Age of exploration

• Reasons for European Exploration

  • Before the 1400s, sea travel was difficult due to poor navigation and fear of the unknown.
  • The Renaissance encouraged learning about the world.
  • Marco Polo's travels described wealth in China, inspiring exploration.
  • Merchants sought new trade routes for silks and spices.
  • The fall of Constantinople in 1453 cut off the Great Silk Road, necessitating new routes.
  • European rulers desired new lands and empires.
  • The Pope encouraged spreading Christianity as Islam grew more powerful.
• Technological Changes

  • Advances in technology made ocean navigation possible.
  • Cartographers adopted detailed maps from Constantinople and developed portolan charts.
  • Quadrants and astrolabes determined latitude using stars and the sun.
  • Compasses identified north.
  • Log and line measured ship speed; line and lead weight measured water depth.
  • The caravel was a new ship designed for long voyages with lateen sails, a caravel-built hull, and a rudder.

  The nao was a larger, stronger version of the caravel
• Life Aboard a Ship

  • The captain had a cabin, while the crew slept on deck or in hammocks.
  • Sailing and maintaining the ship was hard work, with tensions between wealthy captains and poor sailors.
  • Mutiny was a threat, so harsh discipline like flogging and execution was common.
  • Food was preserved by drying or salting, leading to diseases like typhoid and scurvy due to lack of fresh water and vitamins.

  Sailors feared shipwrecks and "sea monsters."
• The Early Voyages of Exploration

  • Early voyages began from Portugal in the 1400s to find new trade routes.
  • Prince Henry the Navigator set up a school of navigation at Sagres.
  • Portuguese explorers aimed to find a way around Africa to Asia, setting up trading bases along the African coast.
  • Bartolomeu Dias rounded the southern tip of Africa (Cape of Good Hope) in 1487.
  • Vasco da Gama reached India by sailing around Africa in 1497, proving the route was viable.
• Results of the Early Voyages

  • Portugal became wealthy from trade and established a large empire in Africa and Asia.
  • The spice trade came under Portuguese control, increasing spice imports to Europe.
  • Other European rulers were inspired to sponsor their own voyages, including Spain, the Netherlands, France, and Britain.
• Columbus and the Discovery of the 'New World'

  • Spain, under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, sponsored Christopher Columbus to find a route to the Far East by sailing west.
  • In 1492, Columbus set sail with the Niña, Pinta, and Santa María.
  • On 12th October 1492, land was sighted, which Columbus named San Salvador, mistakenly thinking he had reached India.
  • Columbus explored the Bahamas and returned to Spain with slaves and exotic goods, receiving the title of governor of the new territory.
  • Columbus made three more voyages but was removed as governor in 1499 due to reports of brutality.
• Age of Exploration After Columbus

  • Important explorations followed:
  • John Cabot landed in Newfoundland, Canada, in 1497, claiming it for England.
  • Ferdinand Magellan led the first voyage to circumnavigate the globe from 1519-1522.
  • Abel Tasman discovered Tasmania and New Zealand in 1642.
• Conquest and Colonisation: Conquering the New World

  • The wealth of the New World attracted more explorers, including the conquistadores.
• Hernán Cortés and the Aztecs

  • The Aztecs were an advanced civilisation in southern Mexico.
  • Hernán Cortés attacked the Aztecs for their gold, landing in 1519 with 11 ships and 500 soldiers.
  • Cortés allied with local tribes to march on Tenochtitlan and took the king Montezuma hostage.
  • After initial success, the Aztecs revolted, and Montezuma was killed.
  • Cortés regrouped, laid siege to Tenochtitlan, and massacred its people, becoming governor of New Spain.
• Francisco Pizarro and the Incas

  • The Incas were an advanced civilisation in the Andes mountains.
  • Francisco Pizarro, under orders from King Charles V of Spain, invaded the Incan Empire in 1532 with 180 men.
  • Pizarro captured the Incan king Atahualpa, who was later executed despite negotiations.
  • Pizarro defeated the Incans and established the Spanish province of New Castile with its capital at Lima.
• Impact of Colonisation

  • Colonisation had a major impact on both the colonised and the colonisers.
  • Indigenous populations in South America were decimated by violence and diseases like measles, influenza, and smallpox.
  • Indigenous cultures and languages were destroyed, with Spanish and Portuguese becoming dominant.
  • The Catholic Church, especially the Jesuits, converted indigenous peoples to Christianity.
  • The slave trade grew, with millions of Africans transported to the Americas to work on plantations, creating the Atlantic Slave Triangle.
• Impact on Europe

  • The Age of Exploration led to the Age of Imperialism, with European states creating empires.
  • The British Empire colonised around 25% of the world's land.
  • New Empires led to conflicts; the Treaty of Tordesillas divided the New World between Spain and Portugal.
  • The Columbian Exchange introduced new foods, animals, and technology between Europe and the Americas.