Reminders: Unit: Age of Exploration Focus Activity: MYP Unit Question: Why do people explore? What are the consequences? Focus Question: What were the reasons for European exploration? Monday, October 1st, 2018  Welcome to Unit 2!  Reminders: Happy October! LTA due TOMORROW! Focus Activity: Space questions… Homework: LTA DUE TOMORROW! Check-in #1 (pg. 3) due WEDS

You are being sent on a voyage to outer space to explore beyond the solar system: What would you look for? What are your thoughts and feelings? What might you encounter (see/experience)? Would you have any concerns?

The Early Middle Ages Most Europeans had little knowledge of the world outside of their manors. Manors were self-sufficient. There was little need for trade or travel. Few could read or write. Most believed the world was flat.

The Crusades European Christians fought a series of wars to capture the holy city of Jerusalem from Muslim control. These wars were called the Crusades. After 200 years of fighting, the Europeans failed to capture Jerusalem. The Crusades forced Europeans to travel beyond their villages and exposed them to new goods and ideas. They began trading for new items from Asia such as spices, foods, silks, and rugs.

The Renaissance With this new curiosity about the world and a powerful new invention, a burst of learning took place in Europe. This is called the Renaissance. The printing press, invented by a German scholar named Johannes Gutenberg, allowed large numbers of books to be produced at once. This made books cheaper and more widely available than ever before.

Increased knowledge, curiosity, and desire to trade made Europeans more eager to explore

New Inventions Made Travel Easier… Caravel: Faster-sailing ship. Magnetic Compass: Device that told sailors the direction in which they were traveling. Astrolabe: Device that allowed sailors to figure out their latitude at sea. Mercator Projection: Map that helped sailors plan an accurate sailing route.

Travel Routes Europeans were REALLY interested in exploring and trading with Asia, but getting there would not be easy. Traveling over land was dangerous and expensive. Muslim cities blocked routes through the Mediterranean Sea and Middle East. In the 1400s, the Portuguese tried to reach Asia by sailing south and east around Africa. That worked, but an explorer from Italy thought he had a better idea…

Christopher Columbus In the late 1400s, an Italian named Christopher Columbus traveled around Europe trying to convince leaders to pay for a new voyage to find Asia. After other monarchs in Europe turned him down, the king and queen of Spain agreed to support his trip. His plan was to reach Asia by sailing west across the Atlantic. He made the trip in 1492, and arrived in a new land he thought was near Asia. It was really North America.

The European view of the world in the 1400s…

Why did Europeans want to explore the world after the Middle Ages? Exit Card Why did Europeans want to explore the world after the Middle Ages?