4. Renaissance
•Fifteenth-century Europe was gripped by the spirit of the Renaissance with its call for exploration.
• At the same time, Europe made great advances in the art of ship-building and navigation.
5. Economic development and demand of luxury
•Economic development of many regions of Europe was also progressing rapidly with expansion of land under cultivation, the introduction of an improved plough, scientific crop management such as crop rotation, and increased supply of meat (which called for spices for cooking as well as for preservation).
• Prosperity also grew and with it the demand for oriental luxury goods also increased.
6. Venice and genoa support
• Venice and Genoa which had earlier prospered through trade in oriental goods were too small to take on the mighty Ottoman Turks or to take up major exploration on their own.
•The north Europeans were ready to aid Portugal and Spain with money and men, even as the Genoese were ready to provide ships and technical knowledge.
7. Treaty of Tordesillas (1494)
In 1497, under the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494), the rulers of Portugal and Spain divided the non-Christian world between them by an imaginary line in the Atlantic Under the treaty, Portugal could claim and occupy everything to the east of the line while Spain could claim everything to the west.