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89-566: The Pinzón brothers were Spanish sailors, pirates, explorers and fishermen, natives of Palos de la Frontera , Huelva , Spain . Martín Alonso , Francisco Martín and Vicente Yáñez , participated in Christopher Columbus 's first expedition to the New World (generally considered to constitute the discovery of the Americas by Europeans ) and in other voyages of discovery and exploration in

178-562: A Franciscan friary in the southern Spanish town of Palos de la Frontera , in the province of Huelva and the autonomous region of Andalucia . The friary is located 13 km (8 mi) south of the city of Huelva , where the Tinto and Odiel rivers meet. The Friary of La Rábida has been Franciscan property since the thirteenth century. It was founded in 1261; the evidence is a papal bull issued by Pope Benedict XIII in that year, allowing Friar Juan Rodríguez and his companions to establish

267-524: A Juan Martin Pinçon que agora vive en la villa de Huelva, e en tal posesion fueron habidos e tenidos e comunmente reputados, e lo es el tal dicho Juan Martin. To all of this. the response was affirmative. The testimony is reproduced in: Gonzalo Martín, vecino of Huelva. ... [M. A. Pinzón] ... was famous during his lifetime, and neither on sea nor land the King had no other man so valiant nor brave as him, and in

356-458: A Village in 1914, Palos officially became Palos Park. The neighboring communities of Palos Hills and Palos Heights incorporated at later points. All three municipalities lie within Palos Township. Bibliography: Articles Books Chronicles La R%C3%A1bida Monastery The Saint Mary of La Rábida Friary (in full, Spanish : Monasterio de Santa María de la Rábida ) is

445-570: A center of the shrimp industries, and also became a center for the cultivation of the “fresón de Palos” (Palos-grown garden strawberries ), which are now exported to the European Union . On June 22, 1926, the first hydroplane to cross the Atlantic, the Plus Ultra flying boat , took off from Palos. The journey, done in six stages, ended at Buenos Aires , Argentina . Alfonso XIII of Spain gave

534-492: A community on the coast of Andalucia. The first Christian building on the site was constructed over a pre-existing ribat that lends its name ( rábida or rápita , meaning "watchtower" in Arabic ) to the present monastery. The Franciscans have held great influence in the region ever since. The buildings standing on the site today were erected in stages in the late fourteenth century and the early fifteenth century. The friary, and

623-581: A corruption of Espinzas or Pinzas ("tweezers"). Others say that the true family name was Martín , a widespread name with a long tradition in the area, the name of their grandfather, a sailor and diver in Palos, who was dubbed Pinzón when he went blind; that, combined with his hobby of singing gave him the nickname Pinzón , the Spanish word for chaffinch , because owners of chaffinches sometimes blinded them, supposedly making them sing more beautifully. His son, also

712-474: A land reform scheme that seized unproductive church properties, the friary fell into ruins until, in 1855, a restoration was begun at the initiative of Prince Antoine of Bourbon-Orleans, Duke of Montpensier and the provincial delegation in the Spanish Cortes . In 1882, King Alfonso XII visited the friary and lent his support to a second round of rehabilitation and improvement with the purpose of commemorating

801-590: A locally based caravel as a grumete (cabin boy). His home, now the Casa Museo de Martín Alonso Pinzón , was on the old royal road to the Monastery of La Rábida . Martín's family contracted a marriage with a resident of the locality named María Álvarez. They had five children: two sons—Arias Pérez and Juan Pinzón, who participated in several expeditions to the Americas—and three daughters—Mayor, Catalina, and Leonor. Leonor,

890-466: A sailor named Martín Pinzón, was the father of the three Pinzón brothers. Their mother was named Mayor Vicente, so the three were full brothers and bore the surnames Pinzón and Vicente ( see Spanish naming customs ). Martín Alonso Pinzón (c. 1441 – c. 31 March 1493) was the oldest of the brothers, and captain of the Pinta on Columbus's first voyage. It appears that at quite a young age he shipped out on

979-569: Is Columbus and his expedition. The paintings are pre- cubist in style, an approach Vázquez Diaz had recently adopted during a sojourn in Paris. In the garden stands the Monument to the Discoverers , a 55 m tall column erected to commemorate the four-hundredth anniversary of the first voyage of Columbus. It is made of brilliant white stone incised with numerous figures and scenes depicting the colonization of

