In the 15th century, Europeans began exploring the world beyond their continent. This Age of Exploration saw European sailors and merchants travel to distant lands in search of new markets for their products, new products to bring home and spread their religion.
This European exploration was a direct consequence of the social and cultural changes sweeping Europe during the Renaissance. And it would have consequences for the rest of the world for centuries to come.
But why did the Age of Exploration begin in the first place? What were these events or changes in European society that triggered this urge to explore?
Let’s dive into this topic and understand the reasons why the Age of Exploration began.
Why Did The Age of Exploration Begin?
The best way to understand what caused the Age of Exploration to begin is to understand what changed from Medieval times to the Renaissance. As you know, the Renaissance was a time of immense changes in Europe. Art, literature, science and education flourished.
Renaissance Humanists wanted to changed religion and reformist movements began spreading across Europe. The seeds of Secularism were planted. Man’s view of the world began to change and the road to the modern world was paved.
With this as a backdrop, you can imagine that Europeans – monarchs and people alike – were thirsty for more. And investigating the world beyond the horizon seemed like the most logical thing to do.
And so here are the main reasons why the Age of Exploration began:
- There was a need for new trade routes and markets
- Demand for new products and goods started rising
- Advances in maritime technology made long-distance voyages possible
- European monarchs were eager to enlarge their empires and were thirsty for glory
- The Church (and some monarchs) wanted to spread Christianity to distant lands
Now, let’s look closely at each of these reasons behind the Age of Exploration.
#1. There was a need for new trade routes and markets
As the Renaissance raged on in Europe and the arts, science and literature flourished, European merchants gained power. One of the reasons that the Renaissance started in Florence was because the merchant and banking family, the Medici had provided funding and support to the earliest Renaissance artists.
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As the prominence of the merchant classes rose, so did the desire to find new markets to sell goods and products. This need to find new trade routes to places like India and discover new markets was one of the main reasons why the Age of Exploration began. Eventually, the Age of Exploration would lead to a full trade and commercial revolution, generating enormous wealth and power for merchants and monarchs alike.
#2. Demand for new products and goods started rising
A big change between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance was the emergence of markets for goods like textiles, spices, gold, jade, silk and musk. The growth in demand for such products was fuel for the Age of Exploration.
And Europeans discovered that people in distant lands had a need for products made in Europe. For instance, Portuguese merchants would sail to distant lands and trade weapons and guns for spices and silks.
This demand for new products and goods is one of the ways how the Renaissance affected merchants and why the Age of Exploration started and continued to flourish.
#3. Advances in maritime technology made long-distance voyages possible
The Crusades had already opened trade routes to the Levant. But sailing longer distances on open seas was something that people did not easily achieve in the Middle Ages.
There was a need for technological progress and that came during the Renaissance. In fact, advances in science and technology, especially maritime technology, were one of the biggest contributions of the Renaissance to the Age of Exploration.
Mariners during the Renaissance had tools like the compass and the astrolabe. Knowing the precise location of their ships allowed them to travel far and wide with safety and reliability. This empowered sailors to take on more ambitious expeditions.
Shipbuilding technology also advanced during the Renaissance, making long-distance sailing carrying a small army of people a possibility.
#4. European monarchs were eager to enlarge their empires and were thirsty for glory
Without the support of political leaders, the Age of Exploration would never have taken off. During the Renaissance, European monarchs were looking to increase their power and prestige and expand their empires. Fighting amongst each other rarely led to the acquisition of large swathes of land. (Marrying into another royal family was a faster way)
And so European monarchs encouraged exploration as a way not only to discover new trade routes and markets but also find expand their empires, increase their wealth, and gain influence over rivals.
This expansion while good for Europe was often disastrous for people that came in contact with European explorers. This was the dark side of the Renaissance.
The Age of Exploration saw the ruthless exploitation and destruction of native cultures. Entire populations were plundered and enslaved. This was especially true in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Eventually, the Age of Exploration would like to Imperialism and colonization.
So the support of monarchs and their thirst for wealth, power, and glory led to the Age of Exploration but this is also one of the reasons we need to see the Renaissance as both good and bad.
#5. The Church (and some monarchs) wanted to spread Christianity to distant lands
One of the most important ways that the Renaissance impacted the Catholic Church was because of the Protestant Reformation. The other was the export of Christianity to distant lands.
When maritime explorers such as Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand Magellan and Vasco da Gama ventured to distant lands they took their religion with them. Spain and Portugal were the countries that spearheaded this exportation of religion. Monarchs too supported this venture – from the Holy Roman Emperor to the “Catholic Monarchs”, Ferdinand and Isabelle of Spain.
The desire to spread religion was one of the reasons the Catholic Church backed exploration and why the Age of Exploration began. The Church would go on to send missionaries who would set up religious orders like those of the Jesuits and the Dominicans and convert people to Christianity wherever possible.
To Conclude …
So why did the Age of Exploration begin? There are many reasons big and small for why this happened. In this article, we reviewed the most prominent of these. The first was the need to find new trade routes and markets for European goods and products. Then a rise in consumer demand saw the need to bring exotic products back to European markets.
Technological advances allowed sailors and merchants to expand on existing trade routes. Monarchs felt they could support the Age of Exploration as it would bring them wealth, power and glory. And so did the Church because it help spread Christianity around the world.