separating the countries of "spices and aromas ", could turn out to be much more significant than Columbus claimed. Having failed, Columbus moved to Spain with his eldest son Diego (a child of 5-6 years old). It seems that Columbus escaped from Portugal secretly, avoiding any prosecution, leaving there a wife and other children whom he never met again and whom he speaks of in his will as already dead. There are stories that Columbus offered his plan to the Genoese government; but now they have been proven wrong. Genoa, agitated by strife and exhausted by the war with the Turks, did not have the opportunity to engage in such an enterprise as Columbus thought about.

In Spain, Columbus had to live for seven years in moving, searching, vain efforts. Financial situation his at this time was not brilliant; he was still engaged in drawing maps, asked for handouts from the court, or enjoyed the hospitality of the Spanish grandees. In the autumn of 1491, having achieved nothing from the Spanish government, Columbus decided to leave Spain, and appeared as a tired wanderer-pedestrian in front of the gates of the Franciscan monastery della Rabida, near Palos, where he asked the porter for water and bread to strengthen his strength. In the monastery, the position of Columbus caused the participation of prior abbot Juan Perez, who believed in the plan of Columbus and came to the conclusion that every effort should be made to ensure that the glory of the great discovery did not pass Spain. Juan Pérez (the Queen's former confessor) wrote a letter to Queen Isabella that had its effect. Formal negotiations were started with Columbus, which almost broke down, however, due to the exorbitant conditions set by him, and which he demanded to be included in a written contract. Finally, the monarchs (Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon) expressed their consent and signed a contract that granted Columbus and his heirs the noble dignity and the title of admiral, in addition, he personally - the title of Viceroy of all the lands and islands that he discovers - the right to leave behind him a tenth of all the valuables that can be obtained within his admiralty - the right to contribute one eighth of the cost of equipping ships and receive, respectively, an eighth of all income, etc. It was decided to organize the expedition in the city of Palos partly at the expense of the queen, partly due to this city. Significant assistance in the first voyage was provided to Columbus by the wealthy Palos sailor M. A. Pinson, who, together with his brother, took command of the two ships; the third ship, a larger one ("Santa Maria"), was commanded by Columbus himself.

Replica of Columbus' Santa Maria

In August 1492, three caravels weighed anchor and headed for the Canary Islands, from where on September 8 they moved west between 27-28 ° latitude. From that day on, Columbus began to keep two diaries, one for himself, the other for the team, and in the latter he reduced the distances traveled by a quarter or a third, as if in order to less frighten his companions. On September 16, ships entered the so-called Sargasso Sea, southwest of the Azores. The weather was generally favorable and most of the time a fair wind (trade wind) blew. If Columbus had kept his course due west, he would have reached the coast of Florida, but he deviated to the southwest and came out to one of the Bahamas.

Signs of land had already appeared a few days before: birds had flown by, floating trunks, reeds, even branches with flowers could be seen on the surface of the sea. On October 11, in the evening, Columbus noticed some kind of moving light in the distance, but it soon disappeared; the next day, early in the morning, one of the sailors was the first to notice the sandy shore, which caused, according to the order given in advance, a volley from the gun. Subsequently, this sailor demanded for himself a reward appointed by the queen to the one who first saw the land, but Columbus declared that he had seen the land before; it came to court, which recognized the right of Columbus - a dark fact that caused, by some of the latest researchers, the accusation of Columbus in "disgusting greed." The whole voyage lasted 33 days - from the Canary Islands and 69 days, if you count from the day you left Palos. To stay for more than a month without seeing the land was, of course, terrifying for the then Spanish sailors; however, the legend of a riot that allegedly rose on the ships against Columbus is not supported by any evidence.

