Common Core Writing 6-8.1, Common Core Literacy 6-8.2,4 & 10
Copyright © 2016, 2019 Instructomania
Why Explore?
I t’s a scary thing to strike out into regions
unknown, but people will go to great lengths to
acquire luxurious things to sell. Profit seems to
be the motivating factor in many discoveries
down through the ages, and no less a factor in the
1400s when expeditions were financed to China for
spices and silks and India for spices and medicines.
Although, there were many who wanted to spread
the Christianity to new worlds, and others were
curious about new lands, people, and creatures that
were just over the horizon.
Technology aided exploration
Without advances in technology, the explorers would
have gotten lost. During Medieval times, Muslims
navigated vast deserts using the astrolabe, an
instrument that measures the height of astronomical
objects from the horizon. The Greeks are credited
with inventing it, but desert travelers perfected it. It
wasn’t too long before the astrolabe and the compass
were the preferred tools for navigating the seas.
Before the compass was invented by the Chinese,
sailors primarily navigated by landmarks , sun
positions, and stars, or dead reckoning. The compass
enabled more accurate headings for sailors. Around
1300, the dry compass was invented so that the
magnetized needle and direction card could freely
spin toward the proper direction while the ship’s deck
pitched in rough water.
Another technological improvement that furthered
exploration was the Caravel (KER-uh-vel) ship
designed by the Portuguese. Prince Henry the
Navigator had sailors explore the coast of West Africa
sailing in one because the hull’s shape sliced through
heavy seas easily and the triangular sails allowed
sailing directly into the wind. The Portuguese also
improved steering with a huge aft rudder that
replaced oars. The hourglass helped in calculating
speed and distance traveled.
As a result, explorers discovered new trade routes,
knowledge of new peoples and land as well as great
wealth for their respective countries. This led to the
era being called the age of discovery.
Uncharted waters for the Portuguese
The Duke of Viseu, known as Prince Henry the
Navigator, built a school to teach navigation to
sailors. As they sailed further south along the African
coast, they set up trading posts building a network of
support. They learned that the lack of fresh food
caused great sickness in sailors that lost hair and
fingernails, and caused sores. Today we call it scurvy.
In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias opened the sea route to the
East by sailing around the tip of Africa without even
seeing it. His officers, knowing the bedraggled state of
their sailors, convinced Dias to turn back toward
home. On their way back, they saw the tip, and Dias
named it the Cape of Storms. King John II renamed it
the Cape of Good Hope.
Historical Snapshot An Age of Exploration Close Reading Investigation
Common Core Writing 6-8.1, Common Core Literacy 6-8.2,4 & 10
Copyright © 2016, 2019 Instructomania
Another Portuguese explorer, Vasco da Gama, not only
rounded the Cape of Good Hope, but was the first
European to reach India by a sea route. Portugal now
had the premier trade route through the Indian Ocean,
and the country dominated the region because of that
and their trading outposts along the coast of Africa.
In 1520, Ferdinand Magellan (ma-GEL-an), a Portuguese
sailor who sailed for Spain, led a voyage around the tip
of South America. Although he was killed before they
made it back to Spain, his was the first expedition to
circumnavigate, or to go around, the globe.
Spain takes the lead west
An Italian, Christopher Columbus, was rejected twice by
Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain to sail west
to India and on to China. With some help from the
Spanish treasurer and the Franciscan friars, Columbus
convinced the king and queen the best route was west.
The Catholic monarchs had a genuine desire to spread
the Christianity, an intense desire to quash the spread
of Islam, and Spain needed a reliable trade route to
acquire spices and medicines. The emperor of Cathay
(China), whom Europeans called the Great Khan of the
Golden Horde, had expressed an interest in Christianity,
therefore Columbus carried a letter of friendship to
him from the Catholic monarchs.
Columbus loaded three ships, Santa María, Pinta, and
Niña, with supplies and goods and set sail westward in
August of 1492. In October of 1492, they landed in the
Bahama Islands. We know from his journal he briefly
scouted the island, but anxious to find Japan, he set sail
westward. He was convinced he’d found it when he
landed on Cuba, but by November 1, he was convinced
it was the mainland of China although there were no
great cities found anywhere.
When the group landed on Haiti, Columbus renamed it
Hispaniola. There he found enough gold to take back to
Spain to pay for their trip and them some. He brought
back gold, parrots, spices, and human captives. The
spoil was so satisfactory to the monarchs, a second
voyage was quickly planned.
Columbus made three more journeys across the
Atlantic, intent on bringing back more riches to Spain.
He died on May 20, 1506 denying the New World,
totally convinced he had found Cathay (China).
