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Vocabulary
Leif Eriksson - first Viking to reach North America, (in the year 1000), after his ship was
blown off course from his original path to Greenland.
Longship - the type of boat that the Vikings developed that was curved at both ends
and were designed to be more stable.
Prince Henry the Navigator - responsible for many of the advances in exploration.
Despite the fact that he never set out on a voyage of his own, he helped others by building an
observatory, founding a school of navigation, and financing research for mapmakers and
shipbuilders.
astrolabe - a navigation device used for sailors to find the location of the ship by using
the stars.
caravels - ships that were able to sail against the wind using triangular sails.
effect - the result of an action or decision.
Bartolomeu Dias - in 1488, he set out by Portugal to find a route to Africa but after the
wind blew him around the African tip, his crew made him turn around. He later named the tip of
Africa the “Cape of Good Hope”.
Vasco da Gama - set out to finish Dias’s quest. He sailed all the way around Africa and
landed in southwest India in 1497
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Section Summary
The Vikings were the first Europeans to reach North America. They developed a
new kind of ship - the longship. In the year 1000, a Viking named Leif Eriksson was on his
way to Greenland, when he was blown south and landed on the Labrador Peninsula in what
is present-day Canada. His adventure sparked interest for exploration of the Americas.
In the early 1400s, with Prince Henry the Navigator’s help, Portugal became a leader
in world exploration. He had built an observatory and founded a school of navigation to teach
better methods of sailing. To add on, he financed research by mapmakers and shipbuilders. He
also funded expeditions to the west coast of Africa.
Europeans wanted to explore the world. They wanted spices from Asia. They also
wanted to see merchants who had economic control of traded Asian products. They wanted to
find a sea route to Asia for direct trade. Also, the Europeans hoped to convert people to
Christianity. Not only that, they were interested in Asian cultures because of Marco Polo’s
book about his adventures.
Even with the astrolabe and the caravels, sailing on open seas was still dangerous and
difficult. Even so, Portuguese continued to explore the south. In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias went
on an expedition along the African coast. A storm blew his ship around the southern tip of
Africa, known as the Cape of Good Hope. Dias’s crew forced him to turn back. Later, the King of
Portugal sent out Vasco da Gama on another expedition to the Cape of Good Hope. Vasco da
Gama arrived in southwestern India in 1498. Portugal won the European race for a sea route to
Asia. This route to Asia led to gold, ivory, and slave trade. As a result, Portugal became rich,
and Africans became devastated. Other nations of Europe soon began their own expeditions to
Asia.