Unit 3: European Exploration
Chapter 2
Causes and Effects of the Exploration Era
Causes and Effects of
Exploration
What’s going on in Europe?
• Inventions of the caravel and astrolabe
made exploration possible
• Portugal begins to explore Africa and
purchase slaves from Arab and African
merchants
• Portugal grows more powerful and Spain
becomes jealous
Columbus’ Voyage
• King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of
Spain finance the trip
• Columbus ordered to bring back riches and
claim all new land for Spain
• Significance?
Significance of Columbus’
voyage
• Answer A:
• Answer B:
• He discovered
America and proved
the world was round
• He discovered a “New
World” and
encouraged further
explorations later
Are you Gellin?
• Ferdinand Magellan…Portuguese sailor who
thought he could make it around the world by way
of the “southern ocean”
• Sailed w/ 5 ships and reached S.America in Sept.
1589
• Found a strait (later named Strait of Magellan) and
it took a month to navigate through it
• Once through, half way there
• Sailed to Phillipenes and stopped for supplies
• Magellan died there in a tribal conflict
Significance to Magellan’s trip?
• Answer A:
• Answer B
• He proved there was a
way to Asia by the
“Southern Ocean”
• His crew was first to
circumnavigate the
world
We’ve seen it…Now What?
• Motivations include:
– Wealth
– Power
– Spread of Christianity
Conquer it!
Conquistadors: conquerors that claimed land
for Spain
Cortes: Entered present day Mexico and
defeated the Aztec Empire
Pizarro: Entered Peru and conquered the
Incan Empire
Maybe it’s not all great…
• Bartolome de Las Casas: Spanish priest who
recognizes mistreatment of the Native Americans
• He set his slaves free… “How can we preach
Christianity and create slavery at the same time?”
• His 50 year fight for better treatment of Native
Americans caused laws to be enacted protecting
some rights of Indians.
• Holders of encomiendas guilty of mistreatment
had their land taken
• Protest by Spanish colonists eventually had the
laws repealed.
Significance of Columbian
Exchange
• New goods encourage more exploration and
colonization of the Americas
• Value of trade between the Old and New Worlds
is seen
• Slavery is now needed to keep Europeans in
supply of their new crops
• The world view of Europeans has expanded
• Native Americans die at a huge rate: Indian
Holocaust
Motivation of Mercantilism
• Mercantilism helped create trade patterns in the
New World where raw materials were imported to
the “mother country” or owner of the colony and
then made into finished products.
• Finished products would be sold to other countries
for profit.
How it works…
Sugar, Tobacco, Cotton to
Europe
Slaves to Americas
Textiles, Rum,
Manufactured goods to
Africa
• In this example: Spain
sends rum and other goods
to Africa to trade/sell for
slaves
• Slaves are traded/sold to the
New World for Sugar,
Tobacco and Cotton. They
are used to grow the goods
for future trade
• Europeans purchase
tobacco, sugar, & cotton to
make textiles, rum, and
more to trade back to
Africa for more slaves
• The cycle begins again
England wants a part of the
wealth:
• France and England begin to claim land in
N. America which belonged to Spain under
the Treaty of Tordesillas
• France, England, & Spain already fighting
for religious reasons.
• Spain fought to keep their control as France
and England claimed land
Spain and England Clash
• Spain builds a fleet of
130 of the biggest,
baddest ships ever
seen!
• They are the largest
navy in the world and
the most powerful
country
• But…how expensive
those ships were…
England fights
Back…
• English ships are smaller
and faster
• A storm destroyed part of
the Spanish fleet
• England wins & sends
message that Spain could
be beaten
• Spain loses control of
New World & has no
more money to regain the
control of their colonies
• Defeat of Armada/Spain
encourages more
countries to seek land in
North America
Impact of Exploration Era
• World View Changes: size, culture, diet,
religion, power
• Slavery begins: first the Native Americans
and then Africans
• Colonies develop: create wealth and power
for mother countries
• Native American societies are destroyed