This blog is an attempt to correct many of the misconceptions surrounding who Columbus was and his voyage to the New World. Please post comments and questions as you learn the truth about the history of Columbus Day.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
You Lead the Discovery
This blog is an attempt to correct many of the misconceptions surrounding who Columbus was and his voyage to the New World. Please post comments and questions as you learn the truth about the history of Columbus Day.
Columbus Day
In fourteen hundred and ninety-two,
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.
He took three ships with him, too,
And called aboard his faithful crew.
Mighty, strong and brave was he
As he sailed across the open sea.
Some people still thought the world was flat!
Can you even imagine that?
Have you ever heard this poem before? When?What are 3 facts that you know about Columbus?
Sesame Street News Flash!
Sesame Street is a television show that has been watched by millions of young children. Besides reinforcing basic math skill what is this particular show teaching them?
Where did Columbus land???
Columbus set sail in 1492 with three ships, the Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria. The voyage was funded by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. The purpose of the voyage was to find a cross Atlantic trade route from Europe to the Indies where the spice trade had become very popular.
Contrary to popular belief many educated Europeans at this point in time actually believed that the Earth was round. However no one knew how big it was and up to this point no one was willing to make the journey to find out.
Columbus believed that the Earth was round and that he could find a trade route across the Atlantic that would link Spain and the Indies. On October 12, 1492 the crew of the Pinta spotted land. While Columbus believed he had discovered the Indies he had actually discovered a continent that Europeans had not previously known about. Using the map below find where you believed Columbus landed and write the name of the place in the comments section.
View Where did Christopher Columbus Land? in a larger map
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Who got there first? Leif Erikson or Christopher Columbus
For many years Christopher Columbus was credited as the first European to discover America. Recent evidence points to another European discovering America, the viking Leif Erikson. Leif lived from about 980 AD to 1020 AD. Leif was the son of Erik the Red who would eventually discover Greenland after Leif was born. Leif's father was not the only explorer in the family, his grand father had discovered Iceland.
Exploring was in Leif's genes so at one point in his life he became one of the first known people to sail from Greenland all the way to Norway. Once he arrived King Olaf converted Leif to Christianity and sent him out into the world to become a missionary.
Due to constant shortages of timber in Greenland, inhabitants were constantly looking for more of this natural resource. Leif heard of two other mens' travels on which they had spotted land with plenty of timber. Neither of the men set foot on the newly discovered land so when Leif Erickson made the trip himself he was the first European to discover and set foot in America.
Leif Erikson Day
The White House
Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release
October 08, 2010
Presidential Proclamation--Leif Erikson Day
Over 1,000 years ago, the lure of discovery led Leif Erikson -- a son of Iceland and grandson of Norway -- and his crew on an ambitious exploration of present-day Greenland and Canada. Centuries later, after a months-long ocean voyage, a group of Norwegians landed in New York City on October 9, 1825, the first large group of immigrants to arrive in the United States from Norway. To commemorate that event and pay tribute to our rich Nordic-American heritage, we celebrate Leif Erikson Day in honor of the first European known to set foot on North American soil more than a millennium ago.To read the full proclamation...
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2010/10/08/presidential-proclamation-leif-erikson-day
1) Have you heard about this day before?
2) Why is this holiday not celebrated in schools?
Compare and Contrast
Each of these pictures is an artist's rendition of Christopher Columbus landing at the New World.
Note the differences of what is happening in each drawing.
Compare and contrast how each artist has represented the Natives. What interaction is going on between the Natives and the Europeans?
"Journal of the First Voyage of Christopher Columbus, 1492-1493"
Sunday, 14th of October
...these people are very simple as regards the use of arms, as your Highnesses will see from the seven that I caused to be taken, to bring home and learn our language and return; unless your Highnesses should order them all to be brought to Castile, or to be kept as captives on the same island; for with fifty men they can all be subjugated and made to do what is required of them....
Sunday, 16th of December
...your Highnesses may believe that this island, and all the others, are as much yours as Castile. Here there is only wanting a settlement and the order to the people to do what is required. For I, with the force I have under me, which is not large, could march over all these islands without opposition. I have seen only three sailors land, without wishing to do harm, and a multitude of Indians fled before them. They have no arms, and are without warlike instincts; they all go naked, and are so timid that a thousand would not stand before three of our men. So that they are good to be ordered about, to work and sow, and do all that may be necessary, and to build towns, and they should be taught to go about clothed and to adopt our customs.
Both of these entries are taken right out of Christopher Columbus' journal.
What does Christopher Columbus want to use the Natives for?
Do you think he is treating the Native fairly?
...these people are very simple as regards the use of arms, as your Highnesses will see from the seven that I caused to be taken, to bring home and learn our language and return; unless your Highnesses should order them all to be brought to Castile, or to be kept as captives on the same island; for with fifty men they can all be subjugated and made to do what is required of them....
Sunday, 16th of December
...your Highnesses may believe that this island, and all the others, are as much yours as Castile. Here there is only wanting a settlement and the order to the people to do what is required. For I, with the force I have under me, which is not large, could march over all these islands without opposition. I have seen only three sailors land, without wishing to do harm, and a multitude of Indians fled before them. They have no arms, and are without warlike instincts; they all go naked, and are so timid that a thousand would not stand before three of our men. So that they are good to be ordered about, to work and sow, and do all that may be necessary, and to build towns, and they should be taught to go about clothed and to adopt our customs.
