| | As Europe was emerging from the Middle Ages and experiencing the Renaissance, people had the curiosity and the courage to look beyond their own continent to others. Scientific discoveries and technological improvements made it easier to travel across the vast oceans. Christians sought to spread their faith far and wide, and merchants sought new goods and business opportunities in both the East and West. North and South America awaited visits by the Europeans. | | As Europe was emerging from the Middle Ages and experiencing the Renaissance, people had the curiosity and the courage to look beyond their own continent to others. Scientific discoveries and technological improvements made it easier to travel across the vast oceans. Christians sought to spread their faith far and wide, and merchants sought new goods and business opportunities in both the East and West. North and South America awaited visits by the Europeans. |
| − | The Portuguese were the first great explorers. They developed the “caravel”, a small, lightweight ship with three lateen-sailed masts that were faster and more maneuverable in shallow water than previous designs. They could also hold a fair amount of spices, and the more cargo that a ship could hold, the greater its profitability would be. European demand for exotic Indian goods, especially spices, was strong, and this drove explorers to discover new routes to India different from the Eastern Mediterranean trade controlled by the Ottoman Muslims. | + | The Portuguese were the first great explorers. They developed the “caravel”, a small, lightweight ship with three lateen-sailed masts that were faster and more maneuverable in shallow water than previous designs (see right). They could also hold a fair amount of spices, and the more cargo that a ship could hold, the greater its profitability would be. European demand for exotic Indian goods, especially spices, was strong, and this drove explorers to discover new routes to India different from the Eastern Mediterranean trade controlled by the Ottoman Muslims. |
| | The discovery of new western routes accidentally led to the discovery of lands in the New World (Western Hemisphere). Portugal and Spain then emerged as the two major players in what was to become an intense European competition for exploration, conversion and colonization. | | The discovery of new western routes accidentally led to the discovery of lands in the New World (Western Hemisphere). Portugal and Spain then emerged as the two major players in what was to become an intense European competition for exploration, conversion and colonization. |