U.S.
History People and Events: 1607-1865 Queen Isabella Appoints an Admiral
Queen Isabella Appoints an Admiral
Queen Isabella of Spain studied the face of the sailor who stood before
her. He seemed self-assured, experienced, and certainly bold, but was he
insane for what he wanted to do, and would she be wise to back him?
In 1492, Isabella was 41 years old and had already proven herself
as a woman who knew what she wanted. Born into the royal family of
Castile, her family had tried to marry her off twice while she was very
young. One prospective husband died when she was 10, the other died
on his way to their wedding when she was 15. In 1469, she married the
man she chose, Ferdinand of Aragon, and together they began to conquer
the rest of Spain. She knew the look in the sailor's eye ?that desire to
achieve and conquer shone in her eyes as well. Her advisors told her the
sailor was doomed to failure. Ships were not strong enough, and Asia
was too far away.
Christopher Columbus, a sailor, was also 41 years old. He came from
a humble Italian family of weavers. He had been drawn to the sea at an
early age. When he was 15, the ship on which he sailed was attacked
by pirates, and he landed in Portugal. There he learned valuable skills:
reading, writing, navigation, and seamanship. In 1479, he married and Chaistopher Columbus
for a time worked as a merchant. But the sea called to him, so he boarded
a ship sailing to Africa's Gold Coast. This ocean voyage would give him valuable experience.
To Columbus, it seemed logical to assume that one could reach China by sailing west, and the treasures of
the Orient would enrich the person and nation that was first to arrive. Most educated people knew the world was
round; that wasn't the problem. The question was whether the ships of the time, caravels, could make such a long
journey. Columbus tried to persuade the rulers of Portugal, Spain, and then England to sponsor the trip, but all
rejected him. Again, he returned to Spain where the war to remove the Moslems from Grenada was ending. Again,
the queen turned him down, so he started to leave for Portugal. But a messenger caught up with him and told him to
return to the palace. The queen had decided in his favor; he would be given the title "Admiral of the Ocean Seas"
and would receive ten percent of the revenues from anything he found. In a dramatic gesture, she said she would
sell her jewels if necessary to fund the trip, but money was raised elsewhere. With three small ships, Columbus
RESULTS: Columbus discovered a small island on October 12 and assumed he was somewhere near India;
for that reason, he called the friendly Taino natives on the island "Indians." He would make four voyages all to-
gether but proved to be a better explorer than ruler. There were many complaints about his using Indians as slaves
and the harsh way in which he and his family ruled. In 1499, he was taken to Spain in chains. Later his title and
money were restored. Queen Isabella died in 1504; Columbus died in 1506. To his dying day, Columbus was sure
his discoveries were on the outskirts of China.
CD-404039 © Mark Twain Media, Inc., Publishers
U.S. History People and Events: 1607-1865
Queen Isabella Appoints an Admiral
Date:
Name:
Queen Isabella Appoints an Admiral: Reinforcement
Directions: Complete the following activities, essays, and challenges on your own paper.
ACTIVITIES:
1. Have students create a map of the four voyages of Columbus and those of other explorers. Notice that at no
time did Columbus come to any part of what is now the United States.
Have students look at models or pictures of caravels found in encyclopedias or on the Internet and draw
pictures of these ships.
ESSAYS:
1. You are Columbus writing a letter to the queen. Describe the trip you are planning and your qualifications
to command the expedition.
2. You are Isabella, and people are asking you why you have agreed to let Columbus make this trip. What
reasons would you give?
3. A friend of yours has signed on to go on a voyage with Columbus, and he wants you to go. If you want to
go, write a letter to your mother explaining why you would like to go. If you don't want to go, write a letter
to your friend and explain why you are turning him down.
CHALLENGES:
1. In what year was Columbus born?
2. In what year was Isabella almost married the first time?
3. What had been Columbus' longest trip before he sailed in 1492?
4 . Who was Spain fighting in 1492?
5. How many times was Columbus turned down before he got approval?
6. Before his title of "Admiral of the Ocean Seas" meant anything, what would Columbus have to do?
7 . What were two good reasons that Isabella could have given for not helping Columbus when he asked the
first time?
Why did Columbus call the natives he met "Indians"?
9. Why didn't Columbus take any pride in discovering a "new world"?
10. If you were Columbus, what questions would you have to consider in planning your trip?
11. When we look at the globe, it is obvious that Columbus is nowhere near China or India.
What could have caused him to be so far off in his calculations?
NATIONAL STANDARDS CORRELATIONS:
NCSS Vli: (Power, Authority, & Governance) Give examples and explain how goverments attempt to achieve
their stated ideals at home and abroad.
SH Era 1, Standard 2; How early European exploration and colonization resulted in cultural and ecological
interactions among previously unconnected peoples
WEBSITES:
http://www.ibiblio.org/expo/1492.exhibit/overview.html
"Outline of Objects and Topics in 1492: An Ongoing Voyage Exhibit," The Library of Congress
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/dsxphome.html
"Discovery and Exploration," The Library of Congress
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/gmdhome.html
"Map Collections: 1500-2004," The Library of Congress
CD-404039 © Mark Twain Media, Inc., Publishers 6
