{"id":2167345,"date":"2026-09-28T03:17:22","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T00:17:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2167345"},"modified":"2026-09-28T03:17:22","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T00:17:22","slug":"la-rabida-monastery-where-columbus-won-castiles-backing-to-discover-america","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2167345","title":{"rendered":"La R\u00e1bida monastery: where Columbus won Castile&#8217;s backing to discover America"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/1200x675_cmsv2_0a1816d2-f3dd-50ac-b935-e1df9c37b44d-9917780.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"abe-2929208-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2929208\" data-cid=\"9930368\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929208-label-pos1-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/68\/189x106_cmsv2_99adb2f6-3185-529d-b3df-1b911e30bc41-9930368.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas in Brussels on 28 September 2026.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Europe News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    EU ministers plan response to hybrid attacks amid warnings of Russian\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2928395-pos2-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2928395\" data-cid=\"9926717\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2928395-label-pos2-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/92\/67\/17\/189x106_cmsv2_718645bf-ae7b-5323-ae8d-1147564db4f6-9926717.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Denmark&apos;s Prime Minister, Greenland&apos;s Prime Minister, and US President at the signing ceremony of a security deal between the US, Denmark and Greenland at United Nations HQs.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    The Cube<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Did Denmark play &#8216;Send in the Clowns&#8217; before US-Greenland deal?\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2929160-pos3-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2929160\" data-cid=\"9930327\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929160-label-pos3-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/27\/189x106_cmsv2_258cf1e5-c61e-569e-bcdb-0ea81f08589b-9930327.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Illustrative photo.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Russia<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Russia lost nearly half its schools \u2014 war propaganda fills the rest\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2929146-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2929146\" data-cid=\"9930351\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929146-label-pos4-c-latest-stories\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/51\/189x106_cmsv2_abbab57d-15ac-51b9-9a18-6435008f066e-9930351.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"From Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f&apos;s show &quot;Dead Sea&quot;\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Turkey<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Turkish comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f on trial for insulting Erdo\u011fan in show\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2929208-pos1-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2929208\" data-cid=\"9930368\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929208-label-pos1-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/68\/189x106_cmsv2_99adb2f6-3185-529d-b3df-1b911e30bc41-9930368.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas in Brussels on 28 September 2026.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Europe News<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    EU ministers plan response to hybrid attacks amid warnings of Russian\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2928395-pos2-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2 the-media-object--has-video\" data-nid=\"2928395\" data-cid=\"9926717\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2928395-label-pos2-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/92\/67\/17\/189x106_cmsv2_718645bf-ae7b-5323-ae8d-1147564db4f6-9926717.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Denmark&apos;s Prime Minister, Greenland&apos;s Prime Minister, and US President at the signing ceremony of a security deal between the US, Denmark and Greenland at United Nations HQs.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    The Cube<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Did Denmark play &#8216;Send in the Clowns&#8217; before US-Greenland deal?\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2929160-pos3-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2929160\" data-cid=\"9930327\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929160-label-pos3-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/27\/189x106_cmsv2_258cf1e5-c61e-569e-bcdb-0ea81f08589b-9930327.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Illustrative photo.