Travel History: Famous Travelers of the Age of Discovery

From time to time, events occur in human history that radically change its course. The taming of fire, the taming of wild animals, the invention of the wheel and writing, cinema, nuclear energy, space flight... One of these turning points was the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries, which literally opened the Earth to man.

In fact geographical discoveries people have done it all the time, from primitive times until today. For example, just a few years ago a new island was discovered in the Laptev Sea.

But the era of great geographical discoveries includes only the historical period from the 15th to the 17th centuries, when European travelers (mainly the Portuguese and Spaniards), looking for trade routes to India, discovered new, unexplored lands and laid routes by sea to Africa, America, Asia and Oceania .

“A man who has never made mistakes has never tried anything new” (A. Einstein)

Time for a change

Until the middle of the 15th century, people knew at most a quarter of the Earth. But the next two are just two! - centuries literally changed the face of the planet for humans and turned the course of history.

Astrolabe - one of the oldest astronomical instruments, a geodetic instrument for measuring angles, in particular for determining latitude

Usually, The era of great geographical discoveries is divided into two periods. The first is from the mid-15th to the mid-16th century: the discoveries of the Spaniards and Portuguese in Africa, America and Asia, including the voyages of Columbus, Vasco da Gama and Magellan. The second is from the mid-16th to the mid-17th centuries: the discoveries of Russian travelers in Asia, the British and French in North America, and the Dutch in Australia and Oceania.

"Every outstanding researcher brings his name into the history of science not only own discoveries, but also by the discoveries to which he encourages others” (M. Planck)

For various reasons, the truly powerful maritime powers by the middle of the 15th century were Spain and Portugal. Trade routes from these states to India with its gold, silver, and most importantly, spices, which were extremely highly valued, through the Mediterranean, Africa, Arabia and Asia were long and full of dangers. That is why the Spaniards and Portuguese were the first to begin searching for a sea route, and therefore a shorter and cheaper route to Indian riches.

Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) - Spanish navigator of Italian origin, discovered the American continent in 1492

Born in Genoa, Italy, into a weaver's family, Christopher Columbus began sailing ships as a teenager. In 1476, he came to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, where at that time information about all the latest geographical discoveries flocked. Year after year, the young Italian went to sea on various ships, visited England, Ireland, the Azores... From books, his own impressions, conversations with experienced sailors, Columbus collected information and became more and more imbued with the idea, which eventually became his true passion : to reach India by going not to the east, but to the west.

By the middle of the 15th century, Europeans already possessed not only knowledge, but also tools, without which ocean travel would have been impossible: they used an astrolabe, a compass, and a caravel. Columbus's dream was achievable, and only a small matter remained - money was required for the long voyage.

Columbus tried to find a patron and philanthropist at the Portuguese court, but was refused. In 1485, the navigator left Portugal and went to the court of a “competitive” maritime power - Spain.

These two kingdoms truly reigned over the seas of that era. Their caravans plied the waters in search of new lands, in pursuit of gold, silver and spices, which were valued higher than precious metals. Both the Portuguese and the Spaniards needed the shortest sea route to India. And Columbus, although not immediately, was received at the court of Their Catholic Majesties, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.

Christopher Columbus's anticipation and eloquence were rewarded. According to an agreement signed between him and the royal couple of Spain, he received three ships and funding for their equipment. If successful, Columbus was to become admiral, viceroy and ruler of all discovered lands.

At the beginning of August 1492, the caravels "Santa Maria", "Pinta" and "Nina" went to sea.

Columbus himself had no idea how successful the circumstances of his first voyage were. On his side were the correctly chosen latitude - the shortest route across the Atlantic, fair winds and even a change in course towards the end of the voyage, as demanded by the crew who were on the verge of mutiny.

A caravel is a seagoing three- or four-masted sailing vessel with one deck and high sides and superstructures. It was widespread in the Mediterranean countries in the XIII-XVII centuries.

On October 13, 1492, Columbus set foot on the first land he discovered- one of Bahamas, which he named San Salvador. Confident that he had reached the approaches to India, China and Japan, the navigator set out further, reaching the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola and Tortuga (the latter was later destined to become a haven for pirates throughout the Caribbean).

There would be many more ups and downs in the life of the great Italian, but it was then, in the fall of 1492, that he accomplished his greatest deed - he discovered the New World.

“A false step has more than once led to the opening of new roads” (L. Kumor)

Henry the Navigator

The name of Christopher Columbus is the first that comes to mind when talking about the Great Geographical Discoveries. But it would be fairer to consider that the first to set sail to the winds of change was the son of the Portuguese King João I - the Infante Henry, later nicknamed the Navigator.

Throughout his life, Henry did not take part in any of the expeditions, but he equipped a great many of them. The Infant wanted to find a route along the coast of Africa to India. Henry the Navigator did not live to see this dream come true, but thanks to him, Portugal opened the most sinister, shameful and at the same time most profitable page in its history - the slave trade.

Vasco da Gama and his journey to India

Vasco da Gama (1460/1469 - 1524) - Portuguese navigator of the Age of Discovery. Commanded the first expedition to sail from Europe to India

Dozens of ships and voyages, hundreds of sailors, three rulers who succeeded each other on the throne are associated with the opening of the route to India - and the name of a stern and cruel navigator, the first European to reach India by sea, went down in history - Vasco da Gama.

In July 1497, his armada of three ships - the San Gabriel, San Rafael and Berriu - set off. The flotilla faced severe trials: headwinds and currents, the heat of Equatorial Africa, scurvy that struck the crew halfway to the cape Good Hope... But four and a half months later, Vasco da Gama rounded the southern tip of the African continent and turned northeast.

