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Nov 11, 1347
first guns appear in Europe
They used guns to their advantage. They took gunpowder from the Chinese and turned it into a formidable weapon. During the conquest of the Americas, Europeans relied on guns as tactics to scare the Native Americans who have never before seen or heard a gun. -
Nov 11, 1406
Ptolemy's long lost map
This map is what led to Christopher Columus to believe that there was a possible route to Asia from sailing westward. He was the first to introduce the use of longitudinal and latitudinal lines. These synced together science and math with the art of trading, sailing, and exploring. He revolutionalized the way maps would be made forever. -
Nov 11, 1420
Caravels are built for the first time
Caravels are small ships that can be maneuvered very easily. They had lateen sails that made for faster sailing. They also allowed the caravel to be moved by the wind, and not only by means of rowing the boat. Caravels were the ship of choice for Portugese explorers. -
Nov 11, 1487
Bartolemeu Dias reaches Cape of Good Hope
He was appointed by King John II of Portugal himself to sail around the southern tip of Africa. The goal of this was to see if there was a possible route to India without passing through muslim lands. He eventually passed the Cape of Good hope, but his crew refused to go any further, so they headed back to Portugal, this time stopping at the Cape. His expedition laid the foundation for future European trade and exploration. -
Period: Nov 11, 1492 to Nov 11, 1504
Columbus' voyages
In 1492, Christopher Columbus was sponsered by the King and Queen of Spain to try to find a trade route to Asia by travelling across the Atlantic Ocean. Instead, he found a new land, but he died believing that he had reached Asia. He made a total of four voyages to the Americas before His death. -
Period: Nov 11, 1497 to Nov 11, 1498
Vasco de Gama reaches India
Following Dias's initial exploration, Da Gama set sail for Asia. He was the first European to sail in the Indian Ocean. This voyage lay the foundation for trade in the future. This trade led to a very prosperous Europe. -
Nov 14, 1499
Amerigo Vespucci explores South America
He and his crew were the ones who discovered Brazil. Also, he was the first to realize that there is a whole continent between Asia and Europe. In 1507, a map labeled the new continents north and south America in honor of Amerigo Vespucci. -
Nov 14, 1509
Sebastion Cabot
He followed in his father's footsteps and set out exploring. He sailed for the Americas in hope of finding a NorthWest passage. When he reached the Hudson bay, his crew demanded him to return to Europe, There he gave his news that he had indeed found a Northwest passage to China, and was then employed by England and Spain to sail more, and hopefully to China. -
Nov 14, 1513
Vasco Nunez de Balboa sees Pacific Ocean
He crossed the Isthmus of Panama and climbed a mountain and then saw the Pacific Ocean. He was the first European to ever see it. This lay the foundation for a new westward route to Asia. Later, a canal would be built to connect the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean together, and trade would flourish. -
Nov 14, 1514
Smallpox reaches the Americas
Smallpox sailed with the Europeans and their slaves. Unknowingly, they also carried a deadly disease. This was the year that it only began to wipe out masses of Native Americans. It resulted in millions of people dead. It also made conquering the Americas so much easier for the Europeans who had long before developed an immunity against this terrifying disease. -
Period: Nov 14, 1519 to Nov 14, 1522
Ferdinand Magellan's circumnavigation
He left Spain with 5 ships in 1519 in hopes of finding a southeastern passage to Asia. I520, his crew rounded the Cape of Good Hope, and into the Indian Ocean. At last, in 1522, his crew returned, but only 2 of the original 5 made it back to Spain. Magellan himself didn't make it back to see Spanish lands. -
Nov 14, 1521
Fall of Aztec Empire
One of the main reasons for exploration was to get glory for oneself and for his country. When conquering a highly skilled and prosperous civilization like the Aztecs, the conquistadors surely found glory for themselves. Also, since the Aztecs were very prosperous, they gained gold and fame all over Europe. -
American habits in Europe
Trade was always a huge part of every civilization. So, when Sir Walter Raleigh imported tobacco from Virginia, it was only natural. However Europeans didn't know how addictive it was, or anything else about it. -
Australia discovered
Some Dutch traders accidentaly arrived in Australia. They were going to trade with indonesia, but got slightly off course and ended up in a new, strange island country. This led to over a century of exploring and fighting over Australia. -
Today
I chose these 15 because they really lay the basis on what we percieve trade to be. Driven by greed, explorers set out to try to find new and practical routes to Asia. Once new lands wee discovered, they were once again driven by greed, but this time, they brought priests to spread christianity, and they sought fame for themselves and for their country. Unexpected results also happened. The amount of gold that was brought back to Europe was incredable, and disease allowed European conquest easie
