Storms at Sea
Poisonous plants and animals
Ships crashing into rocks and reefs
Attacks by Locals
Scurvy
Starvation
Falling off the Edge of the Earth
Sea Monsters
If the trip was so dangerous, WHY did
men risk their lives to go on these
voyages?
3Gs
• They went on these voyages for three reasons:
God
to spread their Christian religion
Gold
to become rich
Glory
to become famous and more powerful
God
Europe’s kings and queens
were very religious and they
felt it was their duty to spread
the Christian faith. They felt
that they should convert the
native people they met in
their journeys into Christians.
If the indigenous (native)
peoples resisted, they were
punished harshly.
Gold
• In the 1400s, European rulers were competing
with each other for natural resources such as
gold, silk, and spices. They needed the money
from these items to pay for their wars.
Overland Route to get Spices
Spices like peppercorn, nutmeg, and cinnamon were especially
valuable and could be found in the Indies. Traders had to travel great
distances over land to get these natural resources. It made them very
expensive because they were difficult to obtain. A sea route to the
Indies was needed!
Gold
In the second half of the Age of Exploration,
other items were deemed valuable by the
explorers. They all fall under the G of gold
because they brought great riches to not only
the explorers, but to the European monarchs
who financed the trips as well.
Glory
• We would call “Glory” being
famous, rich, and/or powerful.
• One could be famous, like
Columbus, for discovering a new
route to the Indies.
• As a monarch, you would become
richer and more powerful when
your empire grew bigger. This
occurred when the explorers you
financed found “new” land and
claimed it for your country.
Glory
• As Europeans, lead by Portugal’s Prince Henry
the Navigator, began exploring the coast of
Africa, they began setting up colonies. Soon
other European countries
wanted African colonies
as well.
The pursuit of
African lands and
its peoples by the
Europeans is called
the Scramble for
Africa.
Glory
• The more colonies a country had, the
wealthier it was due to the natural resources,
land, and native peoples found there.
• More colonies meant more prestige or glory.
• Countries began competing with one another
for colonies.
• When one country takes over another it is
called imperialism.
Who was Prince Henry the Navigator?
• The son of the king of Portugal, Prince Henry
opened a school of navigation. He knew that
before his men could try to make it around the
tip of Africa and sail to the Indies, they needed
training (human capital). He
wanted shipbuilders, cartographers
(mapmakers), sea captains, and
inventors to learn and work
together.
Impact of the Age of Exploration
For the next 200 years, Europe’s largest
countries began exploring Africa, Asia, and
North America. They set up colonies, new
markets for their goods, and spread Christianity.
Rivalries between countries started to cause
problems – BIG PROBLEMS that will soon lead to
war!