History Project

1. John Cabot Grade 9 Heritage Fair By: Scott Stamp

2. Who is John Cabot? John Cabot is the Italian navigator and explorer said to be responsible for discovering North America in 1497. It is widely believed that John Cabot originally landed on and discovered Newfoundland. He was born in Italy, around 1450 and died in England in 1499. His given name is Giovanni Caboto, which translated into English is “John Cabot.” John discovered the “new world” of North America on his second voyage, not much about this voyage is known in recorded history, as very little was written about the event.

3. Where is John Cabot’s birthplace? While not much is known about John’s exact place of birth, it is believed he is from Venice, Italy. This belief formed from a signature found in some Venetian testamentary documents from 1484, where he signed “Zuan Chabotto.” Zuan is a form of ‘John’ typical to Venice. Alternate sources also state John may have been native to Genoa, Italy. The only thing known for sure is that John Cabot is definitely Italian in origin. He is said to be born c. 1450.

4. Who sailed with John Cabot? John Cabot, while the main person given credit for the discovery of North America, did not sail alone. His ship was called the Matthew, and had a crew of 18 men, including Cabot. On his second voyage, he reached North America, which was thought to be Asia at the time. His first voyage was cancelled due to conflicts with members of the crew. John Cabot was commissioned by a group of wealthy Englishmen to find a shorter route to Asia, he thought he could achieve this by sailing westward.

5. How did John Cabot discover Newfoundland? John originally began his voyage in hopes to find an alternate route to Asia by sailing westward from England. He set sail from a seaport in Bristol, a popular English city for merchants and importers. John discovered Newfoundland by accident while sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, and the entire crew believed the island to be Asia until further investigation. After discovering the island, John continued further north, making the first recorded attempt to find the Northwest Passage, only to find ice-crusted waters.

6. What did John Cabot and his crew do following the discovery? John Cabot is responsible for bringing the English language to North America, and making it widely used by the inhabitants. Not much is known about the crew’s activity on the island during the first voyage, they likely explored for a few days then immediately headed back for England. Very few letters have surfaced regarding John Cabot’s maiden voyage, and there is little recorded history about the event.

7. Who asked John Cabot to embark on his voyage to the “new world” ? John Cabot was commissioned for the voyage by a group of wealthy English merchants, who wanted a cheaper and faster route in and out of Asia. They believed this could be achieved by travelling westward rather than going all the way down around Africa. They likely believed this because very little was known about the western world at the time, as British explorers had never visited the continent before this voyage. The British government awarded John Cabot upon his discovery and successful return with a lifetime pension of £20 per year and in February 1498 was issued an additional patent to help prepare for a second voyage.

8. Interesting Facts John Cabot actually embarked on three voyages. His first voyage was cut short due to issues with his crew. He died shortly after returning from his third voyage. It’s rumored that he never actually returned from the third voyage. John’s son, Sebastian Cabot, also embarked on a voyage to North America to search for the hoped for Northwest Passage, with no success. He later embarked on a voyage around the world, but instead ended up searching for gold along the Río de la Plata. John Cabot was accepted as a member of the religious confraternity of St John the Evangelist in 1470.