Topic 12: Voyages of Discovery
Objectives
Knowledge
1.
2.
3.
To understand the voyages of discovery of the 15th and 16th
centuries and their importance.
To know how the voyages began and the motivations behind.
To understand the importance of these voyages in history.
Skills
1.
2.
3.
To read to learn
To have critical thinking
To read maps
Attitude
To appreciate that a lot of food and goods we enjoy today originated in
other parts of the world
Teaching Flow
Items
1
Format
Question to
ponder
To know
more
A question
3
Task 1
Map
labeling
4
Task 2
Map
labeling
5
Task 3
6
Task 4
Data-based
questions
and group
activity
Data-based
activity
7
Extended
activities
Journal
writing /
film review
8
To know
more (2)
Conclusion
Websites
2
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Brief
introduction
Summary
chart
Teaching Objectives
Content
To provoke students’ thinking of
this topic
To let students know the
beginning of voyages of
discovery
To assess students’ understanding
of the key geographical places in
the topic
To let students find out where the
explorations took place
How and why did the
voyages of discovery begin?
Story about Prince Henry the
Navigator
To let students find out the main
motives behind these explorations
and think about the difficulties
explorers might encounter
To let students know about the
new plants introduced to Europe
as a result of exploration
To let students explore more into
this topic
Classification of different
types of motives and group
brainstorming on the possible
difficulties in the voyages
The various New World
crops
To introduce useful websites on
this topic
To consolidate the knowledge and
concepts learned in this topic
A map which shows oceans
and key places in this topic
Some of the famous routes in
the Age of Exploration
Journal writing: imaginary
journal by a sailor / explorer /
native / spice trader
Film review: Disney's
Pocahontas (1995)
Websites related to the
voyages of discovery
Motives and impact of the
voyages of discovery
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Question to ponder
How and why did the voyages of discovery
begin?
To know more (1)
How did the voyages of discovery all begin?
Some books mention Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460) for promoting sea-faring
but they seldom make it clear what he did. He was actually quite an important person in
the history of discovery, because his efforts in early stage proved to be quite profitable. He
started a school for map-making and sailing, and he also invested in voyages which
discovered Madeira and the Azores islands in the Atlantic Ocean in the 1420s. These
islands were colonised by Portugal and they became very profitable as producers of cane
sugar.
Task 1: Where did the voyages of discovery take place?
Do you know the names of the oceans (Atlantic, Indian), the continents (North and South
America, Africa), and the locations of India and China? Study Source A, identify and label the
following places on the map below.
2
Source A
Atlantic Ocean
China
India
1.
Pacific Ocean
Indian Ocean
America
Portugal & Spain
Cape of Good Hope
2.
5.
3.
6.
4.
7.
Source: Department of History, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
8.
Topic 12: Voyages of Discovery
Suggested answer:
1. America
2. Portugal & Spain
3. India
4. China
6. Atlantic Ocean 7. Cape of Good Hope 8. Indian Ocean
5. Pacific Ocean
Task 2: Discoveries of new routes
Study Source B about the discoveries of the Cape of Good Hope route, the Atlantic route and
the Indian route and then plot the three routes on the following map in Source A.
Source B shows some of the most famous voyages made by Europeans in the 15th century:
1. 1488 - Diaz - Portuguese sailor to reach the Cape of Good Hope
2. 1492 - Columbus - Italian explorer to make the first voyage across the Atlantic
Ocean from Spain, reaching the Americas
3. 1498 - da Gama - Portuguese explorer who reached India, going round the Cape of
Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa and then across the Indian Ocean
Suggested answer:
3
Task 3: What were the motives behind these voyages of discovery?
Source C is about the motives for voyages of discovery from the mid-15th century to
the early 16th century.
Sugar cane could not grow in Europe, and so what did Europeans do for sugar? The most
straightforward answer was to get it from far away lands. Another reason for the voyages
was the attraction of finding a sea route to Asia. Europeans by the mid-15th century were
looking for a route whereby they could import spices, which were grown in Southeast
Asia, especially India.
The most famous example was Christopher Columbus, who raised the money he needed
by suggesting that he could find the route to India. However, he finally sailed west and
arrived at the Americas, which was then called 'the West Indies'.
In the end, it was Portuguese traders who succeeded to control the route to India by going
round Africa and made large profits from the spice trade. In the early 16th century, they
reached China. Thus, tea was soon imported in large quantities from China, and silver
from the new world was sent not only to Europe but also to China.
As one can see, many European explorers were driven by profit from trade, but there was
always also a religious element in it, in the belief that the new routes could promote the
spreading of Christianity.
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1.
According to Source C, which continent was the main target of the European
explorers? Support your answer with one clue.
Suggested answer: Asia was their target because they wanted to import spices into
Europe.
2.
Why do you think this continent was particularly attractive to the explorers?
Suggested answer: A lot of goods precious in European societies were from Asia e.g.
sugar cane, tea, spices, and silk. Exploration could lead to large
profits.
3. Can you identify two types of motives behind the explorations? Try to complete the
following diagram:
Suggested answers:
Motives behind the
voyages
Economic motives
To trade precious goods such as
sugar ,
tea
,
and
spice
Religious
To spread
motives
Christianity
Topic 12: Voyages of Discovery
Source D
A model of ship introduced in the mid-15th century for ocean exploration.
