History- Age of exploration

• Ptolemy


  Geographer who wrote a book about the world and how big it was, with a list of place names in the first century A.D.
• Much of Ptolemy's "facts" were wrong but most people trusted the book because it had been in use for so long
• Marco Polo


  Wrote a book called "Travels" in the 13C describing a visit to China
• Most ordinary people believed that the world was flat, with three continents and three seas – the Mediterranean, the Black Sea and the Red Sea
• Mappa Mundi


  A map showing the flat world, found in Hereford Cathedral in England
• Portolan Charts


  Showed the Ports and Coasts of Western Europe and North Africa, detailed the winds, tides, currents and the shape of the coastline
• Northern European ships


  • Slow, heavy, Clinker-built hull, square sailed ships
  • Could only sail with the wind and were dependent on the weather
• Mediterranean ships


  • Used Lateen Sails, which could sail against the wind
  • Too fragile to withstand ocean storms and not suitable for long voyages
• Portuguese ships (Caravel)


  • Combination of Square and Lateen sails and a Clinker-built hull
  • Both fast and strong, allowing longer voyages
• Compass


  Showed where North was even in daylight and was more accurate than looking at the Pole Star
• Quadrants and Astrolabes


  Helped sailors calculate their Latitude and work out their position at sea
• Log and Sand Glass


  Helped sailors calculate their speed
• Throwing the Lead


  Method used to measure the depth of the sea
• Prince Henry the Navigator


  Established a school for Navigators at Sagres in Portugal, attracted the best pilots, sailors and shipbuilders, developed the Caravel ship, sent sailors to explore the west coast of Africa to seek a route to India
• Bartholomew Diaz


  First European to round the tip of Africa and enter the Indian Ocean, named it the Cape of Storms but King John renamed it the Cape of Good Hope
• Vasco de Gama


  Left Lisbon in 1497, followed the route of Diaz to round the Cape of Good Hope, sailed up the east coast of Africa, captured an Arab Navigator who guided them across the Indian Ocean to Calicut in India, established a trading post and returned to Lisbon in 1499
• Christopher Columbus


  Born in Genoa, Italy, spent many years in the Portuguese Navy, believed the world was round and that India could be reached by sailing west across the Atlantic Ocean, convinced King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain to sponsor him, left Spain in 1492 and sighted land which he named San Salvador, convinced he had reached India, made two other voyages and slowly realised he had discovered a new continent, died in 1505 a bitter disappointed man
• Ferdinand Magellan


  King Charles V of Spain sponsored him to circumnavigate the Globe, left Seville in 1519 with five ships, crossed the Atlantic, made their way down the East coast of South America, reached the bottom of South America and turned west, battled huge storms to round the tip and enter the Pacific Ocean, reached the Philippines where Magellan was killed, the remaining crew reached the Spice Islands, returned home in 1522 with only 18 sailors out of 284, proved the earth was round
• Conquistadores


  Spanish Adventurers who explored vast areas of South and Central America in search of wealth and fame, Hernando Cortez conquered the Aztecs of Mexico, Francisco Pizarro conquered the Incas of South America
• Hernando Cortez


  Landed in Mexico in 1519 with 600 men, 18 horses and 4 cannon, marched to the Aztec capital Tenochtitlan, the Aztecs initially offered no resistance thinking the Spaniards were gods, but later turned against them and massacred 70% of the Spaniards, Cortez laid siege to the city and it fell in 1522, the whole of Mexico was under Spanish control by 1525, Cortez became very wealthy but had no real power and returned to Spain where he died in 1547 a deeply disappointed man
• The Spanish created a huge land empire, the Government was determined to treat the natives well but the colonists had no fear of a government so far away, they set up vast estates and enslaved the natives
• Spain became very wealthy because it extracted tons of gold and silver out of the America's
• Millions of natives died of European diseases to which they had no immunity at all
• Millions more natives were turned into slaves to work the land which they had owned before the arrival of the Spanish
• The native religion died as the Aztecs were converted to Christianity
• The native languages died out as Spanish and Portuguese became the language of the new colonies
• Lateen Sails


  Triangular sails used on Mediterranean ships that allowed them to sail against the wind
• Not suitable for long voyages


  Due to their fragility, Mediterranean ships were not suitable for long voyages across the ocean
• Compass


  A navigational instrument used to determine direction relative to the Earth's magnetic fields, with a magnetic needle pointing towards the North Pole