Complex sentence: Elizabeth Island is significant as one of the first English territorial claims in the New World, preceding Drake's claim of New Albion in 1579 and Humphrey Gilbert's claim of Newfoundland in 1583.
Split into simpler sentences: Elizabeth Island is significant as one of the first English territorial claims in the New World. It preceded Drake's claim of New Albion in 1579 and Humphrey Gilbert's claim of Newfoundland in 1583.