Quaestio: What aspects of the story of the “discovery” of the “New World” are most valuable to us as history?

Nunc Agenda: Complete the DBQ worksheet…

“What Motivated Europeans to

Explore?”

Three Major MotivationsGOLD

Three Major MotivationsGOD

Three Major MotivationsGLORY

The Need for Spices!All the best trade goods came from Asia (spices, silks, etc)Black Death and fall of the Mongol Empire weakened tradeAsia-Europe trade was dominated by Arabs and ItaliansOther European countries wanted access to trade with AsiaMost important place = Moluccas (modern day Indonesia)

Known as the “Spice Islands” or the “East Indies”

A new route to the Indies had to be found!!!

Indian Ocean Trade

Silk Road

Moluccas (aka Spice Islands)

Around Africa to AsiaPortugal sponsored first explorations

1415- Prince Henry conquered Canary Islands, Madeira, and Azores near Spain1488- With the help of cartogrpahers, Bartholomeu Dias successfully navigated around the Southern tip of Africa (named Cape of Good Hope)1497- Vasco De Gama made it all the way to India made enormous profits (though many in his crew died of scurvy)

Go West to Go EastItalian navigator Christopher Columbus convinces Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain to finance his idea to get the Indies by going West around the Earth (underestimated Earth’s size)Spain had just completed the Reconquista, expelling Muslims and Jews, who took much wealth and knowledge with them, and F and I wanted to strengthen their power, so they were desperate

So… Where Are We Exactly?

1492- Columbus instead found the Americas in his way, but first mistook them for the IndiesWhen it was clear this was NOT Asia, F & I asked the Pope (also Spanish) to grant Spain all of the New WorldPope set the Line of Demarcation dividing the non-European world between Portugal (East) and Spain (West)

Just a Little Further…French, Dutch, English try to find a way across through the North… no luck1513- Vasco Nuñez de Balboa crosses Panama and finds the Pacific Ocean!1519- Ferdinand Magellan and his crew sailed all the way around the bottom of South America (1520), and then 4 months later made it to the Philippines, where Magellan was killedBy 1521 the rest of the crew made it back to Spain, having circumnavigated the globe

Quaestio: What aspects of the story of the “discovery” of the “New World” are most valuable to us as history?

Activity: Read the documents related to the story of Columbus, answer the questions, and then consider the Quaestio…