Exploration
What is it?
'Exploration' is defined as the action of exploring an unfamiliar area
OR a thorough examination of a subject.
However, in the 'Age of Exploration' it could be described as:
Travelling to new or far away lands or places to find or trade objects, to find new information or share religion!
When?
The Age of Exploration (also called the Age of Discovery) began in the late 1400s, with most explorations taken place between the 15th and 17th Centuries.
Why?
It was a time when the countries in Europe began exploring the world to discover new lands, find trade routes, seek treasure and claim land to grow their empires.
How?
Travelling in those days was expensive and risky. Exploration over land took a long time and was dangerous. So in the 'Age of Exploration', ships were built to find new routes across the sea, new places and treasures.
Although, exploring by sea was also dangerous and many ships never returned. There were also lots of stories about the unknown world that made people fearful of travelling!
Why did the Europeans explore?
So why did the Europeans want to explore?
The main reasons are often summed up as the three Gs:
GOLD, GLORY OR GOD!
Read a bit more detail about the reasons for the adventures of the explorers below. Can you categorise the reasons as Gold, Glory or God?
1. Mapping the world
A cartographer is someone who plots and makes maps. This was one of the reasons for exploration. During this period of time, people were just learning about the world and new places, even continents were being discovered.
Finding new places may even bring the explorer fame by places being named after them.
Henry the Navigator was one of the first explorers. He sent out ships to map and explore the west coast of Africa. He was one of the first explorers to improve sailing technology through building bigger ships and creating better maps.
2. Trade Routes
Countries wanted to increase their wealth (get more money). The best way to do this was by trading (selling) goods. However, the trade routes by land were long, slow and dangerous. The land routes were also controlled by other countries.
European leaders paid explorers to find new routes for trading. Sea was seen as a good way to travel on new routes as the current trade routes on land were slow and expensive. Explorers could also find new sources of goods to trade!
2. Gold
There was not much gold in Europe but people knew there was a rich source somewhere in Africa. Muslim people often brought gold dust across the Sahara desert to North Africa. The Europeans wanted to make money by finding gold and other treasures that could be sold in Europe.
3. Spices
Spices were worth even more than gold! In those days, it was very difficult to keep food fresh. People didn't have refrigerators! Most of the meat people ate had to be salted and preserved, or it would go rotten. Spices such as pepper could hide the taste of rotting or salted meat. Spices were as important as medicines in that time!
However, spices were not often found in Europe and they were very expensive to buy. So explorers would set sail to find sources of these spices to bring back and sell in Europe. Most of the spices were found in India.
4. Slaves
In the 1440s, the Europeans started to capture Africans from their villages. They realized that they could make a lot of money by selling the Africans as slaves.
At that time, it was believed that by making African Muslims slaves, it would teach them the 'true faith' of Christianity. They would loose their freedom but their soul would be saved. The 'slave trade' lasted for 400 years.
5. Building an Empire
Countries such as Great Britain and the Netherlands established colonies (settlements) in the new places found in the 'New World'. They claimed the new found land for their King or Queen and made new homes there.
Eventually Great Britain would surpass all of the European nations in it's size, claiming much of the new world for it's empire. This included the thirteen colonies in the Americas and later Australia!
6. Religion
European Christians went on many crusades in the name of their religion. They wanted to spread Christianity to the rest of the world. So some explorers traveled to spread Christianity to the world.
7. Science
Many Explorers were scientist hoping to learn about nature and new parts of the world. They may have been hoping to find new species of animal or a new type of plant. They may also be hoping that a new part of the world or species would be named after them!
Countries wanted to increase their wealth (get more money). The best way to do this was by trading (selling) goods. However, the trade routes by land were long, slow and dangerous. The land routes were also controlled by other countries.
European leaders paid explorers to find new routes for trading. Sea was seen as a good way to travel on new routes as the current trade routes on land were slow and expensive. Explorers could also find new sources of goods to trade!
2. Gold
There was not much gold in Europe but people knew there was a rich source somewhere in Africa. Muslim people often brought gold dust across the Sahara desert to North Africa. The Europeans wanted to make money by finding gold and other treasures that could be sold in Europe.
3. Spices
Spices were worth even more than gold! In those days, it was very difficult to keep food fresh. People didn't have refrigerators! Most of the meat people ate had to be salted and preserved, or it would go rotten. Spices such as pepper could hide the taste of rotting or salted meat. Spices were as important as medicines in that time!
However, spices were not often found in Europe and they were very expensive to buy. So explorers would set sail to find sources of these spices to bring back and sell in Europe. Most of the spices were found in India.
4. Slaves
In the 1440s, the Europeans started to capture Africans from their villages. They realized that they could make a lot of money by selling the Africans as slaves.
At that time, it was believed that by making African Muslims slaves, it would teach them the 'true faith' of Christianity. They would loose their freedom but their soul would be saved. The 'slave trade' lasted for 400 years.
5. Building an Empire
Countries such as Great Britain and the Netherlands established colonies (settlements) in the new places found in the 'New World'. They claimed the new found land for their King or Queen and made new homes there.
Eventually Great Britain would surpass all of the European nations in it's size, claiming much of the new world for it's empire. This included the thirteen colonies in the Americas and later Australia!
6. Religion
European Christians went on many crusades in the name of their religion. They wanted to spread Christianity to the rest of the world. So some explorers traveled to spread Christianity to the world.
7. Science
Many Explorers were scientist hoping to learn about nature and new parts of the world. They may have been hoping to find new species of animal or a new type of plant. They may also be hoping that a new part of the world or species would be named after them!