An entire millennium of European powers and uniquely American figures are involved in the exploration of North America.
It started with the brief presence of the Vikings in Newfoundland about the year 1000 AD and lasted through England's colonization of the Atlantic coast in the 17th century, which provided the groundwork for the United States of America.
The conclusion of this effort would occur in the centuries that followed the arrival of the Europeans, as Americans moved across the continent to the west, drawn by the promise of wealth and open territory as well as a desire to realize their country's manifest destiny.
Around the year 1000 A.D., the Vikings traveled from the British Isles to Greenland, where they founded a colony before moving on to Labrador, the Baffin Islands, and subsequently Newfoundland. This was the first European attempt to colonize the New World. They founded the colony Vineland there, which means fertile place, and traveled around the North American coast from there, observing the flora, wildlife, and indigenous peoples. Vineland was mysteriously abandoned after only a few years.
The achievements of the Vikings were known to other Europeans even though they never returned to America. However, Europe was made up of numerous tiny princes, most of whose issues were regional. Although the legends of the feared Vikings' discovery of a "new world" may have captivated Europeans, they lacked the means and the will to continue their course of exploration. The Mediterranean Sea remained the center of trade as it had been for centuries.
