Let’s hear it for the Genoan, Cristobal Colon,
Who as sailor, explorer, was a true paragon.
He persuaded King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain,
To fund a voyage of discovery that would be to their gain,
Wanting to reach Asia, he did so by sailing West,
But found a great land mass in the path of his quest.
He’d bumped into America, on his way to the East,
Discovered its riches, found his palms duly greased!
Though a Norseman reached the US 300 years before,
Columbus was the first to colonize and explore.
He sailed there 4 times, 1492-1503,
And though he didn’t discover it, he’s part of its history,
His importance is really not finding a new continent,
But bringing word back to Europe about what this meant…