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1068-553: Is derived from the Latin word palus (“ lagoon ”). It acquired its “surname” as Palos de la Frontera in May 1642. At the time of its establishment as a town by Alfonso XI, Palos was part of the Almohad kingdom of Niebla , and was a small nucleus whose population subsisted on fishing and took advantage of the area's geographic protection against pirates and storms. Álvar Pérez is considered

1157-665: Is derived from the Arabic word meaning "watchtower", and the ruins of several other Moorish towers of this kind along the Costa de la Luz still exist. In this environment, Muslim ascetics sought to become perfected spiritually so that they would be better able to defend this isolated coastal frontier of the Moorish empire in Iberia . In the twelfth century, the site passed to the Knights Templar under

1246-484: Is often used to refer to this chamber. In 1992, in celebration of the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's voyage of discovery, there was a meeting of the Spanish council of ministers ( cabinet ), presided over by King Juan Carlos I , in this room. The refectory is a rectangular room with parallel rows of tables and a whitewashed pulpit or lectern for reading or lecturing or preaching. The library holds documents and objects of historical interest, most notably

1335-459: Is possible that Martín's son, Arias Pérez Pinzón, did not bring him directly to his house in Palos in order to protect him, given that Columbus had threatened him earlier. Another possibility is that this was because Martín did not get along well with Catalina Alonso, the woman who had been living with his father since he became a widower, and with whom the father would have two illegitimate children: Francisco and Inés Pinzón. According to testimony, he

1424-463: Is sacred to the hearts of people everywhere. Any Spaniard or American who reflects deeply and elevates his thoughts must ask, 'Won't you help us in our intention to spread love and peace, the forces that radiate from this humble monastery?' Christ, before whom Columbus, Friar Juan Perez, Friar Marchena, and the Pinzóns all prayed, opens his loving arms to men of all beliefs who harbor good will." St. Mary,

1513-518: Is the said Juan Martin. Lo primero, si conosçieron a Martin Alonso Pinçon, ya difunto, vezino e natural que fue desta villa de Palos, e a Maria Alvares, su legitima muger, los quales moravan en la calle de Nuestra Señora de la Rabida, e si saben que el dicho Martin Alonso Pinçon e la dicha Maria Alvares, su muger, fueron casados y velados segund horden de la Santa Madre Yglesia, e constante su matrymonio ovieron e procrearon por su hijo legitimo e natural

1602-560: The Santa María was shipwrecked. Nonetheless, much of the testimony in the pleitos colombinos , as well as part of the specialized historiography and investigators, does not agree that these things happened in this manner, nor is there any accusation against Pinzón in Columbus's Letter on the First Voyage , which Columbus wrote on his return. For Martín Alonso the return voyage was lethal, as

1691-636: The Caribbean to search for a passage to the Pacific Ocean . He explored all of the Caribbean coast of Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula . According to the chronicler Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés , Vicente Yáñez died in 1514, probably at the end of September. It is not known precisely where he is buried, but Oviedo states that it is somewhere in the cemetery of Triana. The participation of

1780-495: The Niña , captained by Vicente, who provided all the help necessary for a successful return voyage. He made several more expeditions to the Americas, the most important being the voyage to the mouth of the Amazon which constituted the discovery of Brazil , in early 1500. That expedition was an economic failure. In 1505 he was made the governor of Puerto Rico . Later, in 1506, he returned to

1869-619: The Phoenicians built an altar dedicated to their god, Melqart , the patron of Tyre , also called the Baal (lord) of Tyre, a deity often identified with Hercules . Later, the Romans chose this same place to venerate the goddess, Proserpina . The Arabs raised a ribat , a small monastery to train mounted monk-warriors like those of the Christian Orders. The ribat, rábida (or rápita ) in Spanish

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1958-596: The Santa María wrecked on 25 December, Vicente Yáñez in command of the Niña went to the rescue of those left in this difficult situation. For these and other acts, the Pinzón brothers have a very notable place in the history of the discovery of America, and are considered by historians as "co-discoverers of America", in that without their help, support, and courage, Columbus probably could not have achieved his enterprise of discovery, at least not in that time and place. Although

