Essay On Europeans During The 1500s And 1600s

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Europeans during the 1500s and 1600s faced domestic issues while also expanding their control overseas. This astonishing feat was accomplished through multiple factors such as technological advancement, expansion of trade routes, as well as access to a nutritious diet that was helped by trade and colonization. One factor that gave the Europeans the ability to expand their control while facing domestic conflict was their ability to advance exponentially in technology. These advancements in technology allowed them to understand certain trade routes as well as discover new lands to colonize. Some of these technological advances were the advancement in nautical technology such as the magnetic compass, and improvements in ship construction to make ships better equipped to face the harsh conditions of the open sea. The use of the magnetic compass allowed European explorers to understand navigation in a whole new …show more content…

One of these trade route strategies that made trading more efficient was the volta do mar, discovered by the Portuguese. The volta do mar, according to the book Traditions & Encounters a global perspective on the past is a strategy that enabled the Portuguese to sail from the Canaries to Portugal instead of sailing through trade winds that made trade safer “ Although the volta do mar took mariners well out of their way, experience soon taught that sailing around contrary winds was much faster, safer, and more reliable than butting up against them” (Bentley, Ziegler, Streets-Salter, 483). This discovery allowed European trade to become more efficient than before because it allowed them to successfully trade and bring more resources to Europe, enabling them to attain better control of trade routes as well as have a better understanding of the world's oceans when navigation was essential in

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