Unit4

2    Why did the Europeans want to find a sea route to the East?
It was because they want to trade with the Asians.

3    Why did other Europeans want to take control of trade in the Mediterranean away from the Italians?
It was because after they have broken the Italian control of trade, the European countries thought that
they could buy spices more cheaply if they traded directly with the East.

4    For what other reasons did Europeans want to send explorers on voyages of discovery?
To find treasures in the unknown world, to spread Christianity abroad, and to find out if the world was round.

5    Who was the first European ruler to start the voyages of discovery?
Henry the Navigator of Portugal started voyages of discovery.

6    What did the following Portuguese explorers discover?

(a) Bartholomew Diaz~ Bartholomew Diaz found Africa's southernmost top called the Cape of Good Hope.
(b) Vasco da Gama~ Vasco da Gama reached India by sailing east round Africa.

7    What mistake did Christopher Columbus make when he reached land in 1492?
When he found some islands in the sea after eight weeks of his voyage, he had found people there had dark skin, like Indians, so he thought he had arrived to India. Then he returned to Spain.

8    What route did Columbus actually find?
AColumbus actually found the route to the West Indies, and not the route to the East Indies.

9    Why did England, France and Holland send explorers to find the Northwest Passage?
It was because the Northwest Passage was a route to the East by sailing Northwest past North America.

10  What name did Magellan give to the new ocean he found after sailing past the southernmost tip of South America? Why?
Magellan gave the name "Pacific Ocean" to the new ocean. It's because the sea there was stormy, yet the ocean ahead was calm.

11  What happened to Magellan when he reached the Philippines?
The natives there killed Magellan when he reached the Philippines.

12  How many of his ships and sailors completed the voyage home to Spain? What did this voyage prove?
Only one ship and eighteen sailors have completed the voyage home to Spain. Their voyage had proved that the world is round.

13  Which Englishman travelled round the world following Magellan's route in 1577?
Francis Drake travelled round the world following Magellan's route in 1577.

14  What effect did the voyages of discovery have on the following?
(a) knowledge of the world
It made Europeans learn that the world was round.
(b) Christianity
It helped the spread of Christianity abroad since many missionaries went on the explorations.
(c) trade
It increased the trade with Asia and America because explorers brought back many goods from Asia and America.
(d) slave trade
It started the slave trade, explorers brought back many Africans, they sold these Africans as slaves, this was very profitable, so most Western countries took part in this trade.
(e) East-West contact
It increased East-West contacts after da Gama's discovery, people in the West started to go to Asia, they learned more about Eastern geography and civilization. China's civilization impressed them most. This increased Western interest in the East. so more Westerners came to the East in the 1600s and  1700s. East-West contacts were further increase