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Christopher Columbus (c. 1451–1506) led four transatlantic expeditions between 1492 and 1504 under the patronage of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon. Seeking a westward maritime route to Asia, he instead opened sustained Spanish contact with the Caribbean and the American mainland. These four voyages mark the transition from exploration to colonization, imperial expansion, and long-term Atlantic exchange.
- First Voyage (1492–1493) – sailing from Palos on 3 August 1492 with three ships, Columbus reached Guanahani (San Salvador) in the Bahamas on 12 October, then explored Cuba and Hispaniola, where the Santa María was wrecked and La Navidad was founded.
- Second Voyage (1493–1496) – a much larger expedition of 17 ships left Cádiz on 25 September 1493 to expand Spanish colonization; it explored the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Jamaica, and founded La Isabela on Hispaniola.
- Third Voyage (1498–1500) – departing Sanlúcar on 30 May 1498, Columbus reached Trinidad and the Paria Peninsula in present-day Venezuela, making his first landfall on the South American mainland; the voyage ended with his arrest and return to Spain in chains.
- Fourth Voyage (1502–1504) – leaving Cádiz on 9 May 1502, Columbus searched for a strait to Asia along the coast of Central America, explored from Honduras to Panama, encountered a major Mesoamerican trading canoe, and ultimately lost his ships and became stranded on Jamaica before returning to Spain in 1504.
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Cite This Work
APA Style
Netchev, S. (2026, September 13). Map of the Four Voyages of Christopher Columbus, 1492–1504: Routes, Landfalls & Colonial Expansion in the Americas. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14653/map-of-the-four-voyages-of-christopher-columbus-14/
Chicago Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Four Voyages of Christopher Columbus, 1492–1504: Routes, Landfalls & Colonial Expansion in the Americas." World History Encyclopedia, September 13, 2026. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14653/map-of-the-four-voyages-of-christopher-columbus-14/.
MLA Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Four Voyages of Christopher Columbus, 1492–1504: Routes, Landfalls & Colonial Expansion in the Americas." World History Encyclopedia, 13 Sep 2026, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/14653/map-of-the-four-voyages-of-christopher-columbus-14/.