2047-483: The Tinto - Odiel were motivated to participate in Columbus's undertaking. He also supported the project economically, supplying money from his personal fortune. Francisco, master of the Pinta , appears to have participated in Columbus's third and fourth voyages of discovery as well as in the first, but because his name was a common one, the facts of his life cannot be easily sorted out from those of contemporaries with

2136-521: The Virgin of Miracles ( Virgen de los Milagros ). There is a station in the Madrid Metro named after this town. In 1850 the small town of Trenton, Illinois , located southwest of Chicago , changed its name to Palos . This recommendation was made by M. S. Powell, the local postmaster , whose ancestor Pedro Alonso Niño sailed with Christopher Columbus from Palos de la Frontera. When it incorporated as

2225-622: The War of the Castilian Succession , which became a war between Castile and Portugal , to challenge Portuguese domination of the Atlantic trade. Castilian naval forces always included natives of Palos, who were considered navigational experts: ...because only the men of Palos know the ancient sea of Guinea, and were used to fighting the Portuguese from the outset of the war, and to snatch from them

2314-516: The War of the Castilian Succession . It is probable that even while in Portugal before coming to Spain, Columbus was aware of Martín Alonso, because he was known for his participation in the war, as well as for his incursions into the Canary Islands and Guinea. He was captain of the Pinta on Columbus's first voyage and supplied half a million ( "medio cuento" ) maravedís in coin toward the cost of

2403-624: The Yucatán in 1509 he married Ana Núñez de Trujillo, with whom he lived in Triana (across the river from Seville ), probably until his death. The first we hear of Vicente Yáñez is when he is denounced for assaults on Aragonese boats, some with his oldest brother, when he was only 15 years old. This was between 1477 and 1479, during the War of the Castilian Succession (with Portugal) in which Palos participated actively and through which its habitual shortage of grain

2492-531: The map of the world of Juan de la Cosa on which, for the first time, the coast of the Americas appears. There is also an exhibition room where the flags of each of the countries of the Americas and a small sealed vessel containing soil from the New World are on display. Around a small patio adorned with numerous plants and flowers are rooms decorated with colorful frescos executed by the Spanish painter, Daniel Vázquez Diaz , in 1930. The subject of these paintings

2581-450: The quadricentennial of the discovery of the Americas in 1892. The king engaged the architect, Ricardo Velázquez Bosco , whose subsequent contributions evinced a profound respect for the atmosphere and spirit of the original building. The date of the construction of the church cannot be established with certainty. One of the early architectural elements that is well preserved is the arch-like main doorway. Other features include frescos on

2670-470: The "Andalusian voyages" of discovery. After contracting with the crown, on 19 November 1499 Vicente left the port of Palos with four small caravels, crewed largely by his relatives and friends, among them his brother Francisco and also the famous physician of Palos Garcí Fernández , an early supporter of Columbus's first voyage. On this voyage, they discovered Brazil and the Amazon River. On 5 September 1501

2759-700: The Afro-Atlantic waters from Cabo Bojador to the Río de Oro , which they leased from the Catholic Monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand . The Pinzón family were one of the leading families of 14th-century Palos. The family may have come originally from the Kingdom of Aragón , but arrived in Andalusia either from la Montaña (now Cantabria ) or from Asturias . According to some historians, this surname could have been

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2848-609: The Algerian coast. In 1496 they brought money and supplies to the Spanish troops fighting in Naples. In 1498 he participated in Columbus's third voyage, in which for the first time the Admiral arrived on the continent of South America . Later in 1498, the Crown decided to end Columbus's monopoly on voyages of discovery. The series of voyages by other mariners are generally known as the "minor voyages" or

2937-525: The Americas. In front of the main entrance is an iron cross and the busts of the Franciscan friars, Juan Pérez and Antonio de Marchena , which both were made by the sculptor León Ortega . Next to the entrance is a plaque made of azulejos with the following inscription: "The Rábida is the first manifestation of the Hispano-American movement. This place, where the vision of a New World was conceived,

