The Age of Discovery A Time of Exploration and Conquest

A Map of the Known World, pre- 1492

Why did Europeans Explore? 1.Trade Routes  Europeans wanted to find Trade Routes to get to Asia and other places 2.Renaissance  curiosity about other lands and peoples 3.Monarchs (Kings and Queens) seeking new sources of wealth 4.Technological and Weaponry advances. 5.Fame and fortune.

New Navigation Technologies Hartman Astrolabe (1532) Better Maps Sextant Mariner’s Compass

“Carrack” 1200s-1600s Better Ships

“Caravel” 1400s-1600s

“Galleon” 1500s-1700s

New Weapons Technology

Trade Routes Finding Trade Routes were a big reason that Europeans were exploring Explorers wanted to find alternate routes to Asia (mainly India and China) Pepper, Cinnamon, and many other spices only came from Asia, and in Europe, they were extremely valuable

Trading Routes: How did they get from Europe to Asia?

Would you rather… Travel from Europe to Asia by land or by sea? Why?

Trade Routes Travel by land was long, and passed through hostile territory, but people knew the way Travel by sea was unknown

The Scary Ocean Early explorers did not know the Geography of the world like we do today There were also myths about the ocean that scared people

The Scary Ocean Myths about the Ocean from the Century: –Dragons and Sea Monsters roamed the ocean –There were giant holes in the sea where ships would just disappear –Wild Natives in distant lands –Cannibals –Violent Sea Storms –Lands with no sign of life (Think about Outer Space now!)

Travel by Sea Travel by sea was far from luxury in the 1500s Ships sometimes went 3 months or more without fresh food

Travel by Sea Sailors sometimes ran out of food, and had to eat anything they could find –Ox Hides soaked in sea water, then cooked for a short time –Sawdust –Worms and Maggots –Rats (were sold for money on a ship)

In 1521, Magellan wrote… “we were three months and twenty days without refreshment from any kind of fresh food. We ate biscuit which was no longer biscuit but its powder, swarming with worms, the rats having eaten all the good. It stank strongly of their urine. We drank yellow water already many days putrid. We also ate certain ox hides that covered the top of the yards to prevent the yards from chafing the shrouds, and which had become exceedingly hard because of the sun, rain and wind. We soaked them in the sea for four or five days, then placed them for a short time over the hot embers and ate them thus, and often we ate sawdust. Rats were sold for half a ducat apiece, and even so we could not always get them”

Travel by Sea Sea Sickness (Motion-Sickness) was another problem sailors had The movement of the waves made many people sick, but most people adapted In some cases, constant vomiting will cause dehydration, and sometimes death!

Impact of European Expansion 1.Native populations killed by European diseases. 2.Influx of gold, and silver into Europe created global inflation [“Price Revolution”] 3.New products introduced across the continents [“Columbian Exchange”]. 4.Deepened colonial rivalries.