Age of Exploration

Bartolomeu Dias' Voyage

1488

King John ll commissioned Bartolomeu Dias to find a water route to India. He sailed the southern tip of Africa (Cape of Good Hope) and proved many beliefs wrong. He showed that the Atlantic Oceans and Indian Oceans flowed into each other well, which set up a future explorer’s expedition.

John Cabot’s First Voyage

1497

Cabot and 18 crew men sailed out of Bristol and by June 24, 1497, the expedition made a landfall in North America that may have been southern Labrador; the island of Newfoundland or Cape Breton Island.

Vasco Da Gama’s Trip

1498

After Diaz’s voyage, Vasco Da Gama sailed around the Cape of Good Hope and across the Indian Ocean. When he reached Calicut in India, his trading attempts were unsuccessful as they weren’t that much impressive. However, his attempts led to future, successful Portuguese trades.

Spanish Settlers and Missionaries

Jan 1, 1500

Thousands of settlers and missionaries travelled to Spain’s new empire to establish countless churches and settlements. They set the rules of labor and spread Catholicism to the Indigenous people in North America. These missions lasted for several decades.

Columbus’ Fourth and Final Voyage

May 11, 1502

Although Columbus was falling ill to a sickness, he embarked on his last voyage. He sailed southward to Jamaica, Honduras, NIcaragua, and Panama, but struggled to find a strait leading to India. He was later rescued from a shipwreck, but would be embarrassed by his many disappointments.

Portugal seizes Malacca

Aug 24, 1511

After Da Gama’s successful trade post was set up, the Portuguese sought to capture key ports around the Indian Ocean. They seized Malacca, allowing them to have Asian allies to establish trade routes in Asia. This would be the stepping stone to their vast trading empire.

Strait of Magellan

1519

Ferdinand Magellan set out on an expedition with five fleets of ships to discover a western route to the Spice Islands. On the way, he discovered what is now called the Strait of Magellan, which made him the first European to cross the Pacific Ocean.

Conquering the Aztecs

Aug 13, 1521

In 1519, the conquistador, Hernan Cortes, led 600 men to the capital of the Aztec Empire, Tenochtitlan. He and his men conquered the Aztec Empire, which led to the future expansion of the Spanish Empire. This was one of the most important conquests as it led to future colonial regimes.

Giovanni da Verrazzano’s Voyage

1524

Verrazzano failed to find the westward passage to Asia during his voyage, but he did discover and establish French claims to portions of North America. In this voyage, he made several discoveries of New York Harbor, Block Island, and Narragansett Bay.

Defeat of the Inca

Nov 12, 1532

d be embarrassed by his many disappointments. (May 11, 1502)
(Defeat of the Inca) The Inca Empire was already falling, but tried their best to resist the Spanish. However, Francisco Pizarro was determined to end their empire and had modern technology on his side. He would eventually overthrow the 13th and final Inca emperor, defeating the empire once and for all.

Jacques Cartier’s Voyages

1534

First expedition, he explored the western coast of Newfoundland and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Which was as far as the present Anticosti Island that he called “Assomption”. The second expedition, he headed to the St. Lawrence River to which he ventured up to as far as the eventual site of Montréal and established a base camp.

French Wars of Religion

1562

The Wars of Religion tore France apart due to the conflicts between the protestants and the roman catholics as they tried to vie for supremacy.

Eighty Years’ War

1568

Northern provinces declared their independence as the Netherlands or Dutch Republic, but the Spanish didn’t recognize Dutch’s independence until the end of the Thirty Years’ War in 1648.

Relief of Leiden

Oct 3, 1574

Northern Dutch opened the dikes to enable their fleet to sail across the flooded farmlands to the defense of besieged Leiden.

Circumnavigation of the World

Dec 15, 1577

Francis Drake led an expedition around South America through the Straits of Magellan, appointed to him by the queen. He sailed around the whole world in a span of three years. This gave England an excellent reputation and led to future successful expeditions.

Spanish Armada

1588

Philip II of Spain launched an invasion fleet against England but was defeated by an English naval force under the command of Lord Charles Howard and Sir Francis Drake. A Spanish invasion fleet was completed by 1587, but Sir Francis Drake raided on the Armada’s supplies and caused the delayed in Armada’s departure till a year later.

Svalbard

1596

Willem Barentsz discovered Spitsbergen on his third voyage while on a quest to find a northeast passage to Asia, and died as his ship got stuck onto an ice upon rounding the north of Novaya Zemlya

East India Company

Dec 31, 1600

Founded on December 31, 1600, the East India Company was established for the exploitation of trade with East and Southeast Asia and India. At first, the trade of the East Indian spice was monopolized by Spain and Portugal until the defeat of the Spanish Armada by England, which gave the English the chance for the monopoly.

Dutch East India Company

Mar 20, 1602

Founded in March 20, 1602, the Dutch East India Company was created to protect the state’s trade in the Indian Ocean and assist in the Dutch war of independence from Spain. The company was granted a trade monopoly in the ocean between the Cape of Good Hope and the Straits of Magellan by the Dutch government, with the rights to establish treaties with the native princes in order to build forts and maintain armed forces.

Samuel de Champlain’s Voyage

1608

Camplain aka “Father of New France” found and built a fort at Quebec. Also made significant explorations in the area north to Port Royal and Nova Scotia and South to Cape Cod.

Northwest Passage

1609

English navigator Henry Hudson was dispatched upon an exploratory voyage to North America discovered the Hudson River and claimed New Amsterdam for Dutch.

Reign of Louis XIV

1661

The Sun King Louis XIV had reformed France to the pinnacle of power in European affairs by centralizing and tightening control of France and its overseas colonies. He pacified and disempowered the rebellious nobles. As well as ordering his finance and war minister to execute reforms that reduced deficit and fostered the growth of industry, and reorganize the French Army.