Who was the discoverer of America. Who discovered America? Parting words of the august persons of Spain before the departure of Columbus's expedition

The continents known today as North and South America were discovered in prehistory. Before European explorers arrived in the Americas, tens of millions of indigenous people lived here. The lands of the Americas have been repeatedly "discovered" by peoples coming from different parts of the world over many generations, dating back to the Stone Age when a group of hunters first visited a land that was truly the unexplored New World.

It becomes curious why it is then believed that America was discovered by Christopher Columbus. In addition, other theories are widespread regarding who first discovered America: Irish monks (6th century), Vikings (10th century), sailors from China (15th century), etc.

The first settlers in America

Tribal Migration Route from Asia to North America

The first people to settle in America came there from Asia, probably about 15 thousand years ago. During the Pleistocene era, the melting ice sheets of the Laurentian and Cordilleran glaciers formed a narrow corridor and land bridge between Russia and Alaska. The land bridge between the west coast of Alaska and Siberia, known as the Bering Isthmus, opened due to falling ocean levels and connected the continents of Asia and North America.

: In place of the Bering Isthmus, the current Bering Strait was formed, separating Asia and North America. The strait was named after the Russian naval officer Vitus Bering, who crossed it in 1728.

The settlement of America by indigenous peoples

The ancient settlers of America - the Paleo-Indians - passed through the Bering Isthmus from Asia to America following the movement of large animals. These migrations occurred before the Laurentian and Cordilleran glaciers closed and closed the corridor. The settlement of America continued further by sea or by ice. After the ice plates melted and the Ice Age ended, the settlers who came to the Americas became isolated from other continents. Thus, the American continents were first discovered by nomadic Asian tribes about 15 thousand years ago, who initially settled North America, then spread to Central and South America and subsequently became the Native American peoples.

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6th century - Irish monks

According to legend, Irish monks reached North America in the 6th century

According to popular Irish legend, a group of Irish monks led by Saint Brendan sailed a shelter boat to the west in the 6th century in search of new lands. Seven years later, the monks returned home and reported that they had discovered a land covered with lush vegetation, which was modern Newfoundland.

There is no exact evidence confirming that Irish monks landed on the coast of North America. However, in 1976, British traveler Tim Severin tried to prove that such a journey was possible. Severinus built an exact replica of the monks' ship from the 6th century and sailed from Ireland to North America along the route described by the traveling monks. The explorer reached Canada.

10th century - Vikings

The Scandinavian navigator Leif Eriksson reached the shores of North America in the year 1000.

Around 984, the Scandinavian navigator Eric Krasus explored ancient sea routes and discovered Greenland. Leif Eriksson, son of Eric Krasus, in 999 with a crew of 35 a man on one ship went from Greenland to Norway. Soon, Leif Eriksson, traveling across the Atlantic Ocean, reached North America, where around 1000 he founded a Norwegian settlement on the territory of the modern Canadian island of Newfoundland. The Vikings named the settlement "Vinland" (English: Vineland - "Grape Land") due to the abundance of grapes growing on this land. However, Erickson and his team did not stay long - only a few years - before returning to Greenland. Relations with native North Americans were hostile.

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Archaeological site “L'Anse aux Meadows” in Newfoundland (Canada): Viking settlement at the end of the 11th century

In the sagas, the Vikings who settled in America are referred to as the Native Americans "Skrelings". Most sagas come from Scandinavian folklore, but in 1960, the first European Viking settlement of the late 11th century, identical to settlements in the Scandinavian countries, was found in the northern tip of Newfoundland (Canada) by the Norwegian archaeologist Helge Ingstad. This historical and archaeological site is called "L'Anse aux Meadows" and is recognized by scientists as evidence of pre-Columbian transoceanic contacts.

15th century – sailors from China

Chinese explorer Zheng He's fleet included no less than 250 ships

British naval officer Gavin Menzies put forward the theory that the Chinese colonized South America. He claimed that Chinese explorer Zheng He, who commanded an armada of wooden sailing ships in the early 15th century, discovered America in 1421. Zheng He explored Southeast Asia, India, and the east coast of Africa using advanced navigation techniques.
Gavin Menzies, in 1421 - The Year China Discovered the World, wrote that Zheng He sailed to the east coast of the United States and may have established settlements in South America. Menzies based the theory on evidence from ancient shipwrecks, Chinese and European maps, and reports compiled by navigators of the time. However, this theory has been questioned.