3026-747: The Atlantic. On August 3, 1492, the Pinta , Niña , and Santa María sailed from Palos. On board were the Spanish crew of Christopher Columbus and the Pinzón Brothers , who were natives of Palos. Palos is also the site of the Rábida Monastery where Columbus consulted with the Franciscans about his plans for organizing an expedition of discovery. The three Spanish ships landed in America on October 12, 1492. The Santa María foundered in American waters, but

3115-576: The Crown signed an agreement with Vicente in which, among other things, he was named Captain and Governor of the Cabo de Santa María de la Consolación, later Cabo de Santo Agostinho . In 1502, Francisco traveled with Columbus on his fourth and final voyage; it is on this voyage he is believed to have died by drowning. Vicente continued to travel back and forth across the Atlantic to fulfill his obligations as Captain General and Governor. He also participated as one of

3204-408: The Crown. His personal and family story is confused, because several relatives shared this same name, frequently leading historians to confuse them. Nonetheless, he seems to have been married to Juana Martín and to have had at least one daughter, who we find documented as "an orphan" and "poor" ( "huérfana y pobre" ). With his brother Vicente, he made several voyages to Italy and Africa in service to

3293-543: The Crown. In November 1493, together with Juan de Sevilla, Rodrigo de Quexo, and Fernando Quintero, he led an assault on the Algerian coast. In 1496 he brought money and supplies to the Spanish troops fighting in Naples . Later, he participated in Columbus's third and fourth voyages, on the last of which, according to his companion on many voyages, Rodrigo Álvarez, he died by drowning. Vicente Yáñez Pinzón (c. 1462 – c. September 1514)

3382-463: The Crown. The king finally conceded to the Pinzóns, their descendants and family members a coat of arms consisting of a shield with three caravels, natural, on the sea; from each a hand points to an island representing the first land discovered in the New World. Around that, a border with anchors and crowns. First, if they knew Martin Alonso Pinçon, now deceased, resident of and born in the town of Palos, and Maria Alvares, his legitimage wife, who dies in

3471-480: The Pinzón brothers was crucial to Columbus's first voyage, especially in that few were disposed to enlist with Columbus until Martín Alonso, a wealthy and famous shipbuilder in the Tinto-Odiel region, gave his support to the enterprise. Once Martín Alonso gave his support, he undertook a veritable campaign on behalf of the undertaking. His support and that of his brothers and of other distinguished families of mariners in

3560-568: The Plus Ultra to the Argentine Navy , in which it served as a postal service airplane; the Argentines donated to Spain a statue of Icarus , which is situated at La Rábida. Alfonso XIII also granted to Palos the status as a city during this time. John Paul II visited Palos on June 14, 1993, the only time a pope has visited the city. John Paul symbolically crowned the Palos's patron saint ,

3649-408: The Tinto-Odiel for the risky voyage. He was chosen as captain of the Niña and distinguished himself during the voyage. This involved, among other accomplishments, helping to put down several attempts at mutiny together with his older brother. He provided support, both to Columbus and the rest of the crew, after the Santa María was wrecked. With his flagship gone, the admiral made his return voyage in

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3738-400: The armadas set forth from this town, organized, on many occasions, by this family. Martín Alonso and Vicente Yáñez, captains of the caravels La Pinta and La Niña , respectively on Columbus's first voyage, are the best known of the brothers, but the third brother, the lesser-known Francisco Martín, was aboard the Pinta as its master. It was thanks to Martín Alonso that the seamen of

3827-492: The church associated with it, display elements of Gothic and Moorish revival architecture ; their walls are decorated with frescos by the twentieth-century Spanish artist, Daniel Vázquez Diaz (1882-1969). There is also a cloister and a museum, where numerous relics of the discovery of the Americas are displayed. The buildings on the site have nearly 20,000 sq ft (1,858 m ) of floor space and an irregular floor plan. Throughout its five hundred years of existence,

3916-412: The city's real founder. He was only fourteen when Juan I of Castile granted him the towns of Palos and Villalba del Alcor in 1379 to make up for the fact that Pérez de Guzmán was forced to give up Huelva and Gibraleón , which had become part of the county of Medinaceli . Álvar Pérez de Guzmán received from Juan I the right to tax the first fifty families who settled at Palos, and he began utilizing