\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Russia<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Russia lost nearly half its schools \u2014 war propaganda fills the rest\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2929146-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-2 m-modeDesktop-2 m-modeXL-2\" data-nid=\"2929146\" data-cid=\"9930351\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2929146-label-pos4-c-latest-stories-sidebar\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/93\/03\/51\/189x106_cmsv2_abbab57d-15ac-51b9-9a18-6435008f066e-9930351.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"From Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f&apos;s show &quot;Dead Sea&quot;\" height=\"9\" width=\"16\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n                    Turkey<\/p>\n<div class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Turkish comedian Deniz G\u00f6kta\u015f on trial for insulting Erdo\u011fan in show\n  <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article class=\"helper-site-row o-article-newsy\">\n<div class=\"helper-site-container o-article-newsy__container\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__main\">\n<header class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__header\">\n<nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumbs\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs\">\n<div id=\"adb-article-breadcrumb\" class=\"c-article-breadcrumbs__list\">\n<p>                          Culture<\/p>\n<p>                          Culture news<\/p><\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<h1 class=\"c-article-redesign-title\">\n                            La R\u00e1bida monastery: where Columbus won Castile&#8217;s backing to discover America<\/h1>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-video u-position-relative \">\n<div class=\"js-superdiv u-aspect-ratio-16x9 u-position-relative \" data-controller=\"video-player\" data-sponsored=\"Partner content\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"js-poster-img c-article-media__img\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/1536x864_cmsv2_0a1816d2-f3dd-50ac-b935-e1df9c37b44d-9917780.jpg\" width=\"1536\" height=\"864\" loading=\"eager\" alt=\"La R\u00e1bida Monastery, in Huelva.\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-caption u-position-absolute\"><i id=\"article-caption-content\" class=\"c-article-caption__content\"><span class=\"c-article-caption__text\"><br \/>\n              La R\u00e1bida Monastery, in Huelva.<br \/>\n                    <span class=\"u-color-white\">&#8211;\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__copyright\">Copyright\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"c-article-caption__credit\">Wikimedia Commons<\/span><\/span><\/i><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-image-copyright c-article-image-copyright--novideo\">\n      Copyright\u00a0Wikimedia Commons\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"h-grid o-article-newsy__main__body u-article-content\">\n<div class=\"o-article-newsy__contributors-publication-date\">\n<div class=\"c-article-contributors\">\n  By&amp;nbspMaria Mu\u00f1oz Morillo\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-publication-date\" data-timestamp=\"1790309542\">\n                    Published on                 <time datetime=\"2026-09-25 06:12:22 +02:00\">25\/09\/2026 &#8211; 6:12 GMT+2<\/time><span class=\"c-article-publication-date__bullet\">\u2022<\/span>Updated<br \/>\n                                     <time datetime=\"2026-09-28 08:22:46 +02:00\">28\/09\/2026 &#8211; 8:22 GMT+2<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links u-align-items-center u-display-flex u-justify-content-center js-c-article-share-comment-share\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Share<\/span><\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Comments<\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label c-article-share-comment__label--always\">Add Euronews on Google<\/span><\/div>\n<div 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height=\"24\" alt=\"threads\" loading=\"lazy\"><span>Threads<\/span><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-threads.svg\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" alt=\"threads\" class=\"u-show-for-desktop\" loading=\"lazy\"><span class=\"u-display-flex u-gap-1 u-show-for-mobile-only\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-whatsapp.svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" alt=\"whatsapp\" loading=\"lazy\"><span>Whatsapp<\/span><\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/vector\/social-icons\/article-redesign-whatsapp.svg\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" alt=\"whatsapp\" class=\"u-show-for-desktop\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"c-article-summary\">\n        The discovery of America remains one of history&#8217;s great feats, where two cultures met. Before setting sail, Columbus found vital backing at La R\u00e1bida from Franciscan friars and the Pinz\u00f3n brothers, making the voyage possible.