Impacts of the Age of Exploration1

Maddie Laird

Mr. Palcsey

Honors English 10

May 1, 2018

Impacts of the Age of Exploration in Europe

The year is 1300. Europe is experiencing a pivotal period called the Renaissance. It is a

re-birth of Europe’s cultural movement emphasizing art, learning, religious reform, politics, and

philosophy. Slowly, this revolutionary time period in European history starts to diminish.

Economic success in Europe, especially in Italy, slowly starts to dwindle because less money is

being invested in the arts and is beginning to finance overseas trade and exploration. Fast

forward to the 1400s and the 1500s, when the Renaissance was interrupted by the Age of

Exploration. Europe was unaware of the fact that a whole, new world around them remained

undiscovered. Europe, coming off of a forever influential period in their history, wanted to

expand their knowledge and did so through exploring. As a result, the Age of Discovery began.

The Age of Discovery can be defined as “The linking up through maritime exploration of the

oceans of the world into a single system of navigation and the ways in which this sea became the

basis for the eventual extension of European influence into every inhabited continent” (Arnold

2). This consequential time in European history started during the 15th century and ended around

the 18th century. The Age of Discovery acted as a continuation of the Renaissance because it

was a time period in European history when overseas exploration lead to the development of

technological advances, trade within newly discovered territories, and economic globalization.
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Throughout Europe, countries started to compete for the achievement of being the first to

discover new lands and eventually expand their territories and trade routes. Competition

increased between European countries such as France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Great Britain

(Arnold 1). However, the Vikings, Arabs, Indians, Chinese, and Polynesians completed “the first

Age of Exploration” before the Europeans. It has been said that around 1000 AD, Vikings from

Scandinavia had crossed the North Atlantic and arrived there by sails and oars. They landed in

America but did not make a permanent presence there like European explorers would centuries

later (Arnold 2).

Thanks to the many dominant technological advances, Europeans were able to travel,

explore, and eventually colonize different lands across the seas. Two of the more important

technological advances included the caravel and the astrolabe. The caravel was a special type of

ship that was able to sail windward more efficiently than any other ship used in Europe at the

time. The astrolabe was an instrument used to help sailors determine their location based on the

positioning of the stars. Additionally, European cartographers started to correctly develop maps

as we know them today (Arnold 1). As a result, the Europeans not only obtained vital

information about the rest of the world, but also traveled on long and far voyages across all

oceans to learn about and eventually colonize unknown landmasses throughout the world

(Arnold 1-2). Many explorers who used these tools were Christopher Columbus, Vasco de

Gama, Ferdinand Magellan and Prince Henry the Navigator. Christopher Columbus was an

Italian explorer who wanted to reach the East Indies (Spice Islands) by traveling west across the

Atlantic. He was sent and funded by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. After 2

months of voyaging, he discovered land. He thought he reached the Spice Islands but it was the

Caribbean. Soon after, Ferdinand Magellan and Vasco de Gama followed suit by launching their
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own expeditions to find new lands. Because of the influential voyages led by Europe’s best

explorers, Europe demonstrated a sudden command over the seas (Arnold 3). Vasco de Gama

was the first explorer to sail around the Cape of Good Hope and reach India. This increased trade

with Asia and eastern Africa. By creating a passageway to the seas, Europe created a passageway

to new cultures. “Europeans came into direct contact with peoples and places from China to

Chile, from Newfoundland to New Guinea… (Arnold 3).

The Middle East had a monopoly over the silk and spice trade. Because there were many

resources available to them and many countries around the world needed these resources, the

Middle East flourished because of these new-found riches due to imports and exports (supply

and demand). News of this tactic reached Europe and this started an age of trade. (Wikipedia).

Additionally, European powers started to slowly take control over the seas and to develop trade

routes. For example, Triangular Trade and the Columbian Exchange both began to flourish. The

Columbian Exchange was a trade exchange that transported necessary goods, plants, diseases,

animals, and ideas/cultures between the New World and the Old World while Triangular Trade

was trade that exported and imported raw materials, slaves, and manufactured goods around the

globe (Keller 8). The three legs of Triangular Trade included goods being brought to Africa to be

traded for slaves. Slaves were then transported to the West Indies and traded for rum, sugar,

cotton, tobacco, and molasses. Finally, products that were acquired in the second leg were

shipped to Europe or America. Important trading goods such as tobacco and chocolate (from the

New World) and tea and coffee (from Asia) influenced European food and trade. In response,

European countries (Portugal) started to export goods such as maize, peanuts, potatoes, tomatoes,

and chilies to Africa and Asia. This was important because these goods would have only been

accessible to America (Arnold 5). “Silver imported by Europeans from America and the new
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demand for locally-made trading commodities began to have a profound effect on many Asian

economies. The economic, cultural, and even the environmental impact of the Age of Discovery

ranged far beyond the narrow confines of the Europeans’ own trading posts and settlements.”

(Arnold 5).

Competition increased around the globe as many countries strived to become the first to

successfully explore and colonize new territories. As a result, Great Britain and France went to

war as the battle for colonization of America began. This important dispute in European history

is known as the French and Indian War or the Seven Year War. Great Britain, who controlled the

13 colonies, wanted to expand eastward. France, who controlled Canada, wanted to expand

southward. It was inevitable that the two different troops would eventually meet and fight over

occupying the same land. Fighting ensued between the European countries when Britain declared

war in 1756. Also during this war, important historical leaders, such as George Washington and

William Pitt made their first debuts during the war. Even though France seemed to be winning

the war because of more troops and better supplies, William Pitt helped Britain win the war

effort by funding a lot of money in hopes of improving military resources. As a result of the

heavy loans William Pitt supplied to Britain’s army, Great Britain suffered from deep debt.

The dramatic trade growth between the New World and the Old World influenced new

business and economic practices in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries. Because of the

trade regulations succeeding rapidly, the Commercial Revolution transpired. As a result of this

period of European economic expansion, different economic policies such as joint-stock

companies, capitalism, and mercantilism were introduced. Joint-stock companies were business

ventures that involved a number of people combining their wealth for a common purpose. If the

company were to fail, the citizens would only lose a small amount of money because they only
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invest in a fraction of the total cost. On the other hand, capitalism was an economic system based

on private ownership and the investment of wealth for profit. Those who invest in enterprises

such as trade and overseas exploration, opposed to private ownership “own the wealth” in a

capitalistic society. Similarly, mercantilism was an economic policy that explained that a

country’s power depended mainly on its wealth. Determined to implement mercantilism

successfully, colonies began to provide raw materials, resources, and goods (foreign to the home

country) and also provided a market in which to sell the goods.

In conclusion, the Age of Exploration was truly a continuation of the Renaissance

because “Europe’s literature and sciences were stimulated and enriched by the opening up of the

world through its discoveries” (Arnold 4). In fact, the Age of Exploration happened to occur

whenever William Caxton printed his first books in the 1470s and while Portugal was trying to

find a sea-route to Africa. New knowledge within books and new technology being established

made for an extremely powerful combination. As a result, Europe became an unstoppable force

because of the newly learned knowledge and the opportunity to expand the borders of the world

people thought they knew (Arnold 3).

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Work Cited:

"Age of Discovery." Wikipedia. April 28, 2018.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Discovery.

Arnold, David J. The Age of Discovery 1400-1600. Second ed., Routledge, 2002.

History.com Staff. "French and Indian War." History.com. 2009.

https://www.history.com/topics/french-and-indian-war.

Keller, Susanna. The Age of Exploration. First ed. Early American History. New York, NY:
Britannica Educational Publishing in Association with Rosen Educational Services, 2016.