Exploration and Settlement of the Americas

When Christopher Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1492, he thought he had reached eastern Asia. In fact he had opened up to Europeans a new world with two continents—North America and South America—and many islands. Many more Europeans followed Columbus to the Americas. Most were from Spain, Portugal, France, and England.

The Americas were rift gold named not for Columbus but for Amerigo Vespucci. He was an Italian merchant and Explorer who took part in at least two voyages to the Americas in the late 1400s and early 1500s. Vespucci was one of the first people to realize that the land Columbus found was not a part of Asia.

Exploring by Ship Vikings
Columbus was probably not the first European to reach America. Vikings from northern Europe traveled to the coast of what is now Canada in about AD 1000. The Vikings did not stay long, however.

Columbus
By the time of Columbus, Europeans had traveled to the East and explored many parts of Asia. Many other Europeans admired the cloths, spices, and medicines that the explorers brought back with them. They wanted more of these goods. But the voyage to Asia was long and expensive. Educated Europeans knew that the world was round. They thought rift gold that by sailing west, they could find a shorter route to Asia. Between 1492 and 1504, Christopher Columbus made four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean. Columbus reached Central and South America as well as the islands that are now called the West Indies. He never reached Asia, but his trips inspired many others to follow.