Christopher Columbus' Children: Know About All The Descendants!

Martha Martins
Nov 02, 2023 By Martha Martins
Originally Published on Apr 05, 2022
Christopher Columbus' children facts include that he died on May 20, 1506, in Valladolid, Spain.
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Age: 3-18
Read time: 9.8 Min

Columbus was born in 1451 to a family of wool weavers in the Italian town of Genoa.

He went to the sea as a young boy and grew up to be an accomplished sailor. He subsequently relocated to Lisbon, Portugal, in order to raise funds for a trip that he planned to investigate new trade routes to the far east.

The king and queen of Spain, Ferdinand, and Isabella consented to fund him. Europeans wanted to develop sea routes to the far east in the 15th and 16th centuries.

In the search for cargoes and spices, Columbus tried to build a roadmap to enter China, Japan, India. Columbus understood the earth was round and realized it by sailing west, rather than east, along the coast of Africa, as other explorers did at the time.

Columbus set out with three ships from Palos, Spain, in 1492. The ships were small, ranging in length between 49-118 ft (15-36 m). They carried roughly 90 soldiers with them.

A sailor named Rodrigo Bernajo sighted land after traveling across the Atlantic Ocean for ten weeks (although Columbus himself took the credit for this). He landed on a little Bahamas Island that he christened San Salvador. Although the island was already occupied, he claimed it for the king and queen of Spain.

This initial encounter paved the way for the European conquest of the 'New World', which would have disastrous consequences for indigenous people. The Santa Maria collided with a rock on Christmas day, 1492, and was sunk.

Columbus transferred to the Nina, leaving Santa Maria's 39 crew members on the island of Hispaniola. He desired that they established a new settlement. In March 1493, Columbus arrived in Spain and obtained his monetary prize.

He had also received new titles like 'Admiral of the Ocean Sea' and 'Governor of the Indies'. Columbus was admired even after he died in 1506 because of the route he had discovered.

European exploration and colonization found a tangent through his expeditions. His encounters also sparked centuries of exploitation of indigenous peoples throughout the Americas. Read on to know what happened to Christopher Columbus' kids.

Fun Facts About Christopher Columbus' Children

Diego and Ferdinand were Christopher Columbus' offspring. Christopher Columbus' son, Diego Columbus, worked for the kings of Castile and Aragón as a navigator and explorer.

Christopher Columbus' real name was Cristoforo Colombo, which was given when he was born in Genoa. Many Catholic theologians allegedly opposed Columbus' planned expedition because they believed the earth was flat, although this was a common misunderstanding. He was a vendor and sold maps and charts before his legendary expeditions.

The island of San Salvador was the first land they saw in America. Columbus never actually visited America.

The bones of Columbus have sparked a debate but a DNA test in 2016 confirmed that the bones found in Spain were his. The Dominican Republic disputes the discovery because Columbus' bones migrated multiple times after his death, some of his remains may be in their country as well.

When he was a teenager, he began sailing. He sailed around the Mediterranean Sea on trading expeditions. In 1476, he set sail for the first time across the Atlantic Ocean. Privateers from France boarded his ship and set it on fire.

He made it to the Portuguese coast by swimming. Columbus married Filipa Moniz Perestrelo after settling in Lisbon. They had only one child together.

Columbus moved to Spain after his wife's death. Columbus proposed traveling west to locate new trade routes for the Portuguese king, but he was turned down. His ideas were offered in Genoa and Venice, but both governments rejected them.

He eventually made his way to the Spanish crown. Initially, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand resisted but subsequently consented to assist him. They gave him enough money to acquire three ships, named Santa Maria, Nina, and Santa Maria II.

Christopher Columbus Children's Names

Diego and Ferdinand Columbus were Christopher Columbus's sons and descendants. He married Filipa Moniz Perestrelo, the daughter of Bartolomeu Perestrello, the governor of Porto Santo, and a Lombard nobility.

Diego, his son, was born in 1479 or 1480. Beatriz Enriquez de Arana, Ferdinand's mother, gave birth to him in 1488.

Diego was a Portuguese navigator and explorer who worked for the kings of Castile and Aragón up to the year 1526. As a vassal of the kings of Castile and Aragón, he served as the second Admiral of the Indies, second Viceroy of the Indies, and fourth Governor of the Indies.

Ferdinand (1488–1539), the second son of Columbus, was a Spanish bibliographer and cosmographer.

His mother, Beatriz Enriquez de Arana, was Columbus's longtime partner in later life although his father never married her. There is no such reference to Christopher Columbus' daughter.

The Nina, Pinta, and the Santa Maria are the three ships used for Columbus's voyage.

What happened to Christopher Columbus' son?

One of Christopher Columbus' descendants, Diego, was born in Lisbon, Portgual in 1474. He spent the majority of his adult life attempting to reclaim the titles and privileges that his father had been bestowed for his expeditions but were later revoked in 1500.

Son Diego was married to Mara de Toledo y Rojas. She was the niece of the second Duke of Alba, who was the cousin of King Ferdinand, which benefited him tremendously in this endeavor.

In 1492, the year his father set sail on his first journey, Diego was made a page at the Spanish court. By Beatriz Enrquez de Arana, Diego has a younger half-brother, Fernando.

Diego was educated by Christopher Columbus's mistress, Beatriz De Arana until he was persuaded by Father Juan Perez. After serving as pages to Prince Don Juan, Ferdinand and Diego were appointed as pages to Queen Isabella in 1497.

He was named Governor of the Indies in August 1508, succeeding his father, and arrived at Santo Domingo in July 1509.

In the Dominican Republic, he built his mansion, which remains in Santo Domingo. He had intended to marry Mencia de Guzman, but King Fernando forced him to marry the king's cousin Mara de Toledo y Rojas, who helped Diego to transport and bury Columbus in Santo Domingo.