4005-582: The coast. Pope Eugene IV granted indulgences to all who rendered aid to travelers seeking refuge at this site. Many of the buildings to house and support the Conventual Franciscans , more properly known as the Order of Friars Minor Conventual, were constructed during the first part of the fifteenth century. The noble of the region, Don Juan Alfonso de Guzman El Bueno, the 1st Duke of Medina Sidonia (1410-1468), as well as local commoners, all collaborated in

4094-534: The commercial possibility of trade in gold, spices, and slaves. In the second half of the 15th century, Palos reaches a population of three thousand. The alota of Palos, a type of customs warehouse, paid the largest tribute of any such facility to the Duke of Medina Sidonia , its primacy being such that it fishermen were recruited from other towns along the coast and two residents of Palos. Juan Venegas and Pedro Alonso Cansino, were placed in charge of giving licenses to fish in

4183-515: The construction projects. The friary is best known in history for the visit of Christopher Columbus in 1490 during which the mariner consulted with the Franciscans, such as Horacio Crassocius, about his plans for organizing a voyage of discovery. Columbus then decided to take Crassocius with him as a servant called Juan. After the War of Spanish Independence and the Confiscation of Mendizábal ,

4272-509: The custom of the place. Tradition in Palos indicates that he lived on the Calle de la Ribera. From a young age, he learned the art of navigation from his oldest brother, and from adolescence he participated in combat and in military assaults, as he happened to reach this age during the War of the Castilian Succession. He married twice, first to Teresa Rodríguez, with whom he had two daughters, Ana Rodríguez and Juana González. After his final return from

4361-595: The desired passage, he rounded the Yucatan Peninsula and entered into the Gulf of Mexico to the extent of 23.5º north latitude, bringing about one of the first European contacts with the Aztec civilization. Upon returning from this voyage, Vicente Yáñez married for the second time and settled in Triana. In 1513 he testified against Columbus in the pleitos colombinos . In 1514 he was ordered to accompany Pedrarias Dávila to Darién, but he

4450-515: The establishment of the Casa de Contratación at Seville in 1503, Palos suffered a decline. Natives of Palos emigrated to America or to Seville, and Palos soon had few sailing vessels of its own. By the 18th century, the town had only about 125 inhabitants. However, during the same century, Catalan investors established a viticultural industry centered at Palos, and the population slowly reached its pre-1492 levels. Palos also transformed itself into

4539-611: The experts brought together by the Crown in the Junta de Navegantes in Burgos in 1508 to take up anew the subject of the search for a passage to the Spice Islands . On his final voyage , along with captain Juan Díaz de Solís , he followed the coasts of Darién , Veragua and the Gulf of Paria , now Venezuela , Colombia , Panama , Costa Rica , Nicaragua , Honduras and Guatemala . Not finding

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4628-481: The first third of the 15th century, the port of Palos experienced continual economic growth, obtaining an importance well beyond the local area and achieving even international dimensions, as is testified by the frequent presence of English , Breton , Flemish , and Italian ships. Following in the wake of the Portuguese, the ships of Palos traveled to the Canary Islands and Guinea , with their rich fisheries and

4717-434: The first voyage. On 6 October, Martín intervened in a dispute between Columbus and the crew by proposing an altered course (which Columbus eventually accepted) and thus calmed simmering unrest. A few days later, on the night of 9 October 1492, the brothers were forced to intercede once again, and this time they proposed the compromise that if no land was sighted during the next three days, the expedition would return to Spain. On

4806-521: The goods "tying up to the shore" ( "amarrando en la ribera" ). The port had a population density similar to that to the town proper, from what we can deduce from the Ordenanza Municipal , which prohibited weapons on the riverbank because the people there were as tightly packed as in the town proper (the expression used is "tan aparejadas como en la Villa" : aparejadas is nautical Spanish for something that has been furnished or supplied). Beginning in

4895-484: The intervention of the guardian of La Rábida and the confessor to Isabella, Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros , he was able to have his proposal heard. The friary was declared a Spanish National Monument in 1856. In 2016 it was added to the Tentative List of World Heritage by UNESCO along with the Columbian Places . The friary sits on a rocky bluff that overlooks the confluence of the rivers Tinto and Odiel , known since ancient times as Saturn's Rock . On this spot,

