The Age of Exploration

The Value of Spices Pepper and other spices (like cinnamon, cloves, & nutmeg) were extremely expensive in Europe Spices were used for flavoring food, but also as a preservative (to slow the rotting process) Spices came mostly from the “Spice Islands” (modern-day Indonesia)

The Quest for Cheaper Spices The spice trade was controlled by the Muslims (remember, they were between Europe and Indonesia), so Europeans needed to find a way to “cut out the middleman” and bypass Muslim traders Europeans (especially Spain and Portugal) began to explore Africa’s Atlantic coastline to see if they could go around Africa to reach Indonesia

Spice Trade Routes

Why Now and Not Sooner? Sea exploration had become possible thanks to new inventions: Improved map-making methods The astrolabe, an instrument (invented by a Muslim) for determining latitude Better ship designs Better weapons for defense (naval cannons)

Portuguese Exploration Portugal went east 1415-1460: Prince Henry the Navigator sent ships to explore along African coast 1488: Portuguese reached Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa 1497: Vasco de Gama sailed around the Cape of Good Hope and reached India; trip to India took 10 months but returned a profit of 3000% Beginning in 1502, Portuguese captured several port cities in Asia to use as trading outposts

What Did They Find in Asia? A heavy trade network already existed between China, Southeast Asia, India, and East Africa Cultures that were heavily dominated by Chinese and Indian influences Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam were already strongly rooted in the area, little interest in Christianity

European Successes in Asia The Portuguese 1511: Portugal captured the Strait of Malacca, giving them control of the spice trade Focused on controlling ports so that ships could sail from Europe to Indonesia in short legs; they did not move inland to create colonies The Dutch Challenged the Portuguese spice monopoly; captured Strait of Malacca in 1641 The Dutch East India Company was formed by a group of wealthy investors to control the spice trade The Spanish 1521: Spain claimed the Philippines and quickly colonized and converted the natives to Catholicism

European Failures in Asia India: Mughal Dynasty was too strong for Europeans to conquer until the 1750s China China was so advanced that Europeans had little to offer in trade that they wanted; Chinese only wanted gold or silver Strictly limited European access to China until well into the 1800s Japan At first, welcomed Europeans and traded heavily with them The shoguns became suspicious of Europeans’ intentions, however, and banned them from Japan in 1638

Spanish Exploration Spain went west In 1492, Christopher Columbus convinced Spain to back his effort to reach Asia by sailing west across the Atlantic He discovered the Americas and established Spain’s claim to two “new” continents; Portugal would claim part of South America (modern day Brazil) under the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1500

Christopher Columbus In Oct. 1492, Columbus landed in West Indies Enslaved and tortured the natives and made them mine for gold Named governor by the Spanish king, Columbus would later be removed from office due to corruption and abuse of power charges Within 50 years of his arrival, 90% of the native Carib population had died from exposure to European diseases like smallpox, measles, and influenza

Hernán Cortés Arrived in Mexico in 1519 to open diplomatic relations with the Aztec Empire By 1521, had destroyed Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, killed the Aztec emperor Montezuma, and broken Aztec power

Francisco Pizarro Sent to explore Peru in 1532 Captured the Incan emperor Atahualpa and held him for ransom; the Inca paid the ransom but Pizarro killed Atahualpa anyway War that followed resulted in the destruction of the Incan Empire

Spanish Advantages Over Natives So how did a few hundred Spaniards defeat millions of natives? superior military technology horses armor Guns & cannons rivalries between native groups kept them from cooperating disease decimated the native population and destroyed their religious faith systems

The Spanish Empire Spain developed an American empire stretching from Northern California to South America Managing the Empire Split empire into provinces, each governed by a viceroy Council of the Indies set up in Spain to oversee the viceroys

Spain Gets RICH! Spain limited colonists to trading only with Spanish merchants Colonists traded raw materials for Spanish manufactured goods Spanish wealth came from exploiting American gold, silver, & sugar resources using slave labor

Slavery Under Spanish Encomienda system: viceroys were empowered by the king of Spain to enslave natives in order to “save their souls” through Christianity In 1542, Spain outlawed enslavement of natives, but it was too late – many had already died and the abuses continued anyway Natives were forced into a form of serfdom after 1542 By the 1530s, Spanish had begun importing African slaves to replace native ones

The Catholic Church in America The Catholic Church’s Jesuit priests helped control the native population Forcibly converted natives to Christianity Worked to destroy native cultures and religious practices and replace it with Spanish

Beyond the Americas The Americas, however, still blocked Europeans from reaching Asia by sailing west How to get around the Americas? Go North? English, Dutch and French looked for a “Northwest Passage” around Canada, but never found one Go South? In 1520, Spaniard Ferdinand Magellan sailed around the southern tip of South America and into the Pacific

Ferdinand Magellan Magellan’s fleet would go on to be the first to circumnavigate (or sail completely around) the globe (although it would take 3 years to do it, Magellan was killed along the way, and only 18 sailors and 1 ship would complete the voyage)

Magellan’s Route