Which of the following is true of the Columbus legend:?

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Brooklyn R

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A.) He was the only voyager who believed the earth was round
B.) He was the first person ever to reach the Americas
C.) He was the first European to set foot on American soil
D.) He developed a genius for navigation
 
Of all the options D is the best answer, but it is not really a great answer.

A is a myth of history. Most educated mariners knew that the earth was round, and very large. This is the main reason Portugal did not finance his voyage, because they knew the earth was round, but was much larger than Columbus believed.

B, is incorrect because there were people in the Americas when Columbus got there, they are called Native Americans

C, is also incorrect because there is evidence of Viking settlements in Canada, and some evidence of pre-historic Europeans who travelled across the Atlantic during the last Ice Age.

D, is the best answer, but he did not really have a "genius" for navigation. He was no better or worse at navigation than any other sailor of his time.
 
I would say, "none of the above."

Seafarers had known the Earth was, at least, curved, since the time of the ancient Greeks and, likely, before. Anyone watching a ship disappear over the horizon could figure out the the Earth was, clearly, not flat.

If he was the first person to reach the Americas, then who were the native he met when he landed?

As far as Europeans, it's been pretty well established that Norse explorers had settled in parts of Nova Scotia about four hundred years before Columbus was born.

And, as far as navigation, his strategy was to simply sail West. Whether he reached what he hoped was China, or the Indies, or landed on North or South American soil, he was BOUND to bump into something. Even I could maintain a vaguely Western course, using nothing but the light of the morning and afternoon sun.

Columbus' "genius" was in being able to convince Queen Isabella of Spain to hock her royal jewelry to finance his trips.
 
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