On this date in 1534 Jacques Cartier planted a cross on the Gaspe Peninsula and declared it for Francis 1 of France.

Frye in “Levels of Cultural Identity”:

Even careless populizers are more hesitant to write such sentences as “Jacques Cartier was the first man to set foot on Canadian soil,” which were fairly recent usage not long ago.  Even when the word “white” was inserted, the implication “first genuine human being” was often there. (The Eternal Act of Creation, 179)