On 17 April 1492, Italian navigator Christopher Columbus signed a landmark agreement with Spain’s monarchs, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, to lead a voyage westward in search of a maritime route to the Indies.
The contract, known as the Capitulations of Santa Fe, promised Columbus the governorship of any lands he might discover and 10% of all wealth obtained.
The mission was framed with a religious objective—to convert non-Christians to Catholicism—marking the beginning of a venture that would reshape world history.
