Other Nations Explore

Why did other Europeans explore North America, and what did they find?

Objectives:Describe the aims, obstacles, and accomplishments of European explorers.Trace the routes of the explorers and identify the areas they claimed.

VocabularyNorthwest PassageMutiny

1524 – Verrazano searches for the Northwest Passage1534 – Cartier begins to explore the St. Lawrence River1610 – Hudson explores Hudson Bay

People PlacesGiovanni da Verrazano St. Lawrence RiverJacques Cartier the NetherlandsHenry Hudson Hudson Bay

The Northwest Passage

By the 1500’s Spain ruled over a large and rich empire. Spanish ships returned from the Americas with treasure chests full of gold and silver.

Rulers in Europe still wanted to find a shortcut to Asia.

Magellan’s expedition around South America was long and dangerous. Many people thought sailing through or around North America would be easier.

This was the aim of many countries – finding the Northwest PassageAccomplishing this would allow that country or company to control important trade routes between Europe and Asia.

The Search began in the 1500’s but lasted for hundreds of years.

Casper David Friedrich

Verrazano and CartierThe French in North AmericaVerrazano set sail in 1524. He landed on the coast of North Carolina. He then sailed farther north along the Atlantic coast. He sailed along many bays and rivers, searching for a waterway that lead to Asia. He wrote that some Native American tribes were friendly, but others were not.Verrazano sailed as north as Newfoundland. He made two more voyages, but found no shortcut to Asia.

In 1534 – the French King, Francis, sent Jacques Cartier to look for the Northwest Passage.Between 1534 and 1541, Cartier made three trips to North America.On his first trip, he found the St. Lawrence River and claimed the land around it for France.

Hudson’s Voyages

By the 1600’s kings and queens were not the only ones paying for expeditions. European trading companies also began looking for the Northwest Passage.

Henry Hudson made four voyages in search of the Northwest Passage. His third voyage was paid for by Holland (the Dutch) or the Netherlands. He explored a river in what is now new York, and named it after himself, claiming the surrounding land for the Dutch rulers.

In 1610, an English company paid for Hudson’s last voyage. He sailed along the northern coast of North America to the bay that also carries his name, the Hudson Bay.

After three months exploring his crew mutinied, and sent he and eight others adrift in a small boat, never to be seen again.