<br \/>\n    <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-content c-article-content--culture js-article-content\">\n<p>In a small hillock in Huelva, at the point where the Tinto River meets the Odiel before they reach the Atlantic, stands one of the <strong>most decisive sites in world history: the monastery of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida<\/strong>. Without its walls, its friars and the faith invested there, it is likely that <strong>Christopher Columbus&#8217;s enterprise would never have set sail<\/strong> from the nearby shores of Palos de la Frontera bound for the New World.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-mobile-only\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-ad u-show-for-desktop\">\n<div class=\"c-ad__placeholder\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"c-ad__placeholder__logo\" src=\"https:\/\/static.euronews.com\/website\/images\/logos\/logo-euronews-stacked-outlined-72x72-grey-9.svg\" width=\"72\" height=\"72\" alt loading=\"lazy\"><span>ADVERTISEMENT<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Franciscan presence on the site dates back to the early 13th century, when the first friars settled in this primitive hermitage on the Huelva estuary. For decades, La R\u00e1bida was a place of retreat and prayer, far from the bustle, until fate, and the persistence of a navigator, turned it into the epicentre of one of the most momentous episodes ever experienced: the <strong>encounter between two worlds that until then knew nothing of each other.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Today, we can tread the same soil on which the navigator walked and pass through the doorway that sealed his destiny. There, in La R\u00e1bida, the friars welcome visitors just as they welcomed Christopher Columbus more than 500 years ago.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"1.3333333333333333\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/808x1077_cmsv2_b0f3571b-4766-5208-93eb-5d71a80caef6-9917780.jpg\" alt=\"Monastery of La R\u00e1bida, in Huelva, photographed at sunset on 16 September 2026.\"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">Monastery of La R\u00e1bida, in Huelva, photographed at sunset on 16 September 2026.<\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Mar\u00eda Mu\u00f1oz Morillo<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>The refuge of a navigator down on his luck<\/h2>\n<p>By the time Columbus reached these lands, he had spent <strong>years trying to persuade a European crown to trust his project<\/strong>: a westward trade route to the Indies which, unbeknown to him, would lead him to a continent unknown to Europeans. Before stopping in Huelva, the navigator had sought support in Portugal, France and Italy, without success. He had also tried to strike an agreement with Castile and Aragon, but the monarchs were then focused on the <strong>campaign in Granada to reconquer the last Muslim stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula after more than 770 years of Reconquista<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"1.3333333333333333\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/808x1077_cmsv2_d1c212b6-831a-5337-bd14-d50242675271-9917780.jpg\" alt=\"Statue of Christopher Columbus in La R\u00e1bida, Huelva.\"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">Statue of Christopher Columbus in La R\u00e1bida, Huelva.<\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Mar\u00eda Mu\u00f1oz Morillo<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It was in the convent of La R\u00e1bida that he found more than accommodation: he found allies willing to believe in him and support him before Queen Isabella I of Castile, the great champion of Columbus&#8217;s project and defender of the Indigenous peoples who inhabited the newly discovered lands. She herself demanded that they be treated as Castilian citizens, <strong>free subjects, protected from all abuse or enslavement<\/strong>. Even at her death she did not forget these new Castilian subjects: the will of Isabella of Castile is considered a key legal milestone that anticipated the <strong>modern concept of human rights<\/strong>, by establishing the protection and freedom of Indigenous Americans.<\/p>\n<p>The Franciscan friars, especially <strong>Friar Juan P\u00e9rez<\/strong>, who had been the queen&#8217;s confessor, listened to Columbus&#8217;s plan and decided to <strong>intercede at the court of the Catholic Monarchs<\/strong>. Thanks to that mediation, the pioneering navigator finally obtained an audience that would lead to the support of Isabella I of Castile, the visionary monarch who agreed to fund the expedition that would change the course of history.