Question

Describe the various land claims made by the early European explorers in the Americas.

Answer 1

Answer and Explanation:

As you may already know, Spain was responsible for the discovery of the entire American continent. However, due to the size of the continent and fearing the power and wealth that Spain would gain from all that territory, some countries claimed territories within the continent. The first country to do this was Portugual which, through the tortesilla treaty, had its claim met, receiving land in North America (somewhere in Canada) and in East South America, where Brazil is located.

This treaty was viewed with discontent by other European nations, such as England and France, who also claimed land on the European continent and tried to establish colonies in different ways, which was only successfully established a century later. England and France were successful in making claims in North America, along with other nations such as Denmark and the Netherlands.