Giovanni Da Verrazzano
By: Dylan DeMatteo
Intro
Giovanni da Verrazzano was an Italian explorer who became the first European to sight New York, New York Harbor, and Narragansett Bay while exploring the Atlantic coast of North America between Florida and New Brunswick. According to Biography.com, “He is also credited with discovering the Virginia and Delaware Capes, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Massachusetts Bay, and the Maine Coast.”
Life of Giovanni Da Verrazzano
My explorer, Giovanni Da Verrazzano, was born in Chianti Italy in 1485. His family members were Piero Andrea Di Bernardo da verrazzano which was his dad, Fiammetta Cappeli which was his mom, and Gerolamo de Verrazzano who was his brother. He really liked school, so he went to Florence, Italy to get educated. A couple of years later king Francis the king of France forced him to explore new lands so the king can claim the land. So later he moved to Dieppe, France so he can explore new lands. He traveled to several different places in the world but his parents would never come with him because they thought it was to dangerous. He learned about a year later that he is interested in exploring so he started exploring more often. So, he kept exploring for the rest of his life. He discovered many new lands and many bays such as the Narragansett bay. Later in 1528 he was in Guadeloupe right when Indians killed him and ate him. In conclusion, Giovanni da Verrazzano was a very successful explorer and navigator.
Fun Facts
When was Giovanni da Verrazzano born? He was born c.1485
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His country of origin was Italy, but he sailed for the French
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Where was Giovanni da Verrazzano born? He was born at Val di Greve, near Florence, Italy into the Italian nobility and was well educated in cartography, navigation, astronomy, mathematics and seamanship
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In 1506, he settled in the port of Dieppe, France, where some of the best map makers of the Renaissance period were based, and began his career as a navigator. Dieppe was the home to other famous explorers such as Samuel de Champlain, Jean Ribault and Jacques Cartier
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Through to his excellent connections with the Italian court, he was introduced to the court of France.
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Giovanni da Verrazzano was engaged by King Francis I of France as a privateer, attacking ships belonging to the Portuguese and Spanish
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During his period as a privateer (or pirate), in 1522, Giovanni da Verrazzano captured a Spanish treasure ship laden with gold
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The Spanish treasure ship had been sent from Mexico, by Hernando Cortes, to King Charles V of Spain. The value of gold on the treasure ship was equivalent to two million dollars
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The reputation of Giovanni da Verrazzano was recognised by the French and in 1523 he was commissioned by King Francis I of France to command a voyage of discovery to the New World to look for a new trade route to the Pacific Ocean
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Giovanni da Verrazzano was directed to make plans to explore an area around Florida and in Terranova, the "New Land"
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Giovanni da Verrazzano assembled a small fleet of 4 ships but two ships were damaged in storms and the two remaining ships were damaged forced to return to France
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After repairs to the 2 ships, called La Dauphine and La Normande, the expedition started again 1524. Jacques Cartier was one of the men on the expedition.
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Giovanni da Verrazzano ship was La Dauphine
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The expedition reached the New World and Giovanni da Verrazzano explored the coast of North America including Cape Fear, New York Bay, the North Carolina coast, Maine and Nova Scotia
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Giovanni da Verrazzano also discovered a "beautiful" harbor naming it Angouleme - which would later be called Manhattan.
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Giovanni da Verrazzano set anchor in the strait between Staten Island and Long Island, where he received a canoe party of Lenape Native Indians.
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He left the New World and returned to France to give an account of his findings and the potential of the new lands.
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In 1527 Giovanni da Verrazzano made another voyage, which proved to be his last. His ship was captured by the Spanish.
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Giovanni da Verrazzano was executed at Puerto del Pico, Spain November, 1527 for Piracy
Resources
Editorial
Magnetic compass
Maps
Earth
Astrolabe
Sextant
Quadrant
Present:
Computers
GPS
Radar
Space
Electronic compass
Cell Phone