Age of Exploration

• European exploration or the voyages of Europeans to places they had never been before started in the 15th century. 
• There were three motives for the explorations which eventually led to colonialism:

  • Gold The search for materials goods,
  • God To spread Christianity,
  • Glory and the desire for fame and power.
• The Age of Exploration was driven by the concept of Mercantilism. Mercantilism taught the Europeans that a country earns more bullion(silver and gold) not by buying but by selling more products. Because of this, Europeans sought possible trading areas for their products to be bought. 
• 1. Portuguese improved ships for open sea navigation. These ships are called Caravels. With its triangular sails, it made it easier to sail against the winds. Christopher Columbus even used Caravels when he discovered the Americas.
• The Europeans had been introduced to Spices during the Era of Crusades. Such Spices are important for dying clothes, aromatherapy, painting, embalming, and most importantly, for food preservation. 
• • Portugal As pioneers in seafaring, the Portuguese dominantly controlled and colonized Asian territories. They controlled areas such as Southwest India, Java, Sumatra Moluccas, Macao (1557), and Japan (1542).
• • Spain  Most of Spain’s colonies lie in the West while in Asia, they only have the Philippines Archipelago.
• • Great Britain The British crown also followed in the exploration. They instituted the English East India Company in India for 350 years, Indochina, Malayan Peninsula, and Singapore with Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles as the first Governor.
• 1. The Netherlands - The Dutch created the Dutch East India Company which claimed territories from Portugal such as some Indonesian islands( Sumatra, Spice Islands, Java), and in 1638, controlled Trading posts in Nagasaki, Japan.
• • France created the French East India Company and in 1674, controlled Pondicherry in India.