<\/p>\n<h2>The Virgin who &#8216;witnessed&#8217; the start of the journey<\/h2>\n<p>Within the walls of this hermitage, the image of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida, also known as <strong>Our Lady of Miracles<\/strong>, is still preserved today. According to tradition, it was before this statue that Columbus himself prayed moments before setting off into the unknown, on a voyage many considered madness and which would ultimately <strong>redraw the map of the world<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Visiting today the chapel where this image is kept is, in a way, to stand at the very spot where the journey was conceived: a place where silence can be heard, a vantage point that bore direct witness to a <strong>decision that would shape the destiny of two continents.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>The Pinz\u00f3n brothers, the key to setting sail for the New World<\/h2>\n<p>Winning over the Crown was not enough: Columbus needed a <strong>crew willing to embark on a voyage into the unknown<\/strong> that many sailors of the time saw as a journey with no return. That is where one of the most influential seafaring families in Palos de la Frontera came in: the Pinz\u00f3n brothers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mart\u00edn Alonso Pinz\u00f3n<\/strong>, an experienced mariner and a respected figure in the town, put his reputation at the service of the project and helped to recruit much of the crew, overcoming the reluctance of those who distrusted the navigator&#8217;s plan. His involvement was so crucial that he ended up <strong>commanding the caravel La Pinta<\/strong>, while his brother <strong>Vicente Y\u00e1\u00f1ez Pinz\u00f3n<\/strong> took command of <strong>La Ni\u00f1a<\/strong>. The third brother, <strong>Francisco Mart\u00edn Pinz\u00f3n<\/strong>, sailed as master (second-in-command) on <strong>La Pinta<\/strong>, completing a family presence that proved decisive on the three ships of the expedition, alongside the <strong>nao Santa Mar\u00eda<\/strong>, captained by <strong>Columbus<\/strong> himself.<\/p>\n<p>Without the human and nautical backing of the Pinz\u00f3n family, the project would hardly have <strong>set sail from the port of Palos on that 3 August 1492.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Today, replicas of these three vessels can be visited at the Muelle de las Carabelas. There, the three ships offer a glimpse into the exploratory past of what was once Castile.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"0.75\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/808x608_cmsv2_becbb499-bd2e-593a-a694-19a98f8d3d5f-9917780.jpg\" alt=\"Recreation of one of the caravels that sailed to America on Columbus&apos;s 1492 expedition.\"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">Recreation of one of the caravels that sailed to America on Columbus&#8217;s 1492 expedition.<\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Mar\u00eda Mu\u00f1oz Morillo<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"c-widget-related\" data-stories-id data-event=\"widget_related\">\n<div class=\"c-widget-related__title\"><b class=\"c-widget-related__title__text\" lang=\"en\">Related<\/b><\/div>\n<ul class=\"c-widget-related__list\" id=\"abe-article-related-1\">\n<li class=\"c-widget-related__item\">How Christopher Columbus used an eclipse to save his life in Jamaica<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>A legacy of light and shade<\/h2>\n<p>The discovery of America, driven from this small monastery in Huelva, brought about the greatest <strong>cultural, economic and biological exchange in modern history.<\/strong> From that encounter, foods now considered essential arrived in Europe, such as the potato \u2013 crucial, centuries later, for example during the Irish famine \u2013 the tomato, sugar cane and coveted cocoa. At the same time, that feat was marked by episodes of violence and subjugation towards Indigenous peoples, a reality that today is analysed with a critical gaze, but one that is difficult to project onto the 15th century.<\/p>\n<p>La R\u00e1bida is not just a religious building: it is the symbolic starting point of a <strong>complex historical process<\/strong>, capable of explaining both the flowering of a new relationship between cultures and the shadows that this very process cast.<\/p>\n<div class=\"widget widget--type-image widget--size-fullwidth widget--animation-fade-in widget--align-center\" data-ratio=\"1.3333333333333333\">\n<div class=\"widget__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"widget__ratio widget__ratio--auto\">\n<div class=\"widget__contents\">\n<figure class=\"widget__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"widgetImage__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/808x1077_cmsv2_1a2db079-88f9-5271-b32f-cc1bf529e216-9917780.jpg\" alt=\"Cloister of the monastery of La R\u00e1bida, in Huelva.\"><figcaption class=\"widget__caption\"><span class=\"widget__captionWrap\"><span class=\"widget__captionText\">Cloister of the monastery of La R\u00e1bida, in Huelva.<\/span><span class=\"widget__captionCredit\">Mar\u00eda Mu\u00f1oz Morillo<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Today, the Franciscan Convent of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida has become a major tourist and cultural landmark for those who wish to retrace the steps leading up to the discovery of America. Its rooms preserve documents, models and objects that recreate convent life in the 15th century, as well as the <strong>atmosphere in which Columbus worked out the final details of his expedition.