AP – Chapter 15: Exploration
I. Discovery & Expansion (1450 – 1650)
1. “Age of Discovery “– advances in geographical knowledge & technology.
2. “Age of Reconnaissance” – preliminary exploration that provided later explorers
with a fairly accurate physical outline of the entire earth.
3.
“Age of Expansion” – migration of Europeans to other parts of the world which
was accomplished by economic exploitation, religious domination and the
introduction of European patterns of social and intellectual life.
A. Overseas Exploration & Conquest
1. Viking exploration and colonization during the 9th century led to Viking
settlements in Iceland, Ireland, England, Normandy, and as far as
Siciliy.
a. Great Viking explorers who reached North America centuries before
Columbus.
1. Leif Ericson & Eric the Red
2. Ottoman Turks (1450’s)
a. Sultan Mohammed II – expanded his empire into the Balkans in
Eastern Europe.
1. Ottoman control of the Middle East forced European to look for
an alternative sea route to Asian spice markets.
3. Centralizing monarchies of western Europe could financially support
foreign ventures.
B. Portuguese Exploration (map – pg.504)
1. Capture of Cueta (1415) Arab city in northern Morocco
2. Prince Henry “the Navigator” (1394 – 1460)
a. established a school for the study of geography and navigation
and for the annual expeditions down the west coast of Africa.
b. under King John II – Henry established strongholds along the Gold
Coast (Guinea Coast) & penetrated inland to the city of Timbuktu
where he opened the flow of gold from Africa to Lisbon, Portugal.
3. Bartholomeu Diaz (1487) – 1st to round tip of Africa, Cape of Good
Hope.
4. Vasco da Gamma (1497 – 1499) rounded the cape and reached India
returning with spices and Indian cloth.
5. Pedro Cabral (1500) – claimed the coast of Brazil for the crown of
Portugal. Then rounded cape horn reaching
India & returned to Europe.
6. Establishment of Portuguese Imperialism in Asia (16th & 17th century)
a. Portuguese use naval attacks using cannon to capture and occupy
Muslim forts and trading centers along the Indian Ocean.
b. Portuguese dominate the spice trade by using captured Muslim trading
post.
AP – Chapter 15: Exploration
B. Technological Stimuli to Exploration
1. Cannon (1350) – bronze or iron guns had been fully developed in western
Europe = mounted on ships gave impetus to European expansion.
2. Caravel Ship (15th century) – developed by the Portuguese, small, light, 3
–masted ships which replaced the galley ship. The Caravels deep hull,
large cargo space, and relatively small crew made it the perfect vessel for
overseas trade.
3. Navigation: magnetic compass, astrolabe, nocturnal enabled sailors to
navigate the Atlantic Ocean.
C. Explorer Motives:
1. Material profit = predominant reason for exploration
2. Religion = converting pagans to Christianity
3. Opportunity = enterprising young men of the Spanish upper class had
limited economic and political opportunities at home – used exploration as a
means of seeking their own fortune
4. Government sponsorship & encouragement of exploration
5. Renaissance curiosity about the physical universe = desire to know more
about the geography and people of the world
a. General History of the Indies (1547) Fernandez de Oviedo = detailed
eyewitness account of plants, animals, and peoples – widely read
6. Spices: added flavor to the European diet, used in medicinal drugs,
incense in religious ceremonies. The rise of Ming dynasty in China led to
the expulsion of foreigners, penetration of the Ottoman Turks into eastern
Mediterranean forced Europeans to seek a new route to Asia