1. Great Voyages of Discovery
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Compass_thumbnail.jpg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/220px-Compass_thumbnail.jpg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Compass_thumbnail.jpg
Meriel Hartling
CSE 684
Sailor's navigational compass (National Library of Canada)

2. A spirit of adventure swept across
Europe in the 1400s.
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/220px-Christopher_Columbus_on_Santa_Maria_in_1492..jpg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Christopher_Columbus_on_Santa_Maria_in_1492..jpg
Explorers like Columbus
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Christopher_Columbus_on_Santa_Maria_in_1492..jpg
and Magellan set to find
new sea-routes, lands
and riches.
What motivated these
voyages?
Columbus on Santa Maria by Emanuel Leutze 1855
How did they impact on both Europe and the
peoples of the “new” worlds they unveiled?

3. In this lesson, we will consider...
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

4. file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/spice_route.gif
Motivation behind voyages
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/silkroad.gif
Traditional Silk and Spice
Routes to Aisa
Italian, Egyptian and Turkish control of trade
routes to Asia meant new direct sea-routes were
desired. The wish to spread Christianity also
played a role.

5. Update
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

6. Means behind the voyages
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/220px-Persian_astrolabe.jpg file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/DownloadedFile.jpeg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Persian_astrolabe.jpg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/images.jpeg
Astrolabe and compass
New technological developments such as the
astrolabe (for measuring star positions), the
magnetic compass and developments in ship
building paved the way for ocean voyages.

7. Update
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

8. Portuguese and Spanish Explorations
In 1498 Vasco da Gama sailed around Africa
and landed on the West Coast of India. Thus a
direct sea route to Aisa was found.
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/220px-Vasco-da-gama-2.jpg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/220px-Vasco-da-gama-2.jpg

9. In 1492, an Italian sailor, Christopher Columbus
sailed west. It was well known amongst seafarers
that the Earth was round and so Columbus hoped
to find a direct route to Asia. Instead he landed in
the what we now call the Bahamas.
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/columbuvoyage.jpeg

10. file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/magellan.jpeg
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/images.jpeg
In 1519, a Portuguese sailor named Ferdinand
Magellan accidentally discovered South America
while trying to sail around Africa. He continued
West and although was killed during the voyage,
his crew became the first to circumnavigate (go
all the way round) the globe.

11. Update
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

12. Conquest of the New World
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/Inca.jpeg
In the 1500s the Aztec
empire in Mexico and
the Inca empire in Peru
were at their zenith.
The Spanish saw these
as great sources of
gold and silver. With
the added motivation of
religious conversion
they set out to conquer.
The remains of the Inca city of Machu
Pichu in Peru

13. Why did the Spanish conquests
succeed?
Guns: Gunpowder had not reached the
Americas.
Cavalry: The Americans had no horses and had
no knowledge of riding an animal.
Steel weapons: The American weapons (usually
made of obsidian) were no match for Spanish
steel.
Germs: diseases like smallpox wiped out huge
numbers of Americans who had no previous
exposure to these European diseases.

14. Update
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

15. Competition for treasure
file:///home/pptfactory/temp/20120408183241/powerpointpictures/armada.jpeg
England and France soon
joined the race to carve up
the new world. Competitio
for the wealth led Spain in
1588 to send an enormou
fleet (the armada) to attac
England. But faster Englis
ships and better guns
defeated the Spanish.
The Spanish Armada (English School 1600)

16. Update
Motivations behind voyages
Means which made the journeys possible
Spanish and Portuguese explorations of
Da Gama, Columbus and Magellan
Spanish conquest of the new world
Competition between European powers

17. Conclusion: A new European
Worldview.
The voyages of discovery changed the way
Europeans saw the world. They learned that the
Americas were a separate landmass from Asia.
Many saw this as a source of great wealth and
set up trade networks and began to establish
colonies. This would have wide ranging
consequences.

18. Summary
The voyages were motivated by a need for new routes to Asia.
They were made possible by new technology: compass,
astrolabe, better ships.
Da Gama discovered a new route to India by sailing around
Africa.
Columbus discovered a route to the Caribbean islands unveiling
the continent of North America.
Magellan discovered South America before his crew rounded the
globe.
Better technology and resistance to disease helped the Spanish
conquer the new world.
Greed for treasure led to competition between European powers
like Spain and England.

19. References
Text based on World History by Burskein and
Shek
All graphics come from Wikipedia.