Download Age of Exploration- Svenja

Age of Exploration: Day 1 Web quest
Name: Svenja Stebler____________________________________________ Date: 26/3/2010__
Directions: Go to this website: http://www.mrnussbaum.com/explorersflash.htm You will look at the
four categories listed below. For each category, take notes on the information you learned or found
interesting. In addition, you must look and take notes on the sections I outline. *Notes do not have to
be in complete sentences, but they do need to be complete and understandable.
Category
Explorers Main
Notes
Portugal: Silk Road
 The route from Italy to China through mountains, deserts, etc.
 Marco Polo travelled this route in 1474
 In China he met Khan who was wealthy- even wrote a book about his experiences there
 Trading along the silk road was dangerous and more expensive
Spain: Spices
 Wanted to find a sea route to the Indies where it was less expensive
 Spice were really expensive and important
 Most commonly Ginger, Cinnamon and Pepper were sold
 Europeans used spices to preserve meat, hide the bad taste of bad/ spoilt food and to
make themselves smell better
France: The Indies
 Portugal was the first land to successfully get an explorer to the Indies
 Christopher Columbus thought he could do that too but by sailing the other way- saw
North America
France: Pirates
 Pirates were a big threat when travelling on sea or land- plundered villages by the sea
and ships
 Barbary Coast (North Africa)- Islamic pirates would attack English ships
 English and French Pirates would attack Spanish
 Sir Frances Drake- best pirate, Spain ordered Queen Elizabeth I to behead him, she
turned him into a knight
 1588- Spain declared war
Age of
Exploration
Spices were used to:
1. Preserve Meat
2. Hide bad/spoilt taste of food
3. Make themselves smell better
Before ships, countries got spices by using:
 Silk Road leading from Italy to China could also be used by Indies but it was dangerous
and much more expensive
Which country was the first to explore a sea route:
 Portugal
Age of Exploration: Day 1 Web quest
Name: Svenja Stebler____________________________________________ Date: 26/3/2010__
Spain tried to find a westward route to Asia led by what explorer?
 Christopher Columbus from Spain
Instead of finding the Indies, where did Spain end up and colonize?
 North America as well as Florida later on
Who crushed the Aztecs in Mexico?
 Hernando Cortes
What empire was conquered in South America and by whom?
 Spain- Francisco Pizarro
France and England explored what region?
 France- North America (Canada, North Atlantic Coast) by Giovanni Verrazano and
Jacques Cartier
 England- Francis Drake plundering Spanish Ships and North Carolina (Roanoke
Island)
Which country, France or England, eventually controlled most of North America?
 England and France kicked Spain out having France rule Canada and Western USA
and England ruling Eastern USA
 England took over- USA was formed
Legends,
Destination,
and Goals
Converting Natives:
 Converted Natives from indigenous people to Christians
 Killed anybody who did not convert
 Some converted without hesitating since they promised they would have stronger armies
Life on Ship:
 Miserable
 Had many food problems with not having enough food as well as Vitamin C- got Scurvy
 Horrible living quarters, no clean sheets or clothes
 Sometimes fell off the boat when having to go to the bathroom
Pirates:
 Plundered ships which was a big threat to sailors
 Sir Frances Drake was the most famous pirate to that time working for Queen
Elizabeth I
Sea Monsters:
 People believed there were sea monsters
 The earth was flat, and they would fall off the edge of the world
 Some of the sea monsters can be related to our sea animals like the sharks, whales,
squids, etc. but some are until now not able to be identified.
Age of Exploration: Day 1 Web quest
Name: Svenja Stebler____________________________________________ Date: 26/3/2010__
Explorer Profiles
Vasco da Gama:
 Born in 1460 in Sines, Portugal
 His father planned the journey to India but died
 Da Gama took over the journey and with 3 boats financed by King Manuel I
 Went to India 3 times or more and proved everybody wrong about not being able to go
around Africa
 Brought back many spices and found out a safer, less expensive route to import spices
 Second time he pay back all of the Muslims that would not trade him fairly the first
time. He did that by murdering them and showing his power
 Died in India in 1524
Prince Henry:
 Portuguese Explorer- was the first to sail to the Africa’s Gambia River
 Mapped West Coast of Africa and spread Christianity
 Opened a Navigation School in Portugal
 Sailed into the Sea of Darkness with them, they were scared of Sea Monsters- went even
further south
 Was the first step to finding the route to the Indies
Ferdinand Magellan:
 Originally Portuguese but King did not want to Finance the journey so he became a
Spaniard
 1519, Sailed to South Africa going East
 Came to the Pacific Islands- converted everybody, wanted to convert the leader, he
ordered him to be killed- he was killed
 Rest of the men escaped with 2 from 5 ships left
 Eventually there was one ship left that made it back to Spain in 1522
 First time to make it around the world
Giovanni da Verranzanno:
 Italian
 Began to be a pirate- stole from Portuguese and Spanish ships
 Stole the Aztecs gold worth of 2 million
 Was ordered to go to North America to find a route to Asia
 Sailed to North Carolina- thought he saw the Pacific Ocean with only having a strip of
land- this error took centuries to correct
 Sailed on the eastern side of America
 Went once more to America where he was then killed by the natives
Additional Notes