European Exploration Routes
Explore the routes and motivations behind European exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries with this interactive worksheet.
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European Exploration Routes
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Read each question carefully and answer to the best of your ability. Use the provided map to help you answer some questions.
Observe the map below, which shows major European exploration routes. Then answer the questions that follow.
1. Which continent did most European explorers depart from?
Asia
Africa
Europe
North America
2. True or False: The primary goal of most European explorers was to find a new route to Asia for trade.
True
False
Complete the sentences using the correct terms.
3. The was a period of global exploration that began in the early 15th century.
4. Navigational instruments like the compass and helped explorers determine their direction and latitude.
5. Name two European countries that were prominent in early exploration and colonization.
Match the explorer with their known achievement.
6. Christopher Columbus
a. First to circumnavigate the Earth
7. Ferdinand Magellan
b. Reached the Americas in 1492
8. Vasco da Gama
c. First European to reach India by sea