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To stroll through its cloister under the sky lit by the <strong>Moon that inspired the navigator to venture beyond the seas<\/strong>, to contemplate the image of Our Lady of Miracles or to gaze out over the same landscape from which the caravels departed, is to travel directly back to the origins of modern history. It is a place of pilgrimage not only religious but also historical, for anyone who wants to understand how <strong>a small monastery in Huelva ended up changing the course of the world<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<footer class=\"perf-cv-auto c-article-contributors c-article-contributors-supplementary u-margin-top-2 u-padding-top-2\">\n<p>Video editor<strong> \u2022 Christina Thykjaer<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/footer>\n<div id=\"adb-c-mention-original-translation\" class=\"c-mention-original-translation c-mention-original-translation--culture\">\n<aside>This text was translated with the help of artificial intelligence and originally published in\u00a0Spanish    <\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<p>                          Go to accessibility shortcuts<\/p>\n<div class=\"c-article-share-comment u-align-items-center u-display-flex\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__links u-align-items-center u-display-flex u-justify-content-center js-c-article-share-comment-share\"><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Share<\/span><\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label\">Comments<\/span><span class=\"c-article-share-comment__label c-article-share-comment__label--always\">Add Euronews on Google<\/span><\/div>\n<div id=\"adb-article-you-might-also-like\" class=\"perf-cv-auto c-article-you-might-also-like\">\n<h2 class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__title\">\n        Read more<br \/>\n      <\/h2>\n<div class=\"c-article-you-might-also-like__container\">\n<article id=\"abe-2914187-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-1 m-modeDesktop-1 m-modeXL-1\" data-nid=\"2914187\" data-cid=\"9858073\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<figure id=\"abe-2914187-label-pos0-c-article-you-might-also-like__item\" class=\"the-media-object__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"the-media-object__image\" 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into the past: Greece launches living history digital archive<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<article id=\"abe-2928677-pos5-mostViewed\" class=\"the-media-object m-modeMobile-3 m-modeDesktop-3 m-modeXL-3 the-media-object--no-label\" data-nid=\"2928677\" data-cid=\"9928214\" data-part-label=\"Partner content\">\n<div class=\"the-media-object__content\">\n<h3 class=\"the-media-object__title  \">\n<p>    Four suspects arrested over murder of Dominican merengue singer&#8217;s wife<br \/>\n  <\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"articleBody\" data-key=\"articleBody\">In a small hillock in Huelva, at the point where the Tinto River meets the Odiel before they reach the Atlantic, stands one of the most decisive sites in world history: the monastery of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida. Without its walls, its friars and the faith invested there, it is likely that Christopher Columbus&#8217;s enterprise would never have set sail from the nearby shores of Palos de la Frontera bound for the New World.The Franciscan presence on the site dates back to the early 13th century, when the first friars settled in this primitive hermitage on the Huelva estuary. For decades, La R\u00e1bida was a place of retreat and prayer, far from the bustle, until fate, and the persistence of a navigator, turned it into the epicentre of one of the most momentous episodes ever experienced: the encounter between two worlds that until then knew nothing of each other.Today, we can tread the same soil on which the navigator walked and pass through the doorway that sealed his destiny. There, in La R\u00e1bida, the friars welcome visitors just as they welcomed Christopher Columbus more than 500 years ago.The refuge of a navigator down on his luckBy the time Columbus reached these lands, he had spent years trying to persuade a European crown to trust his project: a westward trade route to the Indies which, unbeknown to him, would lead him to a continent unknown to Europeans. Before stopping in Huelva, the navigator had sought support in Portugal, France and Italy, without success. He had also tried to strike an agreement with Castile and Aragon, but the monarchs were then focused on the campaign in Granada to reconquer the last Muslim stronghold in the Iberian Peninsula after more than 770 years of Reconquista.It was in the convent of La R\u00e1bida that he found more than accommodation: he found allies willing to believe in him and support him before Queen Isabella I of Castile, the great champion of Columbus&#8217;s project and defender of the Indigenous peoples who inhabited