I. FACTORS THAT ENCOURAGED EUROPEAN
OVERSEAS EXPLORATION
A. The Renaissance Spirit of Individualism
1. The explorers embodied the same spirit of individualism and curiosity that characterized
Renaissance artists and humanist scholars.
2. The renewed interest in ancient writings that inspired Renaissance artists also gave the explorers new knowledge about mathematics, astronomy and geography.
B. The Search for Spice and Profits
1. The Crusades helped stimulate a growing demand for Indian pepper, Chinese ginger, and Malukan cloves and nutmeg.
2. By the 14 th century, European demand for Asian spices and luxury items far exceeded the supply.
3. The new monarchs in Spain and Portugal wanted direct access to the lucrative Asian markets.

C. The Desire to Cultivate Cash Crops
1. A strong and growing demand for sugar motivated
Europeans to look for lands suitable for cultivating this prized cash crop and where they could establish plantations.
D. The Desire to Spread Christianity
1. The Crusades left a legacy of hostility between
Christians and Muslims.
2. Led by Spain and Portugal, Europeans hoped to reconquer northern Africa from the Muslims.
E. The Ability to Use New Technology
1. The newly designed caravel had square sails for running before the wind and triangular sails for tacking into the wind.
2. The magnetic compass and the astrolabe enabled mariners to determine their location at sea.

II. PORTUGAL: EAST BY SEA TO AN EMPIRE OF SPICES
A. Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460)
1. Prince Henry organized voyages along the west coast of Africa.
2. By the time of his death, the Portuguese had established a series of trading posts along the West African coast. These posts did a thriving business in gold and slaves.

B. The Portuguese Trading Post
Empire
1. Key explorers
-Bartholomew Diaz rounded the Cape of Good Hope and returned to Portugal in 1488.
-Vasco da Gama reached the
Malabar coast of India in 1498 and returned to Portugal with a cargo of pepper and cinnamon worth 60 times the cost of the expedition.
-Pedro Cabral accidentally discovered Brazil in 1500 while sailing to India. He returned to
Portugal with 300,000 pounds of spices.

2. Commercial trading posts
-The Portuguese did not attempt to conquer territories. Instead, they built fortified trading posts designed to control trading routes.
-The most important Portuguese trading posts were located at Goa on the Indian coast, at Malacca on the Malay peninsula, and at Macao on the southern coast of China.

C. Consequences
1. The Portuguese ended the Venetian and Muslim monopoly of trade with Asia.
2. The center of European commerce shifted from the
Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.
3. The new sea routes reduced the importance of the Baltic Sea.
33).

III. SPAIN: THE WEST BY SEA TO A
NEW WORLD
A. Christopher Columbus (1451-1506)
1. Although he believed that he had reached Asia, Columbus had in fact discovered Caribbean islands that were part of a vast New World.
2. Columbus’s voyages helped to propel Spain into the forefront of
European exploration, conquest, and settlement.

B. The Spanish Conquests
1. Hernando Cortes conquered the Aztec empire in Mexico (1519-
1521).
2. Francisco Pizarro conquered the Inca empire in Peru (1532-15

C. Spanish America
1. By the end of the 16 th century, Spain possessed an American empire twenty times its own size.
2. The Aztecs and other indigenous peoples were converted to
Christianity and became subjects of the Spanish King.
3. The king of Spain governed his American empire through a
Council of the Indies in Spain and through his viceroys in Mexico City and Lima, Peru.

IV. THE COLUMBIAN EXACHANGE
A. Introduction
1. The Age of Exploration, also called the Age of Discovery, involved more than just the search for gold, silver, and spices.
2. The new discoveries sparked an unprecedented global diffusion of agricultural products, animals, diseases, and human populations.
B. New World to Old World
1. Agricultural products: potatoes, maize (corn), tomatoes, peanuts, tobacco, vanilla, and chocolate
2. Animals: turkeys
3. Diseases: syphilis
C. Old World to New World
1. Agricultural products: coffee, cane sugar, wheat, and rice
2. Animals: cows, horses, pigs, sheep, goats, and chickens
3. Diseases: smallpox, measles, and diphtheria
4. Human populations: European colonists and African slaves

D. Consequences of the Columbian Exchange
1. For the New World
-European diseases decimated indigenous populations. Approximately
90% of indigenous Americans perished between 1492-1600.
- The introduction of the horse transformed the culture of the Plains
Indians of North America.

2. For Europe
- The new crops revolutionized the European diet and helped feed a growing population.
- The new Caribbean sugar plantations along with the rich silver and gold mines in Peru brought an influx of wealth to Spain that helped trigger inflation.
- The wealth generated by the New World colonies dramatically increased the power of western Europe.

3. For Africa
- The wealth generated by the New World sugar and tobacco plantations promoted the triangular trading system and trans-Atlantic slave trade.
- Between 1500-1800, Africans comprised the largest group of people transported to the New World.

V. THE COMMERCIAL REVOLUTION
A. Causes
1. New Ocean Trade Routes
- The trade in spices, sugar, and precious metals brought great wealth to the European trading nations.
- The wealth supported increased investment and new economic ventures.
2. Growth of Population
- The introduction of new foods played a key role in population growth.
- Europe’s population from 1500-1600 increased from 70-90 million.
- The rise in population increased overall demand for goods and services.
3. Price Revolution
- During the 16 th century, the western European economy experienced a steady inflation in prices due to the influx of gold and silver from the
New World and the rising demand created by the rising population.
4. New nation-centered economic system
- As commercial activity increased, a new nation-centered economic system began to replace the old town-and-guild framework.

B. Key Features
1. New Entrepreneurs
- The expansion of commercial activity created large geographic markets.
- As the commercial revolution replaced the town-and-guild framework, merchants and bankers emerged as successful entrepreneurs.
- The Medici in Italy and Fuggers in Germany are examples.
2. New Industries
- The printing press created an international market for books.
- New ocean trading routes sparked a rise in shipbuilding.
- The emergence of nation-states supported the large scale manufacture of cannons and muskets.

3. New Domestic or Putting-Out System
- Strict guild guidelines stifled competition and restricted production.
- To avoid the guild system, entrepreneurs provided cloth, looms, and other equipment to rural families which led to a significant increase in the production of cloth and other manufactured goods.

4. New Joint-Stock Companies
- The new international trade required unprecedented amounts of capital. For example, merchants had to arm their ships, buy special privileges of local authorities, and build trading posts.
War, storms, and rivals all threatened profits.
- English and Dutch merchants formed joint-stock companies to maximize profits and limit risks.
- Investors in joint-stock companies bought shares of ownership. If the company went bankrupt, its owners lost their investment. If the companies prospered, the investor’s shares of ownership entitled them to collect a proportional share of the profits.

C. Mercantilism
1. The rulers of the new nation-states adopted a system of economic principles and policies called mercantilism.
2. Mercantilists wanted to build strong, selfsufficient economies.
3. According to mercantilist theory, colonies should export raw materials and import finished goods. This would create a favorable balance of trade.

D. Consequences
1. Rise of capitalism
- Capitalism is an economic system in which capital, or wealth, is invested to produce more capital.
- Capitalism is based upon private ownership of property and a desire for profit.
2. Rise of the bourgeoisie
- As commercial capitalism expanded so did the wealth and power of the class of entrepreneurs. This new middle class is called the bourgeoisie.