In 1492, Columbus sailed across the Atlantic and was long considered the first European to set foot in the New World. Then came evidence of the Vikings, led by Leif Ericson, who preceded Columbus by five centuries. Early archaeological uncertainty gave rise to controversy over the primacy of the discovery of America. Authors appeared who claimed that the Chinese general Zheng He was only a few years ahead of Columbus. Not a European, but since he arrived in the New World by water, and not by bridge over the Bering Strait, we will allow him to take part in the competition. Then, someone discovered petroglyphs in West Virginia that pointed to the sixth century Irish navigator, St. Brendan (St. Brendan). Perhaps St. Did Brendan beat everyone else in discovering America? Eventually, Muslims joined the competition between the Spanish, Vikings, Irish and Chinese when explorers found evidence that Muslims from West Africa had discovered the New World even earlier.

Someone else is declaring their primacy in the discovery of America (as well as in other discoveries too). Today we will consider only the five listed above. They can't all be first. Which of them discovered America first? And among those who lost the championship, were all of them there?

Now no one doubts the veracity of Columbus's story. He landed in the Bahamas in 1492 and, although he believed he had reached India, he saw a large continent blocking progress. During his three expeditions over 12 years, Columbus explored the Caribbean, part of South America and the shores of Central America. Following in Columbus' footsteps, colonists and other explorers arrived. It was after the discovery of Columbus that the connection between America and Europe was established. Let us now consider other contenders for primacy in chronological order from the date of Columbus's landing.

Muslims do not claim a specific date for the discovery of America. They express an opinion about the likelihood of Europeans visiting the continent long before Columbus. Piri Reis was an Ottoman navigator and cartographer who died in 1553. His name means Captain Pirie and is best known in connection with a map drawn in 1513. Alternative historians cite the Piri Reis map as an incredibly accurate depiction of the Earth's surface, exceeding the knowledge of Columbus. Consequently, the Turks traveled all over the world, including America, Brazil and even Antarctica. All modern claims about the primacy of Muslim sailors in the discovery of America are based on the Piri Reis map.

There is no doubt about the historical significance of the Piri Reis map, but most of the sensational claims based on it are incorrect. The map doesn't change history, it matches what we know. Piri Reis's notes in the margins of the map say that this is a generalized edition that he completed based on two dozen existing maps compiled by the seafaring nations of Europe and Asia. Including ancient Greek maps of the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean, Arabic maps of India, Portuguese maps of Pakistan and China, Columbus maps of the Caribbean and the eastern shore of America. The Piri Reis map is far from the accuracy and completeness of the content that they are trying to rely on. Significant discrepancies are obvious at first glance. The lack of commentary on the source materials led Piri Reis to make mistakes. Peary annexed Brazil to Antarctica. Perhaps this was an attempt to show “Undiscovered Lands”, or perhaps an attempt to squeeze a detailed South America into one sheet. Portuguese navigators, who followed Henry the Navigator, carefully explored the western shores of Africa and crossed the Atlantic before Columbus. Columbus studied navigation in Portugal. Portuguese sailors followed on the heels of Columbus when he reached the New World. Information about the western shores of the Americas, from Newfoundland to Argentina, was collected quite quickly. In the first decade of the 16th century there were enough resources to compile a map of Piri Reis.

In short, it is not necessary to talk about the Muslim journey to the shores of America to explain the origin of the Peri Reis map. Moreover, there is no documentary or archaeological evidence of such an event. We give the version of the Muslim Discovery of America 0.5 trust points out of a possible 5.

Zheng He was a prominent Chinese Admiral of the 15th century and died 18 years before the birth of Columbus. Many legends are associated with this name and his travels. It is well known and documented that he traveled south and west from China, reaching the coast of Africa. But there is no evidence that Zheng decided to cross the Atlantic and reach the shores of America. New information came to light in 2006, when Chinese lawyer Liu Gang discovered a 1763 map copied from an original dated 1418, entitled “Overall Map of the Geography of all Under Heaven.” The map, representing America in all its glory, confirmed that Zheng He's cartographers were ahead of Columbus in discovering the New World, coming from the other direction.