Unlike Columbus, the Portuguese actually opened the route to India. Yes, there were numerous clashes ahead with the Arabs, who had long and firmly mastered this part of the world, it was still necessary to equip trading posts and establish trade relations with local rulers, but the main thing was done. Portugal became one of the richest and most powerful maritime powers in the world. From May 1498 until the opening of the Suez Canal to shipping in 1869, the main trade routes from Europe to Asia were by sea.

“He who makes a discovery sees what everyone sees and thinks what no one thinks” (A. Szent-Gyorgyi)

Rivalry between Spain and Portugal

In the 15th century, Spain and Portugal shared the palm among the maritime powers. To prevent the two powerful crowns from quarreling, opening new territories, in 1452-1456, Popes Nicholas V and Calixtus III secured Portugal's right to own the lands south and east of Cape Bojador, and Spain recognized this right.

Ancient map of Europe (“Great Atlas”, or “Cosmography of Blau”, 1667)

However, Columbus's discoveries in 1492 changed the situation dramatically. Since the admiral believed that he had discovered the western route to India, and Portugal laid claim to the Indian lands, which it reached by the eastern route, the two kingdoms now disputed each other's ownership.

Fortunately, the dangerous dispute was resolved by Pope Alexander VI Borgia, who in May 1493 established a demarcation line separating the Spanish and Portuguese colonies. Castile now owned the lands to the west of the “papal meridian”, Portugal - to the east, about which the Treaty of Tordesillas was signed on June 7, 1494. This document not only delimited the spheres of influence of the two powers, but also actually assigned them ownership of the World Ocean, excluding the rest of the European countries.

Ferdinand Magellan's trip around the world

Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) - Portuguese and Spanish navigator, made the first trip around the world, opening the strait leading from Atlantic Ocean in Quiet

For the next twenty years, Spanish and Portuguese ships tirelessly plied the oceans. It became quite obvious that America is not India, but a new continent. But so far there was almost no income from it, and it seemed an annoying obstacle on the western path to the spices and gold of India. The sailors were looking for an opportunity to get around this obstacle.

Therefore, it was not surprising that in 1518 a Portuguese naval sailor approached the Spanish Council for the Indies - he proposed to consider a plan for a western route to the Moluccas, where expensive spices were produced. It is funny that a foreigner once again turned to the Spanish crown, and again because his project was rejected by the Portuguese monarch. And again, as in the case of Columbus, Spain made the right decision by agreeing to finance the expedition.

An experienced sailor set out to find a strait that would allow him to sail to Asia without going around the huge American continent from either the north or the south.

“Everyone knows from childhood that such and such is impossible. But there is always an ignoramus who does not know this. It is he who makes the discovery” (A. Einstein)

Magellan's journey was one of the most difficult in the history of that time. It lasted more than three years. Of the five ships that set out on the expedition, only one returned to the Spanish port; out of two hundred and sixty-five people, only eighteen returned. Ferdinand Magellan himself died in a skirmish with the natives on one of Philippine Islands, having already found the famous strait, which would later be named after him, and being on his way back to Europe.

It is impossible to overestimate the significance of the first trip around the world. Long-standing disputes about the shape of the planet, the unity of the World Ocean and the predominance of water over land, which were debated back in the Middle Ages, were finally resolved.

Discovery of Australia

France, England, Holland and other countries, which also had serious maritime traditions, could do little to counter the dominance of the Spaniards and Portuguese in the Atlantic, India, Central and South America. The British and French began to explore the North American continent, where New England and Canada would later be founded, which would go to the French.

Studying Pacific Ocean began long before the advent of writing. However, it first appeared to the eyes of the European Vasco Nunez de Balboa in 1513. The Spanish conquistador saw it from the mountain ridge of the Isthmus of Panama

But the most interesting discovery the Dutch had to do. Since the time of Aristotle in geographical world There was an idea that there must certainly be a large continent in the Southern Hemisphere that would balance the vast landmass of the Northern Hemisphere. But for a very long time, ships entered this part of the Pacific Ocean rather by chance: the “roaring” latitudes of the forties, the “whistling” fifties and the “furious” sixties were avoided by everyone. But time after time, sailors brought information about various parts of the land, which eventually began to be called Terra Australis Incognita - Unknown Southern Land, although these were mainly islands of various archipelagos of the Pacific Ocean.

And only in 1605 the Dutchman Willem Janszoon, who led the fleet of the East India Company, reached the shores of Australia for the first time. Almost forty years later, another Dutchman, Abel Tasman, reached New Zealand, Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) and marked the island of Fiji on the map. The search for the mysterious Southern Land is over.

“Sometimes it’s more useful not to know what has been done before you, so as not to stray onto the beaten path that leads to a dead end” (B. Gersh)

Development of Russian lands

While world powers were exploring the ocean, Russian pioneers were exploring one sixth of the land - the vast expanses of the Russian state.

After the conquest of the Kazan and Astrakhan khanates, the path to the Volga region and the Urals was opened. The colossal, sparsely populated expanses could become a source of wealth, but they could also destroy travelers who dared to invade the unknown.

The privileges and vast territories granted by Ivan the Terrible to the Stroganov merchants marked the beginning of the settlement of the Urals and the development there, first of trade, and then of industry - mining of ores, furs and salt.

In 1577, the Cossack troops of the ataman moved east Ermak, called by the Stroganovs to protect against the Siberian Khan. In 1582, the Siberian Khanate was conquered and annexed to the Russian state.

V. I. Surikov “Conquest of Siberia by Ermak Timofeevich” (1891-1895)

The 17th century was marked by many geographical discoveries: The mouth of the Yenisei was reached, the Taimyr highlands were developed, and the great Siberian rivers Lena, Yana, and Olenek were mapped.

And now come the names known to everyone: Ivan Moskvitin, Semyon Dezhnev, Erofey Khabarov, Vladimir Atlasov. Step by step they discover and develop Kolyma and Chukotka, Anadyr and Amur, Kamchatka and the Kuril Islands for posterity...