4984-527: The lands around Palos for the cultivation of olive trees and production of olive oil . After the death of Álvar Pérez de Guzmán, his widow, Elvira de Ayala, daughter of the Chancellor of Castile, continued her husband's work until her death in 1434. Palos's Golden Age is considered to have occurred in the 15th century (especially between 1470 and 1479), when it increased its population to 2,500 inhabitants and its economy, based on fishing and seafaring expeditions to Guinea , flourished. Palos took advantage of

5073-403: The late 15th and early 16th centuries. The brothers were sailors along the coast of Huelva, and thanks to their many commercial voyages and piracy along the coast, they were famous along the entire coast. The strategic position offered by the historic Atlantic port of Palos, from which expeditions had set forth to the African coasts as well as to the war against Portugal , for which most of

5162-414: The local economy. On the eve of Columbus's first voyage, the entire riverbank between the present-day wharfs near the center of Palos and 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away at La Rábida Monastery was an active port. The caravels anchored in the center of the river, where the depth was sufficient for their drafts, and paid for the rights to anchor there. From the caravels, boats and dinghies loaded or unloaded

5251-455: The men of Moguer to unite around the enterprise. During the voyage of discovery, they demonstrated on several occasions their gifts as expert mariners and as leaders, in that they knew how to master the most diverse and difficult situations. For example, they were able to continue sailing, even after the damage that occurred to the Pinta when the tiller broke, before they reached the Canary Islands, and when, between 6 and 7 October 1492 Columbus

5340-409: The monastery has been refurbished and repaired countless times, but the most extensive modifications were undertaken as a result of damage from the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 . Christopher Columbus stayed at the friary two years before his famous first voyage, after learning that King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella had rejected his request for outfitting an expedition in search of the Indies . With

5429-468: The morning of the 12th, land (there is some question of the location: see Guanahani ) was in fact sighted by Juan Rodriguez Bermejo (also known as Rodrigo de Triana ). The Pinzón brothers lived in the era of the greatest splendor of the port town of Palos de la Frontera, participating in the majority of the activities undertaken by that port. The historic port of Palos was a river port, protected from winds and from pirate attacks, both major hazards to

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5518-411: The mother of Jesus, is the patroness of the friary, and a small statue of her can be found in the friary church. Carved in alabaster , the statue is, stylistically, of the school of fourteenth-century Andalucian art. According to a legend with scant historical basis, this image was brought back from one of his trips by a sailor from Palos de la Frontera and, because the Moors were still in Spain, it

5607-452: The oldest of the Pinzón brothers, Martín Alonso, died a few days after returning from Columbus's first voyage, that was by no means the end of the participation of the Pinzóns in voyages of discovery and other sea journeys. Francisco and Vicente made various voyages to Italy and Africa in service to the Crown. As mentioned above , in November 1493, Francisco, along with Juan de Sevilla, Rodrigo de Quexo, and Fernando Quintero, led an assault on

5696-439: The original paintings survive. Today, on the second floor, there is a permanent exhibition of scale models of the three caravels of the first voyage of Columbus: the Niña , the Pinta , and the Santa Maria . The reception room is a well-lit rectangular room of ample proportions where, in the days of Columbus, the friars met with him and debated theories and speculations about navigation. The name “Columbus Conference Room"

5785-622: The other two ships returned to Palos on March 15, 1493. Palos would play a pivotal role in the settlement and Christianization of the New World in succeeding centuries. La Rábida would play a central part in the Christian evangelization of the Americas. As La Rábida was a Franciscan monastery, that order would play a dominant role in this Christianization, and some of the first missionaries were natives of Palos, including Juan Izquierdo , Juan de Palos , Juan Cerrado , Pedro Salvador , Alonso Vélez de Guevara , Juan Quintero  [ es ] , Thomás de Narváez , and Francisco Camacho . With

5874-449: The patron of the friary, Our Lady of Miracles. There is a 14th-century alabaster carving of her in the church. The Moorish revival -style cloister dates from the fifteenth century and remains in a good state of conservation. In the seventeenth century, it was expanded by the construction of a second storey complete with battlements for defense against pirate invasions. It is decorated with paintings of modern vintage, and some fragments of

