Majorca was ruled by the MuslimAlmohads until its conquest byJames I, King of the Crownof Aragon,in 1229. Its greatest importance was as a trading and shipping center for thewestern Mediterraneanand the Maghribi ports, which controlled the gold trade from Mali and West Africa. Once the Majorcan base was established, Catalan merchants and shippers not only gained access to those markets, but also helped develop the maps, ships, and navigational technology which gave Mediterranean shippers access to the Atlantic Ocean. Using the combined technologies of Muslim, Jewish, and Latin Christian sailors, shippers, and mapmakers, Iberians began to explore the African coast, and the Canary and Azores Islands. However,the increasing intolerance of the Iberian Christian kingdoms ended that multicultural society by 1500. Students will analyze primary maps, visuals and texts to investigate the technologies which made Atlantic exploration possible. After examining the multicultural population of Iberia before 1300, they will chart the progressive Christian intolerance in Aragon, Castile and Portugal, which led to the expulsions of Jews from Spain in 1492 and eventually Muslims as well.