European Exploration

The Vikings

Dec 27, 1000

The vikings traveled to Greenland and Vinland-Canada. They thought they were the only ones in North America, but there were Native Americans. When they saw the Native Americans thay attacked. The Native Americans acted quickly and killed the Viking's leader, Leif Erickson. Since that happend they returned back to their own home.

Marco Polo

Nov 18, 1271

Marco Polo expolred Asia with his dad and uncle. They visited Kublai Khan in Cathay (China). The walls were covered in gold and pictures of dragons and battle. They went to other places in Asia, and retrurned with silk, spices,jewels and more.

The Turks

Sep 22, 1453

A huge land called the Ottoman Empire captured the city of Constantinople, and took over the whole Middle East. The Asian traders and European traders got furious because the Turks also stopped them from trading in the Middle East, and there was no other way to get by to go to Asia except by water. Until they found a new way, there will be no spices,silk, or gold.

Bartholomeu Dias

Oct 31, 1488

Dias,found a water route to get Asia by going around Africa and landing in India. This plan did not work out so well because there was a storm, and his sailors got sick and hungry so they forced Dias to sail back to Portugal.Today it is called Cape of Good Hope.

Martin Behaim

May 10, 1492

Martin Behaim made the first globe. He called it The Earth Apple. There was a few problems with the globe. One, Africa was misshaped, two, North America, South America, Australia, and Antarctica were missing, and three, it was too small.

Vacso Da Gama

Jan 3, 1498

When Da Gama found out that Dias didn't make it, he decided to try. This was a big success. He came back with many riches, and was the first person to have made it to Asia.

Martin Waldseemuller

Jul 15, 1507

Waldseemuller was a cartographer who drew a map of America and decided to name it after Amerigo Vespucci.

Vasco Nunez de Balboa

Dec 5, 1513

A group of explorers climbed a mountain in Isthmus of Panama. Balboa went ahead, and at the top found a new ocean that later it would be called the Pacific Ocean and it will belong to Spain.

Ferdinand Magellan

Period: Oct 3, 1519 to Dec 13, 1522

Magellan was sent on an expedition to find a way to reach Asia by sailing west around the Americas. He was also the first person to sail around the world, and he named an ocean the Pacific Ocean.

Hernando Cortes

Mar 31, 1521

Hernando Cortes was sent from the Spanish goverment to look for gold and land. he conquered the Aztec Empire and took Motecuhzoma, the Aztecs' king, as a prisoner. Spain now ruled Mexico, and Cortes got the Aztecs' treasures.

Francisco Pizarro

Dec 13, 1533

Pizarro sailed from Panama and landed on the west coast of South America. When they reached the Incas, there was a civil war going on between two brothers, and Atahuallpa won. Pizarro asked Atahuallpa to convert to Chistianity and to accept the king of Spain as his master, but he refused, so Pizarro took him as a prisoner.