The Age of Exploration

• What was the Age of Exploration also called?

  the Age of Discovery
• The Age of Exploration began in the 1400s and continued through the 1600s.
• It was a period of time when European nations, led by Portugal and Spain, began exploring the world.
• They discovered new routes to India, much of the far east, and the Americas.
• What were the different factors for these voyages to take place?

  • changes in religion
  • a new era of curiosity and learning
  • developments in technology
  • threats to existing land trade routes
• The British Empire’s first colony established in 1585 at Roanoke.
• Even though one early colony didn’t work out, later ones like Jamestown were successful.
• They were successful, largely, because they grew tobacco, which made a lot of money for the farmers there.
• What new ideas and technology did colonists bring to the Native Americas?

  farming techniques and weapons
• Colonists also brought new diseases which wiped out many Native Americans.