While the Portuguese were seeking access to the spice trade of the Indies by sailing eastward through the Indian Ocean, the Spanish were attempting to reach the same destination by sailing westward across the Atlantic sea.
An important figure in the history of Spanish exploration was an Italian known as Christopher Columbus. Europeans were aware that the world was round but had little understanding of its circumference or the size of the continent of Asia. Convinced that the earth was smaller and Asia larger than people thought, Columbus believed that Asia could be reached by sailing directly west instead of travelling around Africa. Rebuffed by the Portuguese, he persuaded Queen Isabella of Spain to finance his exploration expedition. With three ships, the Santa Maria, the Nina, and the Pinta, and a crew of ninety men, Columbus set sail on August 3, 1492. On October 12, he reached the Bahamas and then went on to explore the coastline of Cuba and the northern shores of Hispaniola. Columbus believed that he had reached Asia, and in his reports to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand upon his return to Spain, he assured them that he would eventually find gold there.
Other explorers soon realized that he had discovered a new frontier, but Columbus clung to his believe until his death.
An important figure in the history of Spanish exploration was an Italian known as Christopher Columbus. Europeans were aware that the world was round but had little understanding of its circumference or the size of the continent of 
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