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1000
Leif Ericson
Country of Origin: Iceland
Financed by Olaf I Tryggvason, who was King of Norway from 995 to 1000
Motivation: New land to explore
Where did he explore?: Present-day Northern Canada
Accomplishments: Explored a lot of modern-day Canada, discovered Vinland
Interesting fact: He was banished from Iceland -
Period: 1405 to 1422
Zheng He
Country of origin: China
China financed his voyages
Motivations: To trade with other people, to further diplomatic relations with other countries
Where did he explore?: present-day Vietnam, Java, Sumatra, Malacca, Cochin, Calicut, Malay peninsula, Sri Lanka, Maldive Islands, Laccadive Islands, the Hormuz, Somali coast, Kenya
Accomplishments: traded with other nations, showed China's power to other nations
Interesting fact: Was born as Ma He in a Muslim family before later being adopted -
Period: 1492 to 1504
Christopher Columbus
Country of origin: Present-day Italy
People that financed his voyage: King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain
Motivation: to find a faster trade route to Asia
Where did he explore: The Caribbean
Accomplishments: brought new animals and goods back to Portugal
Interesting fact: Where Columbus first landed was over 8,000 miles away from where he intended to go -
Period: 1497 to 1499
John Cabot
Country of origin: Italy
Country that financed his voyage: England
Motivation: to find a shorter more northerly route to Asia
Where did he explore: modern-day eastern Canada
Accomplishments: named various regions of modern-day Canada before presumably dying in a severe storm.
Interesting fact: His birth name was Giovanni Caboto -
Period: Jul 8, 1497 to Oct 11, 1503
Vasco de Gama
Country of origin: Portugal
Country that financed his voyage: Portugal
Motivation: to find a trade route around Africa to India
Where did he explore?: Canary Islands, Cape Verde, Cape of Good Hope, Mossel bay, the Rio do Cobre, the Rio dos Bons Sinais, Mozambique, Malindi, Calicut, Anjidiv Island, Kilwa
Accomplishments: was the first European to find an ocean trading route to India
Interesting fact: His ships covered the 10,000 kilometers between Lisbon and the Cape of Good Hope in just 3 months -
Period: May 18, 1499 to 1504
Amerigo Vespucci
Country of origin: Italy
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: To further explore the Americas
Where did he explore: Guiana, modern-day Brazil
Accomplishments: The Americas were named after him
Interesting fact: He knew Christopher Columbus -
Period: 1501 to 1518
Vasco Nunez de Balboa
Country of origin: Spain
He was not financed by anyone else
Motivation: Balboa, like other explorers, heard tales of great places that had to be discovered
Where did he explore: the pacific ocean
Accomplishments: was the first European to discover a new ocean
Interesting fact: was a great swordsman -
Period: 1508 to 1514
Juan Ponce de Leon
Country of origin: Spain
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: To find gold in modern-day Puerto Rico, to find the fountain of youth
Where did he explore: modern-day Puerto Rico, modern-day Florida, modern-day Florida keys
Accomplishments: discovered Florida
interesting fact: No one knows his real birthdate -
Period: 1510 to 1533
Francisco Pizzaro
Country of origin: Spain
Was not financed by others
Motivation: exploring the new world
Where did he explore: present-day Columbia, pacific ocean, Panama, Peru
Accomplishments: Conquered the Inca Empire
Interesting fact: he did not know how to read or write -
Period: 1519 to 1521
Hernan Cortez
Country of origin: Spain
Was not financed by anyone else
Motivation: to conquer Mexico
where did he explore: Cozumel, Tabasco, Tlaxcala, Tenochtitlán
Accomplishments: claimed Mexico for Spain
Interesting fact: The intelligence that Cortes developed came from his prolonged periods of illness as a child. By the age of 14, he was already attending the university and studying law -
Period: Sep 20, 1519 to 1521
Ferdinand Magellan
Country of origin: Portugal
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: wanted to command a voyage to the Spice Islands. He believed he could reach them by sailing west.