Unfortunately, the card didn't turn out to be very significant. Nobody takes it seriously because it is a copy of a well-known French map from the 1600s. On the map, California appears as an island and is subject to description errors. The title is a common error from modern simplified language, but is not an error for a user of Traditional Chinese from the Qing Dynasty.

Louis Gang turned out to be his own enemy in this venture. In 2009, he published the book “The Code of the Ancient Map” to popularize the map itself. In the book, he goes back 400 years, announcing the discovery of another Chinese map of the world, dated 1093. This “map” is even sadder. Louis presents photographs of Zhang Kuangzheng's tomb from 1093, which show peeling paint and plaster. He changed his interpretation of the map, due to damage to the drawing, to a pathetic version. Opener Zheng He receives one trust point out of five, while Louis has a deficit of 15.

Leif Eriksson was the son of Erik the Red, a Viking who landed in Greenland. Leif followed in the footsteps of his powerful father and founded the colony of Vinland. Most of Leif's deeds are known from two sagas: the Greenlander Saga and the Saga of Erik the Red. The main character of the saga is a person, not historical facts. The manner of presentation of the sagas is narrative in the style of “I came and I speak.” The main place of action in the sagas is the settlement of Vinland, the narrative time is approximately 1000.

Fortunately, the legend about Leif Eriksson received more significant confirmation. In 1960, archaeologists discovered ruins in the northern tip of Newfoundland. "The Jellyfish Grotto" (L'Anse aux Meadows or Jellyfish Cove) and some other Norwegian settlements have been discovered. These are more than excellent historical finds. The method of construction, design, and materials undoubtedly confirm the everyday traditions of the Norwegians. We do not know for sure the connection between Vinland and L'Anse aux Meadows, nor whether Leif Eriksson was here. But there is confidence in the coincidence of the heyday of the Norwegian settlement and the period of the appearance of the saga.

Since we have a Norse settlement on our hands that underpins the long sea crossings of the Vikings and corresponds to a period around the year 1000, Leif Eriksson gets a 4.5 trust point, and the Vikings as a whole 5 out of 5 possible.

St. Brendan the Sailor was a legendary 6th century monk who sailed around the British Isles in leather boats. He is mentioned in only two sources: The Travels of St. Brendan and The Life of Brendan. The story tells about the Island of the Blessed or St. Brendan. Supposedly this is off the coast of Africa, but both Brendan and his island live only in legends.

Unfortunately, this statement comes with a long list of problems. Serious archaeologists do not undertake to decipher rock paintings. They are too far from the texts. The prevailing opinion is that these are scratches from sharpening tools by ancient aborigines. The marks on the stone were discovered by amateurs, filled with ash for contrast, and photographed. Barry Fell, a retired marine biologist, only saw the dashes in the photo and never examined the original. Ogham transcript experts disagreed with Barry Fell's conclusions and refused to examine the writing. It is unknown what finds await us, but no one takes West Virginia petroglyphs seriously these days. St. Brendan receives 0 trust points out of a possible 5 and petroglyphs 0.5 points until new information becomes available.

Summing up, we have a winner. The Vikings, under the auspices of Leif Eriksson, or perhaps in his presence, discovered America earlier than other Europeans. The Portuguese, Spaniards, Irish and Turks appeared on these shores much later. Zheng He would not have received primacy even if he arrived earlier than the Vikings. Since the New World is sufficiently populated by immigrants from Asia through the Bering Strait, it would still be several tens of thousands of years late for the holiday.

Translation by Vladimir Maksimenko 2013

Columbus discovered America

The year when this Spanish navigator discovered a new land is indicated in history as 1492. And by the beginning of the eighteenth century, all other areas of North America, for example, Alaska and the regions of the Pacific coast, had already been discovered and explored. It must be said that travelers from Russia also made an important contribution to the exploration of the mainland.

Development

The history of the discovery of North America is quite interesting: it can even be called accidental. At the end of the fifteenth century, a Spanish navigator and his expedition reached the shores of North America. At the same time, he mistakenly believed that he was in India. From this moment begins the countdown of the era when America was discovered and its exploration and exploration began. But some researchers consider this date inaccurate, arguing that the discovery of a new continent occurred much earlier.

