Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Frequently Asked Questions and Arguments About Christopher Columbus:


-Columbus did not reach what is known today as America.

America includes North, Central, South America, and the Caribbean. So yes, Columbus discovered and reached America, specifically the Caribbean, Central and South America.

-Columbus did not reach North America.
Amerigo Vespucci neither reached North America, yet the whole New World is named after him. Nevertheless, Columbus reached the continent (South America) first, before Vespucci did. Vespucci came later, by using Columbus' map.

-Columbus did not reach what is today the United States. 
No, he did not. However, what is known today as the USA was reached because of him. Columbus proposed his idea of discovery to Portugal first. Once he was denied, he went to Spain, but sent his brother to England with the same proposal. England said "no," but Spain said "yes." Once Columbus proved in 1492 that it was saved to cross the Atlantic Ocean, England sent John Cabot to reach North America, while Central and South America was to be explored by Spain and Portugal. It was Juan Ponce de Leon (who accompanied Columbus on his second voyage) who discovered Florida, and later Spanish Conquistador Hernando de Soto, who explored Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas before England established any settlements. In short, Columbus did not reach what is known today as the USA, but the USA was reached because of him. In addition, Columbus discovered Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands which are USA territory today. 

-The Vikings discovered America. 
If Columbus did not discover America "because people were already living here," then by the same logic the Vikings did not discover anything because natives were already living there. For more information on this subject, watch our YouTube video titled "Christopher Columbus and the Vikings" by clicking the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVWmQ83hKZ4 


-Columbus was lost. He believed he was in India. 
Actually, EVERYONE believed they were in the Indies (Asia). Back then, the people of the Old World did not know there was a continent between Europe and Asia. That's what "Columbus discovered America" means. Because of him, America is now on the maps.

-Columbus reached an insignificant island in the Bahamas.  
Columbus was the first European to reach the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. His discoveries included important islands like La Hispaniola, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Jamaica. In Central America, he reached Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. In South America he reached Venezuela. In addition, he discovered San Salvador (Guanahani), Dominica, Santa María la Galante (Marie-Galante), Santa María de Guadalupe de Extremadura (Guadalupe), Saona, Montserrat, Antigua, Redonda, Nevis, Saint Kitts, Sint Eustatius, Saba, San Martín (Saint Martin), Santa Cruz (Saint Croix), Virgin Gorda, Tortola, San Pedro (Saint Peter), Martinique, Trinidad, El Caracol (Chacachacare), Margarita, Bella Forma (Tobago), Concepción (Grenada), Isla de Pinos (Guanaja) and Las Tortugas (Cayman Islands) in the Caribbean. So no, the lands Columbus reached were not insignificant.

Did Columbus mistreat the natives?
The answer is, no. Columbus is the one who told the Queen of Spain that the Tainos were good people. The Queen ordered Columbus to protect them and to harshly punish anyone who would mistreat them. Columbus protected the Tainos from the Caribs, a tribe of cannibals who constantly raided the Tainos, and he also punished corrupt Spaniards for mistreating them. To learn more about this subject and other revisionist attacks, check our book "Christopher Columbus the Hero-Defending Columbus from Modern Day Revisionism" on Amazon and Kindle. Here is the link: https://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Columbus-Hero-Defending-Revisionism/ 



-Columbus and his brothers were arrested because they were cruel toward Spaniards and Indigenous people. 
Columbus and his brothers were falsely accused by Spanish mutineers of cruelty. Columbus and his brothers were immediately released from the charges because the King and Queen of Spain did not believe the accusations. All they were doing was enforcing the Sovereigns orders to protect the Tainos. In response, the King and Queen sent for the immediate arrest of the Spanish mutineers who rebelled against Columbus and removed the governor who arrested him without due process. His name was Francisco de Bobadilla. His dossier was found by historians in the 2000's. To learn more on Bobadilla's dossier and about this subject, read "Christopher Columbus The Hero.2. Debunking The Accusations That Led To His Arrest": https://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Columbus-Hero-2-Debunking-Accusations/


-Did Columbus start the Transatlantic slave trade?
No. Slavery was practiced in every continent of the world before, during, and after Columbus. It was practiced by the Indigenous people as well. Columbus personally did not own slaves. The ones he sent to Spain were native prisoners of war, in battles he was forced to fight in self-defense. As for the Transatlantic slave trade, it was created by the Portuguese, with the assistance of Africans, after Columbus died. So no, Columbus did not create the Transatlantic slave trade. 

-Did Columbus commit genocide? 
Revisionists call infectious diseases like smallpox, "genocide." The problem with their argument is that infectious diseases are not genocide. Smallpox killed many natives in some places in the Americas long after Columbus was dead. Infectious diseases were common throughout history in every continent of the world. In the case of syphilis, it was introduced into the Old World by the natives of the New World. So no, Columbus did not commit genocide.

-Did Columbus sell children as sex slaves? 
No. Revisionists use a portion of a letter Columbus wrote, claiming he was selling children for sex. The problem is that the letter says nothing of the sort. In the letter, Columbus was complaining against the Spaniards, how they were in mutiny against his authority and how they were mistreating the natives. For more details on this subject, read our post titled "Debunking Snopes and the Imaginary Child Sex Slave Ring" by clicking the following link: https://www.officialchristophercolumbus.com/2018/07/debunking-snopes-and-columbus-imaginary.html

-Who is the source for all this anti-Columbus misinformation?
A self-proclaimed "anarchist" named Howard Zinn and other imitators, along with other history revisionists, anti-American individuals and groups, Anti-Christian groups, Anti-Catholic people, radicals, etc. 

#FrequentlyAskedQuestionsAndArgumentsAboutChristopherColumbus