Columbus and the Age of European Explorers

This app contains a sequence of maps showing the major voyages of the European Explorers. It dramatically brings out the rapidly expanding horizons of European geographical knowledge. Information embedded within the maps describes the motivations of the explorers, the challenges they faced, and the discoveries they made.

The app shows clearly how, voyage by voyage, these early explorers built up an accurate store of knowledge about the world, and about trans-oceanic navigation: know-how which would soon enabled European merchants and sailors to dominate the world's trade.

This app is ideal students who are studying world history. It is also for anyone who knows little or nothing about this major turning point in world history and who wants to find out such things as....

...what drove the first Europeans to venture out onto the unknown oceans of the world in their tiny ships?

...what immense challenges did they face?

...what amazing qualities did they need to undertake such dangerous expeditions?

It is hard for us today to grasp how completely these voyages revolutionized European knowledge of the world. It is easy to forget what courage and strength of mind the early explorers needed to deal with the unknown dangers they faced: would YOU entrust your small sailing ship to winds and currents which might take you far away from home, but not bring you safely back?

And what led the Pope to divide the entire non-European world between Spain and Portugal?

Full teaching guidance is given for using the app with different age and ability levels, and appropriate suggestions for student activities are included.


Please visit the TimeMaps TM company page for more products in this range, which include:
- Ancient China
- The Rise of the Roman Empire
- The Fall of the Roman Empire
- The Rise of Islam
- The Black Death
- The Atlantic Slave Trade