Summary of Laurence Bergreen's Over the Edge of the World

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Book Preview: #1 The Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1582, and it corrected the errors in the Julian calendar. It took more than two centuries to transition to the new calendar throughout Europe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Mar 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781669355014

IRB Media

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Insights on Laurence Bergreen's Over the Edge of the World

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 14

Insights from Chapter 15

Insights from Chapter 16

Insights from Chapter 17

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The Gregorian calendar was adopted in 1582, and it corrected the errors in the Julian calendar. It took more than two centuries to transition to the new calendar throughout Europe.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The first circumnavigation of the globe was accomplished by a ship called Victoria, which was captained by Ferdinand Magellan. It was a tale of desolation and anguish, but it also marked the exploration of the entire globe.

#2

The voyage demonstrated that the earth is round, that the Americas are separate from India, and that oceans cover most of the earth’s surface. But it also demonstrated that the earth is a world of unceasing conflict, both natural and human.

Insights from Chapter 3

#1

On June 7, 1494, Pope Alexander VI divided the world in half, bestowing the western portion on Spain, and the eastern on Portugal. The result was a furious race to claim new lands and control the world’s trade routes.

#2

The Treaty of Tordesillas, which was signed in 1494, created the official border between Spain and Portugal, and their respective claims to empires. It was difficult to determine where the line of demarcation should be, as cosmologists did not yet know how to determine longitude.

#3

The Treaty of Tordesillas, which was based on a profound misunderstanding of the world, allowed Spain and Portugal to compete to establish their global empires. It was not even a line drawn in the sand; it was written in water.

#4

The spice trade was central to the Arab way of life. Arabs developed sophisticated methods of extracting essential oils from aromatic spices used for medical and other therapeutic purposes. They formulated elixirs and syrups derived from spices, including julab, from which the word julap derives.

#5

The lure of spices impelled sober, cautious financiers to back highly risky expeditions to unknown parts of the globe. The best and perhaps the only reason to risk going to sea was the prospect of getting rich in the Spice Islands.

#6

Prince Henry, the king’s son, was in charge of the academy at Sagres, where he attracted navigators, shipwrights, astronomers, pilots, cosmographers, and cartographers. They designed a new type of ship, the small, maneuverable caravel, which became the vessel of choice for exploration.

#7

The Portuguese empire was ruled by King Manuel I, who was indifferent to those who had risked their lives to advance the cause of the Portuguese empire. The Jews of Portugal distinguished themselves as scientists, artisans, merchants, scholars, and doctors.

#8

Magellan’s ancestry is unclear. In 1567, his heirs began arguing over his estate, and he was never given the chance to lead a major expedition for Portugal. He spent the next eight years trying to establish a Portuguese presence in India.

#9

Magellan, still ambitious, sought