Columbus Day, Oct. 10, may be one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented holidays in American history (followed closely by Thanksgiving). Much of what we learn, teach our children, and take to be fact about the Spanish explorer is either flawed or completely untrue. Here, see the most frequently cited beliefs about Christopher Columbus and his journey to America on the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.
Christopher Columbus PortraitCreative CommonsFACT: Columbus never set foot on the North American continent.The explorer did introduce the Americas to Europe by opening up a new trade route, but he landed near the Bahamas or the Dominican Republic, and began a siege of Spanish conquest for Central and South America.Viking Leif Erickson was probably the first European to come to the Americas, by way of Canada in the 11th century. And if we’re to be perfectly honest, nobody can really claim to discover a place where people have been living for centuries.Why, then, is a man who died convinced he’d landed in the Indies celebrated for landing on American soil?The answer, as is often the case, lay in American hatred for the British. Early in American history, most of the former colonists knew about John Cabot (also known as Italian Giovanni Cabot). Under the English flag, Cabot landed in Newfoundland in 1497 and began the island nation’s own particular brand of colonial oppression. Since most Americans didn’t want to associate the power of white settlers with an Englishman, it seems they settled on the next best thing, naming their capital District of Columbia and taking Columbus as their hero.Creative CommonsFACT: Columbus sailed on the Santa Clara, the Pintada, and the Santa Galleda.Most people don’t know that the names children are given for Columbus’ ships were actually the vessels’ nicknames. It was tradition at the time to rename a ship for good luck, and this crew was no exception.La Santa Clara (Saint Claire) became la Niña (the girl), la Pinta (the painted) became la Pintada (the prostitute), and la Santa Gallega (holy Galician) became Maria Galante (another prostitute).The church censored these nicknames, and schoolchildren ages later ended up accumulating half of the original and half of the revised versions. Creative CommonsFACT: Columbus died with both wealth and name fully restored.When he returned from his third rather disastrous voyage, Columbus was indeed imprisoned, largely for the barbarism he displayed in governing the colony of Hispaniola and for his failure to deliver on the riches he promised Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand.After half a year, however, he and his men were released. His wealth was restored, he fell back in royal favor, and he was even slated for a fourth voyage. He died in Valladolid, Spain at 54, a good age for the time.Creative CommonsChristopher Columbus StatueCreative Commons
