Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer. His name in Italian was Cristoforo Colombo. In Spanish, it was Cristóbal Colón. Columbus hoped to sail west to Asia, but he needed money for the voyage. He was turned down by the King of Portugal. He was also turned down by the rulers of England and France. After seven years, he finally found rulers to support his trip. King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain gave him three ships and supplies.
He set out on August 3, 1492 with ninety sailors. The largest ship was the Santa Maria. The other two ships were the Pinta and the Niña. Pinta and Niña were likely nicknames. The ships set out in a southerly direction for the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa. This was different from many other expeditions that had set out for the Azores, which are located directly west from Europe. The Azores route had proven unwise because the winds in that area blow from west to east. These winds are called the westerlies, and they are strong. They had stopped many ships in prior attempts to sail west from Spain.
On Columbus's third day out, the rudder of the Pinta was damaged in rough seas. Still, the ships were able to reach the Canary Islands on August 12. There the crew made repairs, and the ships left harbor to pick up the northeast trade winds on September 6, 1492.
Several times during their voyage, sailors spotted signs of land, such as birds and floating plants. But by October 10, they still had not found land. The sailors were becoming discouraged. They were worried they would run out of supplies. Columbus was able to calm their fears. Luckily, more signs of land appeared on October 11. Sailors saw more birds. They also saw a green reed in the water. The fact that the reed was green meant it was fresh. This was a clue that land was close. Then sailors on the Pinta reported finding a pole that looked like it was made of iron. On the Niña, sailors spied a branch with berries on it. But they still had not spotted land before the sun set.
Columbus, too, was anxious to find land. He promised a silk doublet, which was a men's padded jacket, to the first sailor to see land. The King and Queen had also promised 10,000 maravedis every year for life to the first sailor to spot land. That was a generous sum of money. At 10:00 p.m., Columbus was on the highest deck of the ship. He saw a light in the distance. But he was not sure what it was. He thought it looked a bit like the flame of a candle rising and falling. Another sailor also saw the light, but a third did not. Few of the sailors believed it was land. The sailors kept their eyes open, however, probably due to the reward. Just a few hours later, around 2:00 a.m., land was sighted about five nautical miles from the ships. A nautical mile is equal to about 1.15 miles. Unfortunately, the sailor who spotted the land first never got his reward. Instead, Christopher Columbus claimed that he was the first to spot land. He got the 10,000 maravedis every year for the rest of his life.
Describe when Columbus and his sailors first discovered new land? 1-2 sentences