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The capture of Ceuta marked Portugal’s first step in overseas expansion and opened the way for later Atlantic explorations under Prince Henry the Navigator (Elizabethan Era, n.d.; CrashCourse, 2019).
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Portuguese navigators gradually mapped Africa’s western shoreline and began trading for gold, ivory, and enslaved people, which laid the groundwork for global maritime trade (Elizabethan Era, n.d.; CrashCourse, 2019).
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Dias’s voyage proved that the Atlantic and Indian Oceans were connected. Demonstrated a sea route around southern Africa, opening the possibility of reaching India by sea. (Elizabethan Era, n.d.; CrashCourse, 2019).
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Columbus’s expedition opened contact between Europe and the Americas, initiating transatlantic colonization and the Columbian Exchange (CrashCourse, 2019).
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The treaty, sanctioned by the Pope, drew an imaginary line through the Atlantic dividing spheres of exploration and colonization between Spain and Portugal, shaping early Western claims.(Elizabethan Era, n.d.; CrashCourse, 2019).
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Established a direct trade route between Europe and Asia, making Portugal a dominant maritime power (Elizabethan Era, n.d.; CrashCourse, 2019).
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First known circumnavigation of Earth. Although he was killed in the Philippines, his crew completed the first global voyage, proving the Earth’s roundness and the vastness of its oceans (CrashCourse, 2019).
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Spanish conquest of the Mexica (Aztec) Empire introduced European rule, horses, and disease, drastically changing Mesoamerican society and demographics. Brought vast wealth to Europe and massive demographic collapse from disease (CrashCourse, 2019).
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Pizarro’s victory gave Spain control over enormous silver mines like Potosí, fueling European economies and the rise of global trade networks (CrashCourse, 2019).
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Drake’s voyage demonstrated England’s growing naval strength and its challenge to Spanish dominance during the Elizabethan Age (Elizabethan Era, n.d.).
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Under Queen Elizabeth I, England began to establish colonies in North America, signaling its entry into global imperial competition (Elizabethan Era, n.d.).
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The exchange of crops, animals, and diseases reshaped continents, while European demand for plantation labor accelerated the transatlantic slave trade, which was an early stage of globalization (CrashCourse, 2019; YourDictionary, n.d.).