On the morning of October 12, Columbus, with two Pinsons, the "scribe" of the squadron R. Escobedo and treasurer R. Sanchez, landed with an escort ashore and, unfolding the royal banner, took the island into the possession of Spain. A crowd of natives had gathered on the shore, naked, swarthy, with black, long hair, painted over their bodies, armed with spears, with bone and stone tips. According to Columbus, this island was called Gwanaani; Columbus named it San Salvador. Later it was found out that the natives called it "Kayos", hence the subsequent name of the whole group among the Spaniards - "Lucay Islands". At the beginning of the XVI century. the entire population of these islands (Bahamas) was caught, enslaved and transferred to the island of Cuba, where they soon died from overwork. From San Salvador, Columbus went southwest, met other islands of the same group, then reached the land he called "Juana" (after the Spanish infanta) and in which he recognized part of the Asian mainland, while in reality it was an island Cuba. After passing along the northern coast of Cuba some distance to the west and then turning back to the east, Columbus reached the eastern tip of the island and saw another island to the east of it, which he called "Haiti" (Haiti). Here, near Cape Gvarico, Columbus's ship ran into a shallow, got a hole and sank. Columbus was forced to move to a smaller ship - "Ninya", and leave most of the crew on the shore, where a wooden fortification was built in a convenient harbor and a garrison of 40 people was left in it. After that, Columbus went on a small "Nina" back to Spain; another ship of his squadron, the Pinta, overtook him, and, having returned earlier to Spain, Pinson tried to inform the first monarchs about the discovery, but was ordered to wait for Columbus. From Palos, Columbus was invited to Barcelona, ​​where Ferdinand and Isabella received him with great honor; the report on the new discovery made a great sensation, which was facilitated by the 6 Indians brought by Columbus, parrots, samples of gold and other West Indian products. At the same time, it was immediately decided to equip a second expedition, in Cadiz; this time, a whole fleet of 17 ships with 1200 or more crew members was put under the command of Columbus.

Columbus before Kings Ferdinand and Isabella. Painting by E. Leutse, 1843

The new expedition went to the Canary Islands, then to the west, but along the path of 12 degrees to the south taken on the first trip. 20 days after leaving Ferro Island, one of the Lesser Antilles (La Desirade) was seen, and then the islands of Maria Galante, Dominica, Guadeloupe to the island of Puerto Rico. From here, Columbus went to Hispaniola (Haiti), where the fort he left was destroyed and the entire garrison exterminated by the Indians; I had to found a new city - Isabella - in another place. After lying in a fever for 3 months, Columbus sent 12 ships to Spain with a request for the delivery of supplies, seeds, livestock, and he himself, leaving his brother Diego as governor, went on a new search to the west, along the southern coast of Cuba. In this voyage, Jamaica and many small islands were discovered south of Cuba, but Columbus did not have to make sure of the island character of which, however, contrary winds and the poor condition of the ships forced him to turn back. Returning to Isabella, Columbus was delighted by the arrival of his brother Bartholomew, with three courts, but also saddened by strife among the Spaniards and unrest among the oppressed Indians. Part of the dissatisfied Spaniards managed to return to their homeland without permission and insist there on sending a special commissioner to Hispaniola to investigate cases. Columbus decided to personally defend his actions and went to Spain.

In February 1493, while sailing to Europe from the Americas, the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus began writing a letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. In it, he described his first impressions of the landscape and the people he encountered on his way to the New World.

Mystery of the Columbus letter

Columbus's letter was republished and widely distributed throughout Europe, helping all the inhabitants of the Old World to learn more about his discoveries. Only a few original copies of these editions have survived today. Thanks to a joint US-Italian investigation, one of these rare documents, stolen from a library in Florence, Italy and replaced with a high-quality copy, was recently found in the collection of the US Library of Congress. According to Italian experts, this copy is worth about $ 1 million. The letter was returned to the Italian authorities.

What did the navigator describe in his letter

“I discovered many islands inhabited by people,” Columbus wrote in his letter to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. “I have taken possession of them for our fortunate king by making a public proclamation and unfolding his standard. No one expressed any resistance." After describing fertile lands and abundant natural resources Columbus spoke about the population he encountered. He saw the native population as "shy and timid, unsophisticated and honest" and expressed the hope that they "may become Christian and inclined to love the king and queen and all the people of Spain".

Columbus's letter was printed and distributed in various languages ​​throughout Europe. Originally written in Spanish, it was republished in Latin translation by the Roman printer Stephen Planck. Eleven editions appeared in 1493, and six more in 1494-1497. It is assumed that no more than eighty copies have survived to this day.

Counterfeit detection

Back in 2012, Department of Homeland Security Investigators received intelligence that one of Planck's Latin copies had been stolen from a library in Florence, Italy and replaced with a fake. One of the researchers was studying the library's collection when he accidentally discovered a letter tied together with other documents and suspected it was a fake. Around the same time, the National Library in Rome announced that its copy of the 1493 letter had also been stolen and replaced with a forgery.