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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PotugueseCaravel.jpg
4. Group discussion
Study Sources C and D. Imagine your group would be a ship crew on a voyages to the
East in the 15th century. What kind of difficulties would your crew encounter in the
journey? Present your ideas to the class.
Hints: - What types of technology useful for long voyages were not available back then?
- What problems would the scale and length of the journey create?
- A dramatic enactment of the difficulties would be fun!
Suggested answer:
The explorer had to sail in uncharted waters, they had never sailed such a long distance
in open sea (compare sailing by the coast to sailing across the ocean). Many journeys
lasted for months, or even more than a year. Many parts of the Atlantic and Pacific
Ocean, especially the Cape of Good Hope, were dangerous seas to sail round.
Also, there was a lack of technology and general knowledge on preserving food
throughout the journeys. Starvation and diseases were common causes of death on the
ships.
Task 4: What was the impact of the new voyages?
Study Sources E and F carefully and then answer the questions.
Source E
1
2
3
細閱資料 E 及 F，然後回答以下問題。
資料 E
6
4
5
6
7
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:New_World_Domesticated_plants.JPG )
Source F tells us about the major changes in the “New World”.
Today, food such as maize, potatoes, tomatoes and coffee are the basic ingredients of many
types of food in Europe. They were virtually non-existent in Europe before the 15th
century!
The discovery of new trade routes and new continents was a very major development in
European history and culture. In the first place, trade increased, especially for the cities on
the Atlantic coast. The centre of trade and industry soon shifted away from the
Mediterranean to this part of Europe. Secondly, many products, including new crops, found
their way not only into Europe, but also to all parts of the world.
Among the most noted new crops which originated in America were potatoes, corn,
tobacco, and peanuts. These came to be known as the “New World crops”. In the “Old
World”, their introduction led to an increase in food supply and so, in the next few
centuries, a substantial increase in population. The population started to grow more quickly
and a new class of merchants emerged. (To appreciate the change, think about this question:
what did Europeans eat before they had potato?)
However, contact between people who had always been kept apart also spread disease.
Smallpox spread from the Old World to the New World, killing most of its population. In
return, syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease, spread to the Old World, and persist to
nowadays.
Topic 12: Voyages of Discovery
1. Can you point out all the plants in the pictures of Source E?
Suggested answer:
1. Maize
2. Tomato
3. Potato
4. Vanilla
5. Tobacco
6. Coca
7. Rubber
2. How do you think these plants were related to the voyages of discovery in the 15-16th
centuries? Support your answer with clues from Source F.
Suggested answer:
In Source F, these plants were called “New World Crops”. Because of voyages of discovery,
they were introduced into Europe.
3. According to Source F, what were the major changes to the following aspects of European
society? Describe the changes briefly and give examples if you can.
Suggested answer:
Diet
Health
New crops introduced e.g. maize, potatoes, tomatoes etc.
many diseases began to spread e.g. smallpox (Old World to New World) and
syphilis (New World to Old World)
Population grew quickly
Trade
grew quickly, interchange between East and West increased
4. For each item above, can you think of at least one positive and one negative effect?
Diet
Good - new sources of nutrients for European population
Bad - trade of local products would be affected / ecosystem might be upset
Health
Good - helped scientists understand the origins and nature of the diseases
Bad - many people in both New and Old World would be killed
Population Good - essential for future industrial growth
Bad - shortage of food and housing might suddenly arise
Trade
Good - new contacts between East and West fostered understanding between
each other
Bad - easily led to widespread exploitation of the New World
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Extended Activities:
1. Journal Writing:
Imagine you are one of the followings: an explorer, a sailor on a voyage ship, a native in
America, or an Indian spice trader.
(a) Draw a series of comics OR
(b) Write a series of journal entries showing your experiences and encounters with other
cultures.
2. Film review: Walt Disney's Pocahontas (1995)
In your review, comment on the followings:
 What motives drove the British to take over the new land (America)?
 How does the film show the different cultures of the British and the natives?
 What is the relationship between the British and the natives?
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 After learning the topic of ‘voyages of discovery’, do you think the film effectively
shows both the goods and harms of European exploration of the time?
To know more (2)
The University of Calgary has a very informative website on the voyages of discovery.
Especially interesting is an animated map which shows the routes of several major
explorers and how they related to wind and current. You will find the website under
http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/eurvoya/index.html.
For the animated map, look under “Knowledge and Power”, and then “The sailing map”,
or directly at http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/eurvoya/map.html .
Topic 12: Voyages of Discovery
CONCLUSION
New trade routes across the Atlantic and down the African coast and across the Indian Ocean
to East Asia opened up many new opportunities. More trade resulted, and new crops spread to
all parts of the world. However, contact across continents also exposed large populations to
diseases which they had not previously suffered.
Rise of Science
Renaissance
Interest in the world
Desire for knowledge
Economic motives:
Demand for new goods
(sugar, spices …)
Age of Exploration
th
(15-16 centuries)
Religious motive:
Desire to spread
Christianity
Voyages
1420s Prince Henry directed voyages along Africa
1487 Dias reached Cape of Good Hope
1492 Columbus reached Central America
1498 da Gama discovered a sea route to Asia
1519 Magellan's crew sailed around the world
Positive Impact
New knowledge about Asia & America
Trade flourished
New World crops introduced
European Population grew
Negative Impact
Disease spread
Imperialism
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