5963-421: The ports of the time. It was located on the lower portion of the Río Tinto known then as the Canal de Palos, about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from its mouth at the Atlantic and its confluence with the Odiel . The port probably grew simultaneously with the town, first as an anchorage for small vessels engaged almost exclusively in fishing on the beaches and estuaries and occasional commercial transactions to supply

6052-448: The protection of Our Lady of Miracles. In the thirteenth century, it became a Franciscan friary. Tradition holds that St. Francis of Assisi himself visited here, in the company of twelve disciples, to found a small and humble community. As with the Moors and the Templars before them, the Franciscan friars established this location, from the beginning, as a stronghold, a place for resisting the depredations of pirates who continually roamed

6141-435: The region served to recruit the necessary crew: sailors from Palos, Huelva, and even from beyond Andalusia. The testimony in the pleitos colombinos indicates that the Pinzón brothers, above all Martín: ... brought such diligence to secure and animate the people as if what were discovered were for him and his sons. Among these other families, the Niño brothers of Moguer stand out: their prestige and influence brought

6230-417: The river became Palos's principal means of connection to the outside world and the port the axis of its relation to the surrounding towns. This maritime orientation modified the shape of the town, previously a conical area centered around the church and castle. The Calle de la Ribera ("Riverbank Street") connecting the town center to the port became the town's principal artery, and the port the authentic heart of

6319-438: The royal order and also dismissed the men he had enrolled, supplying the enterprise with two caravels of his own, the Pinta and the Niña , which he knew from his own experience would be better and more suitable boats. Furthermore, he traveled through Palos, Moguer and Huelva , convincing his relatives and friends to enlist, composing of them the best crew possible. He captained the caravel Pinta , from which Rodrigo de Triana

6408-456: The same name. Vicente Yáñez, the youngest of the three brothers, besides participating in Columbus's first voyage, once Columbus's monopoly on transatlantic trade was ended, made several voyages to the Americas on his own account and is generally credited with the discovery of Brazil . Although they sometimes quarreled with Columbus, on several occasions the Pinzón brothers were instrumental in preventing mutiny against him, particularly during

6497-424: The ships suffered from a great storm, which resulted in great fatigue and exhaustion, accumulated over many days of sailing. Because of this, Martín's recurrent fevers from which he suffered reactivated and he died a few days after returning from the New World. In fact, he was taken from his ship in a stretcher and, as Columbus arrived, his friends took him to a farm that was on the boundary between Palos and Moguer. It

6586-513: The slaves acquired in exchange for vile goods Nevertheless, the war ended in defeat for the Castilian forces, and Ferdinand and Isabella , in the Treaty of Alcáçovas (1479) gave up all rights to Atlantic and African lands and seas, with the exception of the Canary Islands , which remained Castilian. Many natives of Palos nevertheless violated the agreement and encroached upon Portuguese sea routes in

6675-475: The small population. For many, the expression port of Palos brings to mind the present-day port with its old wharf, the muelle de la Calzadilla from which the Plus Ultra flying boat departed in 1926 to cross the Atlantic. This is not the 15th century port. The municipal ordinances of the era ( Ordenanzas Municipales de Palos (1484–1521) ), focused mainly on regulating the town's maritime activities never use

6764-512: The street of Nuestra Señora de la Rabida, and if they knew said Martin Alonso Pinçon and said Maria Alvares, his wife, were husband and wife under the order of the Church of the Santa Madre, and in the course of their marriage procreated and produced their legitimate and natural son Juan Martin Pinçon who now lives in the town of Huelva, and in having had him they were taken and commonly reputed, and that

6853-486: The terms puerto (port) or muelle (wharf). The caravels of Palos "arrived at the riverbank" ( "aportaban a la ribera" ), where they discharged their goods and auctioned their fish. That is to say, the activities of the port were not conducted in any single place, but along the length of the bank of the Río Tinto, because of the large number of ships and relatively high volume of merchandise they had to handle. Progressively,

6942-530: The time that there was a war with Portugal all the Portuguese feared him because every day he took them and he lit them [set their boats on fire] and he made much war upon them .... Palos de la Frontera The official date of foundation for Palos is 1322, when the town was granted to Alonso Carro and Carro's wife Berenguela Gómez by Alfonso XI of Castile , although the town may have been occupied during earlier centuries by Paleolithic , Tartessian , Roman , Visigothic , and Muslim inhabitants. Palos's name

