been put up by the monarchy. Thanks to his prestige as a shipowner and expert sailor and his fame throughout the Tinto-Odiel region, he was able to enlist an appropriate crew. Signing on, he dismissed the vessels that Columbus had already seized based on the royal order and also dismissed the men he had enrolled, supplying the enterprise with two caravels of his own, the Pinta and the Niña, which he knew from his own experience would be better and more suitable boats. Furthermore, he traveled through Palos, Moguer and Huelva, convincing his relatives and friends to enlist, composing of them the best crew possible. According to testimony in the pleitos colombinos, he "brought such diligence to secure and animate the people as if what were discovered were for him and his sons." Among those he recruited were Cristóbal Quintero from Palos and the Niño brothers from Moguer. At this time, Pinzón and Columbus seemed quite close. In the pleitos colombinos, witness Alonso Gallego from Huelva remembered hearing Columbus say, "Mister Martín Alonso Pinzón, we are going on this voyage which, if we go on with it and God reveals new lands to us, I promise by the Royal Crown to treat you as a brother." Voyage with Columbus The voyage out On 3 August 1492, the Santa María, Pinta, and Niña left Palos on their voyage of discovery. Admiral Columbus captained the flagship Santa María, Pinzón was captain of the Pinta; his middle brother Francisco was master. It was from the Pinta that Rodrigo de Triana would be the first to sight land in the Americas. During the voyage, Pinzón demonstrated on several occasions his gifts as an expert mariner and as a leader. When the tiller of the Pinta broke en route to the Canary Islands, Columbus, who could not get close enough to help from the Santa María: When, between 6 and 7 October 1492 Columbus was unable to reestablish discipline among the tired and discouraged crew of the Santa María, Martín Alonso with his gift of command managed to resolve the situation. As the Hernán Pérez Mateos would testify over forty years later: At that time, Pinzón suggested to Columbus the change of course on 6 October 1492. This change brought the expedition to landfall on Guanahani on 12 October 1492. These and other acts by Pinzón and by his brothers, especially Vicente, have led historians