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== Exploration (Columbian Period) ==

== Exploration (Columbian Period) ==

Starting in the Middle Ages, Christian Europe began to use its knowledge, wealth and [[faith]] to extend beyond its horizons.  Christian Europeans fought the Holy [[Crusades]] from 1095 to 1291 to protect pilgrims to [[Jerusalem]] against Moslem attacks.  Some Europeans were motivated to spread the [[Gospel]].  Others were motivated by a desire to increase their wealth, such as by finding gold.  Supporting both types of people increased knowledge about science and geography:  Europeans knew that they could reach the Orient by traveling West '''''around''''' the world.  Ironically, it was the very knowledge of the Earth's circumference that deterred a westward passage - the distance to the orient in that direction was beyond the open-water range of ships in that period.   

Starting in the Middle Ages, Christian Europe began to use its knowledge, wealth and [[faith]] to extend beyond its horizons.  Christian Europeans fought the Holy [[Crusades]] from 1095 to 1291 to protect pilgrims to [[Jerusalem]] against Moslem attacks.  Some Europeans were motivated to spread the [[Gospel]].  Others were motivated by a desire to increase their wealth, such as by finding gold.  Since [[Ancient Greece]] it was known that the world was round, and that it should be possible to reach the Orient by traveling West '''''around''''' the world.  Ironically, it was the very knowledge of the Earth's circumference that deterred a westward passage - the distance to the Orient in that direction was beyond the open-water range of ships in that period.  Also, steamships did not exist yet; these ships relied on sailing to reach their destination, and wind patterns did not always cooperate.   

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But centuries passed before one man inspired by the Christian [[faith]] was determined to change the world of his time.  By the young age of 10 the Italian [[Christopher Columbus]] was working at sea, already on his way to becoming a master navigator and mariner.  He learned the patterns of the Atlantic trade winds, and their ability to carry sailing vessels across vast distances both eastward and westward before one's provisions would run out.  With the charts he developed, he was certain he could reach Asia on a westbound route more efficiently than others could.

But centuries passed before one man inspired by the Christian [[faith]] was determined to change the world of his time.  By the young age of 10 the Italian [[Christopher Columbus]] was working at sea, already on his way to becoming a master navigator and mariner.  He learned the patterns of the Atlantic trade winds, and their ability to carry sailing vessels across vast distances both eastward and westward before one's provisions would run out.  With the charts he developed, he was certain he could reach Asia on a westbound route more efficiently than others could.