The Exploration Times
Bringing the Latest News of the Exploration World to You
International News
The Line of Demarcation and What it's Imperative Impact Will Be
Christopher Columbus, Italian explorer who's voyages are being financed by Spain, has just returned from a voyage to the recently discovered Americas. Though previously believed to be the coast of East Asia, Europeans are now seeing that Columbus has discovered a new continent. Ferdinand and Isabella, Spain's monarchs, are hoping to take advantage of the fact that they are Columbus' patrons and could recieve a great deal of wealth and power from the newly discovered lands. The King and Queen appealed to the Spanish-born Pope Alexander VI to support their claims to land in this "New World". The Pope conceded and divided the non-European world into two zones. Spain had exploration and trading rights west of the line, and the Portuguese were given the same rights to the east of it. Their agreement was reached through the Treaty of Tordesillas. The race has just begun for the two leading countries of exploration to build their empires quickly. Though it was just established, we can predict that this "new line" is the beginning and perhaps the perfect amount of fuel for a whirlwind of discoveries, land claims, triumphs, and wealth for these power-hungry nations.
-Megan Alberto
Line of Demarcation
King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain
Business News
The African Slave Trade- The Old Business That is Booming Again
The African Slave Trade has exploded. Slavery is an industry that has existed back to ancient times in mulitple nations, empires, and countries. Now the profitable business is booming in Europe again. Portugal is one of the nations that have quickly begun to join the trade, and we know that they will soon be followed by other European countries. Europeans are taking advantage of these great investment opportunities and are buying slaves to work on their plantations, (in the Americas and other places.) They are also being used as exotic house servants for the wealthy. Europeans are trading with Kingdoms in Africa that are dominated by the slave trade, such as the Assante Kingdom. They are giving us gold and slaves in exchange for firearms. When European traders arrive on the African coasts, African rulers and traders enter Africa's interior and bringing them to coastal trading posts and forts, where they are also traded for rum, tobacco, textiles, metalwork, gunpowder and weapons. We can expect to see a future of hard-working Africans helping the plantations flourish and for a low cost!
-Megan Alberto
Technology
The Caravel- A New Ship. Faster, Lighter, and Better Than Ever Before!
A new ship has been developed that is lighter, faster, and unlike most European ships is easily maneuvered along coasts and can travel long distances! It was developed by the Portuguese and caravel planking on the hull replaced thinner, less effective planking. Caravels are broad-beamed ships that have 2 or 3 masts with square sails and a triangular sail (called a lanteen). They are up to about 65 feet long and can carry roughly 130 tons of cargo. The caravel has a high structure at the bow called the forecastle. A higher structure of two decks at the stern is called the sterncastle. Caravels usually have four masts. The foremast carries square sails, and the other three carry lateen, or triangular sails. Three-masted caravels like Columbus's Nina and Pinta usually have square sails on the first two masts and lateen sails on the rear mast. Columbus's flagship, the Santa Maria, was larger than a caravel and had a deck amidships. It is called a nao (ship).
-Megan Alberto
Obituaries
Christopher Columbus
The extremely famous Italian navigator from Genoa, Christopher Columbus, has passed away on May 20th, 1506, aged 54. Columbus seeked to reach the East Indies by sailing west across the Atlantic. With his patrons being the monarchs of Spain, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, he set out to do what he planned. Columbus's plan made sense, but he greatly underestimated Earth's size and he had no idea that two continents lay in his path. On August 3, 1492, Columbus sailed west with three small ships, the NiƱa, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, and discovered new territory for Spain. On Columbus's great voyage, he spent several months cruising the islands of the Carribean and returned to Spain a hero. Sadly, only two years since his final voyage, Christopher Columbus died from gout as he complained of joint pains. Columbus is survived by his two sons, Diego and Ferdinand.
-Lucas Konarski
Prince Henry
-Lucas Konarski
Ferdinand Magellan
-Lucas Konarski
Interviews, Profiles and Reports
An Exclusive Interview With a Native Inhabitant of the West Indies
Good morning, I am Lucas Konarski reporting on the effects of European exploration due to the newly discovered land on the west coast of Africa. It is blately obvious that European colonization of North America had a devastating effect on the native population, so I interviewed a Native Inhabitant from the Island of Goree to understand the life of these natives.
" How was your life changed due to this push of European exploration?"
- " It affected my family in a huge way because of the land lost, the diseases that where brought to our homeland, and enforced laws that violated our culture."
" Where there any advantages of this exploration?"
- " Why of course, our tribes were freely supplied with guns that were brought by the explorers to wipe out our neighbors which helped us in a big way."
" What were the attitudes of your fellow native tribes towards the topic?"
- Some were very upset about the situation and were brutally punished, but others like myself were neutral in our emotions and just lived life like our culture instructed us too."
"Okay, last question because I understand that you need to get back and support your family in the hard times that you are going through, but what is your overall opinion in being forced out of your land?"
- " We simply were bullied and our spirits were crushed due to the colossal impact of this exploration. We were the first to discover this land and settle on it, and they think that they have the right to drive us out of our own land. I believe it is vitally wrong to do this to a group of sincere people."
-Lucas Konarski
Travel
New Territory Has Been Discovered
The famous explorer Christopher Columbus, is known to be the most dedicated explorer of the era. He achieved fame by sailing west in search of a sea route to India. Instead of reaching India he discovered that there was an unknown mass of land in between, land that the Europeans knew nothing of. Like many navigators of the time, Columbus also wanted to sail to India and the Far East. With a crew of 90 men he took 3 ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, to reach the Spice Islands of Asia and India. All together, Columbus made four voyages to the New World between 1492 and 1504. He explored the coasts of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico. On his last two voyages, Columbus reached the mainland of Central and South America and traveled as far south as the mouth of the Orinoco River.
-Lucas Karnoski