the newly discovered lands. She herself demanded that they be treated as Castilian citizens, free subjects, protected from all abuse or enslavement. Even at her death she did not forget these new Castilian subjects: the will of Isabella of Castile is considered a key legal milestone that anticipated the modern concept of human rights, by establishing the protection and freedom of Indigenous Americans.The Franciscan friars, especially Friar Juan P\u00e9rez, who had been the queen&#8217;s confessor, listened to Columbus&#8217;s plan and decided to intercede at the court of the Catholic Monarchs. Thanks to that mediation, the pioneering navigator finally obtained an audience that would lead to the support of Isabella I of Castile, the visionary monarch who agreed to fund the expedition that would change the course of history.The Virgin who &#8216;witnessed&#8217; the start of the journeyWithin the walls of this hermitage, the image of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida, also known as Our Lady of Miracles, is still preserved today. According to tradition, it was before this statue that Columbus himself prayed moments before setting off into the unknown, on a voyage many considered madness and which would ultimately redraw the map of the world.Visiting today the chapel where this image is kept is, in a way, to stand at the very spot where the journey was conceived: a place where silence can be heard, a vantage point that bore direct witness to a decision that would shape the destiny of two continents.The Pinz\u00f3n brothers, the key to setting sail for the New WorldWinning over the Crown was not enough: Columbus needed a crew willing to embark on a voyage into the unknown that many sailors of the time saw as a journey with no return. That is where one of the most influential seafaring families in Palos de la Frontera came in: the Pinz\u00f3n brothers.Mart\u00edn Alonso Pinz\u00f3n, an experienced mariner and a respected figure in the town, put his reputation at the service of the project and helped to recruit much of the crew, overcoming the reluctance of those who distrusted the navigator&#8217;s plan. His involvement was so crucial that he ended up commanding the caravel La Pinta, while his brother Vicente Y\u00e1\u00f1ez Pinz\u00f3n took command of La Ni\u00f1a. The third brother, Francisco Mart\u00edn Pinz\u00f3n, sailed as master (second-in-command) on La Pinta, completing a family presence that proved decisive on the three ships of the expedition, alongside the nao Santa Mar\u00eda, captained by Columbus himself.Without the human and nautical backing of the Pinz\u00f3n family, the project would hardly have set sail from the port of Palos on that 3 August 1492.Today, replicas of these three vessels can be visited at the Muelle de las Carabelas. There, the three ships offer a glimpse into the exploratory past of what was once Castile.A legacy of light and shadeThe discovery of America, driven from this small monastery in Huelva, brought about the greatest cultural, economic and biological exchange in modern history. From that encounter, foods now considered essential arrived in Europe, such as the potato \u2013 crucial, centuries later, for example during the Irish famine \u2013 the tomato, sugar cane and coveted cocoa. At the same time, that feat was marked by episodes of violence and subjugation towards Indigenous peoples, a reality that today is analysed with a critical gaze, but one that is difficult to project onto the 15th century.La R\u00e1bida is not just a religious building: it is the symbolic starting point of a complex historical process, capable of explaining both the flowering of a new relationship between cultures and the shadows that this very process cast.Today, the Franciscan Convent of Santa Mar\u00eda de La R\u00e1bida has become a major tourist and cultural landmark for those who wish to retrace the steps leading up to the discovery of America. Its rooms preserve documents, models and objects that recreate convent life in the 15th century, as well as the atmosphere in which Columbus worked out the final details of his expedition.To stroll through its cloister under the sky lit by the Moon that inspired the navigator to venture beyond the seas, to contemplate the image of Our Lady of Miracles or to gaze out over the same landscape from which the caravels departed, is to travel directly back to the origins of modern history. It is a place of pilgrimage not only religious but also historical, for anyone who wants to understand how a small monastery in Huelva ended up changing the course of the world.<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.euronews.com\/2026\/09\/28\/la-rabida-monastery-where-columbus-won-castiles-backing-to-discover-america&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images.euronews.com\/articles\/stories\/09\/91\/77\/80\/1200x675_cmsv2_0a1816d2-f3dd-50ac-b935-e1df9c37b44d-9917780.jpg&#8221;] Europe News EU ministers plan response to hybrid attacks amid warnings of Russian The Cube Did Denmark play &#8216;Send in the Clowns&#8217; before US-Greenland deal? 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