Where did he explore: canary islands, Guanabara Bay, the coast of South America, the coast of Chile, Guam
Accomplishments: discovered the strait of Magellan
Interesting fact: had a permanent limp after being wounded while serving in morocco in 1513 -
Period: 1520 to 1528
Panfilo de Narvaez
Country of origin: Spain
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: to arrest Hernán Cortés and replace him as commander in the conquest of Mexico
Where did he explore: modern-day Dominican republic, modern-day Cuba, modern-day Florida
Accomplishments: Was unsuccessful
Interesting fact: was said to have a resonant voice "as if it came from a cave" -
Period: 1523 to 1527
Giovani de Verrazano
Country of origin: Italy
Country that financed his voyage: France
Motivation: to discover a passage to Asia through the New World
Where did he explore: modern-day North Carolina, modern-day Florida, modern-day New York, modern-day Rhode Island, modern-day Maine, the amazon river
Accomplishments: was essentially unsuccessful
Interesting fact: for a while he was a pirate for France, amassing over $2 million worth of gold from Spanish ships -
Period: Jun 27, 1527 to 1537
Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca
Country of origin: Spain
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: Was on the same voyage as Panfilo de Narvaez to arrest Hernán Cortés and replace him as commander in the conquest of Mexico
Where did he explore: modern-day Dominican republic, modern-day Cuba, modern-day Florida, modern-day Mexico
Accomplishments: advocated for Spain to change its policies regarding the treatment of Indians.
Interesting fact: was one of the 4 survivors of Panfilo de Narvaez's voyage -
Period: 1530 to 1542
Hernando de Soto
Country of origin: Spain
Was not financed by others
Motivation: Was a member of Francisco Pizzaro's voyage to explore more of central and south America
Where did he explore: Inca Empire, modern-day Florida, modern-day Georgia, modern-day Mississippi, modern-day Alabama.
Accomplishments: was the first European to cross the Mississippi river
Interesting fact: he was buried in the waters of the Mississipi river -
Period: 1534 to 1541
Jaquez Cartier
Country of origin: France
Country that financed his voyage: France
Motivation: to seek gold and other riches, as well as to find a new route to Asia
Where did he explore: western coast of Newfoundland, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Quebec
Accomplishments: the minerals he brought were found to have no value, making it unsuccessful -
Period: 1540 to 1544
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado
Country of origin: Spain
Country that financed his voyage: Spain
Motivation: explore the Seven Golden Cities of Cibola and conquer the area and treasures in the name of Spain
Where did he explore: Culiacan, modern-day New Mexico, modern-day Texas, modern-day Oklahoma, modern-day Kansas, Mexico
Accomplishments: discovered new tribes but they hadn't been what he had been looking for
Interesting fact: He lived the rest of his life as a councilman in Mexico city -
Period: 1562 to 1565
Jean Ribault
Country of origin: France
Country that financed his voyage: France
Motivation: Found a colony in the new world
Where did he explore: modern-day Florida, modern-day South Carolina
Accomplishments: claimed Florida for France
Interesting fact: Queen Elizabeth of England had him arrested for establishing a French Colony in Spanish Territory -
Period: to
Henry Hudson
Country of origin: English
People that financed his voyage: the Muscovy Company
Motivation: to be able to get goods from china quicker
Where did he explore: Norway, Russia, Canada, modern-day Massachusetts, modern-day Virginia
Accomplishments: discovered various North American water routes
Interesting fact: Hudson's discoveries and maps proved valuable to both the Dutch and the English. Both countries established trading posts and settlements based on his explorations. -
Period: to
Jaquez Marquette
Country of origin: France
Country that financed his voyage: France
Motivation: to discover and map the Mississippi River
Where did he explore: modern-day Wisconsin, modern-day Chicago
Accomplishments: many towns, parks, and geographical locations were named after him
Interesting fact: he also explored because of being a Jesuit missionary -
Period: to
robert cavelier de la salle
Country of origin: France
Country that financed his voyage: France
Motivation: to grow his share of the fur trade, finding a water route to China
Where did he explore: Montreal, Mississippi river, modern-day Tennessee, modern-day Illinois, modern-day Mississipi
Accomplishments: His friendships with numerous Native American tribes assisted and supported French colonial settlers and the military up to the Seven Years’ War
Interesting fact: he was educated at a Jesuit college
