The Cabots and the Discovery of America: With a Brief Description and History of Brandon Hill, the Site of the Cabot Memorial Tower

In Short

Elizabeth Hodges presents a concise historical defense of John Cabot, arguing that he, rather than his famously self-promoting son Sebastian or later explorers, first reached the North American mainland in 1497. Writing to mark the construction of the Cabot Memorial Tower on Bristol’s Brandon Hill, Hodges pieces together charters, city ledgers, and foreign dispatches to reconstruct the Matthew’s voyage. She contextualizes the enterprise within Bristol’s maritime culture, traces the complicated legacy of the Cabot family, and connects this medieval voyage directly to the local landscape, blending civic pride with rigorous historical correction.

The Story

The narrative opens with a stark contrast in the public memory of Bristol. While the wealthy citizen William Canynge is widely revered for rebuilding the stately church of St. Mary Redcliffe, his contemporary John Cabot—who secured the North American continent for the English-speaking world—remains largely overlooked. Hodges attributes this neglect partly to Bristol’s historical reluctance to honor non-natives, as John Cabot was a naturalized Venetian of Norman descent. Furthermore, confusion has long reigned because John's son, Sebastian, spent his later years in Spanish and English service issuing contradictory, self-aggrandizing accounts of his own birth and maritime achievements.

By re-examining primary documents, obscure charters, and foreign diplomatic letters, Hodges rectifies the historical record. She establishes that in May 1497, John Cabot sailed out of Bristol aboard the tiny ship Matthew, financed by local merchants and bearing a charter from King Henry VII. Reaching Cape Breton and coasting three hundred leagues, Cabot claimed the region for England before returning home in August. The king rewarded him with a modest pension, while the citizens of Bristol celebrated the mariner whom foreign ambassadors described as the "Great Admiral." A second expedition in 1498 set out to establish trading colonies and search for Cathay, navigating north toward Labrador and south to Cape Hatteras, though John Cabot himself likely died at sea during the enterprise.

Despite the initial lack of immediate commercial gain, Hodges asserts that these expeditions formed the legal foundation for all subsequent English claims in North America. The text then shifts focus to Sebastian Cabot, acknowledging his genuine brilliance as a cartographer and Pilot-major for Spain and England, as well as his role in founding the Company of Merchant Adventurers, even while noting his vanity and dishonest attempts to appropriate his father’s glory.

Finally, the narrative anchors itself in Bristol’s physical geography at Brandon Hill. Hodges outlines the hill’s long history, from its origin as the site of a medieval hermitage dedicated to the seafaring Saint Brendan to its use as a Civil War fort and a public green for city residents. It is upon this elevated site, overlooking the river traffic of the Avon, that Bristol erects the Cabot Memorial Tower, permanently binding the legacy of the pioneer ocean voyage to the soil of the port from which it departed.

How It Unfolds

The misplaced honor Hodges contrasts the lasting local fame of Bristol church-builder William Canynge with the obscurity of his contemporary John Cabot. She highlights how local prejudice against non-natives and the contradictory claims of Cabot's son, Sebastian, helped obscure the elder Cabot's true achievement.

The voyage of the Matthew Equipped with a royal charter from Henry VII and backed by Bristol merchants, John Cabot sets sail in May 1497 aboard a small vessel. He reaches Cape Breton, plants the St. George's cross, and returns to Bristol by August to be hailed by the public as the Great Admiral.

The secondary voyage and loss A larger fleet sets out in 1498 to find Cathay and colonize the new lands, facing extreme cold and ice floes along the coast of Labrador. John Cabot disappears from historical records during this journey, likely dying at sea while his son Sebastian leads the remaining crews home.

Sebastian's mixed legacy Sebastian Cabot achieves high office as a master cartographer and Pilot-major in Spain and England, organizing major trading ventures like the Company of Merchant Adventurers. However, his reputation is clouded by self-serving claims that minimize his father's role in the initial discovery.

The hilltop memorial The narrative turns to Brandon Hill, detailing its past as a medieval hermitage, a laundry ground, and a wartime fort. The site is chosen for the new memorial tower, providing a prominent vantage point over the shipping lanes of Bristol.

The People

• John Cabot: A skilled mariner and merchant of Norman descent who becomes a Venetian citizen before settling in Bristol. He seeks to find a western sea route to the Indies, secures a charter from King Henry VII, and successfully commands the 1497 voyage that marks the initial European discovery of the North American mainland.

• Sebastian Cabot: The son of John Cabot, who grows into an eminent cartographer, navigator, and administrator for both the Spanish and English crowns. Though talented, gentle, and instrumental in establishing new northern trade routes, he is driven by personal ambition and repeatedly alters his life story to claim sole credit for his father's discoveries.

• Henry VII: The King of England who grants the initial 1496 charter empowering John Cabot and his sons to conquer and trade in unknown lands. He rewards Cabot with a modest pension upon his return, viewing the initial voyage as a foundational assertion of English territorial rights.

• Saint Brendan: The legendary Irish sailor-saint whose ancient chapel once stood atop Brandon Hill. His early voyages and mythical traditions helped inspire later generations of Atlantic navigators seeking lands across the western ocean.

In Its Own Voice

"Canynge helped to re-build a church; John Cabot discovered a continent, and secured it for all time to the English-speaking race."

Hodges establishes the central injustice her book seeks to remedy, contrasting local architectural patrons with forgotten ocean pioneers.

"Retracing their course they found many of the colonists dead of cold and hunger, and re-embarking the remainder, they sailed south as far as Cape Hatteras, when provisions failing, the little flotilla returned to England..."

The author outlines the harsh realities and tragic outcome of the 1498 secondary expedition along the American coastline.

"...for very joy that he had to see the towardness of our intended discovery, he enter'd into the dance himself, amongst the rest of the younge and lusty company..."

Quoting navigator Stephen Boroughs, Hodges captures an aging Sebastian Cabot celebrating a new expedition bound for northern seas.

What It's Really About

Beneath its biographical detail, the book examines how historical truth is preserved, distorted, and reclaimed over time. Hodges confronts the fragility of historical memory, showing how self-promotion, lost maps, and municipal apathy can obscure monumental human achievements. The work serves as a defense of primary documentation over accepted tradition, untangling the overlapping identities and claims of John and Sebastian Cabot. It also explores the relationship between a physical place and its heritage, arguing that civic identity should be rooted in historical truth. By linking the ancient port of Bristol and Brandon Hill to the broad expanse of North America, the text frames local geography as an active keeper of national history.

Why Read It Today

This short history appeals to readers interested in maritime exploration, late-medieval geography, and the unspooling of historical myths. Hodges writes with a clear, affectionate focus on Bristol’s urban landscape, seamlessly shifting between transatlantic voyages and local landmarks. The reading experience is engaging and grounded, avoiding overly dense academic prose while relying on historic charters, foreign letters, and municipal records to build its case.

The book is free of heavy dialect, though modern readers will encounter late-nineteenth-century assumptions regarding colonial expansion and imperial destiny. A reader should also expect occasional archaic spellings in the quoted historical manuscripts, such as old city account entries and sea logs. What stays with you is the author's quiet insistence on fairness—her determination to strip away the historical romanticizing of Sebastian Cabot in order to return rightful credit to his quiet, brilliant father, all set against the backdrop of a bustling English port city.