“I stood midships and took it all in”
In my schooldays Christopher Columbus was the intrepid sailor who discovered America – The New World – in 1492. A hero who faced unnavigated oceans to open up the world for his Catholic paymasters in Spain; a man who had towns and cities and even a whole country named after him, writes Michael Holland.
But the world was much bigger than he realised and we know now that he thought he had found another route to the Far East. What he actually did was open up the Americas to conquest and colonisation and unknown European diseases that decimated the indigenous populations.
Today, Columbus is not seen as the heroic discoverer he once was but his navigational skills are unquestionable and a life-size scale replica of his flagship Santa Maria has been built in order to sail around different ports in Europe and America to promote regional culture and seafaring history between the two continents.
The ship is currently in St Katharine Docks for a short stay and has opened its decks to visitors. An opportunity I was not going to miss.
I clambered up the gangway and stepped aboard. The huge flag of Spain waved in the wind and the wooden floors creaked. I stood midships and took it all in. My first thought was how small this ship was. Thames Clipper boats seem longer – and safer! I wouldn’t fancy going back across the Thames to Bermondsey in this, never mind across the Atlantic!
And that is the moment your mind goes back over 500 years to when the Santa Maria was being tossed about on colossal waves while men climbed the rigging to work the sails, and Columbus barked orders from the poop deck.
On the tour around three of the decks you learn about how these ships were designed with greater load capacity needed for maritime trade further away, and to ‘be able to beat to windward with minimum draught’. As I took in the information I felt my sea legs stabilising in the gentle sway of St Katharine Dock.
I then discovered ‘shipworm’ attacked the wood of the ships, that the daily ration for the crew of 30 mainly consisted of wine, sponge cake, bread and a grain-based gruel that was often rotten or full of worms. My sea legs were wobbling. My stomach rolled over. The idea of on-off, four-hour shifts made me feel even queasier. Then discovering that during the off-shift hours you could not swear, blaspheme, play cards or dice, nor have sex without fear of being whipped, turned me right off being a sailor and heightened my admiration for those that sailed the seven seas in the 16th century.
The Nao Santa María has been built to scale but has incorporated modern necessities such as engines, GPS, radio, radar, showers and the interior has been adapted as the exhibition area to showcase its history.
Go aboard and honour those brave men who once took her across oceans, if not their Admiral Christopher Columbus who committed evil acts.
For visiting times and to book tickets see https://www.skdocks.co.uk/visit/
