1. Discuss the development of European technological innovations that facilitated exploration and expansion of trade.

Intro: European technological developments in cartography and navigation made transoceanic travel and trade possible. Some of these innovations were in the production of new tools, ship designs, and the understanding of global wind and currents patterns. Improvements in the spread of shipping technologies and gunpowder weapons allowed European countries to begin their dominance of the world. The Iberian kingdoms of Portugal and Spain began a maritime revolution that ended the isolation of the Americas and increased the volume of global interaction. This maritime revolution marked the end of a long period when Asia had initiated most overland and maritime expansion. Contacts, alliances, and conflicts were broadened and deepened across ancient cultural boundaries as a result of European technological innovations in exploration. Navigational Instruments: Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal devoted his life to promoting exploration. His motivations were: spreading Christianity and earning new, profitable contacts. Early on, Portuguese explorers were concerned with Africa; however, later on the exploration of India became a bigger goal. He established a center of research at Sagres to study navigation built on the knowledge of Italian merchants and Jewish cartographers. The center collected geographical information from sailor and sponsored new expeditions to explore the Atlantic. Henrys staff at the center improved navigational instruments that had originated from China and the Islamic world. These instruments were the magnetic compass, from China, and the astrolabe, an Arab or Greek invention that allowed mariners to determine their location at sea by measuring the position of the sun or stars in the night sky. Even with these instruments, though, voyages still depended on the skill and experience of navigators. Ship Designs: Ships had to be sturdy enough to survive heavy winds and seas, and pilots had to learn how to cross large expanses of water to reach their destinations. In time, ships, sails, and navigational techniques perfected in the more protected seas were adapted to open oceans. Ships could then move goods and people more profitably than any form of overland travel then possible. Portuguese mariners developed vessels well suited for long-distance voyages. The galleys used in the Mediterranean had to be powered by a large crew, leaving barely any room for supplies on lengthy journeys. The three-masted ships of northern Europe had square sails that made it difficult sailing at an angle to the wind. Instead, the Portuguese and Spanish used the caravel, which was a small, shallow, and highly maneuverable three-masted ship. The ship could be equipped with either square or triangular lateen sails, allowing it

to work with the wind in the most efficient way. The addition of a small cannon also made caravels good fighting ships. Navigational Techniques: Crossing unknown waters, finding new lands, developing new markets, and establishing new settlements attracted adventurers from every continent. In order to reach Africa or India, some of the first captains had to disregard the common fear that South Atlantic waters were boiling how or contained ocean currents that dragged ships from ever returning home. It took the Portuguese four decades to cover 1,500 miles of the western African coast. With time, the Portuguese learned how to return home quickly. Instead of sailing against the prevailing northeast trade winds and currents back up the coast, they sailed northwest into the Atlantic, so ships could pick up prevailing westerly winds that brought them back to Portugal. This knowledge of circular patterns in ocean winds allowed explorers to use them to their advantage. Knowledge of the sun, moon, and sky also facilitated travel as they were used as reference points in navigation.

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