John Cabot was an Italian explorer who sailed on two separate voyages for England. His name in Italian is Giovanni Caboto which is what some may have known him as. Cabot was born in 1450 in Genoa, Italy and, before he made his decision to wander, he was in the spice trade business. He had gone as far as Mecca while trading and, while studying maps and navigation, he had the desire to travel more to find more goods to market. Before his first journey he had three sons, one of which he named Sebastian Cabot who would also became a famous explorer. He had went to England in 1496 to explain to the king and queen that there was another way to get to asia, different than the route Columbus took, and to ask them to fund the trip. He had gone on his first voyage on a ship named Matthew in 1497 after the king had authorized the trip in 1496. Cabot and his crew had landed in North America on June 24th and he claimed the land for England and that is what he is most recognized for. When he had gotten back to England, the city favored him and the king allowed him to go on a second trip. He went on his second expedition in 1498 to continue his westward travels and finally get to Japan. While on the voyage during a storm in 1499 he had supposedly died at sea. John Cabot’s journeys eventually led to the England wanting to continue to claim lands in North America and led to the United States being founded.