Great geographical discoveries European travelers late 15th century - mid 17th century were a consequence rapid development productive forces in Europe, growth of trade with the countries of the East, shortage of precious metals in connection with the development of trade and money circulation.

It is known that even in ancient times, Europeans visited the coast of America, traveled along the coast of Africa, etc. However, a geographical discovery is considered not only a visit by representatives of any civilized people to a previously unknown part of the Earth. This concept includes the establishment of a direct connection between the newly discovered lands and the centers of culture of the Old World. Only the discovery of America by H. Columbus laid the foundation for broad connections between the open lands and Europe; the travels of Vasco da Gama to the shores of India and F. Magellan’s trip around the world served the same purpose.

Great geographical discoveries became possible as a result of significant advances in the development of science and technology in Europe. At the end of the 15th century. The doctrine of the sphericity of the Earth became widespread, and knowledge in the field of astronomy and geography expanded. Navigation instruments (compass, astrolabe) were improved, new type sailing ship - caravel.

Portuguese navigators were the first to begin searching for new sea routes to Asia. In the early 60s. 15th century they captured the first strongholds on the coast of Africa, and then, moving south along its western coast, discovered the Cape Verde Islands and the Azores. A tireless organizer long voyages Prince Henry (Enrique), nicknamed the Navigator, became at this time, although he himself rarely set foot on a ship. In 1488, Bartolomeu Dias reached the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa. The knowledge gained by the Portuguese as a result of their travels gave sailors from other countries valuable information about ebb and flow, the direction of winds and currents, and made it possible to create more accurate maps on which latitudes, lines of the tropics and the equator were plotted. These maps contained information about previously unknown countries. Previously widespread ideas about the impossibility of sailing in equatorial waters were refuted, and the fear of the unknown, characteristic of medieval people, gradually began to recede.

At the same time, the Spaniards also rushed to search for new trade routes. In 1492, after the capture of Granada and the completion of the reconquista, the Spanish King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella accepted the project of the Genoese navigator Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) to reach the shores of India, sailing west. Columbus's project had many opponents, but it received the support of scientists at the University of Salaman, the most famous in Spain, and, no less significantly, among the business people of Seville. On August 3, 1492, from Palos - one of the best ports on the Atlantic coast of Spain - Columbus's flotilla set sail, consisting of 3 ships - "Santa Maria", "Pinta" and "Nina", the crews of which numbered 120 people. From the Canary Islands, Columbus headed west. On October 12, 1492, after a month of sailing in the open ocean, the fleet approached a small island from the group of Bahamas, then named San Salvador. Although the newly discovered lands bore little resemblance to the fabulously rich islands of India and China, until the end of his days Columbus was convinced that he had discovered the islands of east coast Asia. During the first voyage, the islands of Cuba, Haiti and a number of smaller ones were discovered. In 1492, Columbus returned to Spain, where he was appointed admiral of all discovered lands and received the right to 1/10 of all income. Subsequently, Columbus made three more voyages to America - in 1493-1496, 1498-1500, 1502-1504, during which part of the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Trinidad, etc. were discovered; part of the Atlantic coast of Central and South America was surveyed. Although the open lands were very fertile and favorable for life, the Spaniards did not find gold there. Doubts arose that the newly discovered lands were India. The number of Columbus's enemies among the nobles grew, dissatisfied with the fact that he severely punished the expedition members for disobedience. In 1500, Columbus was removed from his post and sent to Spain in chains. He managed to restore his good name and make another trip to America. However, after returning from his last journey, he was deprived of all income and privileges and died in poverty.

Columbus's discoveries forced the Portuguese to hurry up. In 1497, the flotilla of Vasco da Gama (1469-1524) sailed from Lisbon to explore routes around Africa. Having rounded the Cape of Good Hope, he entered the Indian Ocean. Moving north along the coast, the Portuguese reached the Arab trading cities of Mozambique, Mombasa and Malindi. With the help of an Arab pilot, on May 20, 1498, Vasco da Gama's squadron entered the Indian port of Calicut. In August 1499 his ships returned to Portugal. The sea route to the land of fabulous riches was open. From now on, the Portuguese began to equip up to 20 ships annually for trade with India. Thanks to their superiority in weapons and technology, they managed to oust the Arabs from there. The Portuguese attacked their ships, exterminated their crews, and devastated cities on the southern coast of Arabia. In India, they captured strongholds, among which the city of Goa became the main one. The spice trade was declared a royal monopoly; it provided up to 800% of profits. At the beginning of the 16th century. The Portuguese captured Malacca and the Moluccas. In 1499-1500 by the Spaniards and in 1500-1502. The coast of Brazil was discovered by the Portuguese.

In the 16th century Portuguese sailors mastered the sea routes in the Indian Ocean, reached the shores of China, and were the first Europeans to set foot on Japanese soil. Among them was Fernand Pinto, the author of travel diaries, where he was given detailed description again open country. Before this, Europe had only fragmentary and confusing information about Japan from the “Book of Marco Polo,” the famous Venetian traveler of the 14th century, who, however, never reached the Japanese islands. In 1550, their image with its modern name first appeared on a Portuguese navigation map.

In Spain, after the death of Columbus, expeditions continued to be sent to new lands. At the beginning of the 16th century. traveled to the Western Hemisphere Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512) - a Florentine merchant who served first with the Spanish and then with the Portuguese king, a famous navigator and geographer. Thanks to his letters, the idea that Columbus discovered not the coast of India, but a new continent, gained popularity. In honor of Vespucci, this continent was named America. In 1515, the first globe with this name appeared, and then atlases and maps. Vespucci's hypothesis was finally confirmed as a result of Magellan's trip around the world (1519-1522). The name of Columbus remained immortalized in the name of one of the Latin American countries - Colombia.

