AGE OF EXPLORATION Routes to the East

REASONS TO EXPLORE New Resources  Wood  Iron Get Rich  Gold Spices  Silk Spread your religion Personal Glory For the fun of it  The thrill of exploration

REASONS NOT TO EXPLORE Textbooks at the time taught some frightening things  that if you sail across the equator you’d burn to death!  If you sail too far out into the ocean you’ll fall off the earth Sailors believed there were massive sea monsters in unexplored areas Incredibly expensive

THE PROBLEM How can one get to Asia quickly and with a lot of goods for trade?  Option A: Over land  Option B: Around Africa  Option C: Sail off the edge of the earth

OPTION A: OVERLAND (MARCO POLO’S ROUTE) Marco traveled to China with his father at the age of 14  They arrived 3 years later Route was long and dangerous  Deserts  Mountains  Bandits  Unknown lands

OPTION B: AROUND AFRICA (DE GAMA’S ROUTE) The Portuguese believed that sailing around Africa was the best route to India  Some people thought that Africa never ended! Vasco De Gama finally made it in 1498

OPTION C: OFF THE EDGE (COLUMBUS’ PLAN) Columbus planned to sail west from Europe to India He thinks the sea east of India is the same as the one west of Europe