Subsequent investigations by US and Spanish officials confirmed that the letter found in the Florence library was in fact a high-quality photocopy, lacking the library's original stamp and the various stitching patterns found on other copies of the original. After confirming the forgery, the agents began to look for the loss. Although they did not know the circumstances of the theft, they were able to determine that the rare book had been sold in Switzerland as early as 1990. Two years later, the document was sold at an auction in New York for $300,000. The letter is currently valued at $1.1 million by Italian authorities. The collector who bought the letter at auction donated it to the Library of Congress in 2004.

Work of experts in Washington

The investigation then moved to Washington, where agents worked with library staff and experts to determine the document's authenticity. They found traces of chemical bleach on one of the pages, suggesting that someone was trying to hide the origin of this book by removing the Florence library stamp. Given this and other research findings, the experts concluded that the letter was in fact the original that Planck printed in 1493.

The reaction of the officials of the two countries

The investigation into the theft is still ongoing, but the letter itself was returned to Italy last week, and it was presented to the Italian press during a repatriation ceremony and a press conference held in the library of Rome. The Italian Minister of Culture commented on the situation: "It is interesting that 500 years after the letter was written, it made a trip back and forth from America."

US Ambassador to Italy John Phillips, who attended the ceremony, called it "a landmark event that shows the level of friendship and cooperation between the two countries." Mr. Phillips did not comment on how Columbus's letter ended up in his country's library of congress. However, United States officials said they purchased the letter from a collector and were unaware of its dubious provenance.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS

origin mystery

The world-famous navigator Christopher Columbus was born into a poor Genoese family in Italy on October 29, 1451 on the island of Corsica - the then possession of the Republic of Genoa. According to another version, the discoverer was born on May 20, 1506 in the Spanish town of Valladolid. In fairness, it should be noted that today 6 cities of both countries dispute the honor of being the birthplace of Columbus.

In his youth, Christopher studied at the University of Pavia, and in 1470 marries the daughter of the famous navigator Don Felipe Moniz de Palestrello. Bartolome de Las Casas, a contemporary of Christopher Columbus, described his portrait as follows: “He was tall, above average, his face was long and respectful, his nose was aquiline, his eyes were bluish-gray, his skin was white, with redness, his beard and mustache were reddish in his youth. , but in the works they turned gray.

But let us return once again to the question of the origin of Columbus. One Spanish legend says that the navigator was the illegitimate son of the Spanish prince De Vian, and pretended to be a commoner so as not to discredit his father's honor. According to this or another version, Columbus was born in Mallorca and hid the secret of his origin, because. in his youth, in the person of the captain of a corsair ship, he fought against the king of Aragon, the father of the founder of the Spanish state, Ferdinand.

The Italian Encyclopedia states that the Jewish origin of Christopher Columbus is a well-known fact. This version can be disputed by assuming that the so-called "crypto-Jews" (Jews who outwardly observed Christianity) lived in medieval Mallorca, and this explains the presence of "Jewish motives" in the notes of Columbus. By the way, an analysis of Columbus's notes established that the navigator never used the Italian language in his letters, and the stylistic character and handwriting indicate that he was a well-educated and cultured person, and not a self-taught commoner who accidentally discovered the New World.

And, finally, confirmation in favor of the "Jewish" version is the data of Spanish and Portuguese historians, who report that Columbus was a baptized Jew and had nothing to do with Italy, and therefore was engaged in cartography and calligraphy - Jewish professions characteristic of that era.

The development of the world and the youth of Columbus

In the second half of the 15th century, throughout Western Europe, big cities, trade developed, money became a universal medium of exchange, which sharply increased the demand for gold. The latter, the Spaniards believed, could be found in large quantities in India. The development of trade forced many countries to think about new ways of marketing - for example, Portugal was looking for southern sea and western routes. At the same time, in the era of the European Renaissance, theories about the sphericity of the Earth began to appear.

In 1474, the astronomer and geographer Paolo Toscanelli wrote to Columbus about his assumption that India could be reached through the West. Christopher Columbus, who moved to Savona in 1472, already then began to make plans for his sea expeditions, in particular, he was interested in traveling to India. Taking into account the opinion of Toscanelli, Christopher decided to sail to India through the Canary Islands, from which, according to his calculations, about 5 thousand km remained to Japan.