The proposal to reach the Moluccas by rounding the American continent from the south, expressed by Vespucci, interested the Spanish government. In 1513, the Spanish conquistador V. Nunez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama and reached the Pacific Ocean, which gave hope to Spain, which did not receive much benefit from Columbus's discoveries, to find a western route to the shores of India. This task was destined to be completed by the Portuguese nobleman Ferdinand Magellan (c. 1480-1521), who had previously visited the Portuguese possessions in Asia. He believed that the Indian coast lay much closer to open continent than it actually was. On September 20, 1519, a squadron of five ships with 253 crew members, led by Magellan, who had entered the service of the Spanish king, left the Spanish harbor of San Lucar. After months of sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, Magellan reached the southern tip of America and passed through the Strait (later called the Strait of Magellan), which separated the mainland from Tierra del Fuego. After three weeks of sailing through the strait, the squadron entered the Pacific Ocean, passing off the coast of Chile. On December 1, 1520, land was last seen from ships. Magellan headed north and then northwest. For three months and twenty days, while the ships sailed on the ocean, he was calm, and therefore Magellan called him Quiet. On March 6, 1521, the expedition approached small inhabited islands (Mariana Islands), and after another 10 days it found itself at the Philippine Islands. As a result of Magellan's voyage, the idea of the spherical shape of the Earth was confirmed, it was proved that between Asia and America lies a huge expanse of water - the Pacific Ocean, which most of globe occupied by water, not land, that there is a single World Ocean.

On April 27, 1521, Magellan died in a skirmish with the natives on one of the Philippine islands. His companions continued sailing under the command of Juan Sebastian El Cano and reached the Moluccas and Indonesia. Almost a year later, the last of Magellan's ships set off for their native shores, taking on board a large cargo of spices. On September 6, 1522, the ship Victoria returned to Spain; Of the entire crew, only 18 people survived. "Victoria" brought so many spices that their sale made it possible not only to cover all the expenses of the expedition, but also to make a significant profit. For a long time, no one followed Magellan’s example, and only in 1578-1580. The second voyage around the world in history was made by the English pirate Francis Drake, who robbed the Spanish colonies on the Pacific coast of America along the way.

In the 16th century - 1st half of the 17th century. The Spaniards explored the northern and western coasts of South America, penetrated into the interior and, in a bloody struggle, conquered the states (Mayans, Aztecs, Incas) that existed on the territory of Yucatan, present-day Mexico and Peru (see America's most ancient and ancient civilizations). Here the Spanish conquerors, primarily Hernán Cortés and Francisco Pizarro, seized enormous treasures accumulated by the rulers and priests of these states. In search of the fabulous country of El Dorado, the Spaniards explored the basin of the Orinoco and Magdalena rivers, where rich deposits of gold, silver and platinum were also discovered. The Spanish conquistador Jimenez de Quesada conquered what is now Colombia.

In the 2nd half of the 16th century. - early 17th century The Spaniards made a number of Pacific expeditions from the territory of Peru, during which the Solomon Islands (1568), Southern Polynesia (1595), and Melanesia (1605) were discovered.

Long before the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries, the idea of the existence of a “Southern Continent”, of which the islands of Southeast Asia were considered a part, arose and became especially popular during the discoveries. She spoke out in geographical works, and the mythical continent was even put on maps under the name “Terra Australis Incognita” - “Unknown southern land" In 1605, a Spanish squadron of 3 ships sailed from Peru under the command of P. Quiros, who discovered a number of islands, one of which he mistook for the coast of the mainland. Abandoning two ships to the mercy of fate, Quiros returned to Peru and then sailed to Spain to secure the rights to rule the new lands. But it soon turned out that he was mistaken. The captain of one of the two abandoned ships, the Portuguese L. V. de Torres, continued sailing and found out that Quiros discovered not the mainland, but a group of islands (New Hebrides). Sailing west, Torres passed along south coast New Guinea through the strait later named after him, and discovered Australia lying to the south. There is evidence that on the coast of the new continent back in the 16th century. The Portuguese and the Dutch landed shortly before Torres, but this was not known in Europe. Having reached the Philippine Islands, Torres reported the discovery to the Spanish government. However, fearing competitors and lacking the strength and means to develop the new land, the Spanish administration hid information about this discovery.

In the 1st half of the 17th century. The search for the “Southern Continent” was carried out by the Dutch, who explored a significant part of the coast. In 1642, Abel Janszon Tasman (1603-1659), sailing from the coast of Indonesia to the west, circumnavigated Australia from the south, discovering an island called Tasmania. Only 150 years later, during the Seven Years' War (1756-1763), the British captured Manila, the center of Spanish possessions in the Philippines, and found news of the discovery of Torres in the Spanish archive. In 1768, the English navigator D. Cook explored the shores of Oceania and Australia and again passed through the Torres Strait. He subsequently recognized Torres' priority in the discovery of Australia.

In 1497-1498, English sailors reached the northeast coast North America and discovered Newfoundland and Labrador. In the 16th-17th centuries. the British and French continued to send expedition after expedition here; many of them sought to find the northwest passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific. At the same time, a search was underway for a northeastern route to India - through the Arctic Ocean.

In the 16th-17th centuries. Russian explorers explored north coast Ob, Yenisei and Lena and mapped the contours of the northern coast of Asia. In 1642, Yakutsk was founded, which became the base for expeditions to the Arctic Ocean. In 1648, Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev (c. 1605-1673), together with Fedot Popov, left Kolyma on 6 ships and went around the Chukotka Peninsula, proving that the Asian continent is separated from America by a strait. The outlines of the northeastern coast of Asia were refined and plotted on maps (1667, “Drawing Siberian land"). But Dezhnev’s report on the discovery of the strait lay in the Yakut archive for 80 years and was published only in 1758. In the 18th century. The strait discovered by Dezhnev was named after the Danish navigator in the Russian service, Vitus Bering, who in 1728 rediscovered the strait. In 1898, in memory of Dezhnev, a cape at the northeastern tip of Asia was named after him.

