Roanoke was an early English settlement attempt in present-day North Carolina. It is known as "The Lost Colony" because all its inhabitants mysteriously disappeared.
Related terms
Sir Walter Raleigh: An English explorer who sponsored and organized the Roanoke expedition.
Croatoan: The word carved into a tree at Roanoke when John White returned from England to find everyone gone. It remains a mystery as to what it meant.
Spanish Armada: The powerful fleet sent by Spain in 1588 to invade England but was defeated, which allowed England more freedom for exploration and colonization efforts like Roanoke.