European Exploration

What were the motives for European sea exploration?

What were the motives for European sea exploration?

• Europeans had grown accustomed to luxury items from China, India and Southeast Asia

• Precious metals & spices

• Began looking for a direct route by sea, instead of by land

What advances in technology also lead to sea exploration??

• Compass and Muslim knowledge of the stars allowed accurate plotting of courses

• Caravels: smaller more maneuverable cargo ships developed by the Portuguese

• Incorporated lateen sails, rear rudders & cannons

Why was Portugal in a good spot to begin European sea exploration?

Why was Portugal in a good spot to begin European sea exploration?

• Geographic location–Western edge of the Iberian Peninsula

–Good access to the Atlantic Ocean & Mediterranean Sea

Why was Prince Henry of Portugal called Henry the Navigator?

Why was Prince Henry of Portugal called Henry the Navigator?

• Third son of Portugal’s King Henry

• 1415, started a sailing and navigation school in Sagres

• Expanded & strengthened the Portuguese navy

Who were Bartholomeu Dias & Vasco da Gama?

Who were Bartholomeu Dias & Vasco da Gama?

• Portuguese captains

• Dias sailed around the Cape of Good Hope

• Da Gama sailed around the southern tip of Africa to India

• Provided a sea route to the east

What did Columbus promise Ferdinand & Isabella?

What did Columbus promise Ferdinand & Isabella?

• Riches (Gold & Spices)

• New Territory

• Catholic Converts

How did Columbus’s journey go?

• August 1492, set sail from Palos Spain on the Nina, Pinta & Santa Maria

• Reached the Bahamas October 12, 1492

• Believed he had reached the Indies, islands near Japan

• Named the natives Indians

• Columbus named the Island for Spain