John Cabot: The English King's Italian Navigator

First Voyage
May 2, 1497 - August 6, 1497

On his first voyage, Cabot reached the east coast of North America, probably landing on Newfoundland or Cape Breton Copyright/Source

King Henry VII finally gave Cabot permission to travel. On June 24, 1497, Cabot reached the east coast of North America, probably Newfoundland or Cape Breton. Cabot claimed the land in the name of Henry VII. They did not meet any Native peoples.

They travelled along the coast for 30 days. The Matthew returned to England and Cabot was rewarded with the sum of £10 by the king. This was not a lot of money -- he would have been given much more if he had come back with spices or gold.

Playing it Safe
Historians haven't decided exactly where Cabot landed on June 24, 1497. It was probably Newfoundland, Labrador, Cape Breton or perhaps Prince Edward Island. Following a trail leading away from the shore, Cabot and some of his men came across an abandoned campsite. The site may have belonged to the Beothuk, a tribe that became known for hiding itself from Europeans. Cabot took on fresh water, and then nervous that he might be attacked when he only had 18 men with him, he returned to his ship.

A 16th-century map showing areas with lots of cod Copyright/Source

	Cabot's news of the cod set off a fishing frenzy. Europeans loved to eat cod and soon the French, Portuguese and Spanish were fishing Newfoundland's waters. Today, the cod has been all but fished out. In 1991, the Canadian government banned cod fishing to give the cod stocks time to recover.