Chapter 12 Age of Exploration Lesson 1 – Age of Exploration

Europe Gets Ready to Explore During the Middle Ages, Europeans began to buy silks, spices and other luxury goods from Asia (How did they learn about these things?) The Crusades Spices were in particular high demand (What spices? [pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg] They were used for perfumes, cosmetics, and medicines

Caravan’s brought items over the Silk Road A network of merchants controlled trade from Asia to Europe Caravan’s brought items over the Silk Road Middle Easterner’s shipped the goods to Europe The Arabs were making high profits The Italians made profit selling them to other Europeans

Political changes eventually disrupted this trading network The merchants realized if they could get the goods directly, they would be cheaper and then they could make more profit If they could reach Asia by sea, it would be quicker than overland travel

Technology & Exploration Astrolabe Compass Maps (cartography) Printing press Improved ships - triangular sails Rise of Strong kingdoms (Portugal, Spain, France & England)

Early Voyages Portugal - Prince Henry the Navigator (paid for voyages – school of Navigation) - Bartolomeu Dias – sailed to the southern tip of Africa - Vasco da Gama – landed in India (Europeans found a water route to Asia)

The First Voyage of Columbus Christopher Columbus - Italian navigator - He believed if he sailed west he could reach Asia - Ferdinand & Isabella (King & Queen) of Spain agreed to pay for his voyage - had 3 ships (Nina, Pinta, Santa Maria) - finally sighted land – island of San Salvador

finally sighted land – island of San Salvador Cuba Hispaniola (Haiti & Dominican Republic) Islands in the Caribbean He traded with the Taino people he found on the island He thought he had been exploring the coast of Asia

He did not realize he had arrived in the Americas In 1502 another Italian explorer, Amerigo Vespucci believed Columbus has discovered a “new world” Iin 1507, an early map maker labeled what is now South America continent with the name America Then later the name was applied to North America

Spanish Explorers Columbus’ 2nd voyage included conquistadors (solder-explorers) The conquistadors had horses and snarling dogs running alongside them, this scared the Tianos. The soldiers fired guns that scared them as well shooting flames and lead balls The island was claimed for Spain

The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed between Spain and Portugal in 1494 which divided South America between the two countries

Voyage of Magellan Spain hired Ferdinand Magellan to find a western water route to Asia He sailed west from Spain and around the coast of South America and then on to Asia The ocean to the west of S. A. was so peaceful that he named it “Pacific Ocean” He sailed west Water and food ran out, his crew was dying

After 4 months they land on the Philippine Islands Magellan is killed The remaining crew sails across the Indian Ocean and around Africa and returns to Spain They become the 1st known people to sail around (circumnavigate) the world

1st Known Circumnavigation of the World

Early French and English Explorers 1497 – John Cabot (Eng.) explores N. A. along Newfoundland and Nova Scotia – he was looking for a waterway to Asia 1524 – Giovanni da Verrazano (Fr.) explored and mapped the eastern coast of N. A. – he was looking for a waterway to Asia 1534 – Jacques Cartier (Fr.) sailed inland to present day Montreal – he claimed much of eastern Canada for France

By the early 1600’s they renewed their explorations After these early expeditions France and England ceased exploring due to political and religious problems between each other and in their own countries By the early 1600’s they renewed their explorations They began to establish settlements (colonize) in the Americas, especially North America