In the 15th-17th centuries. As a result of bold sea and land expeditions, a significant part of the Earth was discovered and explored. Paths were laid that connected distant countries and continents. Great geographical discoveries marked the beginning of the creation of the colonial system (see Colonialism), contributed to the formation of the world market and played an important role in the formation of the capitalist economic system in Europe. For newly discovered and conquered countries, they brought mass extermination of the population, the imposition of the cruelest forms of exploitation, and the forced introduction of Christianity. The rapid decline of the native American population led to the importation of African slaves and widespread plantation slavery (see Slavery, Slave Trade).

American gold and silver poured into Europe, causing there a frantic rise in prices for all goods, the so-called price revolution. This primarily benefited the owners of factories, capitalists and merchants, since prices rose faster than wage. The “price revolution” contributed to the rapid ruin of artisans and handicraftsmen; in the village, the nobles and wealthy peasants who sold food at the market benefited most from it. All this contributed to the accumulation of capital.

As a result of the Great Geographical Discoveries, Europe's ties with Africa and Asia expanded, and relations with America were established. The center of world trade and economic life moved from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

Not only professional historians, but also all history buffs are interested in knowing how great geographical discoveries took place.

From this article you will learn everything you need about this period in.

So, in front of you Great geographical discoveries.

Age of Great Geographical Discovery

Early 16th century in Western Europe is characterized by the development of internal and international relations, the creation of large centralized states (Portugal, Spain, etc.).

By this time, great successes had been achieved in the field of production, metal processing, shipbuilding and military affairs.

The search by Western Europeans for routes to the countries of South and East Asia, from which spices (pepper, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon) and expensive silk fabrics came, is associated era of great geographical discoveries.

The Great Geographical Discoveries are a period in human history that began in the 15th century and lasted until the 17th century, during which Europeans discovered new lands and sea routes to Africa, America, Asia and Oceania in search of new trading partners and sources of goods used in great demand in Europe.

Causes of the Great Geographical Discoveries

Time from the second half of the 15th century. until the middle of the 17th century. went down in history as the era of great geographical discoveries. Europeans discovered previously unknown seas and oceans, islands and continents, and made the first trips around the world. All this completely changed the idea of.

Geographical discoveries, later called “Great” ones, were made during the search for routes to the countries of the East, especially to India.

The growth of manufacturing and trade in Europe created a need for . Gold and silver were needed to mint coins. In Europe itself, the extraction of precious metals could no longer satisfy the sharply increased need for them.

They were believed to be in abundance in the East. “The thirst for gold” was the main reason that forced Europeans to embark on increasingly long sea voyages.

It was sea travel that was caused by the fact that the long-used route to the East (by Mediterranean Sea and further by land) was blocked by the Turkish conquest by the middle of the 15th century Balkan Peninsula, the Middle East, and then almost all of North Africa.

The next reason for searching for new ways was the desire of European merchants to get rid of trade intermediaries (Arab, Indian, Chinese, etc.) and establish direct connections with eastern markets.

The prerequisites for the discoveries were as follows. In Spain and Portugal, after the Reconquista (Spanish: reconquistar - to conquer; expulsion of the Arabs in the 13th-15th centuries), many nobles were left “unemployed”.

They had military experience and in order to get rich, they were ready to swim, jump or go to the ends of the world in the literal sense of the word. The fact that the countries of the Iberian Peninsula were the first to organize long-distance voyages was also explained by their unique geographical location.

New inventions were of great importance for the development of navigation. The creation of new, more reliable types of ships, the development of cartography, the improvement of the compass (invented in China) and the device for determining the latitude of a ship - the sextant - gave seafarers reliable means of navigation.

Finally, it should be borne in mind that in the 16th century. The idea of a spherical shape of the Earth was recognized by scientists in a number of countries.

Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was the son of a poor Italian weaver. Having become a sailor, he sailed a lot and mastered the art of navigation well. As an adult, Columbus settled in the capital of Portugal, Lisbon, as an employee of an Italian trading company.

Columbus developed the project of sailing to the eastern shores of Asia by the western route (along the Atlantic Ocean) based on the doctrine of the sphericity of the Earth.

Christopher Columbus is a Spanish navigator who discovered America in 1492. His idea of the small extent of the Atlantic Ocean was the "greatest mistake" that led to the "greatest discovery."

Columbus failed to agree on funds for the expedition with the Portuguese King João II, and in 1485 he moved to Spain, which had recently become a unified kingdom.

Its monarchs were interested in strengthening their power. But here, too, several years passed before Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand accepted Columbus's plan.

The rich also gave money for the expedition - the financier Santangel and the merchant Sanchez - people of a new time, a new type of thinking.

On August 3, 1492, the flotilla under the command of Columbus (caravels Santa Maria, Pinta and Ni-nya) left the port of Paloe.

On the night of October 12, the lights of fires and a narrow strip of shore were seen. At dawn the ships approached a low island covered with tropical vegetation. It was one of the islands of the Bahamas, which Columbus named San Salvador ("Holy Savior").

On his first voyage, Columbus discovered a number of islands and was sure that they were located near eastern shores Asia.

Columbus declares the discovered land the property of the Spanish king. Illustration from 1893

Returning to Spain, Columbus organized three more voyages, during which he discovered new islands, the northern coast of South America and eastern Central America.

Everyone was sure that this was “India”. However, there were also those who doubted this. The Italian historian Peter Martyr wrote already in 1493 that Columbus discovered not the shores of Asia, but the “New World”.

Amerigo Vespucci and Columbus

Columbus's mistake was soon corrected, but the continent discovered by him was named after another Spanish navigator - Amerigo Vespucci - America.

Amerigo Vespucci - Florentine traveler, after whom America was named

In modern South America there is a state whose name immortalizes the name of Columbus - Colombia. However, Columbus's misconception was preserved in the name of the indigenous people of America - Indians, under which they entered world history.

