Age of Exploration: Key Figures, Impact, and Trade

Astrolabe

Navigation aid to determine distance.

Lateen sails (Caravels)

Allowed for bigger ships to sail the Atlantic.

Brass Cannons

Used for offense and defense.

Prince Henry the Navigator

Led early Portuguese exploration in the 1400s, claiming land along the coast of West Africa.

Bartholomew Diaz

Reached the tip of Africa (1488).

Vasco de Gama

Lucrative voyage to India.

Christopher Columbus

Lobbied for his trip, patroned by Queen Isabella, reaching the West Indies (1492).

Vasco de Balboa

Discovered the Pacific Ocean.

Ferdinand Magellan

His expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe (though Magellan himself died in the Philippines).

Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)

An agreement mediated by the Pope to divide land in the New World between Spain and Portugal.

Hernando Cortés

Conquered the Aztec Empire (1519), capturing leader Montezuma.

Francisco Pizarro

Conquered the Inca state with only 200 men.

Population Collapse

Disease (like Smallpox, Measles, and Flu), violence, and slavery drastically reduced the indigenous population.

Encomienda System

An initial system of land grants that forced native populations into labor, leading to severe abuses.

Clerical Opposition

Priests often reported atrocities.

Bartolomé de Las Casas

A Dominican Friar who decried the Encomienda system and helped phase it out in favor of contract labor.

Moral Justification

Conversion to Christianity was the primary moral justification for colonization.

Peninsulares

Full-blooded Spanish born in Spain.

Creoles

Second-generation, full-blooded Spanish born in the Americas.

Mestizos

Mixed Spanish-Indian population.

Mulattos

Mixed Spanish-African population.

Native Indians

Indigenous peoples of the Americas.

Black Slaves

Enslaved Africans brought to the Americas.

The Columbian Exchange

The massive movement and interaction of biological organisms (people, plants, animals, diseases) between Europe, the Americas, and Africa following Columbus's voyages.

Crops from Americas to Old World

Maize (corn), Potatoes, Tomatoes, Peanuts, Cocoa, Tobacco, and Turkey.

Crops from Old World to Americas

Wheat, Rice, Coffee Bean, Sugar Cane, Banana.

Livestock from Old World to Americas

Horse, Cattle, Pigs, Sheep.

Diseases from Old World to Americas

Smallpox, Measles, Flu (the most devastating impact).

Shift in Labor

The rapid death of natives led to the importation of African slaves to work on mines and profitable sugar plantations (especially in Brazil and the West Indies).

Destinations of Slaves

The vast majority of slaves were sent to the West Indies (60%) and Brazil (35%).

The Middle Passage

The brutal, deadly journey from Africa to the New World, transporting an estimated 11 million people.

Effects on Africa

Disrupted internal political and market structures, stimulated trade or warfare, and severely altered the male-female ratio in affected regions.

Iberian Decline

Spain and Portugal declined due to inflation, a lack of domestic economic structure to absorb colonial wealth, and a large, unsustainable empire.

Northern Rise

Dutch, French, and British states rose to prominence, fueled by new financial organization, shipbuilding, and manufacturing.

The Commercial Revolution

A period of economic expansion, colonialism, and mercantilism (Mid 1500s - Mid 1700s).

Mercantilism

A national policy where a country's power is based on its wealth (gold supply). The goal was to create a self-sufficient economy and export more goods than it imported.

Capitalism

Northern European capitalism began to flourish.

Joint-Stock Companies

Formed to pool capital for large overseas ventures (e.g., the Dutch East India Company).

Dutch Commercial Empire

Established a commercial empire, eventually dominating Asian spice and tea trade (Dutch East India Company).

Dutch West India Company

Profited from fur and founded New Amsterdam (later New York City).

French Colonization

Began colonizing North America in the 1600s. Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec (focused on fur trade). Established Santo Domingo (Haiti), which became a major sugar/coffee producer.

English Colonization

Searched for the Northwest Passage. Established Jamestown, VA (1607) as the first permanent settlement. Also founded Plymouth (1620) and Massachusetts Bay (1629).

English East India Company

English commercial gains were significant in India.