The Age of Discovery: How Spanish and Portuguese Explorers Forged the First Global Empires

The Spanish and Portuguese ocean explorations during the “Age of Exploration” in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries were perhaps the most world-changing in history. These exploratory voyages brought Europe and European people into close contact with the rest of the world and that, in turn, laid the basis for global colonialism and the penetration of European culture into almost all parts of the planet. These Spanish and Portuguese explorations helped lay the foundation for global empires and global trade. They were facilitated by many complex factors, among them the desire to find a sea route to Asia and the strategic geographic position of Spain and Portugal in southwestern Europe, close to Africa and open to the Atlantic Ocean.

Other factors included improvements in sailing and navigational technologies, changes in European thinking about nature and science, the desire for wealth and glory, and the need to provide an outlet for soldiers and others with a conquering and missionizing mindset after the end of the Crusades. Ultimately, the early Spanish and Portuguese voyages brought the existence of two new continents—North and South America—to European knowledge and established a permanent link between the “Old World” of Europe, Asia, and Africa and the “New World” of the Americas.

Early in the fifteenth century, the Portuguese prince known as Henry the Navigator (1394-1460 CE) helped stimulate his country’s exploration of the African coast and the establishment of the first Portuguese—indeed, European—colony in Ceuta, in North Africa, in what is today Morocco. The Portuguese continued to sail along the West African coast as well, reaching the equator and proving that the Greek philosopher Aristotle’s— and medieval Europe’s—belief that tropical regions were too hot for human habitation was false. The Portuguese established settlements on islands off the African coast, such as Cape Verde, as well as settling islands farther out into the Atlantic such as Madeira and the Azores. Under the leadership of Bartolomeu Dias (1450-500), the Portuguese reached the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa and entered the Indian Ocean in 1488.

Continuing with this success, King John II of Portugal (1455-95) ordered Vasco da Gama (1469-521) in 1497 to explore the Indian Ocean and find a trade route to Asia. Da Gama followed the same route as Dias to the southern tip of Africa, but continued farther into the Indian Ocean, reaching what is today Mozambique and then Mombasa and Malindi in Kenya. In these locations on the east coast of Africa, da Gama made contact with Arab traders, who were already familiar with and involved in Indian Ocean trade. Da Gama then pushed on, reaching Kozhikode (Calicut) in India. Though the locals were not impressed with the goods the Portuguese had to offer, a new trade route between Europe and India by sea had been established. The Portuguese quickly moved to establish colonies in India and along the west and east coasts of Africa, also finally pushing out to reach Southeast Asia and Japan. The Portuguese became the dominant power in the Indian Ocean and had exclusive control of the sea route between Europe and Asia.

At about the same time as the Portuguese were pushing toward India, Spain began to make its initial probes toward reaching Asia by sea as well. For most of the fifteenth century, Spain was embroiled in an internal war, trying to defeat the last Muslim kingdoms established since the eighth century in formerly Spanish territory. In 1492, under the rule of King Ferdinand II (1452-516) and Queen Isabella I (1451-504), Spain defeated the last Muslim kingdom on the Spanish Peninsula and sent its ruler back to Morocco in North Africa. Now that Spain was at last reunited, the Spanish king and queen were willing to listen to proposals for exploratory voyages to Asia. With remarkably good timing, the Italian Christopher Columbus (1451-506) appeared on the scene and received backing for a Spanish-financed expedition to reach Asia by sea, though this time by sailing westward across the Atlantic, rather than rounding Africa as the Portuguese had done.

Though Columbus—by relying on inaccurate medieval sources—underestimated the circumference of the Earth, he reached land lying far west of Europe. This was North America, a part of the world unknown to Europeans, despite the earlier Viking voyages. Scholars are unsure where exactly Columbus first landed, but it was probably somewhere in the Bahamas, at a place he called San Salvador. He went on to lead three more voyages in 1493, 1498, and 1502, exploring Cuba, Jamaica, the island of Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, various places in the Caribbean, and the Central and South American coast. He never landed in what is now the United States of America.

Spain and Portugal were now the dominant European seafaring powers. How were they to avoid potential clashes of interest as they expanded their global empires? Spain and Portugal agreed to arbitration by Pope Alexander VI (1431-503), and the result was the Treaty of Tordesillas, which divided the world into Spanish- and Portuguese-controlled spheres. The Tordesillas line ran down the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, with the Spanish being allocated lands to the west and the Portuguese to the east. The Spanish empire was thus concentrated in North and South America and the Caribbean, whereas the Portuguese empire was concentrated in Africa, India, and Southeast Asia. As it turned out, part of South America—Brazil—was on the Portuguese side, and part of Asia—the Philippines— was on the Spanish side, leading to truly global empires for both countries.

Contact between the Old and New Worlds is known as the “Columbian Exchange.” Old World (Europe, Asia, and Africa) animals, plants, and diseases, such as horses, cows, wheat, coffee, and smallpox, entered the Americas for the first time, sometimes changing indigenous cultures (think of Native American people and their use of the horse). Animals, plants, and diseases from the Americas, such as turkeys, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, chocolates, and syphilis, arrived in Europe, Asia, and Africa for the first time, leading to substantial changes in the European diet and increased population due to new sources of nutrition. The Spanish voyages of exploration truly changed the world and initiated the process of globalization.

The process of globalization was continued by the first circumnavigation of the Earth. Between 1519 and 1522, Ferdinand Magellan (1480-521)—a Portuguese who worked for Spain—commanded the first fleet of European ships that sailed around the world, starting in Europe, sailing around the southern tip of South America, then through the Pacific Ocean to the Philippines (where Magellan was killed), and then on through the Indian Ocean, around Africa, and back to Europe. This voyage, along with others, increased the global exchange of trade, agricultural products, and knowledge.