Then it was found that their ancestors moved to America from Asia across the isthmus, where the Bering Strait is now located. This happened about 20-30 thousand years ago.

Conquest of Mexico and Peru

In 1516-1518 The Spaniards reached the places where the Mayans lived (the Yucatan Peninsula), and learned from them that there was a country nearby from which they received gold.

Rumors about the “Golden Empire” completely deprived the Spaniards of peace. In 1519, an expedition led by Hernando Cortes, a poor young nobleman, headed to the shores of the Aztec state (Mexico).

He had 500 soldiers (including 16 on horseback) and 13 cannons. Having secured the support of the tribes conquered by the Aztecs, Cortez moved to the capital of the country - the city of Tenochtitlan.

He captured the ruler Montezuma and took possession of his enormous treasures. An uprising broke out and the Spaniards had to flee.

Two years later they again captured the capital, exterminating almost the entire male population. Within a few years, the Aztec state was conquered, and the Spaniards got a lot of gold and silver.

Meeting of Hernando Cortez and Montezuma II

Spanish conquest of the Inca country in 1531-1532. made easier by the fragility of their military alliance. At the head of the campaign to the country of Biru (hence Peru) was the conquistador Francisco Pizarro, a shepherd in his youth.

He had 600 warriors and 37 horses. Having met with a 15,000-strong Inca army, the Spaniards treacherously captured their king Atagualpa.

After this, the Inca army was defeated. The king paid a huge sum for the promise of release, but was killed on the orders of Pizarro. The Spaniards captured the capital of Peru, Cusco. Peru far surpassed Mexico in its wealth.

The conquest of Mexico and Peru served as the basis for Spain to create its own colonies in America, which, along with conquests in other parts of the world, formed the huge colonial empire of the Spanish monarchy.

Colonies of Portugal

The Portuguese were the first to enter the ocean in search of a route to the distant countries of the East. Slowly moving along the western coast of Africa, they during the 15th century. We reached the Cape of Good Hope, went around it and went out into the Indian Ocean.

To complete the search for a sea route to India, the Portuguese king Manoel sent an expedition led by one of his courtiers, Vasco da Gama.

In the summer of 1497, four ships under his command left Lisbon and, rounding, sailed along its eastern coast to the rich Arab city of Malindi, which traded with India.

Vasco da Gama entered into an alliance with the Sultan of Malindi, and he allowed him to take with him the famous in those parts, Ahmed ibn Majid, as a navigator. Under his leadership, the Portuguese completed their voyage.

On May 20, 1498, the ships dropped anchor at the Indian port of Calicut - another great geographical discovery was made, as a sea route to India appeared.

In the autumn of 1499, after a difficult expedition, with a half-reduced crew, Vasco da Gama's ships returned to Lisbon. Their return with a cargo of spices from India was solemnly celebrated.

The opening of the sea route to India allowed Portugal to begin to master maritime trade in South and East Asia. Having captured the Moluccas, the Portuguese entered the Pacific Ocean, established trade with the South, and reached there, establishing the first European trading post there.

Vasco da Gama is a Portuguese navigator from the Age of Discovery. Commander of the expedition, which was the first in history to travel by sea from Europe to India.

As they advanced first along the western and then eastern coasts of Africa, the Portuguese founded their colonies there: Angola (in the west) and Mozambique (in the east).

Thus, not only the sea route from Western Europe to India and East Asia, but also created a vast colonial empire of Portugal.

Magellan's voyage around the world

The Spaniards, creating their colonial empire in America, reached the shores of the Pacific Ocean. The taffy of the strait connecting it to the Atlantic began.

In Europe, some geographers were so sure of the existence of this that they had not yet open strait, that they put it on maps in advance.

A new plan for an expedition with the goal of opening the strait and reaching Asia by the western route was proposed to the Spanish king by Fernando Magellan (1480-1521), a Portuguese sailor from the poor nobles who lived in Spain.

When proposing his project, Magellan believed in the existence of the strait, and also had a very optimistic idea of the distances that he would have to overcome.

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Man is a rational being - Homo sapiens, and the thirst for discovery and the insatiable desire to develop are the “costs” of his genetics. Throughout history, people have explored things. The Age of Great Geographical Discovery seems to be a separate milestone in the development of mankind. Its beginning is associated with the name of the third son of King Joan the First of Portugal - Henry. Enrico was never a sailor, but he was not known as a playmaker either. Although the crowned son did not sail further than Gibraltar, it was he who in the 15th century (1420) invited all the cartographers and shipbuilders known at that time to the court, ordering the construction of unprecedented ships - caravels. The sailing equipment of the ships should have allowed them to sail against the wind.

The first sea expeditions, consisting exclusively of caravels, were sent to the western shores of Africa, to Madeira and Canary Islands. No, the navigators were not faced with the task of discovering unprecedented lands. They were supposed to replenish the Portuguese treasury with gold, spices, and ivory. Portuguese navigators methodically explored the northern and western coasts of Africa. At the end of the 15th century (1484), Diego Cano reached the equator and crossed it.

Travel routes of sailors from the era of great geographical discoveries

A little later (1488), Bartolomeo Diaz was lucky enough to achieve Indian Ocean from the west, rounding southern part African continent. After his return, triumph awaited him. This is the first stage in the development of the sea route to India and the beginning of the Age of Great Geographical Discovery.

Interesting fact. Among the sailors who, together with Diaz, made this iconic sea voyage was the brother of the notorious Christopher Columbus, Bartolomeo.

Navigators of the Age of Discovery

The Age of Great Geographical Discovery - 15-17th centuries - during this period, the “sea wolves” of Europe were able to tell humanity about hitherto unknown lands and pave waterways to the shores of Africa, discover America and Australia, explore Asia and Oceania. Who are they, the navigators of the Age of Discovery?