In 1476, Columbus settled in Portugal in order to be closer to information sources about the planned sea routes. For 10 years of his residence in Portugal, the discoverer managed to visit England, Guinea, Ireland and Iceland - also in order to collect more data on lands in the West.

Illuminated by the thirst for new discoveries, Columbus hastened to communicate his decision to sail to India to the government of his native Genoa, but they ignored his initiative. In 1483, Columbus tried to get approval for his project through Juan II, but the Portuguese king also refused the young navigator. Then Columbus, together with his son Diego, moved to Spain, where in the winter of 1485-1486. settled in the monastery of Santa Maria da Rabida in the status of a beggar.

Many historians believe that Columbus was hiding from his pursuers, and in Spain he received, so to speak, political asylum. Father Abbot of the monastery Juan Perez de Marchena not only saved Columbus from starvation, but also, having familiarized himself with Christopher's bright ideas about the transformation of the world, wrote a letter to his friend Fernando de Talavera, the confessor of the Queen of Spain. At that time, the king of Spain was extremely busy - he was preparing for war with Granada in the city of Cordoba. Whole next year Columbus spent in futile attempts to establish connections with royal financial advisers, merchants and bankers. Finally, in the winter of 1486, the navigator was introduced to the Archbishop of Toledo and the Grand Cardinal of Spain, Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza. The cardinal facilitated an audience with the Spanish king, after which theologians, lawyers, cosmographers, monks and even courtiers studied the project for about a year, who ultimately rejected the ideas of Columbus, considering his requests to be overly arrogant and his ideas unrealistic.

In 1488, Columbus received a letter from the Portuguese king, in which he urged him to return to the country and solemnly promised to stop all persecution of his person. In the same year, Columbus received another good letter from King Henry VII of England, who approved of Christopher's ideas for a trip to India, but did not promise or offer anything specific.

All of Western Europe was busy preparing for the coming war, and not a single government dared to sponsor an experimental project. The latest confirmation of this was the comments of the kings of Castile, Isabella and Ferdinand: "In view of the enormous costs and efforts required to wage war, the start of a new enterprise is not possible."

In January 1492, a joyful event took place - the capture of the Alhambra fortress. Granada fell and the war ended successfully in victory for Spain. Columbus was waiting for this moment, inspired, he came to the king of Spain and offered to appoint himself viceroy of the new lands, award the title of Chief Admiral of the Sea-Ocean, and all this under the banner of discovery and ownership of new lands. His Majesty opposed such insolence, calling Christopher's demands "excessive and unacceptable", and disrupted the negotiations on an unfriendly note.

In 1492, Columbus made a statement about migration to France - apparently for reasons try to negotiate with the French king. And then Queen Isabella of Castile unexpectedly takes a step forward: impressed by the idea of ​​liberating the Holy Sepulcher, she offers to pawn her jewelry in order to give money to Columbus for his journey. On April 30, 1492, the royal couple appoints Columbus as their nobleman and announces that if his expedition succeeds, Christopher will officially become Admiral of the Sea-Ocean and Viceroy of all the lands that he discovers. He also has the right to pass on his titles by inheritance. However, royal jewels were not enough for a full-fledged overseas equipment. The queen did not receive taxes from her people, and Columbus himself, who did not have a penny, had to pay 13% of the expenses for the expedition.

Columbus was helped to scrape together the amount to pay off his share by his friend Martin Alonso Pinson, who gave him his own fully equipped ship, the Pinta, as well as money for a second and third ship. As you know, the funds for the 3rd ship were issued under the guarantee of Martin by local marranos - at the expense of their budgetary payments.

The beginning of discoveries

Over the next 12 years, Christopher Columbus undertook as many as 4 expeditions by decree of the King of Spain. Columbus wrote down his impressions and new information about the world obtained from travels in logbook, part of which Bartolome de Las Casas managed to copy. Thanks to these surviving copies, many details of the expeditions have survived to this day.

So, on the first expedition, traveling with his three ships - Pinta, Santa Maria and Nina,
and a team of 90 people, Columbus discovered America. New lands, the islands of the Caribbean (Bahamas, Haiti and Cuba), Christopher at first considered East Asia. For a long time, Europeans seriously called them "Western India", because the islands had to sail to the West, as opposed to India and Indonesia proper, which in Europe were called "East India". Despite the confusion, after the first significant journey of Columbus began the expansion of Spain into the New World.

