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The Crusades were a series of 9 expeditions by European explorers to the Middle East to regain control of their holy sites. This contact with Arab nations opened trade between western Europeans and Arab nations.
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After working for 17 in China for the ruler Khan, Marco Polo writes a book about his trip there that decribes the "marvels" of Asia. Polo didn't know it, 200 years later his book would inspire Christopher Columbus' travels.
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During this time (a period of about 200 years) people wanted to learn more about other people and the world, so they began to study the ancient Greeks and Romans. They studied literature, arts and science of the classical period. As a result banks developed. It also started an age of exploration and discovery.
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Mansu Musa brought a Arab architect to Africa to build great mosques in Timbuktu. Timbuktu became an important center of Islamic art and learning.
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Prince Henry of Portugal realized the importance of finding a new route to Asia. As a result trading posts were set up along the African Gold Coast.
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Technology had an impact on the world by paving the way for European voyages of exploration. The invention of moveable type and the printing press, better maps, the astrolabe, and the three-masted caravel made exploration easier.
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As a result of this takeover, Songhai became the largest country in the history of West Africa. Many school were built in the country and trade was encouraged between Europe and Asia and Africa.
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A storm pushed Dias off course in his exploration of Southern Africa. He discovered that he had been around the southern tip which he called the "Cape of Storms". It was renamed Cape of Good Hope because it was hoped that the passage around Africa might lead to a new route to India.
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Christopher Columbus sets sails to try and find a new route to Asia. He believed he could get there by sailing west. Although he did not reach Asia, his exploration lead the way for other explorations to Asia by going west.
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da Gama's voyage opened a route to eastern Asia that lead to Portuguese claim of other lands. As a result the Portuguese city of Lisbon became the marketplace of Europe.
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Vespucci lead an expedition to the lands in South America. He concluded this was another continent unlike Columbus who thought he had reached Asia. Vespucci's exploration encouraged others to continue to explore America.
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England, France and the Netherlands wanted to profit from colonization like the Spanish did. These countries send out crews to discover a Northwest Passage across North America to Asia.
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Vasco Nunez de Balboa was a Spanish governor in present-day Panama at this time. He started an expedition through the mountains and jungles. This is when he spotted the Pacific Ocean. He claimed the lands at the water's edge and the land next to it for Spain.
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Juan Ponce de Leon landed in North America at present day Florida. This exploration lead to the first Spanish settlement in what is now the United States.
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Martin Luther begins this period when he nails a list of complaints about the Catholic Church to the church door. This begins the religious movement called the Protestant Reformation. Many people begin to break away from the Catholic Church to form their own Christian religions.
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Megallan leads a crew westward to find a route to Asia. He and his crew reach the Pacific Ocean by sailing across a water passageway in South America. On this journey Magellan is killed. Later, some of his crew members reach Asia by sailing across the Pacific. They are the first to circumnavigate the world.
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Hernan Cortes and other Spaniards destroy the Aztec empire in Mexico. Spain seizes control of this region along with its wealth.
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Francisco Pizarro and other Spaniards sailed down the Pacific coast looking for the wealthy empire of the Incas. He finds them, kills their leader, and takes over much of their empire and claims the land for Spain.
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Cartier search for a northwest passage to Asia. He explored the St. Lawrence waterways to Canada. He discovered that Newfoundland was a large island.
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In the mid-1500's the Spanish developed the plantation system to raise tobacco and sugarcane in large farms in the West Indies. These goods were exported to Spain. By the late 1500's plantation slave labor was an important part of the economy of the colonies.
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The French sent Samuel de Champlain to establish a settlement int Quebec. While in this region he discovered Lake Champlain. As a result the French built trading posts t collect furs trapped by Native Americans and French trappers.
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The Netherlands claimed land in North America wanting to share in world trade. They settled in the area of present-day New York.
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LaSalle was the first explorer to go down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. He claimed the Mississippi River valley for France.
