John Cabot was an Italian merchant sailor who moved to England in the late 15th century. In 1497, sponsored by England, Cabot sailed west on the ship Matthew with the goal of finding a western route to Asia, but instead landed somewhere along the coast of eastern Canada, though the exact location is disputed. Cabot brought back knowledge of new fishing grounds that were valuable to England and helped mapmakers improve their world maps, though Cabot and his subsequent voyage disappeared without a trace.

1. John Cabot
Giovanni Caboto was born in Italy.
When he grew up he became a
merchant sailor in Venice, Italy.

2. John Cabot
Like other seafaring traders, he traveled
the seas to buy spices, silk, precious
stones, or metals.

3. John Cabot
At that time, the Far East was the place
where all of the traders wanted to
go, because that was where they could
buy the spices and other items that
people in their own country wanted.

4. John Cabot
Cabot had heard of Christopher
Columbus' voyage, and like other people
of his time, believed that Columbus had
really found a shorter route to the Far
East.

5. John Cabot
He didn't know
what we know
now, that
Columbus had
discovered
America instead.

6. John Cabot
So Cabot wanted to make a voyage like
the one Columbus made, and maybe
find an even shorter route.

7. John Cabot
His idea was to sail farther north, where
the distance would be shorter.

8. John Cabot
Unfortunately, his own country of Italy
wasn't interested in exploring.

9. John Cabot
They were already the leaders in the Far
East trade and were happy with things
the way they were.

10. John Cabot
So, like Columbus, Cabot decided to try
another country.

11. John Cabot
In about 1495, Cabot, his wife, and their
three children moved to the seaport of
Bristol, England.

12. John Cabot
In England he began using the name
John Cabot.

13. John Cabot
England was interested in exploring.

14. John Cabot
Both King Henry VII and
the English merchants
hoped to find a shorter
trade route, especially
one that was not
controlled by the Italian
traders.

15. John Cabot
They decided to
sponsor Cabot's
explorations.

16. John Cabot
Cabot's first
voyage, in
1496, was not

17. John Cabot
Bad weather and disagreements among
the crew forced them to turn back.

18. John Cabot
In 1497, Cabot set out again, with one
small ship called the Matthew, and a
crew of only 18 men.

19. John Cabot
They sailed a northerly course and landed
somewhere along the East Coast of Canada,
maybe in Newfoundland, maybe in Labrador,
maybe in Nova Scotia, maybe in Maine.

20. John Cabot
There is a big controversy about where
Cabot actually landed, and we don't
have much information available to
solve the disagreement.

21. John Cabot
As far as we know, Cabot never kept a
detailed ship's log like Columbus did.

22. John Cabot
Like Columbus, he
too thought that he
had sailed all the
way around to the
Far East.

23. John Cabot
When he returned to
England, the King
and the merchants
were happy with
what he had
found, even though
it wasn't spices and

24. John Cabot
He brought back knowledge of the
world's geography that helped
mapmakers draw new and better world
maps.

25. John Cabot
He also brought stories of a new type of
riches.

26. John Cabot
He told of sea life so rich that you could
scoop up a whole bucket of fish at one
time.

27. John Cabot
The king rewarded Cabot with money
and the chance to go on another
expedition.

28. John Cabot
In 1498 Cabot set out again. This time he
took five ships.

29. John Cabot
One ship had problems and turned back
early.

30. John Cabot
The other ships continued on their route.
Sadly, they were never heard from again.

31. John Cabot
By 1500, ships from England were
crossing the ocean to fish off the banks
of Newfoundland, thanks to Cabot's
discoveries.

32. John Cabot
Cabot's
son, Sebastian, bec
ame an expert
mapmaker.

33. John Cabot
Sebastian also
continued his
father's tradition of
exploration, making
voyages of
discovery of his
own.