The first parts of Africa to become European territory were the Canary Islands colonized by the Spanish Empire in 1402, followed by the capture of Ceuta (what is now called Morocco) by the Portuguese Empire in 1415, as well as the Portuguese discovering Madeira in 1419 and Azores in 1427. Morocco is in North Africa, but the Canary Islands, Madeira and Azores all lie in the ocean near the North West of Africa, as the above are off the North West Coast of Africa and we can therefore conclude that this part was the first to become European territory.