(1350-1750)

THE AGE OF DISCOVERY

AGE OF DISCOVERY

• The writings of Marco Polo increased European interest in trade with Asia.

• Goods, especially spices and silks,

were carried overland through Constantinople and then shipped across the

Mediterranean by the Italian city-states (that started the renaissance).

• When the Ottoman’s conquered the Byzantines in 1453, Europe’s access to

Asian goods was temporarily cut off.

• As a result, there was increased incentive to find a new route to Asia by sea.

• AT THE SAME TIME: the renaissance was leading Europeans to explore the

oceans- a new world!

AGE OF DISCOVERY • Advances in technology during the

Renaissance and the Scientific Revolution encouraged many young men to see the world.

• Mapmaking- Maps were constantly being redrawn to include newly discovered areas. The world was a new place every day.

• Navigation-

• Compass- to point north

• Astrolabe- device that allowed sailors to navigate by using the position of the sun, stars, and moon.

• Sextant-device that allowed sailors to measure the angle and distance between them an a celestial object.

• New ships

• Caravel- smaller, more maneuverable ship with three masts and a rudder to steer. Previously in galley ships, sailors could only go in the direction of the wind. As a result, ships often stayed along the coastline.

ECONOMIC RESULTS OF EXPLORATION

• Commercial Revolution- there was an improved way of doing business—banks added

services in order to meet the needs of exploration

• Mercantilism- European government policies of the sixteenth, seventeenth, and

eighteenth centuries designed to promote overseas trade between a country and its

colonies and accumulate precious metals by requiring colonies to trade only with their

motherland country.

• Joint-Stock Company- a business, often backed by a government charter, that sold shares

to individuals to raise money for its trading enterprise and to spread the risks, and thus

profits, among many investors.

• Favorable Balance of Trade- the difference in value between what a nation imports and

what it exports over time.

SPAIN AND PORTUGAL LEAD THE WAY • Both Spain and Portugal were determined to gain a share of the trade with Asia.

• Prince Henry the Navigator (Portugal)- developed a new, lighter sailing ship and

sponsored expeditions around the coast of Africa.

• Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain had just completed the “Reconquista”, or reconquest, of

Spain’s Muslim areas. (These were Catherine of Aragon’s parents- Henry the VIII’s first

wife). This reunited the country under Christian rule in 1492.

• Spain’s rulers hoped to further spread the Christian faith and to glorify their country

through overseas exploration.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS (1451-1506) • Columbus, originating from Genoa, Italy, was convinced he could get to Asia by sailing

Westward. After being rejected by many heads of state, he finally received monetary

backing by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain.

• Columbus thought the world was smaller than it was.

• As a result, in 1492 with his three ships, he landed on what he thought was the coasts of

India, but was in fact what is known today as the West Indies.

• His discovery provided new sources of wealth and raw materials that would change

Europe forever.

Columbus

COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE

• The Columbian Exchange greatly improved the European diet = greater

life expectancy

LATER EXPLORERS • Vasco Da Gama- Portuguese, discovered an all water route from Europe to India by

sailing around Africa in 1497. Why was this an important discovery?

• Ferdinand Magellan- in 1519, led the first expedition of ships to circumnavigate the

world, or circle.

OTHER EUROPEAN EXPLORERS

John Cabot- Claimed territories in North America for England. He succeeded in finding an abundant fishing supply, but failed to find the Northwest Passage

(route through Americas to India).

Jacques Cartier- in search of the Northwest passage, he claimed modern

day Canada for France.

Samuel Champlain- explored the Great Lakes for France.

Robert De LaSalle- Claimed the Mississippi River, and all the land

it touched, for the French (Louisiana- King Louis and Queen

Ana)

Henry Hudson- Sent by the Dutch to find Northwest Passage.

Explored Canada, Hudson Bay, and the Hudson River..

CONQUEST OF THE AMERICAS • The impact of the arrival of Europeans was especially

profound on Native Americans.

• Spanish Conquistadors and priests arrived after explorers to conquer native peoples, seize gold, obtain natural resources, and convert the natives to Christianity.

The Conquest of Mexico

• In 1519, Hernando Cortes sailed from Cuba to Mexico with a small force of soldiers in search of gold and silver. There he met Montezuma, an Aztec Emperor. At first, the Aztecs believed the Spaniards were gods and showered them with gifts.

• Cortes saw opportunity. He soon left Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital, to befriend the Aztec’s enemies.

• He defeated the Aztecs in 1521. Several factors contributed to his victory:

• Spaniards had superior iron weapons and gunpowder.

• Spaniards had horses

• Native forces allied themselves with the Spaniards

• The Aztecs were worn down by an outbreak of smallpox accidentally introduced by the Europeans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYprdmE1dFc

LETTER FROM CORTES TO EMPEROR CHARLES V

“It happened… that a Spaniard saw an Indian… eating a piece of flesh from the

body of an Indian who had been killed… I had the culprit burned, explaining that

his having killed that Indian and eaten him was prohibited by Your Majesty. I

further made the chief understand that all people… must abstain from this

custom… I came to protect their lives and property, and to teach them that they

were to adore but one God… that they must turn from their idols, and the rites

they had practiced for these were lies which the devil had invented… I, likewise,

had come to teach them that your Majesty rules the universe, and that they also

must submit themselves to you and do all that we, who are Your Majesty’s

ministers here, might order them.”

Write the answer in your spiral under notes, in a complete sentence, and title

Cortes Quote:

What does this letter tell us about Cortes’ attitude towards Aztec Culture?

The Conquest of Peru

• In 1530, Francisco Pizarro set sail from

Panama to conquer the Inca of Peru.

• Fortunately for Pizarro, he arrived just

when the Inca were recovering from a

massive Civil War. Pretending friendship,

Pizarro invited the Incan Emperor to visit

him. Pizarro and his army ambushed the

Incans and murdered the emperor.

• Pizarro was able to conquer the Incan

capital by 1533. The Spanish treated the

conquered Indians harshly. They were

forced to accept Christianity and to labor

for their new rulers.

COLONIAL LATIN AMERICA

• Although the Spanish did not find the cities of gold they had hoped for, they were able to

assert their dominance, religion and culture on the native tribes. This region was

transformed into Latin America.

• Government

• Viceroys- Spain ruled its property through special governors known as viceroys.

Officials born in Spain filled the most important positions in the colonial government

and military.

• Society

• They used Native Americans to till the land and work the mines