Explorers ReviewFrom:

www.mrnussbaum.com/explorersflash.htm

Portugal – Prince Henry (the Navigator)

O Portugal was the first European country that sent explorers to search for the sea route to Asia. Prince Henry the Navigator started a school of navigation and financed the first voyages to the west coast of Africa. In the 1400's, however, sailors were afraid of sea monsters and boiling hot water at the Equator, so progress was slow.

Silk RoadO Polo detailed his experiences and findings in China by

writing a book. Polo described materials and inventions never before seen in Europe. Paper money, a printing press, porcelain, gunpowder and coal were among the products he wrote about. He also described the vast wealth of Kublai Khan, as well as the geography of northern and southern China. European rulers were very interested in the products Polo described and his account inspired a generation of explorers. However, trading for them along the Silk Road was dangerous, expensive and impractical. European rulers began to wonder if there was a sea route to the east to get the products they wanted at a reasonable price.

Spices and the Spice Islands

O European rulers wanted to find a sea route to the Indies (primarily the archipelago known as the Spice Islands) so they could acquire spices, silks, and other products common in the East Indies at a low price. Spices were most important and very expensive in Europe, particularly after the terrestrial trading routes in eastern Europe and Asia were eliminated. Spices were used to preserve meat, mask the bad taste of spoiled food, and to make themselves smell better. Ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and pepper were among the spices most coveted.

O Getting to the Spice Islands, now known as Indonesia, would inspire the greatest explorers in world history to embark on treacherous sea voyages that would take years to complete.

Portugal – Vasco da Gama

O After Bartholomew Dias and his crew made it to Africa's Cape of Good Hope, Vasco da Gama and his crew became the first to sail around Africa and through the Indian Ocean to India.

Spain - MagellanO Was looking for a western route to Asia.O He and his crew became the first to sail

through the Straits of Magellan (at the southern tip of South America), and into the Pacific Ocean to Asia.

O The Magellan journey was the first circumnavigation of the world (although he was killed before he made it).

O Named the Pacific Ocean because he thought it was calm.

Spain - Columbus

O Spain, however, would soon take over the lead in exploration.

O When Portugal refused to finance Christopher Columbus' idea to sail west to find the shortcut to the Indies, he convinced Spain's King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to finance it. On October 12, 1492, Christopher Columbus and his crew reached the island of Hispaniola after three months in the Atlantic Ocean. Although Columbus believed he had reached Asia, he had actually discovered the entire continent of North America and claimed it for Spain.

Spain – de Leon

O Spain quickly colonized North America. In 1513, Ponce de Leon discovered Florida while searching for the mythical Fountain of Youth. The first permanent European settlement in the New World was later established at St. Augustine in 1565.

Fountain of YouthO After the west Indies were discovered by

Columbus, some Spanish explorers began searching for legendary places and things. As governor of Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de Leon heard stories of a magical fountain. According to the stories, anyone who drank from this fountain would remain young forever. De Leon spent five years trying to find the island of Bimini, where the fountain was said to be. Although he never found Bimini, his travels resulted in the discovery of Florida and the first European settlement in the new world – St. Augustine.

Spain - continued

O Meanwhile, Hernando Cortes crushed the Aztec empire in Mexico and claimed all of Mexico for Spain.

O Francisco Pizarro did the same to the Incan Empire in South America.

O Other explorers such as Francisco Coronado and Hernando de Soto claimed other portions of North America for Spain.

O Vasco Nunez de Balboa even claimed the entire Pacific Ocean for Spain.

O As the Spanish empire grew, explorers forced native populations into slavery and to convert to Christianity.

Converting NativesO One of the goals of most explorers in the New World was to

spread the Christian faith and to eradicate the “pagans” and “idols” worshipped by indigenous peoples of the Pacific islands. Kings, queens, and explorers alike believed it was their divine duty to convert indigenous people to Christianity in order to save their souls. In deed some explorers, such as Ferdinand Magellan, believed they were an instrument of God in this endeavor. Many native peoples, in awe of the magnitude and power of Spanish fleets, or, told that conversion would make their armies undefeatable, more willingly converted and watched as large crosses were erected on the highest point of the their island. Men, women, and children were baptized and swore allegiance to Jesus Christ and the monarch currently in power. Others were forcibly converted to Christianity, and those who resisted were killed or had their villages burned down. Magellan himself was killed in the Philippines by Mactan warriors in 1521 after burning a village to the ground when they refused to convert.

Seven Cities of CibolaO Shortly after Spain invaded and conquered Mexico,

stories began to surface of seven cities in northern Mexico. According to legend, the beautiful cities were filled with unimaginable riches. The people of the cities were said to use silver and gold to fashion regular objects. The Spanish government sent several expeditions to investigate.

O When Francisco Vazquez de Coronado brought an army of 300 to find the cities, all he saw were some poor Zuni pueblos. Coronado sent search parties to Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico but still never found the cities of Cibola. Nevertheless, his searches resulted in the discovery of the Grand Canyon as well as the acquisition of all lands he explored for Spain.

Northwest PassageO As Europeans became aware of the “New World” to the

west, many still remained determined to find a shortcut to Asia. This led to the fabled search for the Northwest Passage – a potential shortcut through the newly found continent of North America to Asia.

O With new ship technology that enabled better navigation, searches for the Northwest Passage dominated exploration in the 1500′s and 1600′s. Voyages led by French explorers Jacques Cartier and Giovanni da Verrazano proved that there was not a water passage through the new continent. English explorers such as Henry Hudson and William Baffin searched for the Northwest Passage by trying to sail north of North America, but were met by forbidding arctic climate, snowstorms and icebergs

France

O Meanwhile, France began to explore North America.

O Explorations by Giovanni Verrazano and Jacques Cartier resulted in French claims of much of Canada and the north Atlantic coast. O Giovanni Verrazano was the first European to

explore much of America’s east coast claiming much of it for France.

O Cartier’s explorations set the stage for Champlain’s settlement of New France at Quebec.

France – Samuel de Champlain

O Explored the coasts of eastern Canada and the United States.

O Sailed into the St. Lawrence River to mainland Quebec.

O Started the first permanent French colony at Quebec in 1608.

England - CabotO Also looking for the Northwest

PassageO Crossed the Atlantic Ocean and

explored parts of eastern Canada such as Newfoundland and Nova Scotia.

O His explorations resulted in England’s first claims in Canada.

England – DrakeO England would soon attempt to make its presence

known by financing pirates such as Francis Drake to plunder Spanish settlements and steal gold from Spanish sea vessels. England also established its first settlement in the New World at Roanoke Island, North Carolina.

O Territorial disputes and constant pirating resulted in a series of major wars between the competing nations (1585-88). In 1588, the British Army defeated the vaunted Spanish Armada. The British victory proved a serious blow to Spanish influence in the New World.

O Drake became the first explorer to successfully circumnavigate the world.