French History: The Voyages of Columbus and Vespucci - Article Example

03 October Voyages of Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci An unquenchable thirst to explore the unknown is perhaps the most unique trait in humans that distinguishes them from other species on the Earth. Every innovation is a result of the painstaking efforts that have gone behind such explorations. The cultural diversity and exchange of values and philosophies that mark the modern human civilization have derived as a result of the indomitable determination of explorers like Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci, who ventured into hostile oceans, undertaking perilous journeys, to find new lands and civilizations. Both explorers lived and undertook their voyages during same periods, in the late fifteenth century. However, the context of their voyages and the manner in which they conducted it differ drastically while their purposes were the same. Born in an aristocratic family, Amerigo Vespucci received his education under his influential uncle, who was a “man of vast culture” (Arce 323). During his college education, Vespucci acquired in-depth knowledge in mathematics, and through practice he honed his skills. Thus, he became an expert in “astronomy and in the art of calculating latitudes and longitudes” (Arce 323). On the other hand, Christopher Columbus was born to a family of weavers and did not receive any formal education. During 1465, he undertook his “first sea voyage at age 14” and later studied “navigation in Greece and mapmaking in Portugal” (Sarno and Napoli 8). Thus, due to the gap in the education they received, it transpires that there exists vast difference in the understanding of the concepts of Geography by Columbus and Vespucci. Christopher Columbus undertook his first voyage in 1492, following the concept that the Earth is round and that by traversing through sea in the opposite direction, it is possible for one to reach the Far East. He found land on October 12, which he believed to be part of Asia and “named this island Santa Maria de la Concepcion” (Cummins 97). However, Vespucci, in his subsequent expeditions, found that the land that Columbus had discovered was not a part of Asia, and he also mentioned in his letter that he intended to publish a book which would narrate the “greater parts of the things” he had seen, and therefore he did not “want to enlarge upon them” in his letter (Vespucci 11). Perez de Gomar found Vespucci to be a very modest person and felt that the “discoveries would not have been carried to a conclusion” without the knowledge and insight of Vespucci in the subjects like astronomy, mathematics and cosmography (Arce 325). Thus, it transpires that while Columbus first landed in the New World, it was Vespucci, with his accurate knowledge of geography and the land, who correctly identified it. The primary concept of Vespucci’s voyage was that it challenged the existing notion that no other continent existed to the “south of the equinoctial,” and he had indeed discovered a new continent inhabited by people “more different” than those in “Europe, Asia and Africa” (Arce 324). This was a major contribution to the human civilization, and it “altered the geographical ideas of the period;” it was established that the region did not belong to the Asian continent as it was believed earlier (Arce 324). Columbus, on the other hand, promoted Vespucci, having understood he was worth a highly knowledgeable navigator, endorsed that he was a “worthy but unfortunate” person who did not derive the benefits “he deserved from his undertakings” (Irving 186). It is also relevant that the 1499 expedition under the “command of Alonzo de Ojeda,” in which Vespucci took part, was based on the information that Columbus had provided relating to the riches that the coast of Paria possessed, based on the discovery during his expedition the previous year (Irving 235). In their discussions about the discoveries during his voyage, Columbus claimed that what he had found was an Asian coast, but Vespucci objected to it, stating his view that it must be a new land, situated between the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean. However, despite this difference in opinions, Columbus only supported Vespucci and attempted to promote his voyages. Thus, while the voyage of Columbus engendered the misconceived concept that he had reached a part of Asia, Vespucci correctly identified it as the Americas. Regardless of what Columbus thought, subsequent voyages by Vespucci proved that his contention was more accurate. He, however, had always acknowledged the fact that other sailors deserved the credit for finding the land, as could be deduced from the letter he wrote after the second voyage, which contained a clear admission that the explorers’ “navigation was continually within sight of land” and they had traversed around the “whole southern part of the continent of Africa” (Vespucci, n.d). The voyages of Columbus also encompassed the concept of slave trade, as can be seen from his own reference to the “prisoners [he] took on San