Age of Exploration: Discoveries, Routes, and Empires
Age of Exploration: Discoveries and Routes
In the 15th century, there were many discoveries. Marco Polo journeyed to India, China, and Japan. The rest of the world was a mystery. Maritime expeditions began in the 15th century because:
- They needed to find new trade routes to the East. In 1453, the Turks conquered Constantinople.
- There were technical advances:
- New maps called Portolan charts showed the coastline and obstacles.
- Navigational instruments, such as the compass, astrolabe, and quadrant, were developed.
- Ships and caravels could travel longer distances.
Portuguese Exploration
In the 15th century, Portugal had been looking for new sea routes to India around the coast of Africa. The Portuguese monarch and Prince Henry the Navigator discovered Madeira (1418) and the Azores (1431). Bartolomeu Dias (1488) rounded the Cape of Good Hope at the south of Africa, opening the sea route to the Indian Ocean. Vasco da Gama (1498) reached India.
Castilian Voyages
The Crown of Castile was Portugal’s biggest rival in the search for new routes to India. The Castilians decided to sail west across the Atlantic, which was risky and terrifying.
Christopher Columbus was convinced he could reach the eastern coast of Asia by crossing the Atlantic Ocean. He presented his project to the Catholic Monarchs, who decided to finance the expedition. On August 3, 1492, an expedition of ninety sailors and three ships left the port of Palos de la Frontera in Huelva. Finally, they saw land on October 12, 1492. Columbus thought he had reached Cipango (Japan), but the land belonged to an unknown continent: America. In 1504, Columbus finally returned to Spain, where he died two years later, still firmly convinced that he had reached India. However, in 1502, an Italian sailor, Amerigo Vespucci, had already realized that these lands belonged to a new continent, which was named America in his honor.
Magellan’s Circumnavigation
In 1519, an expedition of five boats and 250 sailors left Seville, captained by Ferdinand Magellan, with his second-in-command, Juan Sebastián Elcano. Their goal was to find a passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans to the Moluccas, or Spice Islands, in Asia. In 1520, they found a strait connecting both oceans. It was later named the Strait of Magellan. There, Magellan was killed in a fight with the natives, and Elcano took command. The expedition headed for the Moluccas and loaded up with valuable spices. After three years, only eighteen men and one ship, the Victoria, returned. They were the first to circumnavigate the world and prove that the Earth was round.
Empires and Consequences
Portugal and Spain created great overseas empires. To prevent problems between the two countries, unexplored regions were divided between them in the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494. Portugal received territories east of the line: Africa, Asia, and Brazil. Castile received territories west of the line: most of the territories in the Americas. These explorations marked the beginning of European supremacy over the rest of the world. The discoveries brought major progress in science. Knowledge of the lands and oceans and animal species were discovered. However, diseases introduced by the Europeans caused a dramatic decline in the indigenous population of America.
European Crisis and Recovery
In the 14th century, Europe suffered a crisis as a result of poor harvests, wars, and illness; many people died. In the 15th century, the situation improved, and in the 16th century, the population grew, and the economy recovered due to the demand for agricultural products. The most influential cities were Venice, Florence, Lisbon, Seville, and London. Society was divided into three estates: the noblemen and clergy, who didn’t pay taxes; the burgers, who were rich and powerful merchants; and the peasants, the majority of whom were very poor, and in many places, they were no longer serfs.
Iberian Peninsula in the 15th Century
In the 15th century, the Iberian Peninsula was divided into five territories: the Crown of Castile, the Crown of Aragon, the Kingdom of Navarre, the Kingdom of Portugal, and the Kingdom of Granada. The Crown of Castile experienced continuous revolts of the nobles in the 15th century.