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Jan 1, 1418
Prince Henry starts a Navigator School
Prince Henry started the first navigator school. He also started the first school with an astronomical observatory. This was in Sagres, Portugal, and it taught students about navigation, science, and map-making. They used this knowledge to sail down to the Africa. -
Jan 1, 1488
Dias rounds the tip of Africa
Bartolomeu Dias was a Portuguese explorer. The voyaege that he led opened up sea routes between Europe and Asia. When he rounded the tip of Africa, he did not know it. -
Jan 1, 1493
Columbus reaches the Caribbean
Columbus didn't know he had reached the Caribbean. He thought he reached the Indies or the islands of southwest India. When Columbus died, he still did not know that it was a "new world" that he had helped to discover. -
Jan 1, 1494
Spain and Portugal sign the Treaty of Tordesillas
This treaty was between Spain and Portugal. They agreed to divide up all the land outside of Europe evenly amongst themselves, and it didn't matter who was living there. -
May 20, 1498
Da Gama reaches the port of Calicut on the Indian Ocean
Vasco da Gama was received in Calicut with open arms and traditional hospitality. This did not last, however. The ruler of Calicut did not allow de Gama to establish a trading system, and he departed Calicut in August of 1498. -
Jan 1, 1519
Magellan leads a Spanish exploration to the Philippines
The was te first exploration that went from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. Magellan was killed in the Philippines, but this voyage was the first completed circumnavigation around the entire earth. -
Jan 1, 1565
Spain begins a settlement in the Philippines
Miguel Lopez de Legazpi established the Spanish East Indies in Guam and the Philippines Islands. Spain had rule over the Philippines until 1898, when the Philippine people revolted. -
The Dutch establish a trading center on Java
This was called the "Dutch East India Company." By 1796, they had sent almost a million Europeans to work in Asia. The Dutch East India Company was originally started so there would be profit from the spice trade.