The second flotilla of Christopher consisted of 17 ships and a crew of about 2000 people - sailors, priests, officials, service nobles, courtiers. Animals were accommodated on several ships - a large cattle, donkeys, horses, pigs. Also, people brought with them the seeds of agricultural crops for the settlement of future lands. This time Haiti was completely conquered: having barely landed on the shore, the Europeans began to mercilessly exterminate the local population. During the second expedition, almost the entire coast of Cuba was explored - the Lesser Antilles, the Virgin Islands, the islands of Puerto Rico, Jamaica. At the same time, Columbus continued to believe that he was in Western India.

Little money was found for the third voyage, so Columbus' flotilla consisted of only of 6 ships and 300 crew members, which also included Spanish criminals. Believing that gold could be found closer to the equator, on May 30, 1498, Columbus left the mouth of the Guadalquivir River with his flotilla and decided to stay closer to the South. Three ships went from the Canary Islands towards Haiti, and three more Columbus led to the South-West, to the Cape Verde Islands. Two months after the start of the third expedition, Columbus discovered the island of Trinidad and, without stopping there, went around it from the South, ending up in the Orinoco Delta and the Gulf of Paria. Not having time to complete the exploration of nearby lands, the navigator fell seriously ill and was forced to turn north, to Santo Domingo.

Having sailed to Haiti, Christopher Columbus discovered that the colonists had raised an armed rebellion against Bartolome during his absence. As a result, Columbus had to go for the introduction of a system of enslavement of the Indians for the rebellious colonists, each of whom was given a solid piece of land.

While Columbus dealt with the colonists, the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama opened the sea route to the real India. Returning from India with a cargo of spices, Vasco began to denounce Columbus that he was a deceiver, and the lands he had discovered were not India at all. The Spanish royal treasury did not receive income from its new colony for a long time and in 1499 abolished Columbus' monopoly on the discovery of lands. A year later, the royal couple, suspecting Columbus of a conspiracy against the country and an exceptional desire to seize new lands themselves, sent their representative Francisco Bovadilla to Haiti. He took all the power on the island into his own hands, arrested Christopher Columbus along with his brothers, put them in shackles and delivered them to Spain. However, rather quickly, local financiers managed to convince the king to drop the charges against the navigator.

Columbus did not tend to give up even in a very difficult situation. He obtained permission from the king for a new expedition, justifying this with a desire to find a way from the lands he had discovered to South Asia. Once, observing a strong sea current off the coast of Cuba, going west through the Caribbean Sea, Columbus realized that such a path exists.

On the fourth expedition, he took with him his 13-year-old son Hernando and his brother Bartolome. During the last expedition, Christopher discovered Central America - the mainland south of Cuba, proving that the Atlantic Ocean separates from the South Sea, as the Indians called it, "an insurmountable barrier." Columbus also became the first to tell about the Indian peoples who inhabited the shores of the South Sea.

Death and eternal memory

Upon returning to Seville, Columbus was very seriously ill. He did not have the strength and former energy to seek the restoration of his rights and privileges from the kings, and he spent all the money on travel comrades. On May 20, 1506, the last words of the great navigator were: “Into your hands, Lord, I entrust my spirit,” and in the same year he was buried in Seville. Interestingly, after the death of Columbus, Emperor Charles V took the initiative to fulfill the dying wish of the navigator and bury him in Western India. The ashes of Columbus in 1540 were first delivered to Haiti in Santo Domingo, then, at the turn of the 18th-19th centuries, part of the islands passed from the Spaniards to the French, and the ashes were transported to Cuba in the Cathedral of Havana. After the Spaniards were expelled from Havana in 1889, the ashes of the navigator were again returned to Santo Domingo, and then to Seville.

Like most geniuses, Columbus was recognized only after his death, when in the middle of the 16th century, after the conquest of Mexico, Peru and the states in the north of the Andes, ships with a huge amount of silver and gold went to Europe.

El Salvador's currency was named after Christopher Columbus (Cristóbal Colón in Spanish) - Salvadoran colon. On all issued denominations of all years and all denominations, a portrait of a young or elderly Columbus was placed on the reverse side. Also named in honor of the navigator: the state in South America Colombia, Mount Cristobal Colon in Colombia, District of Columbia in the USA, British Columbia in Canada, Columbia River in the USA and Canada, Columbia Pictures, cities in the USA Columbus and Columbia, shuttle Columbia, ISS module Columbus, city in the Panama Canal zone Colon, a province in Panama Colon, a department in Honduras Colon, an Argentinean football club from Santa Fe Colon, the main opera house of Argentina, the Colon Theatre, the Columbus Theater in the book by Ilf and Petrov "12 Chairs".

