The document summarizes the early exploration of Canada by various European powers from the 11th century to the early 17th century. It describes how the Vikings, led by Leif Erikson, were the first Europeans to arrive in Canada around 1000 AD and establish a settlement in Newfoundland. It then discusses later explorers like John Cabot for England in 1497, Jacques Cartier for France in the 1530s, and Martin Frobisher for England in the 1570s-1580s, who expanded European knowledge of the region. The document highlights Samuel de Champlain's founding of Quebec City for France in 1608 and his exploration of the Great Lakes as pivotal events in the early colonization of Canada.