Age of Exploration
1400s to 1700s
Motives
Search for new trade routes wanted to find a
quicker way to Asia
Desire for new products
Crusades and travels
of Marco Polo stimulated an interest in Asian
goods
Technology improved that allowed overseas
exploration; gunpowder allowed Europeans to
dominate
Religion
Christian rulers wanted to spread
religion
Effects
Native American civilizations destroyed
European diseases killed millions of Native
Americans
European powers built extensive overseas empires
Large numbers of Europeans moved to Americas
Native American crops (corn, potato, tomato)
brought to Europe [Colombian Exchange]
Demand for African slaves increased
Capitalism expanded with growth of trade
Cultural exchanges occurred [cultural diffusion]
Christopher Columbus
Accidentally found
America while looking
for a westward route
to Asia
His voyages
considered a turning
point in history
Vasco da Gama
Discovered an allwater route from
Europe to India
Ferdinand Magellan
First person credited
with circumnavigating
the world
Hernando Cortes
Conquered the Aztec
Empire in Mexico in
1519
Francisco Pizarro
Conquered the Inca
Empire in Peru in
1833
Marco Polo
Traveled to China
[court of Kublai Khan]
and brought back
stories and goods to
Europe
Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade
1500s to 1800s
Causes
Europeans wanted cheap labor for work in
the Americas
Due to the demands of the agricultural
economies of the New World
The native peoples of America did not survive
the labor
Effects
Encouraged African warfare
tribes went to war with other tribes to obtain slaves to
trade for guns
Disrupted African culture
it created a legacy of violence, bitterness and social
upheaval
Increased cultural diffusion
Slaves brought their songs and culture to New World
Prejudice against Africans
Imperialism
Domination by one country over the
political, economic, or cultural life of
another country or region
Causes
Economic
Social
Need for raw
materials
created by
Industrial
Revolution
Desire for
place to invest
excess capital
Drive to
spread
Christianity
Political
Desire for
great power
status
[White Man’s
Competitive
Burden]
drive to gain
Rule by
control of an
strongest and
area (for
fittest- need to
military)
spread superior
before a rival
culture [Social
could do so
Darwinism]
Some Examples
Spanish control of Latin America [old
imperialism]
British control of India
Berlin Conference to divide Africa
Japanese control of Manchuria
Positive Effects
Built roads, railroads, and bridges
Education improved
Improved medical care
Food supply increased
Brought stability and unification to some
areas
Created industries, improved standard of
living
Negative Effects
People with common backgrounds separated
Natural resources exploited
Native cultures damaged
Promoted racism
Economic self-sufficiency lost
Destroyed traditional patterns of trade
Cash crop overemphasized
Family life disrupted
Introduced Western vices and diseases