Zuan or Giovanni or John?
Giovanni Caboto (Zuan Chabotto) (1450-1500?), probably born in Genoa from a Venetian family, moved to England in 1490. Known as Giovanni or Zuan (Venetian) he became known as John Cabot in England. He settled in Bristol, the second-largest seaport in England, looking to raise funds for exploration trips.
John Cabot statue, Bristol, July 2020
In May 1497, with the support of King Henry VII, Cabot sailed west from Bristol on the Matthew in the hope of finding a route to Asia. In June, he sighted land, called it New-found-land and claimed it for England.
Upon his return to England, he quickly planned a second expedition and set out in May 1498, this time with a fleet of four or five ships. The success of the expedition is unclear, as he did not return. It is generally believed that he did reach North America but was unable to make the return voyage across the Atlantic. However, we do have a replica of the ship he made his first exploration journey on.
Replica of Matthew, Bristol, July 2020
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Copyright Debbie Smyth, 25 July 2020
Posted as part of SquarePerspectives
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Travel with Intent 
Well, you did find out a bit more…
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the graffiti has caught my eye, he’s a prick because?!
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I can’t see any graffiti!
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Look at his collar!
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Oh yes! I can only see it in the second photo. (Well, I can only see it now!)
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That’s good you didn’t see
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Disappointing, isn’t it. I nearly edited it out, but I don’t like to remove facts. And it’s clearly a fact that the person who wrote it was writing about himself!
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Definitely!
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They did some exploring back then, didn’t they? Mind you, we’re still at it today!
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It’s just beyond my powers to imagine going any further than across the harbour in ship like that. What courage! Or foolhardiness….
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Same here, Margaret. Though ensuite shower is probably not necessary – the deck will do!
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đ
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