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Jan 1, 1450
Prince Henry the Navigator
Prince Henry the Navigator, was the son of the Portugal king, he had heard from African merchants about silver and gold. He navigated to Africa to find gold supply. He became eager for Protugese sailors to explore the West coast. In the early 1400's Henry set up the first European school. There Henry organized a way for others to learn the skills of sail. At the same time, Henry worked with others ti design and sail ships. The results was a Portugese Caravel. Henry later died in 1460. -
Jan 1, 1487
Bartolomeu Dias
Dias readied ships for a long, hard voyage. Dias touched at several points on Africa's West Coast. Without knowing his ship had been blown around the tip of the continent to the east coast of Africa. On the way home dias named what is now known as the Cape of Good Hope, Cape of Storms. -
Jan 1, 1492
Christopher Columbus
Christopher was a navigator from Genoa. Unlike many others he believed the Earth was round and not flat. Therefore he believed he could reach Asia by sailing west. In 1492 Queen Isabella of Spain agreed to sponsor his trip, The enterprise of the Indies. Christopher explored this voyage with 3 ships . Christopher and his ships were named the first European settlement of Americas. Later he returned to Spain with many goods. -
May 4, 1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
The Tready of Tordesillas was agreed apon the Spanish and Portegese. This was created to solve any confussion upon newly claimed land in the "New World." But this in later years could cause confussion and conflicts. Like, after Columbus sailed to North America, Spain and Portugal would fight to see who got credit for this newly found land. The treaty, however, said that Spain gets any new found land that they find on its west coast, and Portugal gets any new found land on the east coast. -
Jan 1, 1497
Amerigo Vespucci
Amerigo Vespucci is from Spain and Porugal. He explored the Atlantic caost of South America. Also, he was one of the first to believe he had reached a new world. He is the reason for how America got it's name, Amerigo. As you can see, he is the reason for many new great things. -
Jan 1, 1497
John Cabot
John Cabot was a Italian navigator. He was persuaded by the English merchants that talked to the king to send him out to the Far East by a northwester route. he explored the coasts if Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, and estabolished claims fot England in the Americas. -
Jun 20, 1497
Vasco da Gama
Vasco led a convoy, a group of four ships down the Tagus. He went on his way to proclaim the Christian faith and to wrest kingdoms and new states from the hands of the Bararians. Vasco's voyag led to later exporations and an era of increased trade. -
Jan 1, 1500
Pedro Cabral
Pedro discovered Brazil and sailed east to India. -
Jan 1, 1513
Vasco Nunez de Balboa
Vasco was from Europe, Which made him the first European to sight the eastern shore of the Pacific Ocean. -
Jan 1, 1513
Ponce de Leon
Ponce sailed north from the island of Puerto Rico to explore an island. While governing he had heard stories that this island had many goods. Little did he know it was the sate we now call Florida. -
Jan 1, 1519
Ferdinand Magellan
Ferdinand set sail from Spain. Sailing through a stormy strait at the tip of South America . Today, the strait bears Magellan's name. He also sailed to the great South Sea renaming it the Pacific Ocean . His voyage made it completely around the world proving that the Earth was defenitley round, -
Jan 1, 1523
Giovanni Verrazano
Giovann nde Verrazano, along with John Cabot, is an Italian navigator. In 1523, the French hired Giovanni to find a northwesteren passage. He sailed along the Atlantic coast from North Carolina to New York.. -
Jan 1, 1527
Fransico Pizzaro
Fransico Pizzaro was a Spanish explorer. He explored area in what is known today as Panama. Also, he sailed down the coast of South America. Later, he returned to Spain to tell the King and Queen his accomplishments. But, eriler in 1532, he invaded Peru. And within 5 years he conquered the Inca Empire. After taking their silver and gold they headed for the coast, and set up Lima. -
Jan 1, 1528
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was from Spain. He explored the Gulf and Florida region from Texas to Mexico, around 1528-36. He went through a lot to get to his desingnated location. he and his Spanish crew went through storms, and were blow off track. later. Also when getting to the Florida and Gulf coast to his surprise, Idians and others were there. -
Jan 1, 1533
Jacques Cartier
Jacques was a French navigator. He sailed apon the St. Lawrence River as far as present-day Montreal. This claimed France the land. -
Jan 1, 1539
Hernan Cortes
Cortes sailed from Cuba to Florida and explored westward from there. He found no gold but explored the Mississppi River as well. -
Jan 3, 1542
Juan Rodriquez Cabrillo
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was a Spanish explorer. He explored the pacific coast to Drake's Bay near san Fransico. he was the first one to led the European expedition around the coast of the Americas, which was recently before him, exlpored by a few others. -
Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake is a great Englishman. He was the first Englishman to sail around the world. During his exploits at sea he helped estabolish England's naval supremacy over Spain and other European nations. -
John Davis
John Davis was a English explorer. He explored the west coast of Greenland. this was to search for a northwestern passage to Asia. -
Henry Hudson
Henry Hudson was a English navigator. The Dutch later sent him to locate a passage. He explorecd the Hudson River and sailed to what is today Albany, New York. Later, he set out on yet another voyage. He got lost in a storm and was never seen again. However, this gave the Dutch their claim to the Americas.
