Chapter 2 Timeline

Bartolomeu Dias sails around the African Continent

1488

Bartholomeu Dias sailed south around Africa to the Cape of New Hope, into the Indian Ocean. Dias' exploration helped pave the way for new explorers to find their way across the ocean after the Ottoman Empire closed the route through the Byzantine Empire. https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/bartolomeu-dias

Christopher Columbus first arrives in the Caribbean

1492

Christopher Columbus sailed to find the East Indies, and never did. Instead, he opened the door to the Americas and left that door open for all of Europe to pass through on the road to conquest. https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/christopher-columbus

Treaty of Tordesillas

1494

The Treaty of Tordesillas was agreement made by the pope to split the world up between Spain and Portugal. Spain was given the New World to explore and Portugal was given their portion of the East Indies that they already had from previous expeditions east. The treaty was changed in 1506 to include Portugal's claim over modern day Brazil.

John Cabot explores Newfoundland

1497

Italian born John Cabot landed in present day Canada in 1497 under commission from Henry VII of England. He was the first to land in North American since the Norse in the 1100's. Although not a lot is known about Cabot's expedition, the earliest maps of this area all show evidence of Cabot landing in Newfoundland and exploring north.

Spanish invade Puerto Rico

1508

Ponce de Leon was a lieutenant under Columbus and was left on the island after Columbus returned to Spain to report his findings after his second 1493 expedition. De Leon was the first governor of present day Puerto Rico (then called San Juan Bautista) and used the port of San Juan to send off to Florida and open the gate to North America.

Juan Ponce de Leon lands in Florida

1513

After leaving the port of San Juan in present day Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de Leon landed in Florida, possibly near St. Augustine. He came back again in 1521, this time with more men and horses, but they were met with ambush from the natives. This trip was not a complete fail, it left de Leon with an understanding that Florida needed to be explored.

Smallpox introduced to the New World

1516

When the Europeans entered the Natives scene in the 1500's, they brought all kinds of diseases with them and brought home some too. They brought over infections like smallpox, chicken pox, and measles. In turn, they also took home equally devastating diseases like syphilis. Syphilis took a decent toll on the European population as well. Recently, it's most notable victims are famously sex crazed people like Al Capone & Henri de Toulouse.

Martin Luther breaks with the Roman Catholic church

1517

In 1517 Martin Luther posted his 95 theses about what was wrong with the Catholic church. Without these theses, the church wouldn't have made all of the reformations that it did.

Hernan Cortes lands in Mexico

1519

After landing in Mexico in 1519, Cortes managed to defeat the vast and powerful Aztec Empire. Although his superiors told him not to go to Mexico, he defied and left Diego Velazquez. When he got to the Aztecs, Cortes took Montezuma II (the Aztec leader) as a hostage and held him for ransom. After a few back and forth exchanged between the Spanish and the natives, the Aztec Empire was officially ended in 1521.

Jacques Cartier explores the St. Lawrence River

1519

After being comissioned by King Francis I of France, Cartier decided to explore the northern part of present-day Quebec, Canada. He discovered the St. Lawrence River and look for the Northwest passage (a water passage through North America to Asia).

Tobacco introduced to Europe

1550

Columbus discovered tobacco from the natives during his 1492 expedition to Hispanola. It then spread quickly through the Spanish colonies and was a profitable crop by 1531 in Santo Domingo. Some noticed that the natives became addicted to it, but that didn't stop the Spanish from becoming addicted. Tobacco reached mainland Europe through France (1556), Portugal (1558), Spain (1559), and England in (1565).

Elizabeth I of England began her reign

1558

After a long run of turmoil in the British Monarchy, Elizabeth I became the Queen of England. She was a Protestant queen, good news for those living in fear after Bloody Mary killed thousands of Protestants during her reign. She was known as the "virgin queen" because she never married, although she was NOT a virgin. The state of Virginia was named after her. (Virginia is Latin for virgin)

Huguenot colony planted along the mid-Atlantic coast

1562

The Huguenots were the French Protestants who were tired of the torture that was coming from the French Catholics. In 1562 Jean Ribault led the Huguenots to present-day Parris Island, South Carolina, to found Charlesfort. Later on the French moved on to present-day Jacksonville and set up a small colony of Fort Caroline. The French tried to lay claim to "La Florida" but the Spanish would not hear of it.

St. Augustine founded

1565

Pedro Menendez saw the land of Florida on St. Augustine of Hippo day and named where he landed San Agustin. The first fort was built where the current Fountain of Youth park is.

Humphrey Gilbert attempts to plant a colony in Newfoundland

1583

Gilbert wanted to look for the Northwest Passage, but Elizabeth I sent him to Ireland instead of looking for the passage. In 1578, Elizabeth I sent Gilbert a letter to express her approval of him searching for "heathen lands not actually possessed of any Christian prince or people".

Walter Raleigh's colony on Roanoke Island founded

1584

John White went to the island of Roanoke, in present-day North Carolina, and set up the colony in the name of England with Sir Walter Raleigh's money. 115 colonists (both families and single men) came to the island in 1584 to set up a temporary colony. The colonists decided to send John White back to England to gather more supplies. He was unable to return to Roanoke until 1589 because of the Spanish Armada.

English defeat the Spanish Armada

1588

In one of the most crushing military losses in Spanish history, the small British navy was able to destroy the famed Spanish Armada in 1588. Phillip II of Spain sent his navy to defeat Elizabeth I's navy because she was a Protestant and Phillip was a Catholic who didn't want the Protestant's in his business.

John White returns to find Roanoke colony abandoned

1590

After three long years of waiting in England because of the Anglo-Spanish wars, John White returned to Roanoke to find the island deserted and the residents missing. The only clue was the word Croatan carved into a tree. So White went to Croatan island, a little south of Roanoke, to try and find the missing 115 colonists. Storms kept the ships from reaching the shore.