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The desire to explore the unknown has been a
driving force in human history since the dawn
of time. From the earliest documented accounts,
ancient civilizations have explored the earth
by sea. Early adventurers were motivated by religious
beliefs, the desire for conquest, the need to
establish trade routes, and hunger for gold. Modern
history books begin the age of exploration with
the fourteenth century, but there is evidence
that exploration between Europe and Asia began
much earlier. Travel between Greece and India,
for instance, was common in Alexander the Great's
time because his vast empire included territories
of both countries. The Han Dynasty of China and
the Roman Empire, likewise, had regular trade
relations and even exchanged a few diplomats.
Early explorers did not sail into the unknown
without some idea of their final destination.
Although they were searching for a specific land
or route, they oftentimes were surprised at what
they discovered. Sometimes the country they were
seeking was only known in legend or rumor.
The captain of the ship needed funding
and manpower and could not get underway
without support from a rich benefactor.
Most voyages during the fourteenth century
were made in the name of the royal ruler
of a particular government. The crewmen
who signed on to these long and dangerous
voyages were not the most experienced seamen,
but large numbers of them were needed to
help man the sails and to allow for attrition
due to illness and death. The ships that
the royal leaders provided were not always
new, but the captain took what he was given.
The captain himself was not always an experienced
seaman. Desire for wealth or political favor
were often his only motivations for undertaking
dangerous voyages. He could be a merchant,
adventurer, soldier, or gentleman of the
court. Under his command were the pilot
or first mate (who was in charge of navigation),
and the crew (who worked the sails and rigging
and made repairs to the ship while in uncharted
waters). |
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Little cooking was done at sea. Food stores often
consisted of pickled or dried meat and ship's
biscuits (made from flour with a little water
to make them hard). By the end of the voyage,
these biscuits would be full of black insects
called weevils. Other foods included cheese, onions,
dried beans, and salted fish or recently caught
fresh fish. Without fresh fruit and vegetables,
which contain vitamin C, sailors suffered from
a fatal condition called scurvy. Water supply
was another serious problem. Fresh water did not
always keep in barrels and wine turned sour. Fresh
water was the first thing the crew looked for
whenever the ship reached land.
Links between the Europeans and the Asians were
hampered by hordes of barbarians who overran China,
India, and Europe in the fourth and fifth centuries
A.D. When Islam engulfed North Africa, the Eastern
Mediterranean, Spain, and France, hostilities
between the Christian and Muslim Kingdoms led
to the cutoff of trade routes to the East.
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In the thirteenth
century A.D., nomadic Mongols captured most of Eurasia, Korea, and Hungary.
For the first time in centuries, Europeans
could travel unmolested to China. Two brothers
from the powerful city of Venice, Niccolo and Maffeo
Polo, undertook their first journey
to China by land in the early 1260s. They
met the Mongol Emperor, Kublai
Khan and eventually returned to
Venice. |
In 1271, the Polos undertook their return journey,
bringing Niccolo's young son Marco (then 15 years
old) with them. This journey took almost four
years to complete. Kublai Khan was so impressed
with his European visitors that they stayed in
his service for 17 years. In 1292, the Polos returned
to Europe. The route across Central Asia closed
after the collapse of the Mongol Empire. Europeans
were so inspired by Marco
Polo's accounts that they were determined
to reestablish routes of their own to the riches
of the East.
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