1. Christopher Columbus (1451-1506)
>Italian explorer who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492, reaching the Americas and opening the way for European exploration and colonization of the New World.
2. Vasco da Gama (1469-1524)
>Portuguese explorer who was the first European to reach India by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope.
3. Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521)
>Portuguese explorer who led the first circumnavigation of the world, although he did not complete it himself, dying en route.
4. John Cabot (c. 1450-c. 1498)
>Italian explorer who sailed under the English flag and explored the coast of North America, claiming it for England.
5. Samuel de Champlain (1567-1635)
>French explorer who founded Quebec City in 1608, establishing the first permanent European settlement in Canada.