For whatever reason, Ferdinand and Isabella don't back Columbus. Does he find a government somewhere else to take on his project, or does someone else wind up making the voyage, and if so who?
I’m not sure who else he can turn to—given everyone else has said no and that most experts of the time correctly called him out on his claims.As other threads have pointed out, the new world was very likely to be discovered soon after that point anyway due to ships heading south around Africa getting increasingly close to Brazil and fishermen in Newfoundland in the north. I can see a scenario where Brazil is discovered first by the Portuguese and exploration of the Americas begins from there. As our history showed, once the landmass is known there was significant interest by multiple crowns to send expeditions even before the masses of precious metals are discovered.
Columbus spent most of his time petitioning the Spanish court but had also reached out to several other countries. If Spain gives him a definitive "no" I'm sure he'd look elsewhere. As to whether he gets what he wants, I think that's a question of timing and everybody's mood but I don't know of anybody that was petitioning to do something similar (I may be wrong about that). Interestingly his first voyage didn't actually cost the Spanish Crown very much and Columbus put up a quarter of the money himself.
I’m not sure who else he can turn to—given everyone else has said no and that most experts of the time correctly called him out on his claims.
Henry VII and Charles VIII both turned him down.Actually, only Portugal and Castile would've turned him down. Colombus was on his way to France (Castile had kept him dangling for nearly a decade) when the rider sent by the Castilian court caught up with him and turned him back. And if France were to say no, there's Burgundy or England (in theory)
Henry VII and Charles VIII both turned him down.