The discovery of America by Christopher Columbus occurred in the 15th century.
The discovery of America is the name traditionally given to the first arrival of a European expedition to the American continent . This event occurred on October 12, 1492 , when the Spanish mission headed by Christopher Columbus arrived at an island in the Antilles archipelago after crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
Over time, the idea of " discovery " to refer to this event fell into disuse. On the one hand, America already had inhabitants for about 14,000 years before the arrival of Europeans: in fact, it is estimated that nearly 50 million people lived on the continent when the ships Santa María, Pinta and Niña (the three caravels ) docked in these lands. On the other hand, there are historians who maintain that the Vikings managed to land in America in the 10th century , although this statement is a matter of debate.
Before Columbus's discovery of America
Before the arrival of Columbus, America was already a highly populated continent with advanced civilizations. It is estimated that the first inhabitants came from Asia , with one theory of early settlement (which would have begun about 30,000 years ago) and another of late settlement (which places the origin around 12,000 years ago).
The so-called Caral civilization , developed between 3,000 and 1,800 BC. C. , is noted as the first American society with complex characteristics. The Nazca, Chavín, Chimú and Olmec cultures, among other references of pre-Columbian culture, were also able to achieve important progress, which was later enhanced by the Mayan civilization , the Aztec Empire and the Inca Empire .
Regarding transoceanic contacts prior to Columbus's expedition , numerous historians believe that the arrival of the Vikings to the current island of Newfoundland ( Canada ) in the 10th century can be proven. There, in North America , they would have founded the settlement of L'Anse aux Meadows , a milestone often attributed to Leif Erikson .
In this framework, it is considered that the first links between Native Americans and Europeans could have been forged in the 12th century . The Norse alluded to the Skraelings (North American Indians), who would be the Thule , and referred to the region as Vinland .
Other hypotheses state that the Polynesians could also have arrived in America before Columbus. What the 1492 voyage evidently established was the beginning of close contact between the Old World (Europe, Asia and Africa) and the New World (America and Oceania) since it allowed Europeans to confirm the existence of territories beyond the that they knew until then.
Two years after the discovery of America, Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesillas to divide the areas of conquest and navigation.
The objectives
The objectives of the expedition led by Columbus were linked to finding new trade routes to access the Indies and China . Thinking that the Earth's diameter was smaller than the real one, Columbus believed that he could go around the world sailing westward.
In this way, with financing provided by the Catholic kings, the three ships left on August 3, 1492 from the Port of Palos , in southern Spain. A little more than two months later, explorers came across the island of Guanahani (present-day Bahamas ) and thought it was Indian territory.
The first European construction in America – without taking into account the Viking antecedents already mentioned – was carried out on December 24, 1492 , when the Spanish built Fort Navidad with the remains of the caravel Santa María , which had run aground on the coast of the Hispaniola island.
Columbus's return to Spain took place in March 1493 . After reporting the news to the kings, the sailor of Genoese origin obtained financing to make three more trips to America, which he made in that same year, in 1498 and finally in 1502 .
Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama y Venezuela son algunas de las naciones actuales a cuyos territorios llegó Colón en sus distintos viajes. Pasó mucho tiempo, sin embargo, hasta que se confirmó que las tierras halladas por el navegante constituían otro continente y no eran parte de las Indias.
The expeditionary, cosmographer and merchant Américo Vespucio , who participated in several voyages to explore the New World, is credited with a leading role in identifying these lands as a different continent. That is why America pays tribute to him with his name.
The conquest that followed the discovery of America allowed the Spanish to obtain large quantities of gold and silver.
After the discovery of America
In 1499 , the Spanish kings ended Columbus's monopoly on the exploration of the New World. The so-called minor or Andalusian voyages then began, with "discoveries" made by Bartolomé Ruiz, Pedro Alonso Niño, Antonio de Olivares, Andrés Niño, Vicente Yáñez Pinzón and Juan Ladrillero , among others.
The arrival of Columbus and the rest of the explorers opened the door to the conquest of the lands found. Over the course of more than four centuries, the Spanish Empire was built with colonial strongholds such as the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (which included present-day Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and part of Bolivia ), the Viceroyalty of Peru (with areas of Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil and Chile ), the Viceroyalty of New Granada (regions of Ecuador, Colombia and Panama ), the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( Mexico and states of the United States ), the Captaincy General of Venezuela and the Captaincy General of Guatemala .
It cannot be ignored that the colonization process was carried out with violence. In this context, evangelization was carried out by force to add the natives to the Catholic Church and slavery and the encomienda were used to exploit the American Indians .