Marco Polo - one of the first travelers of the Age of Discovery

Spanish conquistador Vasco Nunez de Balboa. He had the high title of adelantado. It is he who has the honor of being the founder of the first European city in America. It was the glorious hidalgo who was the first European sailor to set foot on the islands of the Pacific Ocean. He was accompanied by 190 Spaniards and 600 Indians (tribal affiliation unknown), who acted as porters.

Cruising the seas and oceans in search of prey, the conquistadors “along the way” discovered new lands

The Portuguese Vasco da Gama is a representative of an ancient noble family, a mathematician and astronomer. Fate and the will of the powers that be made him one of the most famous navigators of the era of great geographical discoveries. He has the honor of being the discoverer of the sea route to India. The expedition lasted two years (1497-1499), its path lay around the entire African continent. Strictly speaking, Vasco da Gama was simply “appointed” as a navigator who needed to find a sea route to India. King Manuel I of Portugal did everything to make the expedition successful. Subsequently, da Gama held very honorable positions - governor and even viceroy of Portuguese India. It was not in vain that he agreed to the king’s very tempting offer.

Portuguese Vasco da Gama is a navigator who first reached the shores of India.

The Genoese Christopher Columbus is a “favorite” among the navigators of the Age of Discovery and a very mysterious person: different sources indicate conflicting dates of his birth and death. Presumably – 1451-1506. Several European cities are vying for the title of the navigator’s homeland. There is no exact information about the origin and education of the discoverer and one of the most famous heroes of the Age of Great Geographical Discoveries. However, this did not stop historians from writing hundreds of scientific works about his expedition to the West Indies, and biographers created several “legends” for him. In a word, complete mysteries, which abound in the Age of Great Geographical Discoveries. One thing is clear, namely a number of islands in the Caribbean.

Having set off on three caravels in search of India, Christopher Columbus “accidentally” discovered America, calling it the West Indies

A citizen of Castile and Leon, Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) is considered not only the most significant figure of the Age of Discovery, but one of the most famous navigators on the planet. He made the first trip around the world (1519-1522), and was both its initiator and commander. Magellan served as the page of the king's wife, Leonora, and was her favorite, which is why he so quickly managed to get funds to organize the expedition, which significantly replenished the royal treasury.

The Spaniard Ferdinand Magellan was the first to travel around the world, inscribing his name in the history of the Age of Discovery

Magellan's expedition was not without losses. Initially it consisted of 256 (280) people and 5 ships; only one “Victoria” and 18 crew members reached home. A little later, 18 more arrived, captured by the Portuguese. Magellan discovered the strait, which is named after him, and was the first on the planet to cross the Pacific Ocean. There is a seamount named after him, spacecraft, a species of penguins, a crater on the moon and an entire galaxy in space.

The Florentine merchant Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512) occupied not only worthy place among the pioneers of the Age of Great Geographical Discovery - an entire continent was named after him. How did it happen that a simple merchant became a navigator and discoverer? After all, he, in principle, did not discover anything? According to one version of scientists, Amerigo simply asked for an expedition to Alonso de Ojeda (1499). Another version indicates that he participated in Columbus's voyage (1492) to the shores of America. Why was Amerigo considered the discoverer of America for a long time? Only because Vespucci was the first to come up with the idea that the unknown islands were not Asia at all, but a completely new and hitherto unknown continent.

Amerigo Vespucci was the first to suggest that the West Indies was not India at all, but an unknown continent. That's why America was named after him

The national hero of Russia and the famous Russian discoverer, Ermak Timofeevich (1525-1584), was not a navigator. He did not find new continents, he discovered and conquered Western Siberia for Russia. He and his Cossack squad walked along the path where the Trans-Siberian Railway runs today. The expedition was created at the request of the Stroganov merchants and by order of Ivan the Terrible. The Great March began in 1581.

Interesting fact. It was John’s gift to Ermak – chain mail – that became the cause of his tragic death. It was found in the Irtysh many years after the death of the Cossack ataman; today it is kept in the Armory Chamber.

The Age of Great Geographical Discoveries has many more names and associated secrets and mysteries.

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Great geographical discoveries- an era in the history of the world that began in the 15th century and lasted until the 17th century.

During era of great geographical discoveries Europeans discovered new lands and sea routes to Africa, America, Asia and Oceania in search of new trading partners and sources of goods that were in great demand in Europe.

Historians usually correlate the “Great Geographical Discoveries” with the pioneering long-distance sea voyages Portuguese and Spanish travelers seeking alternative trade routes to the "Indies" for gold, silver and spices.

Sasha Mitrakhovich 22.12.2017 08:07

The main reasons for the Great Geographical Discoveries

Depletion of precious metal resources in Europe; overpopulation of Mediterranean areas
With the fall of Constantinople in the 15th century. The land routes along which eastern goods (spices, fabrics, jewelry) reached Europe were captured by the Ottoman Turks. They blocked the previous trade routes of Europeans with the East. This necessitated the search for a sea route to India.
Scientific and technological progress in Europe (navigation, weapons, astronomy, printing, cartography, etc.)
The desire for wealth and fame.
IN open lands Europeans founded colonies, which became a source of enrichment for them.

