Aventuriers des mers, VIIe-XVIIe siècle

Description

Great travelogues have told of the exploits of the adventurers of the seas who, guided by their thirst for discovery, set out in search of spices, ivory, porcelain, silk and precious woods. After having long thought of the sea as a perilous place, men overcame their fears by developing techniques and scientific knowledge to better understand the world. Navigators travelled further, safer and faster. The ports and ships that traded in the Indian Ocean were for centuries in the hands of Muslims. Christian merchants and rulers, driven by economic interests, sought to bypass them, to increase their profits and establish their influence. In the 15th century, the Portuguese managed to penetrate the Indian Ocean. This event changed the world order.

From the expansion of Islam to the European navigations, this book leads us between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, where great maritime adventures took place, caught up in the issues of trade, commercial strategy, competition and imperial ambitions.