The Age of Discovery

Europe Encounters the World

 Why did explorations happen when
they did?
►A variety of factors all came together to
make the time period (1450-1700) the “Age
of Exploration” - MISLEADING
► Some of these factors were pushes, external
forces acting on Europe
► Some were pulls, motivations and things
that attracted the Europeans
 The First: Gold
► Gold or wealth
► Europe needed gold and silver to fuel the rising
banking system
► Europeans desire for spices
 Da Gama’s voyage to India made a 3000% profit!
► Other natural resources sold for profit
 timber, sugar, tobacco, ivory
► Competitionwill be enhanced by the idea of
mercantilism
 There is only so much wealth in the World
 “Balance of Trade”
 Tariffs
 Bullion – gold and silver bars
 The second: Glory
► The Renaissance ideal of
Humanism, and the focus
on individual achievement
► With the rise of the
printing press, the idea of
gaining fame for one’s
actions was more possible
► Rise of Nation States
 Individual kings wanted
glory for their kingdoms
 Competition spreads

The Triumph of Fame, a Flemish

tapestry from 1502.
 The third: Religion
► As members of a universalizing religion, Europeans
had always seen spreading Christianity as a good
thing
► After the Reformation, competition sprang up
► Colonization became a race to convert native
peoples to a particular brand of Christianity
 Missionaries
 Jesuits are some of the most active around the World
 Spice Trade
► Chinese dominated 8,000 years ago – Silk
Road
 Greeks and Romans – seafaring
 Story of Atlantis – Homer
 Crusades – Introduced luxury goods
(commodities) from Asia
►From saffron to silks
►Rugs, furniture
►Perfume, medicines
 Mongol Domination 1200-1300’s
► Allowed land travel – Dnieper River into Kiev
 Black Sea
► Land routes broken during the Black Plague
 Rise of other Empires
 Change in the system of trade
Map showing the voyages of the Portuguese navigators between 1494 and 1549 (green) overlaid on the
ancient spice trade routes (red) and the silk road route (blue) as well as the ancient over-land route
between Africa and Europe (purple). From their first voyage to Brazil in 1494 the Portuguese traversed
Cape Horn in the 1500s, travelled to India by 1511 and to Malacca (Philippines) by 1512. In 1542 they
voyaged to China and by 1549 had reached Japan and circumnavigated the globe.
 Early Exploration
 Islam & the Spice Trade  Malacca
 A New Player  Europe
Nicolo, Maffeo, & Marco Polo, 1271
Expansion becomes a state enterprise 
monarchs had the authority & the resources.
Better seaworthy ships.
 Chinese Admiral Zheng He & the Ming
“Treasure Fleet”
European Middle Ages
 Muslim – Italian Trade Venture
► 15thCentury
► Rise in the population = rise in demand
► Spices
 Cloves, cinnamon, pepper
 Moluccas – Islands of Indonesia
►Called the Spice Islands
 Admiral Zheng He

Each ship was 400’ long

and 160’ wide!

1371-1435
Zheng He’s Voyages
Map of the Known World;
Pre-1492
What were the new technologies
that enabled explorations?
► The caravel was a new,
faster, more maneuverable
ship; Stern-most rudder
► Older ships had square
sails, caravels had
triangular sails (easier to
change direction) Lateen
► Bilge pump system
enabled ship to float
higher (less likely to run
aground, easier to explore
coasts and rivers)
► Compass, astrolabe,
maps, sextant
► Other technologies from
Islamic culture all helped
make explorations possible
Astrolabe
Magnetic Compass
Mercator’s Projection
Portolan Map
Wheel Lock Pistol
Caravel
Lateen
Spanish Galleon
Sextant
 Motivating Factors
► Overtake the Muslim/Italian Trade routes
 Italians – middlemen
►Ports – especially Venice to other European Ports
►Sold for very high profits

 Muslims – spices and goods Eastern

Mediterranean
►Ports – Egypt, Syria, Turkey
► Therefore – Europeans want a direct access
for profit
 How did these explorations begin?
► The first to encourage new
ship explorations was Prince
Henry of Portugal, known as
“Prince Henry the
Navigator”
► University of Sagres
► Combined ship technology
learned from the Arabs and
Chinese with new European
innovations
► By the time of his death in
1460, Portuguese had sailed
as far south as the Gold
Coast of West Africa
► Cash Crops
 Portugal
► Leader in conquest and exploration
► Able to kick out the Moors before Spain
 Pester John
 Very strong by the 15th Century
 1415 – seized Ceuta (North African Coast)
 Azores, Madeira Islands
► Two Profitable Institutions
 Fortified Trading Ports – river deltas
►Store / Sell / Barter – slaves, ivory, gold
►Local rulers

 Plantations – sugar and slaves

 What other economic factors were
pushing Europeans to explore?
► Decline of Mongol
Empire in 1400s made
goods from the east
harder to get, more
expensive
► Fall of Constantinople
to the Ottoman Turks
in 1453 was a major
block to trade
Vasco da Gama
Spanish/Portuguese Trade Routes