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Leif Erickson was a viking. He explored modern day Iceland and Greenland. Greenland was a cold place and Leif wanted people to come and explore that area so he made the name appealing. Iceland was a beautiful place and he wanted it all to himself so he named it Iceland to keep people away.
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Prince Henry sponsored many explorations in the sea. Some people credit him for starting the Age of Discovery. This was the period when the European nations expanded to Africa.
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He was sent to explore the southern part of Africa and Northeast of the Indian Ocean. He was encountered by a huge storm and it knocked him off his path. He then realized he had passed his destination so he went back. Bartolomeu then passed his destination for a second time, then went back to Portugal.
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Christopher Columbus set sail in August of 1492 with about 90 sailors. He was looking for the Indies, his crew urged him to change his course but he persuaded them no to. On October 12th 1492 Columbus believed that he had made it to the Indies finally. He returned to Queen Isabella with great pride and was named Admiral of the Ocean Sea.
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John Cabot was Italian but he sailed for England. They sent him out to look for a sea route to Asia. He failed his attempt and ended up landing somewhere around what is now Newfoundland.
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Amerigo Vespucci led a voyage for Spain and Portugal. For Portugal Vespucci discovered South America and realized that South America is not apart of Asia and instead a different continent.
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Vasco de Gama set sail for Africa in 1497. Him and his team took a detour to get safely around the Cape of Good Hope. In modern day Kenya he met a sailor who helped guide him the rest of the way. In May of 1498 he made it to the port of Calicut and there was now a safe sea route to Asia.
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Vasco Nunez de Balbo heard all the stories about the "great waters" they were said to be beyong the mountains in South America. Balbo saw a huge body of water and it was the Pacific Ocean. Balbo was the first person to see that ocean from the Americas.
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In 1513 Juan Ponce de Leon landed in present day Florida on the East Coast. He was looking for gold and the Fountain of Youth. He did not find it but he did indeed find the United States. The Spanish settled there and called it St. Augustine.
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Hernan Cotes landed in present day Mexico where he then conquered the Aztec. The Aztec once ruled that whole region. The gold that he took from them made him and his whole family wealthy.
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Magellan was a Portugese explorer that was sailing for Spain. He ended up reaching the southernmost part of South America. He had seen the same ocean Balbo. Ferdinand and his crew continued to sail westward. He was the first ever person to circumnavigate the
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Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was apart of the Spanish expedition to current day Florida. They came in contact with Native Americans in Florida then sailed toward Mexico in November. To survive with the Native Americans Cabeza enslaved one of them. Then convinced them that they had healing powers that they actually don’t have. When he finally made it back to Mexico he told about the Seven Cities of Gold.
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He went looking for the Pacific Ocean but ended up sailing up the Saint Lawrence River. Jacques did not get to find the Pacific, but he did find a mountain and it was called Mont-Royal. This place is now Montreal.
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Hernando de Soto traveled around the southeastern part of the United States following the stories of gold and fortune. IN 1541 Hernando crossed the Mississippi River, describing it as swift and very deep. He traveled as far as Oklahoma and then died of a fever.
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Francisco Vasquez was another explorer who searched for The Seven Cities of Gold. He traveled through Mexico and Arizona. In 1540 he made it to Zuni, convinced that there was no gold to be found. The explorer traveled west of the Colorado River then east which is now Kansas. Still with no gold to be found, they did find “windswept plains” and “shaggy cows.”
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Franciso Pizarro led an army into the Inca capital which was Cuzco Peru. The Inca leader was arrested. Without their ruler they were helpless. They stood no chance against Francisco. Franciso then ruled over the Inca.
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Juan Cabrillo he spotted California in 1542. The Spanish had left that area alone for around 200 years. After that California became the Northern frontier of the Spanish Empire.
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Samuel de Champlain was a very important person used when establishing New France. Samuel de Champlain was also credited for exploring the Atlantic coastline and the Canadian Great Lake regions. He made about 29 trips across the Atlantic Ocean also.
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The Dutch wanted to find a passage through the Americas. He found a river that they now call the Hudson River. Hudson sailed as far as present day Albany New York. He then determined that he had not found Asia so he turned back.
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On Henry Hudson's second voyage he found a large bay, it is now the Hudson Bay. Hudson spent months trying to find an outlet to reach the Pacific Ocean. His crew then became extremely impatient and threw Henry and his son off the boat and they were never found again.
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Robert de la Salle followed the Mississippi River all the way down to the Gulf of Mexico. He claimed that whole region for France. They then called it Louisiana in honor of Louis XIV.
