OCR Specification focus:
‘Routes; difficulties faced difficulties faced’
Introduction
During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, explorers faced immense challenges establishing routes across unfamiliar oceans and continents. These voyages were transformative, but perilous at every stage.
The Development of Routes
Atlantic Routes
Early exploration centred on the Atlantic Ocean, as Portugal pioneered routes southwards along the coast of West Africa. Navigators such as Prince Henry the Navigator promoted expeditions around Cape Bojador and beyond, laying the foundation for longer journeys.
Portuguese explorers gradually extended routes past Cape Verde and into the Gulf of Guinea.
The breakthrough came with Bartolomeu Dias rounding the Cape of Good Hope (1488), opening a sea passage towards the Indian Ocean.
Vasco da Gama’s voyage (1497–1499) then established the first direct sea route from Europe to India, an immense achievement in maritime history.
Labelled world map of Portuguese discoveries and sea routes, showing the staged push down West Africa, around the Cape of Good Hope, and across the Indian Ocean. Blue lines mark principal routes; dated landfalls identify key waypoints. Source
Spain, meanwhile, turned westward: Christopher Columbus’s voyage (1492) sought a westward passage to Asia, but instead established transatlantic routes to the Caribbean. Later, Magellan’s expedition (1519–1522) demonstrated the viability of circumnavigation, linking Atlantic and Pacific routes.
Mediterranean and Indian Ocean Links
Though European powers focused on new oceanic paths, they remained aware of existing Mediterranean–Asian trade routes dominated by Venice and the Ottomans. By establishing direct sea routes, Portugal aimed to bypass overland caravans and the Ottoman-controlled eastern Mediterranean, seeking faster and cheaper access to spices and silks.
The Indian Ocean presented rich opportunities, connecting Europe with East Africa, India, and eventually the Spice Islands.
Portuguese bases such as Goa and Malacca became vital staging posts along these routes.
Transoceanic Expansion
The need to connect across wider oceans created vast challenges:
Magellan’s crossing of the Pacific revealed both the enormity of the task and the possibility of global maritime connections.
Later Spanish conquests in the Americas encouraged transatlantic shipping routes carrying gold, silver, and colonists.
Difficulties Faced on Exploration Routes
Navigational Challenges
Explorers relied on rudimentary navigational tools, making long voyages risky.
The astrolabe and quadrant helped estimate latitude, but longitude remained unsolved until the eighteenth century.
Line drawing of a mariner’s astrolabe, showing the ring, graduated scale, and rotating alidade used to sight a star or the Sun. It illustrates how sailors derived latitude on long ocean passages. Minimal labels keep the focus on the instrument’s essential parts. Source
Astrolabe: An instrument used by sailors to measure the altitude of celestial bodies above the horizon, helping to determine latitude at sea.
Navigators frequently depended on dead reckoning — estimating position based on direction, speed, and time — which was prone to significant errors over long distances.
Harsh Weather and Ocean Conditions
Sailing into unknown waters exposed ships to extreme conditions:
The Atlantic currents could trap vessels in the doldrums or push them into storms.
NASA Earth Observatory image showing the Intertropical Convergence Zone as a bright band of cloud girdling the equator—the classic doldrums encountered by early explorers. This real-world visual explains why ships could stall in near-windless conditions. Source
The Cape of Good Hope was notorious for violent gales, towering waves, and treacherous reefs.
The Pacific Ocean, though calmer, was vast and led to severe shortages of supplies.
Human Hardships
The human toll was immense:
Scurvy, caused by vitamin C deficiency, killed many sailors before the discovery of citrus remedies.
Food spoiled quickly, leaving crews reliant on salted or dried provisions.
Long voyages led to exhaustion, mutiny, and disease outbreaks such as dysentery and typhus.
Scurvy: A disease caused by lack of vitamin C, leading to weakness, bleeding gums, and eventual death, especially common on long sea voyages.
These conditions often halved crews by the time they returned home, making survival uncertain.
Financial and Logistical Obstacles
Voyages required substantial investment in ships, supplies, and manpower:
Expeditions often took years to plan, relying on monarchs or wealthy patrons.
Losses from shipwreck, piracy, or failure could bankrupt sponsors.
Limited storage space aboard caravels and carracks forced difficult choices between provisions, trade goods, and weaponry.