Salvador” (Cummins 97). It also becomes evident from the fact that Bartholomew “had, as a servant, an Indian slave,” whom Columbus gave to his father (Irving 306). Thus, it transpires that the exploration of this navigator did not merely confine to the concept of discovering new lands and integrating cultures but also aimed at the concept of profit making and advancing self interests by way of slave trade and the exploitation of the natives for the purpose of cultivation, construction, etc. It is also relevant that Columbus treated the natives of the land he found in the “light of a conquered country” and exercised over them the “rights of a conqueror” (Irving 47). Therefore, it becomes evident that the acquisition of new lands and colonization of the natives for the purpose of profitability and trade were also goals of the expeditions of Columbus. Similarly, Vespucci’s voyages also embraced the idea of slave trade, which becomes clear if we consider his expedition in May 1499, where his team landed on the Caribbee Islands and after a fierce battle with the natives “made many captives, with the intention of selling them” in Spain (Irving 52). He was also used by both Spanish and Portugal royalties to promote their interests in trade, colonization and slavery. Thus, the expeditions by Vespucci also had the motives of acquiring new lands for the Europeans and subjugating the natives for the purposes of commerce as well as slave trade. The natural resources of the New World were the main attraction for the navigators and the royalties that sponsored them. Thus, they sent the explorers to find new lands that would offer them unexploited natural resources, which they brought back to their countries. Besides, they also used the manpower available in the acquired land to work the land and take the harvest to their homes. However, despite the negative aspects of slave trade and exploitation of the natives, it is evident that the expeditions conducted by navigators such as Christopher Columbus and Amerigo Vespucci were significant factors that facilitated the exchange of culture and other values among countries. Besides, though the native people of the New World might have suffered from the hands of the invaders, in many contexts they also gained many benefits. Primarily, the natives had been living in a disorganized manner, without a proper social structure or education system. The arrival of the explorers like Columbus and Vespucci helped the natives of the new found lands gain the knowledge of European civilization, and it also opened for them the gateways to new worlds. Thus, the voyages of Columbus and Vespucci also involved the development of the colonies and their people. The next generations of those who were brought as slaves into the European countries later were emancipated and are now an integral part of these communities. Thus, it becomes evident that though Columbus and Vespucci were explorers that lived contemporarily and undertaken many voyages of a similar nature, their concepts in the expeditions differ drastically on many counts while were similar in certain aspects. The differences primarily relate to their concept of the newly discovered lands, the identification of the continents and the people. Vespucci, with his faculties of high skills in mathematics and astronomy, enjoyed the upper hand. However, Columbus, on the contrary, despite the differences in their opinions, supported Vespucci in his explorations. Though both worked for the vested interests of colonial powers, their expeditions benefited in the long run the native people. In their times, the concept of slavery had an entirely different meaning, and it also was a socially accepted norm. Thus, these navigators must not be seen in the light of their promotion of colonization and slave trade but be rather considered facilitators of cultural exchange and values that transferred from the Europeans to the natives and vice versa. Works Cited Arce, Enrique J. Amerigo Vespucci and the Name America. Doubleday, Page & Company, n.d.. Web. 01 October 2012. Irving, Washington. The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, 1892. Web. 01 October 2012. http://www.drugfreereading.com/interest_novels/The%20Life%20and%20Voyages%20of%20Christopher%20Columbus.pdf Irving, Washington. The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus. Vol. 2. Cosimo, Inc., 2007. Print. http://books.google.co.in/books?id=RgNhIJKiEyAC&pg=PA358&lpg=PA358&dq=aspects+of+columbus+and+vespucci+voyages&source=bl&ots=jnlps1P-Eo&sig=_fyj53Z_Be_utqI6O6gtjecA_H4&hl=en#v=onepage&q=aspects%20of%20columbus%20and%20vespucci%20voyages&f=false Sarno, Vincent and Albert De Napoli. Columbus: Fact vs. Fiction. Commission for Social Justice. 2005. Web. 01 October 2012. http://www.osia.org/documents/Columbus05_factvsfiction.pdf Vespucci, Amerigo. Letters of Amerigo Vespucci. Ed. Clements, R Markham. Cambridge University Press, 2010. Print. Vespucci, Amerigo. Florentine Explorer and Cartographer: Two of His Famous Letters. Candida Martinelli’s Italophile Site, n.d. 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