528 p.
Second edition.
Circulation 20,000 copies. Price 12 p. 10 k.
Scan Andrey Myatishkin, DjVu Alexx

Content:
Treaty of Santa Fe (Capitulación)
Title Certificate for Christopher Columbus
Letter to Santangel and Sanchez
Diary of the first trip
Bulla Inter caetera No. 2

Dr. Chanca's letter to the authorities of the city of Seville
Andrew Bernaldes. Excerpt from "History of the Catholic Kings"
Bartolome Las Casas. Description of the second journey ... (from the "History of the Indies")
Columbus Memorial to Isabella and Ferdinand
Columbus' instruction to Mosen Pedro Margarita
Treaty of Tordesillas between the kings of Spain and Portugal on the division of the world
Columbus' letter to Ferdinand and Isabella about the results of the third voyage
Bartolome Las Casas. Description of the third journey (from the History of the Indies)
From a letter from Columbus to the kings
Letter of protection from Columbus to Roldan
Columbus' letter to "unknown lords"
Letter from Christopher Columbus to the Nurse of Don Juan of Castile
The King and Queen's Instruction to Christopher Columbus
Letter from Columbus to the King and Queen of Jamaica
An excerpt from the will of Diego Mendez

Expedition personnel

On the ships of Columbus, all personnel can be divided into four groups:

Command structure.
Junior command staff.
Sailors ( marineros And grumeros).
other members of the expedition.

Command staff

On each ship, in addition to the captain, whose functions, as we will see now, did not quite correspond to the terms of reference of modern captains, there was one "maestre", one pilot and a ship's doctor.

The captain was the head and commandant of the ship. According to Diego Palacio's Naval Instruction of 1587, he must first of all be a "good Catholic". Then he was supposed to have courage, nobility of character and firmness, be zealous in his duties and keep the team in submission. If the ship was attacked, then the captain single-handedly led the battle.

But the "Instruction" did not require him to have knowledge of maritime affairs. All direct management of the service on the ship was entrusted to the maestra, who was, in essence, the ship's skipper. The pilot (navigator) enjoyed somewhat lesser rights. The pilot had to daily determine the position of the ship, conduct astronomical observations and plot the course passed by the ship on the map. Sailors who were knowledgeable in astronomy and navigation, people with extensive and versatile experience, were appointed to this post.

On the ships of Columbus, the following persons held the positions of captains, maestre and pilots:

Not to mention Martin Alonso Pinson, whose knowledge and merits were recognized by all contemporaries without exception, all these commanders were experienced sailors. The names of Peralonso Niño, later the chief pilot of Castile, and especially Vicente Yáñez Pinzón, are associated with important discoveries on the shores of the "mainland" - South America. Excellent pilots were de Gama and Sarmiento. But Juan de la Cosa, unlike his famous namesake, was an ordinary sailor and probably received the post of maestre only because he was the owner of the Santa Maria ship. The so-called. countermaestre ( contramaestre). Their duties were very numerous. The countermaestres were shipwrights and were in charge of personnel crews.

Crown official and other members of the expedition

These include:

1. Surveyor Plenipotentiary of the Crown ( veedor real) Rodrigo Sanchez de Segovia;
2. notary of the flotilla ( escribano de toda armada) Rodrigo de Escoveda;
3. translator, baptized Jew ( converso) Luis de Torres;
4. the only "passenger" of the flotilla, the royal bed-keeper ( repostero de estrados del rey) Pedro (Pero) Gutierez;
5. servant of Admiral Pedro de Terreros and
6. page of Admiral Pedro de Salcedo.

An inspector of the crown was appointed to the flotilla to oversee the entire financial part of the expedition. Since, according to the text of the agreement (surrender) concluded with Columbus, the lion's share of future income in the newly discovered lands went to the crown, the inspector had to ensure that the admiral and his people acted in accordance with the terms of the agreement, without prejudice to the royal treasury.