Encounters with Hostile Environments and Peoples
Explorers frequently entered regions unfamiliar with Europeans:
Harsh coastal conditions, reefs, and uncharted rivers led to wrecks and delays.
In some regions, indigenous peoples resisted European intrusion, sometimes violently, creating dangers for landing parties.
Diseases such as malaria in tropical Africa threatened the survival of crews unfamiliar with local conditions.
Political and Religious Obstacles
The Ottoman Empire’s dominance over eastern trade routes pressured European powers to find alternatives, but it also meant:
Mediterranean control limited access to traditional markets.
Religious conflicts heightened tensions, with exploration framed as part of the Christian struggle against Islam.
Rivalries between Portugal and Spain escalated, leading to disputes over territory and navigation rights, eventually settled (in part) by the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), which divided spheres of exploration.
The Nature of Maritime Risk
The combination of navigational uncertainty, limited technology, and human vulnerability made each voyage a gamble. Yet, despite shipwrecks and human losses, persistent attempts gradually carved secure routes. Each new expedition learned from the last, developing maritime knowledge, cartography, and experience that reduced risk over time.
By the mid-sixteenth century, established sea routes connected Europe with the Americas, Africa, and Asia. These routes were forged through extraordinary perseverance in the face of overwhelming difficulties, creating the backbone of early modern empire and commerce.
FAQ
The Cape of Good Hope was feared because of sudden weather shifts, violent winds, and powerful currents. Ships rounding the cape often faced towering waves that could break hulls or drive vessels onto hidden reefs.
It became a test of seamanship, with many expeditions delayed or lost. Success here, however, was crucial for opening routes to the Indian Ocean and beyond.
Maps in the fifteenth century were often based on classical sources like Ptolemy or travellers’ tales rather than systematic surveying.
Coastlines were distorted, especially in Africa and Asia.
Unknown regions were left blank or filled with myths.
The size of oceans, such as the Atlantic and Pacific, was vastly underestimated, leading to underprepared voyages.
These inaccuracies misled navigators and heightened risks at sea.
The development of the caravel allowed for longer voyages because of its triangular lateen sails, which could tack against the wind.
However, early ships still had limited storage for food and water. Routes had to account for regular landfalls to replenish supplies.
This meant voyages often followed coastlines before attempting open-ocean crossings.
Explorers discovered that routes had to follow natural wind systems and currents:
The trade winds in the Atlantic allowed swift westward travel.
The westerlies enabled return voyages to Europe.
Currents around Africa demanded precise timing to round the cape safely.
Failure to understand these systems often stranded ships or delayed expeditions.
Food supplies were limited by storage conditions: salted meat spoiled, biscuits became infested, and water quickly went stale.
Without fresh produce, scurvy was common. Space taken up by provisions also restricted cargo for trade, forcing difficult choices.
This constant problem shaped route planning, as voyages depended on finding reliable resupply points along the way.
Practice Questions
Question 1 (2 marks)
Name two difficulties faced by explorers when sailing during the Age of Exploration.
Mark Scheme:
1 mark for each correctly identified difficulty, up to 2 marks.
Acceptable answers include:
Navigational inaccuracy (e.g., lack of knowledge of longitude, reliance on dead reckoning).
Harsh weather conditions (e.g., storms at the Cape of Good Hope).
Human hardships (e.g., scurvy, mutiny, disease).
Oceanic conditions (e.g., doldrums in the Atlantic).
Encounters with hostile environments or peoples.
Logistical and financial limitations (e.g., inadequate supplies, risk of bankruptcy).
Question 2 (6 marks)
Explain the difficulties explorers faced when establishing new routes during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.
Mark Scheme:
Level 1 (1–2 marks): Basic description with little detail. May list difficulties without explanation.
Example: “Explorers had bad maps and often got sick.”
Level 2 (3–4 marks): Some explanation of difficulties with limited range or development.
Example: “Explorers lacked accurate navigational tools, so voyages were uncertain, and crews often died of scurvy.”
Level 3 (5–6 marks): Clear and developed explanation covering a range of difficulties (navigational, environmental, human, or financial) with supporting detail.
Example: “Explorers faced navigational challenges as longitude could not be measured, making routes uncertain. They also risked storms at the Cape of Good Hope, while long voyages brought starvation and scurvy, reducing crews by half. Logistical issues such as limited storage space further increased the risks.”
