Read the excerpt from the article Challenging Explorations: The 15th–18th centuries were an age of exploration. Many people in Europe were searching for a better life with greater opportunities. The desire for a better life led many to journey across the ocean to find new land to settle. Many European explorers landed in what they called the New World, which would later be called North America. These explorations were filled with challenges.

The first challenge faced by many explorers was money. They needed financial backing to fund the ships, cargo, and crew required to make such a long journey. The solution was royalty, and explorers would approach kings and queens to convince them to invest in their voyages. If the king and queen agreed, then the explorer would have the money needed to fund an expedition. In return, any lands discovered during the voyage were claimed by that country.

Why would kings and queens often invest in explorers?

There was a lot of gold in the New World.

There was a lot of trade happening in the New World.

They could claim new lands for their kingdom.

They wanted to offer jobs to unemployed citizens.