The World is a Pear: Columbus Day

"In fourteen hundred and ninety-two/Columbus sailed the ocean blue."

We all remember that. But after that basic date, things get a little fuzzy. Here's what they didn't tell you–

Most educated people knew that the world was not flat.

Columbus never set foot in what would become America.

Christopher Columbus made four voyages to the so-called New World. And his discoveries opened an astonishing era of exploration and exploitation. His arrival marked the beginning of the end for tens of millions of Native Americans spread across two continents.

Once a hero. Now a villain.

You can read more about Christopher Columbus, his voyages and their impact on American history in Don't Know Much About History and Don't Know Much About Geography.

The story of "Isabella's Pigs," and the role of Queen Isabella in the making of the New World, is depicted in America's Hidden History

Don't Know Much About@ History: Anniversary Edition