The year Columbus discovered America - 1492 - is not an exact date. It turns out that the Spanish navigator had predecessors, and more than one. In the mid-tenth century, the Normans arrived here after discovering Greenland. True, they failed to colonize these new lands, since they were repelled by the harsh weather conditions of the north of this continent. In addition, the Normans were also frightened by the remoteness of the new continent from Europe.

According to other sources, this continent was discovered by ancient sailors - the Phoenicians. Some sources call the middle of the first millennium AD the time when America was discovered, and the Chinese as the pioneers. However, this version also does not have clear evidence.

The most reliable information is considered to be about the time when the Vikings discovered America. At the end of the tenth century, the Normans Bjarni Herjulfson and Leif Eriksson found Helluland - “stone”, Markland - “forest” and Vinland - “vineyards” of land, which contemporaries identify with the Labrador Peninsula.

There is evidence that even before Columbus, in the fifteenth century, the northern continent was reached by Bristol and Biscay fishermen, who called it the island of Brazil. However, the time periods of these expeditions cannot be called the milestone in history when America was truly discovered, that is, it was identified as a new continent.

Columbus - a true discoverer

And yet, when answering the question of what year America was discovered, experts most often name the fifteenth century, or rather its end. And Columbus is considered the first to do this. The time when America was discovered coincided in history with the period when Europeans began to spread ideas about the round shape of the Earth and the possibility of reaching India or China along the western route, that is, through the Atlantic Ocean. It was believed that this path was much shorter than the eastern one. Therefore, given the Portuguese monopoly on control of the South Atlantic, obtained by the Treaty of Alcázovaz in 1479, Spain, always striving to gain direct contacts with eastern countries, warmly supported the westward expedition of the Genoese navigator Columbus.

Honor of opening

Christopher Columbus was interested in geography, geometry and astronomy from an early age. From a young age, he took part in sea expeditions and visited almost all the then known oceans. Columbus was married to the daughter of a Portuguese sailor, from whom he received many geographical maps and notes from the time of Henry the Navigator. The future discoverer carefully studied them. His plans were to find a sea route to India, but not bypassing Africa, but directly across the Atlantic. Like some scientists - his contemporaries, Columbus believed that, having gone west from Europe, it would be possible to reach the Asian eastern shores - those places where India and China are located. At the same time, he did not even suspect that on the way he would meet an entire continent, hitherto unknown to Europeans. But it happened. And from this time the history of the discovery of America began.

First expedition

For the first time, Columbus's ships sailed from Palos harbor on August 3, 1492. There were three of them. The expedition proceeded quite calmly to the Canary Islands: this section of the journey was already known to the sailors. But very soon they found themselves in a vast ocean. Gradually the sailors began to become despondent and begin to grumble. But Columbus managed to pacify the rebellious, maintaining hope in them. Soon signs began to appear - harbingers of the proximity of land: unknown birds flew in, tree branches floated up. Finally, after six weeks of sailing, lights appeared at night, and when dawn broke, a green, picturesque island, all covered with vegetation, opened before the sailors. Columbus, having landed on shore, declared this land to be the possession of the Spanish crown. The island was named San Salvador, that is, the Savior. It was one of the small pieces of land included in the Bahamas or Lucayan archipelago.

The land where there is gold

The natives are peaceful and good-natured savages. Noticing the greed of those who sailed for the gold jewelry that hung in the noses and ears of the aborigines, they told with signs that in the south there was a land literally abounding in gold. And Columbus moved on. In the same year, he discovered Cuba, which, although he mistook it for the mainland, or rather, the eastern coast of Asia, he also declared it a Spanish colony. From here the expedition, turning east, landed in Haiti. Moreover, along the entire route the Spaniards met savages who not only willingly exchanged their gold jewelry for simple glass beads and other trinkets, but also constantly pointed to the southern direction when asked about this precious metal. Which Columbus named Hispaniola, or Little Spain, he built a small fortress.

Return

When the ships landed in Palos harbor, all the inhabitants came ashore to greet them with honors. Columbus and Ferdinand and Isabella received him very graciously. The news of the discovery of the New World spread very quickly, and those who wanted to go there with the discoverer gathered just as quickly. At that time, Europeans had no idea what kind of America Christopher Columbus discovered.

