Miguel Corte-Real
Encyclopedia
Miguel Corte-Real was a Portuguese
explorer who charted about 600 miles of the coast of Labrador. In 1501 he disappeared while on an expedition and was believed lost at sea.
. Gaspar explored Greenland
in 1499. He stayed there for several months with his team before iceberg
s forced them to return to Portugal.
In 1500, Gaspar set out again with Miguel. The Corte-Real brothers kidnapped and enslaved 57 First Nations people and charted about 600 km of coastline of what is now Labrador
. Gaspar sent Miguel with two ships back to Portugal. Following this, Gaspar was never heard from again.
In May 1502, Miguel set out on an expedition to search for his brother, but he, too, disappeared, although two of the three ships returned to Portugal after they were separated. He is thought to have perished in a storm. The sole surviving brother, Vasco Anes Corte-Real, wanted to sail in search of his brothers, but the King of Portugal would not fund such an expedition.
In 1912 Edmund B. Delabarre
claimed that markings on the Dighton Rock
in Massachusetts
suggest that Miguel Corte-Real reached New England
. However, Samuel Eliot Morrison dismissed this evidence in his book The European Discovery of America: The Northern Voyages (1971).
The Corte-Real family originates from a rural area near the town of Tavira in southern Portugal.
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
explorer who charted about 600 miles of the coast of Labrador. In 1501 he disappeared while on an expedition and was believed lost at sea.
Life
Miguel Corte-Real was a son of João Vaz Corte-Real and a brother of explorer Gaspar Corte-RealGaspar Corte-Real
Gaspar Corte-Real was a Portuguese explorer.He was the youngest of three sons of João Vaz Corte-Real, also a Portuguese explorer, and had accompanied his father on his expeditions to North America...
. Gaspar explored Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
in 1499. He stayed there for several months with his team before iceberg
Iceberg
An iceberg is a large piece of ice from freshwater that has broken off from a snow-formed glacier or ice shelf and is floating in open water. It may subsequently become frozen into pack ice...
s forced them to return to Portugal.
In 1500, Gaspar set out again with Miguel. The Corte-Real brothers kidnapped and enslaved 57 First Nations people and charted about 600 km of coastline of what is now Labrador
Labrador
Labrador is the distinct, northerly region of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It comprises the mainland portion of the province, separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle...
. Gaspar sent Miguel with two ships back to Portugal. Following this, Gaspar was never heard from again.
In May 1502, Miguel set out on an expedition to search for his brother, but he, too, disappeared, although two of the three ships returned to Portugal after they were separated. He is thought to have perished in a storm. The sole surviving brother, Vasco Anes Corte-Real, wanted to sail in search of his brothers, but the King of Portugal would not fund such an expedition.
In 1912 Edmund B. Delabarre
Edmund B. Delabarre
Edmund Burke Delabarre , was a researcher and professor of psychology at Brown University. He graduated from Amherst College in 1886. Professor Delabarre was a pioneer in the field of shape perception and on the interaction between mental processes and the involuntary movements of the body...
claimed that markings on the Dighton Rock
Dighton Rock
The Dighton Rock is a 40-ton boulder, originally located in the riverbed of the Taunton River at Berkley, Massachusetts . The rock is noted for its petroglyphs, carved designs of ancient and uncertain origin, and the controversy about their creators...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
suggest that Miguel Corte-Real reached New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
. However, Samuel Eliot Morrison dismissed this evidence in his book The European Discovery of America: The Northern Voyages (1971).
The Corte-Real family originates from a rural area near the town of Tavira in southern Portugal.
Additional reading
- E. B. DelabarreEdmund B. DelabarreEdmund Burke Delabarre , was a researcher and professor of psychology at Brown University. He graduated from Amherst College in 1886. Professor Delabarre was a pioneer in the field of shape perception and on the interaction between mental processes and the involuntary movements of the body...
, Dighton rock (New York, 1928). - F. F. Lopes, The brothers Corte Real, tr. F. de Andrade (Lisboa, 1957).
- G. S. Marques, Pedra de Dighton (New York, 1930).
External links
- "Miguel Corte-Real", Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online