Ferdinand was the second son of Columbus. He was a Spanish bibliographer and cosmographer.

Ferdinand was born on August 15, 1488, in Córdoba, Spain, to Christopher Columbus and Beatriz Enrquez de Arana. Diego, his older brother, was his only sibling in the Christopher Columbus family.

Ferdinand's parents never married, probably because the Arana family did not have the social status that Columbus desired. Ferdinand's paternity was never a hindrance to his success.

His father legally acknowledged him, and social standards at the time were accepting of children born out of wedlock.

Columbus was not yet a well-known explorer when Ferdinand was born, and he spent most of his time in the royal courts of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, hoping to gain some support for his expedition proposal across the Atlantic to the Indies.

For the following few years, Fernando and his brother Diego were reared by Beatriz and her family in Cordoba. When Christopher Columbus returned from his first expedition in 1492, he was greeted with glory and acclaim.

Ferdinand and Diego were presented at court at Valladolid in March 1494, where they were appointed as pages in Prince Juan's escort. This was an honor and an indication of their father's standing in court.

Despite his tiny function in a retinue of almost 200 people, Ferdinand benefited from the schooling offered to the prince and his family. Ferdinand's father returned after his third journey in 1500, having been arrested for mismanagement of the Hispaniola colony.

The Crown claimed that there had been a mistake and sent out an order of immediate release, but it was evident that his reputation in court had plummeted.

He worked with Ferdinand and the Carthusian monk Gaspar Goricio to prepare a text called the 'Book of Prophecies'. He was eager to lead the fourth journey and rehabilitate his reputation.

It was an eclectic mix of biblical scriptures, ancient authority statements, and commentaries intended to demonstrate that Columbus' endeavor was part of god's plan to promote Christianity and recover Jerusalem.

Biography Of Christopher Columbus' Children

Columbus' trip is a catalyst for the exploration and settlement of the Americas. He was a Genoese trader, explorer, and navigator who lived from 1451 until 1506.

Columbus became the first European to land on Bahamas Island in 1492. His primary intention was to establish a faster path from Europe to Asia.

Because his trip ushered in the era of European colonialism in the Americas, he was attributed to the discovery of the new world. This was a pivotal juncture in European history. Columbus was not the first European to explore the continent of America.

Europeans were unaware of America at the time of his expedition. As a result, Columbus discovered America in the context of European history. Columbus believed that by sailing west, he could reach Asia. He was unaware of the western hemisphere and hence was unaware that it would prevent him from reaching Asia.

They treated Columbus and his men with kindness and respect. After that, Columbus traveled to Hispaniola, that is Cuba in today's world. Columbus constructed a fort in Hispaniola.

One of the first European military bases in the western hemisphere was located there. It was given the name Navidad by him. He left 39 crewmen behind, instructing them to locate and store the gold.

There was also a priest tasked with converting the indigenous people to Christianity. Columbus explored some of the islands of the Lesser Antilles during this journey. He also sailed across the majority of Hispaniola, exploring parts of Jamaica and Cuba he hadn't seen on his previous journey.

He then returned to the fort of Navidad. The fort had been burned and destroyed when he arrived. Columbus buried 11 of the 37 troops, he left at the fort. The first time people were taken across the Atlantic Ocean to be sold as slaves was in this case.

In 1498, Columbus embarked on another journey. Columbus planned to find this continent on his third journey. Queen Isabella warned Columbus before the journey that he should treat all of the natives well and convert them to Christianity.

Columbus sent three ships straight to the West Indies (the Caribbean) on this journey. He then led three more ships to two Portuguese islands, the Canary Islands, and finally Cape Verde. They sailed from Cape Verde to Trinidad on the northern coast of South America. He also traveled across South America and the islands of Tobago and Grenada

Christopher Columbus' Children's Book

The discovery, exploitation, and settlement of the Americas by Europeans began with Columbus. Leif Eriksson, the Viking who had come upon North America five centuries before him, was known as the discoverer of the 'New World'.

Columbus' transatlantic expeditions were funded by Ferdinand II and Isabella I, the Catholic monarchs. He was initially full of optimism and ambition, which was aided by his title of 'Admiral of the Ocean Sea', which he received in April 1492, as well as awards recorded in the 'Book of Privileges'.

Between the quatercentenary celebrations of Columbus' achievements and the quincentenary celebrations in 1992, Columbus' studies advanced significantly.

In the '90s, a slew of publications about Columbus appeared and archaeologists' and anthropologists' perspectives began to supplement those of sailors and historians. This endeavor sparked a lot of discussions.

There was also a significant movement in perspective and interpretation, with the previous pro-European understanding giving way to one, created by people of the Americas themselves.

According to the traditional view, Columbus' discovery of the Americas was a tremendous triumph, in which he acted as a hero by completing the four trips, bringing immense wealth to Spain and other European countries, and allowing European settlement in the Americas. He had a total of three voyages throughout his lifetime.

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Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Columbus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Columbus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Columbus

https://kids.britannica.com/kids/article/Christopher-Columbus/352985

https://kids.kiddle.co/Christopher_Columbus

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Written by Martha Martins

Bachelor of Arts specializing in Linguistics

Martha Martins picture

Martha MartinsBachelor of Arts specializing in Linguistics

Martha is a full-time creative writer, content strategist, and aspiring screenwriter who communicates complex thoughts and ideas effectively. She has completed her Bachelor's in Linguistics from Nasarawa State University. As an enthusiast of public relations and communication, Martha is well-prepared to substantially impact your organization as your next content writer and strategist. Her dedication to her craft and commitment to delivering high-quality work enables her to create compelling content that resonates with audiences.

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