2.  European interest in the East increased after travelers reached China in the thirteenth century.

3.  Italian Traders Reach China › In 1260, Niccolo and Maffeo Polo, two brothers from a merchant family in Venice, Italy, set out on a trading trip to the Crimea, on the western edge of the Mongol Empire. › In 1265, a group journeying farther to the East invited the Polos to join them. They were headed to the court of Kublai Khan in China, or Cathay as it was called. › Two years later, the Polo brothers were on their way back to the Mongol Empire, this time they brought home Niccolo’s son, Marco.

4.  Tales of the East › Marco Polo worked at Kublai Khan’s court and traveled to many parts of the empire in that time. › He took notes about what he saw and heard about distant land. As he returned to Venice, Marco Polo’s notes became a book, The Travels of Marcos Polo. › Polo wrote that Cathay’s capital had “everything that is most rare and valuable in all parts of the world.” Japan, or Cipango as it was called by Polo, was a place with “gold in the greatest abundance.”

5.  Europeans began searching for direct trade routes to the East.

6.  High Prices for Eastern Goods. › Europeans demand for cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pepper, and other spices from India and China were especially great. › Traders who brought spices and other goods from the East traveled a long way and through many lands before they reached Europe. For example, Chinese and Indian merchants sold goods to Arab traders. › By the beginning of the fifteenth century, however, European countries were already considering how they could get around dealing with the Venetians and the Arabs.

7.  Dangerous Land Routes › In the late 1300’s the huge Mongol Empire began to break apart. › As a result, the East-West trade routes on land became more and more dangerous for western merchants. › As the Mongol Empire crumbled, the Ottomans extended their control over a broad area. By 1402, they conquered the Balkans, on the edge of Europe.

8.  An important goal of European explorers was to spread Christianity.

9.  Missionaries Head East › Even before the Polos had begun their travels, missionaries were traveling eastward to urge the Mongols to accept the Christian faith. › The pope sent monks to the East In order to learn more about the Mongol Empire and to spread Christian beliefs. The monks followed the caravan routes, trading ideas with people they met along the way. › Later, several monks reached China. Giovanni da Montecorvino, an active missionary, became archbishop of Beijing. Da Montecorvino stayed in China for more than 30 years.

10.  Voyages With Several Purposes › The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama stated plainly that he was searching for both “Christians and spices.” › Bernal Diaz wrote that he sailed to the Indies… “to serve God and his Majesty, to give light to those who were in darkness and to grow rich as all men desire to do.” › Kings, queens, and others who sent forth these expeditions were also motivated by religion, the chance to find new trade routes, and hopes for finding gold and silver in faraway lands.

11.  Advances in technology helped make exploration possible.

12.  Tools for Navigation › By the mid-1400’s, Europeans setting sail on the high seas carried two important tools, magnetic compass and an astrolabe. › By the 1300s, sailors created a magnetic compass to find direction. This compass had a magnetized needle that turned on a pin above a card marked with the points of directions. › When people sailed unknown and uncharted waters, they relied on stars to guide them in their navigation, or steering the ship in the correct direction. New maps of previously uncharted territory were made.

13.  Ships for Long Trips › The Europeans sailors in the fifteenth century took to the seas on two types of ships: The long ship and the round ship. The long ship had both oars and sails, it was fast and easy to handle. The round ship was powered by sail alone and was less costly to run. › For long voyages on the open sea, early European explorers preferred a type of round ship known as a caravel. The caravel was a small, light ship with sails the shape of triangles, it was easy to move the caravel about in waters with changing winds and currents. › The caravel’s triangular sails also allowed it to sail into the wind, that made it easier to any route. A caravel could carry heavy weapons along its sides. The weapons could be used to attack enemy ports and ships and ships as needed.

15.  Prince Henry the Navigator sent expeditions to explore the West African coast.

16.  A sailing Study Center › Around 1419, Prince Henry set up a center for the study of navigation at Sagres, on the southwestern coast of Portugal. The work at the school would help the search for a sea route to Asia around Africa. › Sailors, shipbuilders, mapmakers, astronomers, and makers of tools for navigation came to work at the school. People at the school also developed. › Henry had many reasons for supporting exploration. He was curious about the world, and navigation and shipbuilding fascinated him. He also wanted to find direct routes to places that had valuable goods such as gold, ivory, and pepper. He also wanted to introduce others to Christianity, wanted to use contact with other people to oppose the power of the Muslims.

17.  Down the African Coast › In 1434, Portuguese explorer Gil Eanes was sent to find a route to Africa. He sailed around Cape Bojador above Cape Verde in Western Africa, looking for valuable goods such as gold. › The Portuguese found African trade fairly disappointing. They traded for fish, sealskins, and seal oil. Father south, however, there were more valuable commodities, or trade goods, which included gold dust, ivory, pepper, and slaves. › Between 1450 and 1460, Henry focused mainly on trade with areas of Africa the Portuguese had reached. Henry also sent out several more expeditions for exploration.

18.  After Batolomeu Dias sailed round the southern tip of Africa, the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama sailed around Africa to India.

19. Bartolomeu Dias Rounds Africa  In 1487, three Portuguese ships led by Bartolomeu Dias sailed down west coast of Africa.  As he went south, the weather turned bad, and visibility was reduced to almost nothing. In the wind and rain Dias rounded the tip of Africa without knowing it.  As he went west he rounded the tip of Africa again seeing it for the first time. He named the tip the Cape of Storms. On hearing of Dias accomplishment, the ruler of Portugal renamed the Cape of Storms to the Cape of God Hope. His journey proved that there was a sea route around Africa.

20.  Vasco da Gama Sails to India › In 1497, Vasco da Gama set sail out again with 170 sailors and 4 ships. His goal was to reach Calicut, on the west coast of India. › Da Gama used the winds to guide him toward the Cape of Good Hope. Once on the east side of Africa. The ships stayed close to land until they reached Mozambique, along Africa’s east coast. › In 1498, da Gama crossed the Indian Ocean from East Africa to Calicut. In 1499, they returned with jus 2 ships and 44 sailors.