Age Of Exploration Research Paper

It takes a lot more than a few men and a bundle of wood built into a boat to travel around the entire world. Many explorers of this time period risked their lives to discover the land walked by many people today. The discoveries and gadgets made by these people have contributed positively to the voyages across the ocean today. Not only have they made it easy, they have also made it different in so many ways! The time period lasting between the 1500’s and the 1700’s, also known as the age of exploration, was one of the highest points for exploration across the seas. There were so many people on the hunt for affordable spices and potential gold. (Age of Exploration Timeline) They were also attempting to spread their form of Christianity throughout
(Elliot) Although, there were a good number of people willing to sail across the ocean in hopes of becoming a king or monarch of a new found land, only a few were noted as the most important. Henry Hudson was one of the famous explorers who decided to search for the Northwest Passage as it is known today. Along the way he discovered the Hudson river, the Hudson strait and Hudson bay. These waterways have significantly helped trade within North America. Hudson also has a number of bridges and cities named after him. Another bay, known today as the Chesapeake Bay, was discovered by Christopher Newport. He led the voyage all the way to Jamestown and explored the bay. (Mariners’ Museum) Once many different passageways were discovered, and there was a possibility sailing around the world could be done, Ferdinand Magellan did it. He
These maps included the trade routes that were newly discovered and the multiple lands found on famous explorations. According to Elliot, the first map was created in 1507, and showed that Asia was not connected to North and South America, which many believed at the time. Soon after, atlases were printed and distributed so travellers could have the correct mapping of the earth within their pockets. (Elliot) Not only did their cartography skills improve over time, their shipbuilding ways also were impacted. There were a huge number of advancements made to ships to make them easier for trading and sailing on the open waters. During long voyages, there was a carpenter on each ship, no matter how high quality a ship was, and they checked up on and repaired the ship during the voyage. (Kling 18) There were different types of ships built for different types of sailing. For example, the Fluit ship was generally used for trading; it could withstand the colder climates and could hold more cargo than others. A Carrack was typically a good ship for exploring, since it could hold more men and enough food for those men to last them. The “Victoria”, which was a type of Carrack ship, was the first ship to successfully travel around the world. (Mariners’ Museum) The only way they could have made these ships from this time period any better would be to limit the amount of fighting the sailors had to do off-ship.