Age Of Exploration Dbq

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During the Renaissance, a period where there was a burst of creativity in art and writing, Europeans were encouraged to endeavour on new adventures of curiosity. The Age of Exploration started in the 15th century and continued into the 17th century. The three main reasons that prompted Europeans to explore were god, glory, and gold. Europeans hoped to find new sources of gold and silver in unclaimed lands. The Muslims and Italians controlled the trade routes which linked the East and West. By controlling these trade routes they were able to charge high prices and make great profits. Thus, the Europeans wanted a new sea route to Asia to avoid losing profits and to gain wealth. Henry the Navigator was a Portuguese prince who was a supporter of …show more content…

It was during the Age of Exploration that Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas. Both the Portuguese and the Spanish thought that Columbus had reached the East Indies. This sparked conflict between both sides because Portugal thought that Columbus might have claimed land for Spain that the Portuguese might have reached first. As a result, in 1494, Spain and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesilla, which made them recognize the line of Demarcation. Europeans established trading outposts along the shores of South and Southeast Asia. The Renaissance also inspired curiosity in the field of science. Many scientific ideas were brought up during the Scientific Revolution. The Scientific Revolution was a period where there was advances in scientific and mathematical thought. During the Scientific Revolution, many individuals based their ideas on observations. During the Middle Ages, scientists believed the geocentric theory, earth was in the center of the universe. However, during the Scientific Revolution the heliocentric theory was introduced. An astronomer named Nicolaus Copernicus studied planetary movements for many years and he realized that the sun was in the middle and not the

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