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The 14th to 16th Centuries
3 Arctic Exploration
G
reenland was forgotten by the rest
of the world after the Viking
settlement died out. Stories about the
Arctic became more unreal. From time
to time a ship would be blown off
course. The sailors would come home
with descriptions of fierce tides and
wild maelstroms (whirlpools). Most
fearsome of all were stories of floating
islands of ice which filled the seas.
Fog often covered the sea,
mirages
twisted the horizon, ships were
smashed by ice.
Many were frightened by these
stories and would not sail north. But
the rich fishing grounds between
Britain and Iceland were a great
attraction to fishermen. In bad storms
fishing boats sheltered in the bays of
Iceland. The fishermen met the people
of Iceland. By 1400, merchants from
Bristol, England, heard of these people.
They sent ships to trade with the
Icelanders. But they only came in
summer. Any ship caught by winter
would be lost in storms or crushed
by the ice.
E
xplorers searched for
sea routes to Cathay
(China). Portuguese
and Spanish ships found
routes around South
Africa and South
America, leaving the
British and Dutch to
look for an Arctic route.
V
asco da Gama
(about 1469-1525) was
the first European to
reach India by sea.
He sailed round South
Africa and proved there
was no connection to
Antarctica (see
page 29).