Sasha Mitrakhovich 22.12.2017 08:07

Great geographical discoveries. Briefly

1492 - discovery of America by Columbus
1498 - Vasco da Gama discovered a sea route to India around Africa
1499-1502 - Spanish discoveries in the New World
1497 - John Cabot discovers Newfoundland and Labrador
1500 - discovery of the mouth of the Amazon by Vicente Pinzon
1519-1522 - first circumnavigation Magellan, discovery of the Strait of Magellan, Mariana, Philippine, Moluccas Islands
1513 - discovery of the Pacific Ocean by Vasco Nunez de Balboa
1513 - Discovery of Florida and the Gulf Stream
1519-1553 - discoveries and conquests in South America by Cortes, Pizarro, Almagro, Orellana
1528-1543 - Spanish discoveries of the interior of North America
1596 - discovery of the island of Spitsbergen by Willem Barents
1526-1598 - Spanish discoveries of the Solomon, Caroline, Marquesas, Marshall Islands, islands New Guinea
1577-1580 - second voyage around the world by the Englishman F. Drake, discovery of the Drake Passage
1582 - Ermak’s campaign in Siberia
1576-1585 - English search for the northwest passage to India and discovery in the North Atlantic
1586-1629 - Russian campaigns in Siberia
1633-1649 - discovery by Russian explorers of the East Siberian rivers to the Kolyma
1638-1648 - discovery of Transbaikalia and Lake Baikal by Russian explorers
1639-1640 - exploration of the coast by Ivan Moskvin Sea of Okhotsk
The last quarter of the 16th century - the first third of the 17th century - the development of the eastern shores of North America by the British and French
1603-1638 - French exploration of the interior of Canada, discovery of the Great Lakes
1606 - independently discovered by the Spaniard Quiros by the Dutchman Janson northern shore Australia
1612-1632 - British discoveries of the northeastern coast of North America
1616 - discovery of Cape Horn by Schouten and Le Mer
1642 - Tasman's discovery of the island of Tasmania
1643 - Tasman discovers New Zealand
1648 - Dezhnev’s discovery of the strait between America and Asia (Bering Strait)
1648 - discovery of Kamchatka by Fyodor Popov

Sasha Mitrakhovich 22.12.2017 08:07

In the photo: Portrait of Vasco Nunez de Balboa by an unknown artist.

At the beginning of the 16th century, Europeans continued to “discover” the Earth; Researchers attribute this time to the first period of the Age of Discovery. The main role was then played by the Spaniards and Portuguese, rushing to the unexplored lands of America, Africa and Asia.

In 1513, the Spaniards built their first settlements in America, steadily moving from east to west. They were attracted by stories about the mythical Eldorado, buried in gold and precious stones.

In September, the enterprising conquistador Vasco Nunez de Balboa, with 190 Spanish soldiers and many Indian guides, set out from the city of Santa Maria la Antigua, which he had founded three years earlier. He had been looking for success in America for about fifteen years, skillfully combining “carrot and stick” in his relationships with the local population. He could caress and give gifts, or he could, in anger, hunt down an Indian he disliked with dogs, which brought indescribable horror to the aborigines.

For more than three weeks, the detachment literally “struggled” through mountains covered with thickets of vines and ferns, suffering from fever in the swampy lowlands and repelling attacks from militants. local residents. Finally, having crossed the Isthmus of Panama, from the top of Mount Balboa he saw the vast expanse of the sea. Entering the water with a naked sword in one hand and a Castilian banner in the other, the conquistador declared these lands the possessions of the Castilian crown.

Having received a pile of pearls and gold from the natives, Balboa was convinced that he had found the fairyland from the stories about Eldorado. He called the sea he reached “Southern”.

So Vasco Nunez de Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean. continued.

By the way, when Balboa in 1510 persuaded the first Spanish colonists to follow him into the interior of the mainland, among the latter was the later famous Francisco Pizarro. Then Pizarro did not want to go with the future discoverer of the Pacific Ocean. Pizarro's finest hour came twenty years later. In 1532, he conquered Peru, the Inca Empire, becoming the owner of an unprecedented amount of gold.

Sasha Mitrakhovich 22.12.2017 08:14

Throughout modern history, the world familiar to Europeans (that is, for them in general, “the world”) became larger and larger. In 1642, this “world” was replenished with another territory - it was called New Zealand. This is where it ended.

New Zealand was discovered by Abel Tasman

Abel Tasman was a very inquisitive and purposeful person. How else can we explain the miraculous transformation of a child from a poor Dutch family into a real “sea wolf”? famous navigator, discoverer of new lands? Self-taught, born in 1603, at the age of thirty (that is, quite serious) he entered the service of the Dutch East India Company as a simple sailor, and already in 1639 he commanded a ship sent to establish trade contacts with Japan.

Dutch merchants in those days dreamed of expanding their sphere of influence; this was the golden age of the Dutch bourgeoisie. There were rumors about mysterious land south of Australia, full of untold riches; it was called the Southern Continent. The Dutch East India Campaign sent Tasman to search for this continent. He didn’t find the mythical continent, but he discovered New Zealand. This often happened in that era - remember how Columbus accidentally discovered America.

The two ships left Batavia in August 1642. Having rounded Australia from the south and heading east, on November 24 Tasman discovered an island later named after him (Tasmania), and on December 13 - new land: This was South Island New Zealand. Dropping anchor in the bay, he met the aborigines. The meeting was not without tragedy - Maori warriors killed four Europeans, for which the bay received the gloomy nickname of Murder Bay from Tasman.

On the way back to Batavia, the lucky Dutchman also discovered the islands of Tonga and the islands of Fiji. The rank of commander he soon received was, of course, well-deserved. Since 1651, Tasman was engaged exclusively in trade. He - after so many adventures - could afford it.

The next European to visit New Zealand was the famous Captain James Cook. But this happened only in 1769.

Sasha Mitrakhovich 22.12.2017 08:14

Precious metals from the New World quickly flooded the markets of “old Europe.”

With the emergence of a large number of colonies, colonial empires are formed, and the era of imperialism begins.

Significant expansion of trade and the formation of a single world market. In Western European countries, some trading houses are declining and others are rising. (The Netherlands owe its rise to the era of geographical discoveries. In the sixteenth century, Antwerp became the main transshipment port for goods from Asia and America to other European countries).

Residents of the old world methodically destroy ancient civilizations conquered colonies, exterminate peoples, their culture and knowledge. Development of the slave trade.

Sasha Mitrakhovich 23.12.2017 07:55

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