Second trip

The history of the discovery of North America, which began in 1492, continued. From September 1493 to June 1496, the second expedition of the Genoese navigator took place. As a result, the Virgin and Windward Islands were discovered, including Antigua, Dominica, Nevis, Montserrat, St. Christopher, as well as Puerto Rico and Jamaica. The Spaniards firmly settled in the lands of Haiti, making them their base and building the fortress of San Domingo in its southeastern part. In 1497, the British entered into competition with them, also trying to find northwestern routes to Asia. For example, the Genoese Cabot, under the English flag, discovered the island of Newfoundland and, according to some reports, came very close to the North American coast: the peninsulas of Labrador and Nova Scotia. Thus, the British began to lay the foundation for their dominance in the North American region.

Third and fourth expeditions

It began in May 1498 and ended in November 1500. As a result, the mouth of the Orinoco was also opened. In August 1498, Columbus landed on the coast already on the Paria Peninsula, and in 1499 the Spaniards reached the shores of Guiana and Venezuela, after which - Brazil and the mouth of the Amazon. And during the last - fourth - journey from May 1502 to November 1504, Columbus discovered Central America. His ships sailed along the coasts of Honduras and Nicaragua, reaching from Costa Rica and Panama all the way to the Gulf of Darien.

New continent

In the same year, another navigator, whose expeditions took place under the Portuguese flag, also explored the Brazilian coast. Having reached Cape Cananea, he put forward the hypothesis that the lands that Columbus discovered were not China, or even India, but a completely new continent. This idea was confirmed after the first trip around the world by F. Magellan. However, contrary to logic, the name America was assigned to the new continent - on behalf of Vespucci.

True, there is some reason to believe that the new continent was named in honor of the Bristol philanthropist Richard America from England, who financed the second transatlantic voyage in 1497, and Amerigo Vespucci after that took his nickname in honor of the continent named so. To prove this theory, researchers cite the facts that Cabot reached the shores of Labrador two years earlier, and therefore became the officially registered first European to set foot on American soil.

In the mid-sixteenth century, Jacques Cartier, a French navigator, reached the shores of Canada, giving the territory its modern name.

Other contenders

The exploration of the continent of North America was continued by such navigators as John Davis, Alexander Mackenzie, Henry Hudson and William Baffin. It was thanks to their research that the continent was studied right up to the Pacific coast.

However, history knows many other names of sailors who landed on American soil even before Columbus. These are Hui Shen, a Thai monk who visited this region in the fifth century, Abubakar, the Sultan of Mali, who sailed to the American coast in the fourteenth century, the Earl of Orkney de Saint-Clair, the Chinese explorer Zhee He, the Portuguese Juan Corterial, etc.

But, in spite of everything, Christopher Columbus is the person whose discoveries had an unconditional impact on the entire history of mankind.

Fifteen years after the time when America was discovered by the ships of this navigator, the very first geographical map of the continent was compiled. Its author was Martin Waldseemüller. Today it, being the property of the United States, is stored in Washington.

The most important event in the history of great geographical discoveries, and indeed world history in general, was Columbus's discovery of America- an event as a result of which the inhabitants of Europe discovered two continents called the New World, or America.

The confusion began with the names of the continents. There is strong evidence for the version that the lands of the New World were named after the Italian philanthropist Richard America from Bristol, who financed the transatlantic expedition of John Cabot in 1497. The Florentine traveler Amerigo Vespucci, who visited the New World only in 1500 and after whom America is believed to have been named, took his nickname in honor of the already named continent.

In May 1497, Cabot reached the shores of Labrador, becoming the first recorded European to set foot on American soil, two years before Amerigo Vespucci. Cabot compiled a map of the coast of North America - from New England to Newfoundland. In the Bristol calendar for that year we read: “...on St. John the Baptist was found in the land of America by merchants from Bristol who arrived on a ship named "Matthew."