7031-587: The town should respect the royal decision. However, the locals did not comply. The sailors of Palos had no confidence in embarking on this adventure with Columbus, who was largely unknown to them. Independent of their greater or lesser credence in his ideas, the men of Palos found it difficult to support the Genovese sailor if he was not accompanied by a mariner known and respected in the town. The venture—risky and, above all, of uncertain profit—did not present great attractions. Opposition or indifference to Columbus's project

7120-544: The voyage. Thanks to his prestige as a shipowner and expert sailor and his fame throughout the Tinto-Odiel region, he was able to enlist the crew required for Columbus's first voyage. On 23 May 1492 the royal provision was read out to the residents of Palos, by which the Catholic Monarchs ordered that certain residents deliver two caravels to Columbus and travel with him on his voyage that he was making "by command of Their Highnesses" ( "por mandado de Sus Altezas" ) and that

7209-460: The walls and a meticulously painted ceiling of Moorish influence. Also on the walls, there is an eighteenth-century painting of St. John of God and representations of the life of St. Francis of Assisi . Presiding over the main altar is a sculpture of a Christ which replaces an older statue destroyed during the Spanish Civil War . In the south wall there is a small chapel alcove dedicated to

7298-404: The youngest, suffered frequent attacks of what was then called " gota coral " and would now be called epilepsy . His nautical experience and his leadership remained patent in the 1508–1536 lawsuits known as the pleitos colombinos , where the witnesses indicated him as the leader of the comarca (a region comparable to a shire ). He was also famous for his battles against the Portuguese in

7387-446: Was aggravated: its residents complained of hunger. Royal orders to various places that were supposed to supply Palos with cereals were disobeyed. The Pinzón brothers, taking on their responsibilities as natural leaders of the district, attacked caravels that were transporting mainly grain. Vicente immediately supported his brother, Martín Alonso, when Martin decided to back Columbus's undertaking. The two worked together to enlist men from

7476-490: Was brought to the La Rábida Monastery, where he died; he was entombed there, as was his wish. Francisco Martín Pinzón (c. 1445 – c. 1502) was the second of the brothers. On Columbus's first voyage he was the master (second only to the captain) of the Pinta , the first ship to sight land in the Americas. Although he was less known than his two brothers, he played a major role both in voyages of discovery and in service to

7565-502: Was general. The Franciscans of the Monastery of La Rábida put Columbus in touch with Martín Alonso Pinzón. Pero Vázquez de la Frontera , an old mariner in the town—very respected for his experience, and a friend of Martín Alonso—also had an important influence on the oldest Pinzón brother deciding to support the undertaking, not only morally but also economically. Martín Alonso dismissed the vessels that Columbus had already seized based on

7654-408: Was not well enough and begged to be excused. That was on 14 March 1514, and it is the last primary source document in which he is mentioned. In 1519 a petition to Charles I of Spain , headed by Juan Rodríguez Mafra , requested the grant of a coat of arms to the Pinzóns and other mariners of Palos, exposing the lamentable situation of the descendants of those mariners who had offered such service to

7743-464: Was the youngest brother. He was captain of the Niña on the first voyage of discovery. He later made other discoveries on his own account; historians consider him the discoverer of Brazil along with his cousin Diego de Lepe . Considerably younger than his brothers, it is likely that his name Yáñez came from Rodrigo Yáñez, a bailiff ( alguacil ) of Palos who would then have been his godfather, according to

7832-490: Was to be the first person to sight American soil. Columbus, in his diary, spoke favorably of Pinzón on several occasions. Nonetheless, after they had discovered the West Indies , the relationship between the two changed radically from 21 November 1492, when Martín Alonso separated from Columbus. Admiral Columbus launched a series of accusations of desertion against Pinzón and his brothers, including Vicente who had saved him when

7921-444: Was unable to reestablish discipline among the tired and discouraged crew of the Santa María , Martín Alonso with his gift of command managed to resolve the situation. Martín Alonso suggested to Columbus the change of course on 6 October 1492; A few days later, on 9 October he proposed a compromise that won a few more days from the restless crew. The course he urged brought the expedition to landfall on Guanahani on 12 October 1492. When

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