All times in UTC ·
Dashed edge = started before, or continues beyond, this day
Events on Wednesday 10 April 1591 1
1591James Lancaster sails for the East IndiesFirst English expedition to round the Cape of Good Hope for AsiaA fleet of three ships under James Lancaster left England to open direct trade with the East Indies, becoming the first English expedition to reach Asia by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope. Disease, storms, and hostile encounters devastated the voyage, but it marked the beginning of English ambitions in the Indian Ocean trade that led to the founding of the East India Company a decade later.