Discovery of Juan Fernández Islands

Date: November 22, 1574 • Location: Madrid, Spain

Juan Fernández, a Spanish explorer, discovered an archipelago that now bears his name off the coast of Chile.

Juan Fernández was a Spanish explorer and navigator in the Pacific regions of the Viceroyalty of Peru and Captaincy General of Chile west of colonial South America. He is best known for the discovery of a fast maritime route from Callao (Peru) to Valparaíso (Chile) as well as for the discovery of the Juan Fernández Islands off the coast of Chile.