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.

Jacques Cartier Sailed Up the St. Lawrence River. When French navigator Jacques Cartier left France by boat in April 1534, the king ordered him to find gold, spices (which were valuable at that time), and a water passage from France to Asia.

Jacques Cartier (1491-1557) was a French explorer who led three expeditions to Canada, in 1534, 1535, and 1541. He was looking for a route to the Pacific through North America (a Northwest Passage) but did not find one. Instead he discovered the St. Lawrence River.

Jacques Cartier made three voyages to Canada. Believing he had discovered the passage to Asia, he travelled to the head of the bay, but then had to backtrack. A storm drove him into the bay of Gaspé, where he met more than 300 people from Stadacona (Québec), who had come there to fish.

Jacques Cartier was the first person to document the name ‘Canada’ while referring to the shores along the St. Lawrence River, after it was interpreted incorrectly. It was derived from the Huron/Iroquois word for village – ‘kanata’. Cartier used the word to reference the new land he had discovered.

Sir Robert Borden

Dominion of Canada

Canada, the most developed colony of New France, was divided into three districts, Quebec, Trois-Rivières, and Montreal, each with its own government….Canada (New France)

As a colony of Great Britain, Canada was swept up in the War of 1812 and was invaded several times by the Americans. The war was fought in Upper Canada, Lower Canada, on the Great Lakes and the Atlantic, and in the United States. The peace treaty of Ghent (1814), which ended the war, largely returned the status quo.

John A. Macdonald was Canada’s first prime minister, and was knighted for his efforts in bringing about Confederation. His role in creating Canada, and the realization of his dream to build a transcontinental railway, have fixed his place as a nation-builder in Canadian history.

Explore our past lists. This year, the most popular boy’s name for all of Canada was Noah, and for girls, it’s Olivia.

Province of Quebec

Under letters patent from King Henry VII of England, the Italian John Cabot became the first European known to have landed in Canada after the Viking Age.

Canada