In the autumn of 1492 there took place what has justly been called the most momentous voyage in history. Christopher Columbus, a Genoese seaman, successfully sailed a fleet of three small ships across the Atlantic, and inadvertently discovered the lands now known as America... In this thoughtful reassessment of Columbus and his achievements, McKee looks behind the legend to examine the man whose boldness and ambition, sustained over seven long years of rejection at the courts of Europe, led him to attempt an enterprise of unparalleled bravery...