chapter 22 Flashcards
transoceanic encounters and global connections
From where did Vasco de Gama’s fleet depart for their voyage in 1497?
From (Lisbon) Portugal to Cape Verde Islands off west coast of Africa, sailing for 95 days through open ocean before rounding the Cape of Good Hope, and entering the Indian Ocean
When did Vasco de Gama and his fleet return to Portugal?
August 1499
What were some of the Europeans’ most important motives for exploring the world’s oceans?
- Search for basic resources
- Search for lands suitable for cultivation of cash crops
- Desire to establish new trade routes to Asian markets
- Aspiration to expand influence of Christianity
Who was most prominent in search for fresh resources to exploit and lands to cultivate?
the Portuguese
What islands did the Portuguese discover (archipelagoes in the Atlantic Ocean)?
Azores and Madeiras Islands
What indigenous peoples inhabited the Canary Islands?
Guanche people
How did travel on the Silk Roads become less safe?
Collapse of Mongol empire and spread of bubonic plague
Where did Muslim mariners bring Asian goods through the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea to?
Cairo, where Italian merchants purchased them for distribution throughout western Europe
What commodity from Asia did Europeans especially demand?
Spices (Indian pepper and Chinese ginger were regarded as expensive necessities, also prized cloves and nutmeg)
What goods beckoned Europeans to Africa?
Gold (especially important as it was Europeans’ principle form of payment for Asian luxury goods), ivory, slaves
Who was known for promoting voyages of exploration in west Africa to enter gold trade, discover profitable trade routes, win converts to Christianity, and make alliances against the Muslims with any Christian rulers?
Prince Henry the Navigator
Beginning in the 12th century, how did Europeans increase the maneuverability of their ships?
Building a rudder onto the stern
What was the benefit of using square sails?
Enabled sailors to take full advantage of a following wind/wind blowing from behind
What was the benefit of triangular lateen sails?
Took advantage of crosswinds, catching winds from the side and/or behind
Who invented the compass?
It was a Chinese invention of the Tang or Song dynasty that had diffused throughout the Indian Ocean basin in the 11th century
What did the astrolabe do?
It determined altitude by measuring the angle of the sun or the pole star above the horizon
Aside from sailors, who used the astrolabe?
Greek and Persian astronomers
Who constructed cross staffs and back staffs?
The Portuguese, which was modeled off of simplified Arab instruments for determining latitude
What and where are the “wind wheels”?
Both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, strong winds blowing regularly both north and south of the equator
Between what degrees of latitude do trade winds blow from the east?
Between about five and twenty-five degrees of latitude north and south of the equator
Between what degrees of latitude do westerly winds prevail?
thirty and sixty degrees north and south
During the summer months between April and October, what direction do monsoon winds blow?
From southwest throughout Indian Ocean basin
During the winter months, which direction do monsoon winds blow?
From the northeast
Who invented a strategy called the “volta do mar”?
Portuguese mariners