The notary of the flotilla had a duty that was extremely important from the point of view of the Castilian zealots of the law. He drew up and, as a representative of the king and queen, sealed with his signature the acts on the introduction of the newly discovered lands into the possession of Castile.

The translator Luis de Torres might have been of benefit to the expedition if Columbus had really reached East or South Asia, since he knew, in addition to Spanish and Hebrew, Arabic. But neither in Cuba nor in Hispaniola did his linguistic knowledge find and could not find application.

Junior command staff

There were boatswains on the ship, whose duties were not much different from the duties of boatswains on sailing ships XVI - XIX centuries; persons who were in charge of the storage and distribution of provisions, wine, fresh water and were responsible for the serviceability of signal lights and the correct counting of time using ampoulets (hourglasses). These were the so-called despensero.

They were equated with junior commanders, while receiving the salary due to sailors of the highest article, a caulker ( calafate), bochar ( tonelero) and a ship's carpenter ( carpentero).

Sailors

Sailors were divided into two categories:

1. marinero - trained sailors, sailors of the highest category and
2. grumets - deck sailors. Ship boys (cabin boys) also belonged to the category of grumets.

Maestres and pilots received 2,000 monthly, marineros 1,000 and grumets 666 maravedis.

The entire crew was paid 250,180 maravedis monthly.

Bobadilla ordered that Columbus be immediately imprisoned and also shackled. On Bobadilla's orders, Columbus sent a letter to his brother Bartolome advising him to voluntarily surrender. He obeyed, was also arrested and shackled.

After a two-month investigation, Bobadilla came to the conclusion that Christopher Columbus was "a hard-hearted man and unable to rule the country" and decided to send him in shackles with his brothers to Spain. The admiral probably expected to be tried and executed in Hispaniola, and therefore was delighted when he was put on the ship.

The owner of the ship and the captain offered Columbus to remove his shackles, but the admiral refused. His son Fernando (or the author of the biography of Christopher Columbus attributed to him) conveys his phrase: “The kings ordered me to obey, and Bobadilla put me in chains; I will remain in them until the kings allow them to be removed, and I will keep these chains as a memory of my merits.

In October 1500, ships with three shackled brothers entered the harbor of Cadiz. Las Casas reports that he personally saw Christopher Columbus in chains in Seville.

Apparently, already in Spain itself, Columbus wrote famous letter influential court lady, Juana Torres, nurse of the Infanta (Crown Prince) Juan. Her brother participated in the second expedition of Columbus, she herself was close to the queen. This letter is an important psychological document characterizing Columbus. It was written, undoubtedly, with the aim of touching Isabella, since Columbus knew that Juana would definitely read it to the queen and comment in a favorable spirit for him. It is full of complaints; but there are many and rather unambiguous reproaches against the royal couple. It is unlikely, however, that these complaints and reproaches and Christian humility, combined with biblical pathos, would have influenced such people as the "Catholic kings", if very influential people who financed his expeditions were not interested in the fate of Columbus himself. They were able to mobilize public opinion"in favor of the demoted, destroyed and shackled" Admiral of the sea-ocean. Apparently, rumors had reached the queen about the indignation in the Andalusian cities that the man who discovered the Western Indies had returned to Spain in shackles. The king and queen ordered the immediate release of Columbus, expressed their sympathy to him in writing, hypocritically indignant at his mistreatment, ordered him to give him two thousand gold pieces so that he could appear at the court "in decent shape."

In a word, the royal couple hastened to justify themselves by placing all responsibility for the treatment of the great navigator on Bobadilla, who received secret instructions from her.

There was a melodramatic scene when Columbus - already without fetters - again appeared before both monarchs and fell at the feet of the queen. Isabella, according to the historian Herrera, even burst into tears, and Ferdinand seemed shocked. The kings made many promises to Columbus - shower him with favors, restore his rights - but they never fulfilled them. Ovando was appointed royal governor: Bobadilla, apparently, was considered only as a temporary executor of royal assignments. Ovando was ordered to collect one-third from the gold miners in favor of the royal treasury. All trade in the colony was to become a monopoly of the Castilian crown.

The new detachments of Franciscan monks who accompanied Ovando were to more energetically convert the "savages" to the Christian faith. The Indians had to work in state-owned mines for a certain salary. And since the death rate between them was increasing, a special royal decree was issued to transport black slaves born in Spain to Hispaniola.

