Maritime Exploration in the Age of Discovery, 1415-1800 (Greenwood Guides to Historic Events 1500-1900)

Despite earlier naval expeditions undertaken for reasons of diplomacy or trade, it wasn't until the early 1400s that European maritime explorers established sea routes through most of the globe's inhabited regions, uniting a divided earth into a single system of navigation. From the early Portuguese and Spanish quests for gold and glory, to later scientific explorations of land and culture, this new understanding of the world's geography created global trade, built empires, defined taste and alliances of power, and began the journey toward the cultural, political, and economic globalization in which we live today. Ronald Love's engaging narrative chapters guide the reader from Marco Polo's exploration of the Mongol empire to Ferdinand Magellan's circumnavigation of the globe, the search for a Northern Passage, Henry Hudson's voyage to Greenland, the discovery of Tahiti, the perils of scurvy, mutiny, and warring empires, and the eventual extension of Western influence into almost every corner of the globe. Biographies and primary documents round out the work. I serien Greenwood Guides to Historic Events, 1500-1900 er ovennævnte titel udkommet, der dog dækker en noget mindre periode. Denne amerikanske serie citerer Adlai Stevenson for følgende motivation for sit virke: "Vi kan kun kortlægge vores fremtid klart og vist, når kender den sti, som har ført os til nutiden". Værket omhandler Portugals udforskning vedrørende søvejen til Asien, Spaniens opdagelse af den nye verden, de første jordomsejlinger, der inkluderer undersøgelsen vedrørende stræder, der kunne føre til Kina samt udforskningen af det meget store Stillehav A collection of essays that examine developments in maritime exploration from 1415 to 1800, discussing the impact those developments had on what people knew about the world and how it was explored European maritime exploration in the Age of Discovery united trade routes and paved the way for the modern global era