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John Davis

Type Figure Region England Time c. 1550–1605 Also known as Discoverer of the Davis Strait

John Davis (c. 1550–1605), English navigator and cartographer, famed for three Northwest Passage voyages (1585–1587), discovering and naming Davis St…

Timeline

  1. 1585–1587Davis Strait · Davis StraitBetween 1585 and 1587 Davis led three northward voyages with three ships, sailing along the west coast of Greenland and the east coast of Baffin Island; in 1587 he confirmed and named Davis Strait. Though he failed to complete the Northwest Passage, he produced detailed coastal charts and demonstrated the navigability of Arctic waters, providing key chart material for later polar exploration.
  2. 1588–1590English Channel · English ChannelDuring the Spanish Armada invasion of 1588 Davis took part in the English fleet's operations; thereafter until around 1590 he continued navigation and cartography, improving quadrant measurement techniques, and prepared new northern expeditions, consolidating his standing in Elizabethan seafaring circles.

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