Giovanni da Verrazzano
| Giovanni da Verrazzano | |
|---|---|
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| Born | 1485 Val di Greve, Republic of Florence (now Italy) |
| Died | 1528 Guadeloupe |
| Cause of death | disputed |
| Nationality | Florentine |
| Other names | Janus Verrazanus, Jehan de Verrazane |
| Known for | North American explorer |
Giovanni da Verrazzano (Italian pronunciation: [dʒoˈvanni da verratˈtsaːno], sometimes also incorrectly spelled Verrazano) (1485–1528) was an Italian explorer of North America, in the service of King Francis I of France.
He is renowned as the first European to explore the Atlantic coast of North America between Florida and New Brunswick in 1524, including New York Bay and Narragansett Bay, following the Norse expeditions to North America around AD 1000.
The consensus among scholars is that Giovanni da Verrazzano was born in Val di Greve, south of Florence, then the capital and main city of the Republic of Florence, the son of Piero Andrea di Bernardo da Verrazzano and Fiammetta Cappelli. It is generally claimed that he was born in the Castello di Verrazzano, hence its birth indicator (similar to Leonardo da Vinci). Some alternative theories have been elaborated; for example, certain French scholarship assumes that Verrazzano was born in Lyon, France, the son of Alessandro di Bartolommeo da Verrazano and Giovanna Guadagni. "Whatever the case," writes Ronald S. Love, "Verrazzano always considered himself to be Florentine," and he was considered a Florentine by his contemporaries as well. He signed documents employing a Latin version of his name—“Janus Verrazanus”—and he called himself “Jehan de Verrazane” in his will dated 11 May 1526 in Rouen, France (preserved at the Archives départementales de la Seine-Maritime).
Verrazzano left a detailed account of his voyages to North America, but little is known about his personal life. After 1506, he settled in the port of Dieppe in France, where he began his career as a navigator. He embarked for the American coast, probably in 1508 in the company of captain , on a ship called La Pensée, equipped by ship owner Jean Ango. He explored the region of Newfoundland, possibly during a fishing trip, and possibly the St. Lawrence river in Canada; on other occasions, he made numerous voyages to the eastern Mediterranean.
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