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Prince Henry conquered the Muslim city of Ceuta in North Africa. There, he encountered countless treasures including exotic stores and gold, silver, and jewels. Wanting to find the source, he sailed south along the western coast of Africa. By the time Henry died in 1460, the Portuguese had established a series of trading posts along the shores of Africa.
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Christopher Columbus sets sail for the West. He reaches North America. After the voyage, he returns to Europe to the King of England. The King funds Columbus's second voyage.
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/study_guide/Columbus-and-the-Spanish-Explorations.topicArticleId-25073,articleId-25005.html -
Columbus sets sail a second time for the West. This time, he lands in the Caribbean. He also sails to South America. He explores some more small islands. He later died.
http://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/pds/amerbegin/exploration/exploration.htm -
Vasco Nunez de Balboa was a Spanish explorer, governor, and conquistador. He became the first European to see the Pacific Ocean by crossing the Isthmus of Panama in 1513. On September 29, 1513, he claimed the Pacific Ocean and everything touching it. People kept making false accusations against him, saying that he was a traitor and a liar. Eventually, he was beheaded in front of the town Acla. It took three tries to cut his head off.
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After hearing about NA's wealth, many people started exploring it. In 1513, Juan Ponce de Leon searched for the "Fountain of Youth". He tried finding this mythical spring in Florida. He never found it and later he died.
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Hernando Cortes was a scrawny man for being a Spanish conquistador. Even though he was small, he was one of Spain's most determined, courageous conquistadors. For example, when they arrived in Mexico, he burned all of the ships so that they could not turn back. He also fought the Aztecs for several months until they surrendered.
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Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese explorer. His expedition lasted for three years and was the first one to go from the Atlantic to the Pacific. His voyage ended the first circumnavigation of the Earth. A book was written three years later by his crew. It was not published until the 1800's.
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Francisco Pizarro was a conquistador and navigator for Spain. His two expeditions lead him into South America and deeper into Panama. He was the man who conquered the Incan empire. On June 26, 1541, he was assassinated by twenty heavily armed guards.
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Sebastian Cabot became a general on March 4th, 1525. One year, one month later he led four ships with 200 men to obtain more land. His crew disliked him because of many things such as when they were stuck in the doldrums for a week. Some of his officers tried to mutinize him, but he dealt with it by marooning them. He later became a pilot major of Spain until 1547 and died ten years later.
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Panfilo de Narvaez sailed along the Gulf Coast of the United States of America. He later shipwrecked off what is now Texas. Part of his crew survived it and just chilled in Mexico. This guy died from the shipwreck.
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Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca was one of the first Spanish explorers to land on North America. The first part of the trip he sailed through the Bahamas. He later on sailed along the side of Florida. He ended his trip by cutting all the way across Mexico. He died poor in Seville around the year 1558.
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Gonzalo Pizarro had three brothers: Francisco, Juan, and Hernando. He and his three brothers worked together to bring the Incan empire to an end. One day, he was told to carry out new laws for the King, a bunch of other stuff happens, but in the end he is killed violently in battle.
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Between 1539 and 1543, Hernando de Soto spread smallpox. He did this by leading a force from Florida to the Appalachian Mountains and then across the Mississippi River. This created major consequences and killed many Native Americans. Ironically, he died from smallpox. LOL.
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Francisco Vasquez de Coronado searched for the "Seven Golden Cities of Cibola" his WHOLE LIFE. He searched all the way from northern Mexico to Kansas. Smaller parts of his group branched off when they found the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River.
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Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo was a Portuguese explorer. He was known most for exploring the majority of western North America. They spent most of their time in San Salvador because they needed to stay for winter and make repairs. Juan stepped out of his boat, slipped, and splintered his shin on a jagged rock when he was trying to save his men from a Chumash attack.