Meanwhile, significant quantities of gold mined in Hispaniola and pearls collected on the Pearl Coast began to arrive in Spain. Therefore, thousands of new seekers of adventure and easy money rushed to the Western Indies.

About three thousand people expressed a desire to go along with the new governor Ovando. 23 ships were needed in order to transport new colonists across the ocean, among whom were many “respectable people” who moved with their families. Since that time, the mass settlement of the Greater Antilles by the Spaniards began. And at the same time, the indigenous population of the archipelago and, first of all, Hispaniola was intensively exterminated. Peaceful Indians were exhausted by backbreaking labor and starved to death on plantations and mines, rebels and "conspirators" were slaughtered, trampled on horses' hooves, poisoned by dogs, hanged or burned at the stake.

The native population of Hispaniola was disappearing at a rate unparalleled in the history of mankind. Writers of the 19th and 20th centuries often questioned Las Casas' testimony that Hispaniola had three to four million inhabitants at the time of its discovery. But if these figures are greatly exaggerated, then it is impossible to refute the testimony of the same Las Casas that in 1495 Columbus imposed a general tax on one million one hundred thousand natives. After 20 years (in 1515) there were less than 15 thousand people, and by the middle of the 16th century, the indigenous population of Hispaniola had completely died out.

They began to import "cannibals" from the Lesser Antilles (primarily from the Bahamas) as slaves to Hispaniola, as well as from Cuba, Jamaica and Puerto Rico, where the first permanent Spanish settlements appeared only in 1508. Soon, the indigenous population began to disappear and on these islands. Then began a mass hunt for people in South America - off the coast of the Caribbean Sea. Later, on the initiative of Las Casas, African blacks began to be imported to Hispaniola. Their descendants, partly mixed with the Spanish colonists, settled the entire island of Haiti. The main modern population of the other Antilles was formed from the descendants of European colonists and African Negro slaves.

Columbus still hoped to reach India through the "Western Ocean". He wanted to open a new way - through the Caribbean Sea - to the "country of spices and incense." He was sure that such a way existed. Indeed, he personally observed - during his second voyage off the coast of Cuba - strong sea currents that go further west through the Caribbean Sea. He hoped that this current would carry him into the sea washing the shores of the "Golden Chersonese" (Malacca Peninsula), and from there he would reach the mouth of the Ganges or some other part of "midday India".

Columbus began to ask the king for permission to organize a new western expedition. Ferdinand was glad to get rid of the importunate petitioner. In the autumn of 1501, they began to equip a small flotilla. And since Columbus postponed his expedition for various reasons, in the spring of 1502 he was ordered to immediately sail to the west (see Royal Instruction of March 14, 1502).

The royal financial controller was assigned to the admiral. Columbus was forbidden to enslave the Indians. Politely and cautiously, the kings advised him not to pester Hispaniola, except in case of emergency and only on the way back. Columbus' new flotilla consisted of four ships, each with a capacity of 50-70 tons. The crew was only about 150 people. Columbus took with him his brother Bartolome and his son Fernando, still a boy.

Despite the prohibition, Columbus sent his ships through the Lesser Antilles to Hispaniola.

At the end of June 1502 a small fleet approached the port of Santo Domingo. The new governor, Ovando, did not allow the expedition to take refuge in the harbor and change one ship, which, according to Columbus, "cannot withstand the impending storm and will not withstand a long voyage." The storm has indeed broken. Three ships of Columbus were torn from anchors and scattered in different directions. But when the storm subsided, the whole small flotilla was safely connected at the western tip of the island. Columbus stayed there for some time to repair ships.

In mid-July, Columbus moved due west along the southern coasts of Hispaniola and Jamaica. A very weak wind was blowing, and the current carried the flotilla to the northwest. Four days later, an archipelago appeared - the "Gardens of the Queen" near Cuba. Then the admiral changed course to the southwest in order to reach the latitude of southern Hispaniola and Jamaica.

It is unlikely that here, at the 18th parallel of northern latitude, Columbus hoped to open the desired passage to the “Golden Chersonese” (Malacca), which, as was then correctly assumed, is located somewhere near the equator, i.e., about two thousand kilometers south of the 18th parallel. Columbus, obviously, sought at first, without turning off the direct path, to reach the mainland in the west, and then to find the strait, following along the coast, if possible, in a southerly direction. Later, he did just that.