Motivations for European Exploration

Motivations for European Exploration

• Maritime Technology Innovations: Improvements like the magnetic compass (from China), astrolabe (ancient Greece/Arab world), lateen sail (Arab world), and the caravel (Portugal) facilitated navigation, enabling exploration.
• Political Changes: European monarchs centralized power, shifting it away from nobles, and this fueled exploration efforts.
• Economic Changes: Increased demand for Asian goods (like spices) and the rise of mercantilism created a drive for increased trade and wealth accumulation. Mercantilism emphasized maintaining favorable trade balances and acquiring gold and silver, leading to the desire for colonies.

Structures and Companies Supporting Exploration

• Joint-Stock Companies: Limited liability businesses, funded by private investors, enabled states and merchants to collaborate on voyages. The Dutch East India Company (VOC) exemplified this success.

Portuguese and Spanish Empires

• Portuguese Empire: Prince Henry the Navigator organized expeditions down the African coast, seeking gold & trade routes to Asia. Building a trading post empire in Africa and the Indian Ocean marked their strategy.
• Spanish Empire: Christopher Columbus' voyages, sponsored by Spain, led to the colonization of the Americas and the Philippines, extracting tribute and coerced labor.

French and English Exploration

• French Exploration: Focused primarily on finding a North Atlantic route to Asia, establishing a Canadian presence, and focused on fur trade.
• English Exploration: Early attempts like Roanoke Island (a failure) and later Jamestown (mroe successful) marked their early settlement efforts in the Americas, establishing colonies and seeking trade opportunities in India. Establishing trade in India but not strong enough to defeat Mughals yet.

Dutch Empire

• Dutch Empire: Gaining independence from Spain, the Dutch established the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and challenged Portuguese and Spanish control in the Indian Ocean creating a monopoly, and settlements in the Americas like New Amsterdam.

Columbian Exchange

• The Columbian Exchange: The widespread transfer of diseases, crops, and animals. Not trade, but an environmental event. Effects were both positive (diversification, increased lifespans) and negative (disease decimated populations).

Impact on Populations

• Diseases in the Americas: European diseases (smallpox, measles, malaria) decimated Native American populations due to lack of immunity.
• Food Exchange: Introduction of Afro-Eurasian foods (wheat, olives, grapes, rice, bananas, sugar) to the Americas, and American foods (maize, potatoes) to Afro-Eurasia resulted in dietary diversification and significant population growth.
• Food from Africa: Okra and rice were brought to the Americas by enslaved Africans.