Christopher Columbus - discovery of America

Christopher Columbus is considered the official discoverer of the New World continents. He was originally from Italy and came to Spain from Portugal. Having found a familiar monk in a monastery near the city of Palos, Columbus told him that he had decided to sail to Asia by a new sea route - along the Atlantic Ocean. He was allowed an audience with Queen Isabella, who, after his report, appointed a scientific council to discuss the project. The members of the council were mainly clergy. Columbus ardently defended his project. He referred to the evidence of ancient scientists about the sphericity of the Earth, to a copy of the map of the famous Italian astronomer Toscanelli, which depicted many islands in the Atlantic Ocean, and behind them the eastern shores of Asia. He convinced the learned monks that the legends spoke of a land beyond the ocean, from the shores of which sea currents sometimes bring tree trunks with traces of their processing by people. Columbus was an educated man: he knew how to draw maps, drive ships, and knew four languages. He managed to convince the scientific council of the validity of his expectations.

The rulers of Spain believed the traveler and decided to conclude an agreement with Columbus, according to which, if successful, he would receive the title of admiral and viceroy of the lands he discovered, as well as a significant part of the profits from trade with the countries where he was able to visit. Thus began the era of geographical exploration and discovery, which began with the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus.

Discovery of America by Columbus: year 1492

On August 3, 1492, three ships “Santa Maria”, “Pinta” and “Nina” with 90 participants set sail from the port of Paloe. The ships' crews consisted mainly of convicted criminals. 33 days had already passed since the expedition left the Canary Islands, and still no land was visible. The team began to grumble. To calm her down, Columbus wrote down the distances traveled in the ship's log, deliberately underestimating them.

On October 12, 1492, sailors saw a dark strip of land on the horizon. It was a small island with lush tropical vegetation. Tall people with dark skin lived here. The natives called their island Guanahani. Columbus named it San Salvador and declared it a possession of Spain. This name stuck with one of the Bahamas. Columbus was fully confident that he had reached Asia. Having visited other islands, he asked local residents everywhere whether this was Asia. But I didn’t hear anything consonant with this word. Columbus left some people on the island of Hispaniola, and he himself went to Spain. To prove that he had discovered the route to Asia, Columbus took with him several Indians, feathers of unprecedented birds, some plants, including maize, potatoes and tobacco. On March 15, 1493, he was greeted as a hero in Palos.

This was the first visit by Europeans to the islands of Central America, as a result of which the basis was laid for the further discovery of unknown lands, their conquest and colonization.

In the 20th century, scientists drew attention to information that suggested that contacts between the Old World and the New occurred long before Columbus’s famous discovery of America.

In addition to the hypotheses about the settlement of America by the “ten tribes of Israel”, as well as the Atlanteans, there is a number of significant scientific data that America was visited long before Columbus. Some researchers even argue that Indian culture was brought from outside, from the Old World. In academic science, the theory that the civilizations of America developed almost completely independently until 1492 has more supporters.

Hypotheses about the visit of America by the Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Chinese, Japanese and Celts remain unconfirmed, but there is fairly reliable data about the visit of America by the Polynesians, preserved in their legends; In addition, it is known that the Chukchi established an exchange of fur and whalebone with the ancient population of the northwestern American coast, but it is impossible to establish the exact date of the beginning of these contacts. Europeans visited the American continent during the Viking Age. Scandinavian contacts with the New World began around 1000 AD and continued approximately until the 14th century.

The name of the Scandinavian navigator and ruler of Greenland, Leif I Eriksson the Happy, is associated with the discovery of America. This European discovered North America five centuries before Columbus. His campaigns are known from the Icelandic sagas, preserved in such manuscripts as “The Saga of Erik the Red” and “The Saga of the Greenlanders.” Their authenticity was confirmed by archaeological discoveries of the 20th century.

Leif Eriksson was born in Iceland into the family of Erik the Red, who was expelled from Norway along with his entire family. Eric's family was forced to leave Iceland in 982, fearing blood feud, and settle in new colonies in Greenland. Leif Eriksson had two brothers, Thorvald and Thorstein, and one sister, Freydis. Leif was married to a woman named Thorgunna. They had one son, Torkell Leifsson.

