Portugal (this was the first country to send out explorers) Who was exploring? Portugal (this was the first country to send out explorers) 1. Prince Henry the Navigator (not a navigator, he just had the funds) 2. Vasco da Gama 3. Bartholomeu Dias

Prince Henry the Navigator Prince of Portugal. He wanted gold and to spread Catholicism. He was very interested in navigation and established a school of Navigation at Sagres in 1419. He sent sailors out in search of a new route to Asia.

Vasco da Gama Landed in India in 1498. Established an important trade route from Europe to India and East Indies.

Bartholomeu Dias Sailed around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. Found route to Indian Ocean. Now trade can go from Europe to Asia by sea.

Who was exploring? England James Cook Henry Hudson Sir Francis Drake

James Cook British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the Royal Navy. Cook made detailed maps of Newfoundland (Canada) Three voyages to the Pacific Ocean. First European to make contact with the eastern coastline of Australia and New Zealand.

Henry Hudson Explored in far North America (Canada) Discovered the Hudson River

Sir Francis Drake Part of the famous English Sea Dogs In 1577 he took Magellan’s famous route and raided Spanish ships in Peru Received knighthood from the Queen of England Spanish did not like him!

Who was exploring? Spain Christopher Columbus Ferdinand Magellan Hernan Cortes Francisco Pizarro Juan Ponce De Leon Vasco Nunez de Balboa

Christopher Columbus Born in Genoa, Italy Believed that he could reach Asia by sailing West for 2 months – Portugal would not finance his trip. Columbus moved to Spain and got Queen Isabella to finance his trip. His first voyage started August 3, 1492 from Spain with three ships (Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria). Found the Americas instead, oops!

Columbus’s Four Voyages

Ferdinand Magellan His crew made the first trip around the world. Proved for certain the world was round. He was killed in the Philippines and never made it back home.

Hernan Cortes Landed on the east coast of Mexico in 1519. He had heard about the Aztec Empire and wanted to conquer it. He reached the Aztec leader, Montezuma, who thought he was a god. In 1521, Cortez defeats the Aztec Empire. Montezuma 

Francisco Pizarro He heard about the Inca Empire in current day Peru and wanted to go there. Inca believed the Spanish to be gods. Pizarro forced the Inca leader, Atahualpa, to surrender gold and silver and then killed him. He destroyed the Inca Empire in 1535. Atahualpa 

Juan Ponce de Leon Named the island of Puerto Rico. Put down a rebellion there and was then named governor. Heard stories of the fountain of youth In 1513, he explored Florida, but did not find the Fountain of Youth, he did get slaves to take back to Puerto Rico.

Vasco Nunez de Balboa He set out to find the Pacific through Panama. He found the isthmus was only 45 miles wide. In 1513, he was the first European to see the Pacific Ocean.

Who was exploring? France Jacques Cartier Samuel de Champlain

Jacques Cartier In the 1530’s he sailed up the St. Lawrence River Met the Iroquois Indians who told him of a rich kingdom near by, but this was a lie.

Samuel de Champlain French navigator, cartographer, draughtsman, soldier, explorer, geographer, ethnologist, diplomat, and chronicler. He founded New France and Quebec City on July 3, 1608. He is important to Canadian history because he made the first accurate map of the coast and he helped establish the settlements