Christopher Columbus's Letter to the Sovereigns of 4 March 1493 Announcing the Discovery

This letter, in contrast to the public version of the Discovery, presents a less mythical but more accessible Columbus.
It portrays the Discovery as a joint commercial venture:
- An individual (Columbus) driven by personal, worldly, and spiritual ambitions.
- A state contractually bound to compensate him and benefit from his efforts.
This perspective differs from the common image of the Discovery and Columbus, but it is argued to be a recognizable legacy.

Columbus addresses the Sovereigns, stating that God has granted them the greatest victory to date.
He arrived from the Indies with the armada provided by the Highnesses.
The journey from their kingdoms took 33 days.
For 14 of those 33 days, winds were light, resulting in very little ground covered.

Columbus found innumerable people and many islands.
He took possession of these islands in the Sovereigns' name, using a royal crier and unfurled royal banner, without contradiction or resistance (Footnote 10).
He named the first island San Salvador, in memory of Jesus Christ.
Other islands were named:
- Santa Maria de la Concepcion
- Fernandina
- Isabela
- Juana
- And almost every other island was given a new name (Footnote 11).

Following Juana's coast west, he found it so large that he initially believed it to be a mainland, likely the province of Cathay (Footnote 12 - an allusion to Marco Polo and papal embassies).
He could not verify this as people fled, preventing communication.
Without finding a notable settlement, he thought hugging the coast would lead to a town or great city, as described by those who traveled overland to Cathay.
After a long while, the coast veered north, and winds came from that direction; he turned back due to winter and a desire to avoid south winds (Footnote 13).
He later understood from some taken Indians from San Salvador that Juana was, in fact, an island.

From a good harbor, he sent two men inland for a three-day journey with a friendly Indian.
They found many settlements and innumerable people but no significant government.
Columbus continued eastward along Juana's coast, covering 107 leagues until its end.
Before leaving Juana, he sighted another island to the east, 18 leagues away, which he later named Espanola.

He sailed to Espanola and followed its north coast eastward for 188 very long leagues.
In every harbor, he placed a large cross in the most appropriate spot, as done in other islands.
He continued exploring until the 16th of January, when he decided to return to the Sovereigns.
This decision was based on finding most of what he sought and having only one caravel remaining.
- The Nao (Santa Maria - Footnote 14) had been left in the village of La Navidad with men for fortification.
- Another caravel was deserted by Martin Alonso Pinzon (Footnote 15), whom Columbus had entrusted with it.