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Period: 1341 to
Age of exploration
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1419
(Portugal) Discovery of Madeira
Portuguese explorers, led by João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira, discovered the Madeira islands, expanding Portuguese navigation and trade routes. -
1434
(Portugal) Rounding Cape Bojador
Gil Eanes, a Portuguese navigator, successfully rounded Cape Bojador off the coast of Africa, breaking the myth of “the end of the world” and opening up further African exploration. -
1488
(Portugal) Bartolomeu Dias rounds the cape of good hope
Dias became the first European to sail around the southern tip of Africa, opening the sea route to Asia. -
1492
(Spain) Columbus reaches the Americas
Christopher Columbus, sailing under the Spanish flag, reached the New World, landing in the Caribbean, marking the beginning of Spanish colonization in the Americas. -
1497
(England) John Cabot’s voyage to North America
Cabot, under an English commission, made landfall on the coast of North America, likely in Newfoundland, marking the first English exploration of the continent. -
1498
(Portugal) Vasco da Gama reaches India
Vasco da gama successfully navigated to Calicut, India, solidifying a sea route to the East and initiating an era of Portuguese dominance in the Indian Ocean. -
1519
(Spain) Ferdinand Magellans
Magellan, under the Spanish crown, began the first circumnavigation of the globe, which would be completed by his crew in 1522. -
1519
(Spain) Hernán Cortés conquers the Aztec Empire
Cortés led the apanis conquest of the Aztec empire in present day Mexico, a pivotal moment in the colonization of the Americas. -
1524
(France) Giovanni da Verrazano explores North America
Verrazano, Sailing under the French flag, explored the east coast of North America, including what is now New York Harbor. -
1533
(Spain) Francisco Pizarro captures the Inca empire
Pizarro and his men captured the Inca capital of Cuzco, making the fall of the Inca empire and the establishment of Spanish control in Peru. -
1534
(France) Jacques Cartiers first voyage to Canada
Cartier began his exploration of the St. Lawrence river, laying the foundation for French claims in Canada. -
(England) Sir Walter Raleigh attempts to establish Roanoke Colony
Raleigh’s expedition established the ill-fated Roanoke Colony, one of the first English efforts to colonize North America. -
(England) Defeat of the Spanish Armada
The English navy, led by Sir Francis Drake and others, defeated the Spanish Armada, marking a shift in naval power in favor of England. -
(England) Founding of Jamestown
The Virginia company established the first permanent English colony in North America at Jamestown, Virginia, beginning Englands sustain colonization efforts in the new world. -
(France) Samuel de Champlain founds Quebec
Champlain established the settlement of Quebec, which became a critical center if French colonial activity in North America. -
(France) Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette explore the Mississippi
Jolliet and Marquette explores the Mississippi River, opening the way for further French exploration and expansion into the interior of North America.