Exploration

Before the Age of Exploration, Europe viewed the world in a very different way.   As a result of the Age of Exploration European people had broadened their horizons to brand new ideas, customs, goods, and ways of life. The Age of Exploration in many cases has been viewed as an age of cultural exchange and progress but has also been viewed as a period of social degradation and exploitation. The Crusades and the Renaissance inspired the Age of Exploration greatly. After the defeat against the Muslims for the Holy Land, the people began to question the ideas of the church and their faith. This questioning attitude led up to the period in European history known as the Renaissance. The Renaissance is commonly known as the “Rebirth of Europe”. It is known as the rebirth because of the many advances and achievements made during this time period. These achievements and advances include the new form of art known as humanism, the preservation of Greek and Roman culture/values, and the new form of writing known as Vernacular inspired by the famous writer Dante. This era of exploration can be viewed as a positive aspect to history as well as negative occurrence in history. There were also many factors that caused the people of Europe to want to expand and discover more parts of the world. These factors soon led up to a period of global interaction and exchange known as The Age of Exploration.
In Europe there were many events and occurrences that directly and indirectly sparked the Age of Exploration. The main motives for the Age of Exploration are often expressed as commonly known as the slogan, “God, Glory, and Gold.” For many of the countries the main reason for exploring and traveling to new lands was the goal of controlling trade and becoming the wealthiest nation (The Age of Discovery).   Since almost all of trade was controlled by the Muslims, Europe wanted to take this power away from them because of the rivalry between these two peoples due to the Crusades( The Age of