PART 1: Answer the following prompt in 300 words. Why was there such a GLOBAL interest in exploration in the 15th century?
Geoff Wade, The Zheng He Voyages-A Reassessment.pdf
Moral Reflections on the Columbian Legacy by James Axtell.pdf
PART 2: Respond to TWO CLASSMATES
Classmate 1 (Jeremy)
We learned in history class growing up about Christopher Columbus’ voyage across the Atlantic. We learn about the European’s enthusiasm for colonialism and exploration in this “New World”. In James Axtell’s paper on the legacy of Columbus, he reflected the fact that “For what Columbus set in motion was the creative recognition of a unified world.” Columbus, in his stumbling into the new world, discovered that there was way much more to be had in the world, and this raised the stakes for those competing for global domination. In the New World, there was an abundance of resources waiting to be taken advantage of by the new comers. The current peoples living on the continent were not as inclined as the Europeans were to exploit the resources of the land thus, they were either unharvested or ‘misused’ by the inhabitants.
The Spanish were a big actor in the Old world’s domination of the new world. They were not shy to use violent means in order to gain the riches owned by the natives. The Spaniards took a part in the genocide of numerous tribes, most notably the Incans, where one commander with around 200 armed men with guns. wiped out an entire tribe of Incans.
Meanwhile in the eastern theater, Ming enuch Admiral Zheng was more focus on alliances gained through the exploration of distant lands. He was celebrated for fostering relations between China, and other countries, he used commerce as a means to gain favor. They often used this favor to expand their reach in the known world and gain strongholds in places they would otherwise have no stake.
In conclusion, there was much to be gained through the exploration of the new world, and the presence of colonialism in the 15th century. Either riches, land, power, or influence in the world was the primary factors of the countries which partook in these activities.
Classmate 2 (Christopher)
The ever-expanding search for trade routes, specifically to connect with Asia, India, and Africa easier. Valuable spices and gold would lead Portugal to become one the largest leaders in European exploration. The discovery of the continent of America also brought with it a desire for more gold and the expansion of Christianity and pagans of the newly found continent by the European explorers. Christopher Columbus w with his attempt to navigate to Asia, India, and West Africa by traveling east across the Atlantic would set in motion centuries of change. Inevitably connecting the world culturally and economically also expanded trade of agricultural, goods, and livestock that to one another was never aware even existed. Whether these things are viewed as negative or positive in effects to the people that found themselves suddenly connected is dependent on many factors the result is the world in which we live today where many areas are very diverse the echoes of European colonization during the 15th century forever changed the landscape of the world.
Portugal quickly became a catalyst for this early in the 15th-century exploration. Due to several factors and one of the leading causes for their desire to begin exploring trade routes was due to lack of access to the Medetreriannina sea in which Italy and the Ottoman Empire controlled near all of the Meditarianinan trade routes. Portugal desperately wanted easier access to spice and gold and the prospect of gaining extra territory along the way, as the years passed a greater need to expand to new trade territory also grew as Europeans found it more difficult to sell goods to Asia, India, and Africa as goods and materials from Europe began to be seen as of lesser quality this generated a larger need to find new places to trade goods with.
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