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Jan 1, 1400
Prince Henry
Under the leadership of Prince Henry the Navigator, Portugal played the main role during most of the fifteenth century in finding a course to Asia by sailing south around Africa. In the process, the Portuguese collected an abundance of information about navigation and the geography of the Atlantic Ocean. -
Aug 1, 1488
Bartolomeu Dias
Bartolomeu Dias was a Portuguese navigator that led the first European journey around the Cape of Good Hope and discovered a possible route to India around the southern tip of Africa. -
Jan 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus’ Discovery
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and colonizer that achieved four journeys over the Atlantic Ocean which opened the New World for conquest and lasting European colonization of the Americas. -
1497
John Cabot’s Discovery
John Cabot made a claim to the North American land for King Henry VII of England. This would allow England’s power to rise in the 16th and 17th centuries -
May 20, 1498
Vasco da Gama’s Voyage
Portugal sent out Vasco de Gama who became the first European to make it to India sailing around South Africa and paving the way for a successful Portuguese Empire. This successful new route led to a very successful trade with India. -
Apr 22, 1500
Pedro Cabral establishes Brazil
The Portuguese sea captain Pedro Cabral landed in South America which established Portugal’s claim to the region later named Brazil. This region was a vast landmass with several natives to trade with, furthering the Portuguese development. -
1521
Hernan Cortes overthrows the Aztec Empire
Spanish forces under the command of Hernan Cortes landed at Veracruz, on the Gulf of Mexico and marched to Tenochtitlan with a small number of troops. Cortes made alliances with city-states, one of the important ones being the Aztec monarch Montezuma. This monarch had weapons that gave the Spaniards an advantage, which led them to conquer the Aztec empire and claimed Mexico for Spain. -
Dec 11, 1522
Ferdinand Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer who navigated successfully around the entire globe in search of a western sea route to Asia. He became the first European to cross the Pacific Ocean and his voyage brought back exotic spices that were very valuable during that time. -
1524
Giovanni Da Verrazano’s discoveries
Giovanni Da Verrazzano, an Italian explorer, who explored the eastern coast of North America and made many discoveries on the journey, such as the New York Harbor, Block Island, and Narragansett Bay. Verrazzano was also the first European explorer to name newly discovered North American sites in the Old World. -
1534
Jacque Cartier
Jacques Cartier was sent by King Francis I to the New World in search of finding a new route to Asia and riches. Instead, Cartier became the first European to navigate the St. Lawrence River which allowed France to lay claim on lands that would become Canada. -
Dec 11, 1535
Francisco Pizzaro conquered the Inca Empire
Spain sent conquistador, Francisco Pizzaro to explore the Americas and conquer the people there. Pizzarro conquered the Inca Empire and claimed it for the Spanish. This made Spain wealthy with the gold and silver that was found in the Americas -
Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake disrupted the Spanish Armada in the English Channel with fire ships which helped England to create a great empire in the New Empire. -
Triangular Trade
A series of trade across the Atlantic that links Europe, Africa, and the Americas. This connected all of the colonies and spread new imports and exports more efficiently. Merchant ships brought European goods to Africa, then the goods were exchanged for slaves, and the slaves were sailed to America where they were traded for raw materials which were then shipped to Europe. -
Commercial Revolution
The Commercial Revolution was a period of economic and political expansion, colonialism, and mercantilism that occurred in Europe in the late Middle Ages. As the trade flourished, new practices in business were developed and fundamental change in society took place. -
The East India Company
The East India Company was an English organization framed for the misuse of exchange with East and Southeast Asia and India. Fused by royal authorization, it was begun as a dominant exchanging body with the goal that England could take an interest in the East Indian spice exchange. -
The Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was established to protect the state's trade in the Indian Ocean and to assist in the Dutch war of independence from Spain. Its main purpose was trade, exploration, and colonization. -
The discovery of Quebec City
The French government established the first permanent settlement at Quebec City under the leadership of Samuel de Champlain which grew as a guarded fur-trading post. -
Dutch Exploration
Dutch involvement in the investigation of North America started coincidentally in the spring when the Lords Seventeen connected with the English navigator Henry Hudson to attempt to search for a secure passage to the rich Spice Islands in the East. -
Henry Hudson’s Discoveries
Henry Hudson made four voyages and on his third, he discovered three waterways that were named after him; the Hudson Bay, Hudson River, and Hudson Strait. -
The surrender of New Netherland
English King Charles II promised the colony of New Netherland to his brother James, Duke of York. A few months later, James dispatched Colonel Richard Nicolls to seize the colony and sent fleets with hundreds of soldiers on board. Upon the arrival of Colonel Nicolls and soldiers in New Amsterdam’s harbor, the Dutch surrendered and the English claimed the colony of New Netherland, renaming it New York. -
French and Indian War/Seven Years’ War
The French and Indian War was the North American battle in a bigger imperial war between Great Britain and France known as the Seven Years' War. The war gave Great Britain enormous regional gains in North America, yet conflict about subsequent frontier policy and paying the war's costs prompted colonial discontent, and at last to the American Revolution. -
Treaty of Paris
A treaty that ended the French and Indian War/Seven Years’ War between Great Britain and France. This guaranteed British dominance in America by obligating France to give up all their territories in mainland North America which ended any foreign military threat to the British colonies there. -
Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Adopted by the Confederation Congress and chartered a government for the Northwest Territory by providing a method for admitting new states to Union form the territory, and listed a bill of rights ensured in the territory. It also forbid slavery and involuntary servitude in the Northwest Territory.