Before his trip to America, Leif made a trading expedition to Norway. Here he was baptized by King Olaf Tryggvason of Norway, an ally of Prince Vladimir of Kyiv. Leif brought a Christian bishop to Greenland and baptized its inhabitants. His mother and many Greenlanders converted to Christianity, but his father, Erik the Red, remained a pagan. On the way back, Leif saved the shipwrecked Icelander Thorir, for which he received the nickname Leif the Happy. Upon his return, he met a Norwegian named Bjarni Herjulfsson in Greenland, who said that he saw the outline of land in the west, far out to sea. Leif became interested in this story and decided to explore new lands.

Around the year 1000, Leif Eriksson and a crew of 35 sailed west on a ship purchased from Bjarni. They discovered three regions of the American coast: Helluland (probably the Labrador Peninsula), Markland (possibly Baffin Island) and Vinland, which received its name for the large number of grape vines. Presumably this was the coast of Newfoundland. Several settlements were also founded there, where the Vikings stayed for the winter.

Upon returning to Greenland, Leif gave the ship to his brother Thorvald, who instead went to explore Vinland further. Torvald's expedition was unsuccessful: the Scandinavians collided with the Skralings - North American Indians, and in this clash Torvald died. If you believe the Icelandic legends, according to which Erik and Leif did not make their trips at random, but based on the stories of eyewitnesses like Bjarni, who saw unknown lands on the horizon, then in a sense America was discovered even before the year 1000. However, it was Leif who was the first to make a full-fledged expedition along the shores of Vinland, gave it a name, landed on the shore and even tried to colonize it. Based on the stories of Leif and his people, which served as the basis for the Scandinavian “Saga of Eric the Red” and “Saga of the Greenlanders,” the first maps of Vinland were compiled.

This information, preserved by the Icelandic sagas, was confirmed in 1960, when archaeological evidence of an early Viking settlement was discovered in the town of L'ans-aux-Meadows on the island of Newfoundland. Columbus's discovery of America at that time was indeed a discovery, because they knew nothing about the New World They didn’t know. But Columbus was not a discoverer in the full sense of the word. Currently, the exploration of the territory of North America by the Vikings long before Columbus’s travels is considered a definitively proven fact that the Vikings were indeed the first among Europeans to discover North America, but the exact location. their settlements are still unknown. At first, the Vikings did not distinguish between their settlement in Greenland and Vinland, on the one hand, and Iceland, on the other. The feeling of different worlds appeared to them only after meeting with local tribes, which were very different from the Irish monks. Iceland The Saga of Eric the Red and the Saga of the Greenlanders were written approximately 250 years after the colonization of Greenland and tell us that there were several attempts to establish a settlement in Vinland, but none lasted more than two years. There are several possible reasons why the Vikings abandoned settlements, including disagreement among the male colonists regarding the few women who accompanied the voyage, and armed skirmishes with the local inhabitants, whom the Vikings called Skralings. Both of these factors are indicated in written sources.

Until the 19th century, historians viewed the idea of ​​Viking settlements in North America solely in the context of the national folklore of the Scandinavian peoples. The first scientific theory appeared in 1837 thanks to the Danish historian and antiquarian Karl Christian Rafn. In his book American Antiquities, Rafn conducted a comprehensive examination of the sagas and explored possible sites on the American coast, as a result of which he concluded that the country of Vinland, discovered by the Vikings, really existed. History continues to lift the veil of its secrets. Scientists have yet to verify the likelihood and time of an even earlier discovery of America and contact with this continent by people from the Old World.

Dioscoro Pueblo. “Columbus Landing in America” (1862 painting)

Discovery of America- an event as a result of which a new part of the world became known to the inhabitants of the Old World - America, consisting of two continents.

Expeditions of Christopher Columbus

1st expedition

The first expedition of Christopher Columbus (1492-1493) consisting of 91 people on the ships "Santa Maria", "Pinta", "Nina" left Palos de la Frontera on August 3, 1492, and turned from the Canary Islands to West (September 9), crossed the Atlantic Ocean in the subtropical zone and reached the island of San Salvador in the Bahamas archipelago, where Christopher Columbus landed on October 12, 1492 (the official date of the discovery of America). On October 14-24, Christopher Columbus visited a number of other Bahamas, and on October 28-December 5 he discovered and explored a section of the northeastern coast of Cuba. On December 6, Columbus reached Fr. Haiti and moved along the northern coast. On the night of December 25, the flagship Santa Maria landed on a reef, but the people escaped. Columbus on the ship Niña completed his exploration of the northern coast of Haiti on January 4-16, 1493 and returned to Castile on March 15.

