Early European Explorers

1
Early European Explorers

• As Europeans searched for sea routes to Asia,
  Christopher Columbus reaches the Americas.

2
Why Explore?
3
Henry the Navigator

• Started a school on the coast
• Portugal.
• Organized sailing expeditions.
• Motivations
• Find African gold
• Learn more about geography
• Spread Christianity

4
Bartolomeu Dias

• Portuguese develop a new ship
• called the Caravel
• Triangular sails made it faster/better
• Dias will sail in a caravel and reach the
• southern tip of Africa.
• Named is the Cape of Good Hope
• Bc they hoped they had found a route
• to Asia.

5
Vasco da Gama

• Ten years later, da Gama follows Diass route
• Continues north around Africa and reaches India
• First person to find an all-water route to Asia

6
Portugal Grows Rich

• Portugal will take control of the spice trade
  after finding the all-water route.
• This made the people their rich
• Spain and other European Rivals want their own
  part in this profitable trade.
• They start looking for an all-water route.

7
Christopher Columbus

• Italian sailor, Christopher Columbus thought he
  knew a faster way to reach Asia.
• Instead of going East, his plan was to go west
  across the Atlantic because he thought it would
  be faster.
• He made 2 mistakes
• Wrong about the size of Asia
• Underestimated the distance around the globe
• In 1483 he asked the King of Portugal to
• sponsor his voyage they turned him down.
• In 1486 he asked their rival, Spain.

8
King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella

• They liked Columbuss plan because they wanted a
  share of the rich Asian trade.
• The Queen was a strong Catholic and wanted to
  spread Christianity.
• Reservations-
• Advisors had doubts about Columbuss
  calculations.
• Spain was in a costly war to drive the Muslims
  out of Spain.
• Columbus was asking high prices for his payment.

9
Setting Sail

• After their war with the Muslims ended, they
  agreed to sponsor Columbus.
• Columbus assembled 3 ships
• Nina
• Pinta
• Santa Maria
• About 90 men loaded the ships with enough
  supplies for 1 year.
• Once aboard the ship Columbus kept a log about
  the journey.

10
Reaching the Americas
11
Reaching the Americas

• Columbus thought he reached the Indies, islands
  of southeast Asia.
• He and his men were greeted
• by the Taino people,
• but Columbus mistakenly
• called them Indians.
• Claimed and named
• the Island San Salvador.

12
Reaching the Americas

• Eager to reach Japan, He left San Salvador with
  Taino as guides.
• For three months traveled through the Caribbean.
• Finally landed on an island he named Española
  (Hispaniola)
• There Columbus found gold and was convinced he
  found Asia.
• Returned home leaving 39 of
• his men on Hispaniola.
• By the time he returned 10 months
• later, the Taino killed everyone.

13
Reaching the Americas

• In January 1493, returned to Spain, believing he
  had found a new route to Asia
• No one knew he had landed near continents
  entirely unknown to Europeans.
• Never brought back treasures.
• Didnt spread Christianity.
• Enslaved and Mistreated Natives.
• He died in 1506, believing he had
• reached Asia.

14
Spain Grows Powerful

• Began an era of great wealth and power for Spain.
• As Spains wealth grew, England, France and other
  countries began sending voyages to the Americas.