COLUMBUS WAS CONSIDERED REAL CANDIDATE, WHO WOULD CONQUER THE ATLANTIC - PART III

           (the begining of article: “Ferdinand van Olmen and the transatlantic project of Columbus”)
      
Christopher Columbus, who was an experienced and skilful seaman of his time, didn’t expect such events. That’s why he had presented the project consisting of incorrect digits. He had another map, which he didn’t show anybody, even to his native relatives (would be called “Lost map of Columbus” in future). That’s why van Olmen couldn’t achieve any success during his travel.
The French sea traveler, who had seriously prepared for the mentioned travel, planned to return to coasts of Portugal after six months. But he couldn’t achieve any success. The reason of the failure of van Olmen and Estreito may be as following: they started their travel in inconvenient period of the year and didn’t use Passats properly. Bartolome de las Casas – one of annalists, who had described in his writings occupation of New World coasts by conquistadors, – wrote about the travel of Ernan de Olmos (Probably he considered Ferdinand van Olmen) in one of his stories. He wrote: “That travel took him to the western coasts of Ireland, to the north of the route determined by Columbus”.
 
                                                    
                                                      Christopher Columbus (1451-1506)
 
Unfortunately, van Olmen couldn’t return from that travel. Ch. Verlinden wrote: “In spite of all these, the French seaman, who worked for Portugal, might discover America before the Genoese seaman, who worked for Castilia. Then, history of the west would be different. If Olmen could achieve his goal, language of Brazil and other 17 countries of Latin America might be Portuguese.1
Sometimes fortune of the history depends on the fortune of one person!” If Juan II accepted Columbus’s offer, language of former colonies located in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean might be Portuguese.
After analyzing both expeditions, I can decisively note that, Christopher Columbus had prepared for the travel more seriously than the French seaman and could achieve his goal owing to his efforts. Members of the “Mathematical Union” couldn’t forgive themselves for their mistake after Columbus’s expedition achieved success.
Christopher Columbus, who had prepared very well and was an experienced seaman, left the port of Palos on August 3, 1492 with 90 persons and three vessels – “Santa Maria”, “Pinta” and “Ninia” according to the consent of Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. He discovered today’s Watling island of Bahamas on October 12 and called it “San Salvador”.
                        
                               
                                     Christopher Columbus’s expedition passes the Atlantic Ocean
 
Unlike Spaniards, Portuguese didn’t believe that, Columbus had reached the East Asia. Some scientists couldn’t believe that, outline of the Earth is so short when analyzed the admiral’s route. But there were skeptics in Spain, who worked alone. 
I think that, Christopher Columbus couldn’t agree with thoughts of the Florentine cosmographer. First of all, well-known sea traveler couldn’t agree with length of the Earth’s outline. It means that, Asia isn’t situated in the Atlantic Ocean at 10000-12000 km away from Canaries in the west as Paolo Toscanelli thought. Columbus had determined that, land area located in the west of the Atlantic Ocean is at 4500-5000 km away from Europe. It means that, the mentioned land was other land, which was unknown for the Old World. This idea of the sea traveler wasn’t fortuitous. I explained it in my work The scientist passed ahead of centuries – Nasiraddin Tusi in detail.
An Italian humanist Pietro Martire (Poignant Peter), who lived in Barcelona and were close to the kingdom palace, corresponded with his fellow-countrymen. He had written in the letter written on November 1, 1493: “One person by name Colon (Columbus) says that, he could reach India, the place of antipodes of the west. He discovered many islands located on the other side of the East Ocean near India as cosmographers thought… I don’t want to write anything about it, nevertheless size of the Earth made me to think otherwise”.
 
                   
                                   Christopher Columbus approached Guanahani Island
 
That is, before the travel, Christopher Columbus thought otherwise about calculations of Paolo Toscanelli as Pietro Martire. Doubtless, Columbus, who had read a lot of scientific literatures, might think as Pietro Martire.
 
                                   (Continue of article:Duarte Pacheco Pereira and unofficial discovery of Brazil”)
 
                    Best regards, the member of Azerbaijan Geographic Society,
                      President grant holder on literature, laureate of the “Golden pen” award,                            
                                               writer/ investigator Ramiz Daniz
                                                    
                                           email: [email protected],
                                           [email protected]
 
                                                
 
 
     1 Чарльз Верлинден, Покорители Америки: Христофор Колумб. “Феникс”, Ростов-на-Дону. 1997г., стр.24.
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