2nd expedition

The 2nd expedition (1493-1496), which Christopher Columbus led already with the rank of admiral and as viceroy of the newly discovered lands, consisted of 17 ships with a crew of over 1.5 thousand people. On November 3, 1493, Columbus discovered the islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe, turning to the North-West, about 20 more Lesser Antilles, including Antigua and the Virgin Islands, and on November 19 - the island of Puerto Rico and approached the northern coast of Haiti. On March 12-29, 1494, Columbus, in search of gold, made an aggressive campaign into Haiti, and crossed the Cordillera Central ridge. On April 29-May 3, Columbus with 3 ships sailed along the southeastern coast of Cuba, turned south from Cape Cruz and discovered the island on May 5. Jamaica. Returning to Cape Cruz on May 15, Columbus sailed along the southern coast of Cuba to 84° west longitude, discovering the Jardines de la Reina archipelago, the Zapata Peninsula and Pinos Island. On June 24, Christopher Columbus turned east and explored the entire southern coast of Haiti from August 19 to September 15. In 1495, Christopher Columbus continued his conquest of Haiti; On March 10, 1496 he left the island and returned to Castile on June 11.

3rd expedition

The 3rd expedition (1498-1500) consisted of 6 ships, 3 of which Christopher Columbus himself led across the Atlantic Ocean near 10° north latitude. On July 31, 1498, he discovered the island of Trinidad, entered the Gulf of Paria from the south, discovered the mouth of the western branch of the Orinoco River delta and the Paria Peninsula, marking the beginning of the discovery of South America. Having then entered the Caribbean Sea, Christopher Columbus approached the Araya Peninsula, discovered Margarita Island on August 15, and arrived in the city of Santo Domingo (on the island of Haiti) on August 31. In 1500, Christopher Columbus was arrested following a denunciation and sent to Castile, where he was released.

4th expedition

4th expedition (1502-1504). Having obtained permission to continue the search for the western route to India, Columbus with 4 ships reached the island of Martinique on June 15, 1502, the Gulf of Honduras on July 30, and opened the Caribbean coast of Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama to the Gulf of Uraba from August 1, 1502 to May 1, 1503. Then turning to the North, on June 25, 1503 he was wrecked off the island of Jamaica; help from Santo Domingo came only a year later. Christopher Columbus returned to Castile on November 7, 1504.

Discoverer Candidates

• The first people to settle in America were the indigenous Indians, who moved there about 30 thousand years ago from Asia along the Bering Isthmus.
• In the 10th century, around 1000, the Vikings led by Leif Eriksson. L'Anse aux Meadows contains the remains of a Viking settlement on the continent. This historical and archaeological site (L'Anse aux Meadows) is recognized by scientists as evidence of transoceanic contacts that took place before the discovery made by Columbus.
• In 1492 - Christopher Columbus (Genoese in the service of Spain); Columbus himself believed that he had discovered the route to Asia (hence the names West Indies, Indians).
• In 1507, cartographer M. Waldseemüller proposed that the discovered lands be named America in honor of the New World explorer Amerigo Vespucci - this is considered the moment from which America was recognized as an independent continent.
• There is sufficient reason to believe that the continent was named after the English philanthropist Richard America from Bristol, who financed the second transatlantic expedition of John Cabot in 1497, and Vespucci took his nickname in honor of the already named continent [ ] . In May 1497, Cabot reached the shores of Labrador, becoming the first recorded European to set foot on the North American continent. Cabot compiled a map of the coast of North America - from Nova Scotia to Newfoundland. In the Bristol calendar for that year we read: “... on St. John the Baptist, the land of America was found by merchants from Bristol, who arrived on a ship from Bristol with the name "Matthew" ("Metic").

Hypothetical

In addition, hypotheses were put forward about the visit to America and contact with its civilization by sailors before Columbus, representing various civilizations of the Old World (for more details, see Contacts with America before Columbus). Here are just a few of these hypothetical contacts:

• in 371 BC e. - Phoenicians
• in the 5th century - Hui Shen (Taiwanese Buddhist monk who traveled to the country in the 5th century