Both of these entries are taken right out of Christopher Columbus' journal.
What does Christopher Columbus want to use the Natives for?
Do you think he is treating the Native fairly?
Who should we trust?
Lyrics to Columbus :
I and I old I know
I and I old I say
I and I reconsider
I and I see upfully that
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Yes Jah
He's saying that, he is the first one
who discover Jamaica
I and I say that,
What about the Arawak Indians and the few Black man
Who were around here, before him
The Indians couldn't hang on no longer
Here comes first Black man and woman and children,
In a Jam Down Land ya
A whole heap of mix up and mix up
A whole heap a ben up, ben up,
We have fi straighten out,
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Yes Jah
What a long way from home
I and I longing to go home
Within a Red, Green, and Gold Robe
Come on Twelve Tribe of Isreal
Come on Twelve Tribe of Isreal
Out a Jam Down land ya
A whole heap of mix up mix up
A whole heap a ben up, ben up,
Come on Twelve Tribe of Isreal
Come on Twelve Tribe of Isreal
Out a Jam Down land ya
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Yes Jah, he is a liar
Yes Jah, he is a liar
Yes Jah, he is a liar
Columbus is a liar
Yes jah Christopher Columbus is a damn blasted liar
Did Coumbus Commit Genocide? Part One
Genocide - the deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group.
-dictionary.com
From an opinion based website...
"Columbus initially had friendly relations with the Native Americans he encountered in the West Indies on the first voyage. Beginning with the second voyage, these relations began to sour, with some tribes more than others. The Spanish had come to America as conquerors. In 1492, they had just successfully finished a centuries-long war to evict the Moors from Spain, and the idea of spreading Christianity (in general) and Spanish control (in particular) was central to Spanish culture. The idea that one could arrive at a new country with no strong central government, and not claim such lands for the sovereigns one had sworn to support and defend, was simply unthinkable. It would be like expecting a 21st-century American to renounce democracy or free enterprise. Although Columbus was born in Genoa, by 1492 he had been in Spain for about seven years, and was in effect a Spanish citizen. Further, Columbus was devoutly Christian, perhaps even more so than most Spaniards of his day.
Therefore it is completely unsurprising that war soon broke out between the Spanish settlers on Hispaniola and some of the Native American tribes there; in fact, it is probably more surprising that war did not break out with all the tribes on the island, and that some of them accepted Spanish rule (and Christianity) without a fight. This warfare began in 1494, and continued sporadically for another decade or so.
Some people have tried to blame Columbus personally for this warfare. To me, this is a bit like personally blaming Abraham Lincoln for the Civil War. The causes of war are often large social forces, usually beyond the control of any individual. I believe that is true in this case. And it is also true that Columbus personally killed some Native Americans during this war (although thousands, and perhaps even hundreds, would be a gross exaggeration). But most people in most societies (including Native American societies) view killing in wartime as acceptable; few would claim that it is morally equivalent to murder, much less genocide."
http://www.columbusnavigation.com/destruct.shtmlWhere did Columbus Really Land?
"on October 12 land was sighted from the Pinta (though Columbus, on the Niña, later claimed the privilege for himself). The place of the first Caribbean landfall is hotly disputed, but San Salvador, or Watling, Island is currently preferred to Samana Cay, Rum Cay, the Plana Cays, or the Turks and Caicos Islands. Beyond planting the royal banner, however, Columbus spent little time there, being anxious to press on to Cipango, or Cipangu (Japan). He thought that he had found it in Cuba, where he landed on October 28, but he convinced himself by November 1 that Cuba was the Cathay mainland itself, though he had yet to see evidence of great cities. Thus, on December 5, he turned back southeastward to search for the fabled city of Zaiton, missing through this decision his sole chance of setting foot on Florida soil. Adverse winds carried the fleet to an island called Ayti (Haiti) by its Taino inhabitants; on December 6 Columbus renamed it La Isla Española, or Hispaniola. He seems to have thought that Hispaniola might be Cipango or, if not Cipango, then perhaps one of the legendarily rich isles from which King Solomon's triennial fleet brought back gold, gems, and spices to Jerusalem (1 Kings 10:11, 22); alternatively, he reasoned that the island could be related to the biblical kingdom of Sheba ( Saba'). There Columbus found at least enough gold and prosperity to save him from ridicule on his return to Spain."
-History.com
Mel-O-Toons: Christopher Columbus (1960)
After reading this blog please answer these next few questions and post them in the comment section...
1) How does this cartoon portray Columbus?
2) What false information does this cartoon show?
3) If you were a teacher would you show this cartoon to your students on Columbus day, why or why not?
The Real Story of Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus Video — History.com
I hope you have enjoyed this blog about the true history behind Columbus Day.
Please answer these few questions in the comment section...
1) What new information did you learn about Christopher Columbus?
2) Where any of the three facts that you listed at the start of the blog proven wrong, if so what facts?
3) Using your new knowledge please explain whether we should or should not celebrate Columbus Day.
Christopher Columbus Video — History.com
I hope you have enjoyed this blog about the true history behind Columbus Day.
Please answer these few questions in the comment section...
1) What new information did you learn about Christopher Columbus?
2) Where any of the three facts that you listed at the start of the blog proven wrong, if so what facts?
3) Using your new knowledge please explain whether we should or should not celebrate Columbus Day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)