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1488
Portuguese - Dias
Dias becomes the first European mariner to round the tip of Africa. -
1492
Spanish - Columbus
Columbus reaches the Americas after persuading Queen Isabella of Spain to finance the expedition. -
1494
Spanish & Portuguese - Treaty of Tordesillas
Spain and Portugal both feared that the other would claim some of it's newly discovered territories so they signed the Treaty of Tordesillas. -
1497
English - Cabot
Cabot claims land in Canada. -
1497
Portuguese - Da Gama
Da Gama, first person to sail directly from Europe to India. -
1500
Portuguese - Cabral
Cabral becomes the first European to sight what later becomes Brazil. -
1518
Spanish - First Enslaved Africans
A Spanish ship carried the first enslaved Africans directly from West Africa to the Americas. -
1520
Spanish - Magellan
Magellan passes through a waterway along the tip of South America and is remembered as the first person to sail completely around the globe. -
1521
Spanish - Cortez
Cortez brings back 99 tons of gold from the Aztec Empire which ignited exploration. -
1524
French - Verrazzano
Verrazzano, first European to visit the area that would become New York City. -
1534
French - Cartier
Cartier sails and finds the Northwest passage then reaches Canada and starts exploring. -
Period: 1577 to 1580
English - Drake
Drake leads the second expedition to sail around the world. -
Dutch - Dutch East India Company
The first Dutch fleet arrived in India and shortly after, they formed the Dutch East India Company which slowly pushed the Portuguese out of the spice trade in Southeast Asia. -
English - East India Company
English East India Company was formed to participate in the spice trade. -
English - Hudson
Hudson reaches Greenland. -
Dutch - Le Maire & Schouten
Le Maire and Schouten discovers Staten Island. -
Dutch - Tasman
Tasman and his crew become the first Europeans known to reach New Zealand. -
English - Trading Posts
The British have established a number of trading posts in India and their success attracted many rivals. -
French - Marquette & Joliet
Marquette and Joliet begin their exploration of the Mississippi River Valley. -
French - Salle
Salle reaches the mouth of the Mississippi and claims the land for France, naming it Louisiana for King Louis XIV.