Later, Hernan Cortes was sent by Spain to convert more
Indians to Catholicism and find more riches in the
Americas. He landed in Mexico in 1541 to be welcomed
by the Aztec. After jailing the Aztec leader Montezuma,
Cortes was kicked out of the Aztec Capital city of
Tenochtitlan. Still, the damage had been done with
deadly smallpox already taking hold. By the time Cortes
returned, he was able to easily take over the
devastated population, claiming Mexico for the
Spanish. Similarly, Francisco Pizarro arrived in South
America with a thirst for gold. He arrived during a civil
war among the Inca. Pizarro captured and murdered
the Inca king Atahualpa, conquering the Inca who
resided along a 2000 mile stretch of Andes Mountains
for the Spanish.
England floats her boats west
The Italians produced some amazing navigators and
sailors who explored for other nations. John Cabot
was one. In 1497 he sailed to Canada, but thought he
had reached China. Cabot claimed the land for
England. Another explorer, Jacques Cartier (zjock kar
-tee-ay) landed in Canada in 1535 sailing up the Saint
Lawrence River and claimed that part of Canada for
France. It is why some Canadians speak French and
some English.
Spain controlled the gold and silver formerly owned
by the Incas and Aztecs in South America. England
wanted some of that wealth, but it seemed none was
to be found in the regions England claimed. Then, Sir
Francis Drake was hired.
Queen Elizabeth I sent Drake and other sailors out to
steal gold and silver from the Spanish ships. They
were called Elizabeth’s Sea Dogs, essentially a
military branch born in 1560 to help the British Navy
drastically reduce the size of the Spanish Navy called
the Spanish Armada.
King Philip II of Spain was furious with England and
the Sea Dogs. He took his full fleet of 130 ships to the
English Channel determined to defeat England.
However, a huge storm sank nearly half the galleon
fleet called the Spanish Armada, and they turned
back home not reaching the Channel.
By the early 1600s, England was colonizing the
eastern coastline of America, but the early settlers
were those hungry for religious freedom. Jamestown
was one of the earliest settlements in 1620. The Age
of Discovery closed with Europeans being able to
travel to almost anywhere on the globe with more
accurate maps and valuable experience.
Complete the following questions by using the reading, Historical Snapshot: Age of Exploration Close Reading Investigation.
1. List the section subheading(s) where you can find the following key concepts for social science:
Geography: ______________________________ Religion: _______________________________________
Achievements: ______________________________________________________________________________
Economy: __________________________________________________________________________________
Leadership: _________________________________________________________________________________
2. Achievements: Write an excerpt from the reading that explains why this time period was labeled the “The Age of Discovery .” ____________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Achievements: List four technologies that helped navigation.
______________________
______________________
______________________
______________________
4. Leadership: What did the Duke of Viseu do to ensure accurate navigation for Portuguese ships?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
5. Geography: What major trade route did Christopher Columbus seek for Spain? Why?
____________________________________________________________________________________________
6. Religion: Why did so many English colonists move to the New World?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7. Achievements: What was so special about the dry compass and how did it help with navigation?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
8. Geography: Who was the first to sail around the world? What happened to the leader of the expedition?
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. Vocabulary: What is the definition of circumnavigate? Restate the sentence where the word is used here.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
10. Vocabulary: What was the Spanish Armada? Who did it belong to, and what happened to it?____________________________________________________________________________________________
Common Core Writing 6-8.1, Common Core Literacy 6-8.2,4 &
Copyright © 2016, 2019 Instructo-
Historical Snapshot An age of discovery Close Reading Investigation Analysis
Use the map to draw the paths of explorers from Portugal, Spain, France, and England. Make a key in the space provided.
Name__________________________ Period__
European Exploration Map
Reasons to Explore : Explain three.
1.
2.
3.
Technology and Exploration : List three.
1.
2.
3.
Uncharted Waters for the Portuguese
1. What did Henry the Navigator do?
2. Describe the voyage of Vasco da Gama.
3. Detail a success of Ferdinand Magellan.
Spain Takes the Lead West: Columbus
1. Who was he?
2. Describe his voyage.
3. Through his death, where did Columbus think
he landed?
England Floats Her Boats West: Describe two English explorers and state either where they landed or their purpose.
1.
2.
Spain Takes the Lead West
1. Where did Cortes land?
2. Cortes and Pizarro conquered
which groups?
Cortes-
Pizarro-
Use the Explorers Snapshot to fill in the following:
Key Portugal
Da Gama
Spain
Columbus
Magellan
France
Cartier
England
Cabot
Europe Asia
Voyages of Discovery
Copyright © 2016, 2019 Instructomania
Copyright © 2016, 2019 Instructomania
Fran
ce
Engl
and
Spai
n
Po
rtu
gal
Co
lum
bu
s