Elizabethan Exploration Flashcards
Why explore?
England needed new trade opportunities after wool trade was damaged (war against Spain in Netherlands)
America was mostly undiscovered meaning more riches like different crops and animal skins as well as precious metals (which had all already been found) were waiting to be found
Voyages were funded by private investors, including Elizabeth.
John Hawkings
First English slave trader. 1562, he transported African slaves and sold them to Spanish colonisers in America. Brought ginger, animal hides, sugar and pears with proceedings and made huge profit. Repeated this in 1564
Triangular trade
Slave from Africa brought with European goods, traded for goods in America which are then sold back in Europe
Who went on voyages
Mostly gentry and nobility men went on voyages in hope of adventure and fortune
Reasons for voyages
Search for NorthWest Passage: search for a route over the top of North America to the Pacific
Rivalry with Spain for naval domination:–privateers could target Spanish ships
–financial rewards incresed power and control
New technology
Quadrant/Astrolabes used for navigation and made navigation easier
Maps/printing: mercator map more accurate and printing meant more could be produced
Ship design
Galleons quick, manouverable, more cargo space and fire power
Reasons for Drake’s circumnavigation of the globe
Never intended to sail around the globe. His objective in 1577 was to raid Spanish colonies and for revenge for his and Hawkin’s voyage from 1567–68 where 325 of their men were killed by Spanish.
The Americas were still very profitable
Drake had investors from court
Events of Drake’s circumnavigation of the globe
By the time the fleet had reached the Pacific in 1578 only 1/5 ships were left and only he and 56 men returned to Englandin 1580.
English morale boost and gave English sailors a good reputation
The logs they kept encouraged more exploration
Novia Albion
June 1579: the Golden Hind needed repairs and landed where is niw California where Drake amd crew met friendly natives. They performed a ceremony on Drake which he thought was similar to a coronation. He named the region Nova Albion and declared Elizabeth it’s soveriegn, breaking an agreement made by the pope almost a century before which gave the Americas to Spain and Portugal. Elizabeth gave explorers the right to claim any american land which hadn’t already been claimed, encouraging English colonialism and angering Phillip
