French mariner Jacques Cartier was the first European to navigate the St. Lawrence River, and his explorations of the river and the Atlantic coast of Canada, on three expeditions from 1534 to 1542, laid the basis for later French claims to North America. Cartier is also credited with naming Canada.
Why is Jacques Cartier famous?
What were Jacques Cartier’s goals?
Cartier was commissioned (initially in 1534) by King Francis I of France to lead an expedition westward across the Atlantic Ocean to explore the northern reaches of North America in pursuit of discovering gold, spices, and a passage to Asia. In 1541 he was charged with helping to establish a colony in North America.
