Short Biography Text Example : Christopher Colombus

Christopher Columbus was born in what is now Italy about in 1451. His father was a weaver. Columbus had three brothers who would join him later in travels.

      As an adult, Columbus was a businessman who traded in goods from other countries. At that time, EUROPEANS placed a high value on products from Asia such as spices and silks. All the trade routes went east, since at the time no one believed that the ships could reach Asia by sailing West across the Atlantic Ocean. They thought it was too far across open water. No one in Europe knew about North America and South America.

       Columbus thought it differently. He convinced the King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain to pay him to sail west to Asia. He began his voyage with three ships; Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria.

       On October 12, 1492, after sailing for months, the sailors saw land. They though it was Asia, but it was in fact The Bahamas in the Carribbean Sea of North America. He met the Native Americans who lived on the islands. He made several stops among the islands and then returned to Spain in 1493.

        The Spanish king and queen were happy with the results of Columbus's Journey. They named him viceroy and givernor of the Indies, which is what they called the new lands. Columbus would make three more trips to the New World to explore other areas of the Carribean. He helped build permanent settlements there for Spain.

        In 1506, Columbus died in Spain. The Western Hemisphere has honored Columbus his many ways. The country of Colombia in South America is named for him, as is Columbus, Ohio, the district of Columbia and the Columbia river. In October, many countries in the Western Hemisphere celebrate Columbus's arrival in the New World as a holiday.

( CR : WWW.EDUCATION.COM )