Age of Exploration (1450-1700)

The early history of New World exploration reads like an old-style fantasy novel. Men from Europe literally traversed the North American continent looking for things like the City of Gold and the Fountain of Youth. With such a vast terrain ripe for discovery, there was really no way to prove those things couldn't be found, though not even someone as diligent as Juan Ponce de Leon was able to find any trace of such mystical destinations.

What they found instead was firm ground, mountains, jungles, rivers, deserts, exotic animals, and native inhabitants sometimes happy to greet them, sometimes happy to attack the newcomers. There are a lot of opinions and versions about the European exploration of North and South America, some of them accepted as standard, a few relegated to the conspiracy theorists' corner of shame, and one or two downright shocking.

Most historians agree that the initial Spanish and Portuguese insurgence, particularly in South and Central America, was occasioned primarily by greed and political jockeying. The big villain of this period was Hernan Cortes, a Spaniard who dealt freely in death, communicable disease, treachery, and gold between the Aztec empire and his own nation. It was said he pilfered so much gold his ships sank under it on the return journey.

Christopher Columbus has fared slightly better in the annals of history, though even his methods and motivations have fallen under suspicion. That he claimed the work of a missionary is now seen more as a burden for the Christian community to explain than as a noble mark in his favor. He also took gold, swapped diseases with the Indians, and provoked many to combat.

So what's the truth of all this? Are Europeans just a bunch of terrible people out to exploit everyone else? Is this merely liberal revisionism? The truth (as usual) is probably somewhere in between. Many of the explorers were pretty ruthless, but then again, the kind of personality that could accomplish something as arduous as the years-long journey to an unknown part of the world is bound to have some equally heroic flaws.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Admiral of the Ocean Sea
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Around the World in a Hundred Years
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Atlas of North American Exploration
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Christopher Columbus
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Christopher Columbus and His Brothers
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Christopher Columbus and His Legacy
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Christopher Columbus: His Story and His Journals
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Columbus and the Renaissance Explorers
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Columbus Discovers America - Coloring Book
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Early American History for Intermediate Grades (really old)
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Empires Lost and Won
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Era Of Exploration & Discovery 30,000 Years Ago the the 1600s
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Eric the Red & Leif the Lucky
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Europe Finds the World
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Exploration and Conquest
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Exploration and Conquest
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Exploration, Revolution, and Constitution
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Explorers
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Explorers & Discoverers - 4 Volume Set
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Explorers Who Got Lost
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Explorers Who Got Lost
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Follow the Dream
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Francisco Coronado and the Exploration of the American Southwest
Explorers of New Worlds
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Francisco Pizarro and the Conquest of the Inca
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Friar and the Knight
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Great Adventures That Changed Our World
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Great Explorers
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Great Explorers
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Henry Hudson
Library of Explorers and Exploration
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Hernando de Soto and the Exploration of Florida
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History News: Explorers
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History of Human Society: Pioneer America
The History of Human Society
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History Pockets: Explorers of North America
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How Men Discovered the World
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How Our Nation Began
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If You Were There in 1492
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In 1492
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In 1492
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In Their Own Words: Christopher Columbus
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Juan Ponce de Leon
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Juan Ponce de Leon
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Juan Ponce de Leon and the Search for the Fountain of Youth
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Light and the Glory for Children
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Livingstone and his African Journeys
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Long and Uncertain Journey
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Magellan
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Magellan and the Exploration of South America
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Magic of Spices
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Makon and the Dauphin
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Marco Polo
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Marco Polo and the Medieval Explorers
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Marco Polo: Voyager to the Orient
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Meet Christopher Columbus
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Meet Christopher Columbus
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New World In View
To Pledge Allegiance #1
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Pedro's Journal
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Pizarro and the Incas
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Pizarro, Orellana, and the Exploration of the Amazon
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Ponce de Leon
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Prince Henry the Navigator
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Questions and Answers About Explorers
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Real Book About Explorers
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Risking it All
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Sailing the Unknown
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Samuel De Champlain
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Ship's Boy with Magellan
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Sieur de La Salle
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Sir Francis Drake
Library of Explorers and Exploration
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Sir Walter Raleigh and the Quest for El Dorado
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Story of Christopher Columbus
Cornerstones of Freedom
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Story of Liberty
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Historical Reference for 10th-Adult
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Streams to the River, River to the Sea
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Historical Fiction for 7th-9th grade
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Sweet Land of Liberty
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Historical Reference for
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They Put Out to Sea: The Story of the Map
by Roger Duvoisin
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$68.00 (1 in stock)
Time Travelers: New World Explorers - CD-ROM
Time Travelers History Study on CD-ROM
by Amy Pak
from Home School in the Woods
Unit Study for 3rd-8th grade
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Tomatoes, Potatoes, Corn, and Beans
by Sylvia A. Johnson
1st edition from Atheneum
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$4.00 (1 in stock)
Traveling Man
by James Rumford
Reprint from HMH Books for Young Readers
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Usborne Book of Explorers
by Usborne
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Vasco de Gama and the Portuguese Explorers
by Jim Gallagher
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