The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus
Encyclopedia
A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus is a four volume biographical account of Christopher Columbus
written by Washington Irving
in 1828. The work was the most popular biography of Columbus in the English-speaking world until the publication of Samuel Eliot Morison
's biography Admiral of the Ocean Sea was published in 1942.
. In truth, no educated or influential member of medieval society believed the Earth to be flat. The idea of a spherical Earth had long been espoused in the classical tradition and was inherited by medieval academics. That people believe otherwise was listed in 1945 by the Historical Association (of Britain
) as the second of 20 in a pamphlet on common errors in history.
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
written by Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
in 1828. The work was the most popular biography of Columbus in the English-speaking world until the publication of Samuel Eliot Morison
Samuel Eliot Morison
Samuel Eliot Morison, Rear Admiral, United States Naval Reserve was an American historian noted for his works of maritime history that were both authoritative and highly readable. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1912, and taught history at the university for 40 years...
's biography Admiral of the Ocean Sea was published in 1942.
Writing
Irving was invited to Madrid to translate Spanish-language source material on Columbus into English. Irving decided instead to use the sources to write his own four volume biography and history. Irving employed nineteenth century critical methods, but much of his material has been changed by modern research.Criticism
Historians have noted Irving's "active imagination" and called some aspects of his work "fanciful and sentimental." One glaring weakness is Irving's enduring story that it was only the voyages of Columbus that finally convinced Europeans of his time that the Earth is not flatFlat Earth
The Flat Earth model is a belief that the Earth's shape is a plane or disk. Most ancient cultures have had conceptions of a flat Earth, including Greece until the classical period, the Bronze Age and Iron Age civilizations of the Near East until the Hellenistic period, India until the Gupta period ...
. In truth, no educated or influential member of medieval society believed the Earth to be flat. The idea of a spherical Earth had long been espoused in the classical tradition and was inherited by medieval academics. That people believe otherwise was listed in 1945 by the Historical Association (of Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) as the second of 20 in a pamphlet on common errors in history.
External links
- A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vol. I online at Google Books
- A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vol. II online at Google Books
- A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vol. III online at Google Books
- A History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus, Vol. IV online at Google Books