Vasco da Gama was born in Sines, a small port in southern Portugal, in 1460 - the same year that Henry the Navigator died. In 1497 King John's successor, Manuel I, appointed Vasco da Gama to lead a pioneering voyage to India. In the meantime, Christopher Columbus, sponsored by the Spanish, had returned to Europe in 1493 to announce that he had successfully found a route to the Orient by sailing west across the Atlantic. It would, however, be a further ten years before the Portuguese were able to organise a voyage to exploit the discoveries of these two explorers. Disguised as an Arab, Covilha gathered vital information on the ports of the east African and Indian coasts during his three-year journey. To complement the sea voyages of Diaz, the Portuguese monarch King John II also sent Pedro da Covilha, a fluent Arabic speaker, out on a dangerous overland journey to India. By rounding the Cape of Good Hope, Diaz proved that the Atlantic and Indian Oceans were not landlocked, as many European geographers of the time thought, and rekindled the idea that a sea route to India might indeed be feasible. It was not until 1487 that Bartholomew Diaz set off on the voyage that finally reached the southern tip of Africa. For 40 years, Henry sponsored voyages of exploration south along the west African coast, resulting in a lucrative trade in slaves and gold - but the southern extent of the continent remained unknown to Europeans, and the Prince's dream was not realised. He had hoped to be aided by an alliance with the elusive Prester John, whose Christian empire was thought to exist somewhere in Africa and who might have provided assistance to Christians in any fight to overcome Muslim dominance of the Indian Ocean trade. In the wake of Cabral’s accomplishment and his many encounters, the King charged da Gama to further secure Portugal’s dominance in the region.Henry's intention had been to find a sea route to India that would give Portugal access to the lucrative trade in spices from the Far East. Of that, ten of the ships were under his control, along with his uncle and nephew commanding the others. In the year 1502, Vasco da Gama, arranged another journey to India which needed around twenty ships. Vasco da Gama route to India Vasco Da Gama Ship The primary motive of Vasco da Gama’s voyage was to discover a direct sea route from Europe to the East and also to make trade relationships with the regions over there. What was the purpose of Vasco da Gama’s Voyages? More importantly, for his home country, Cabral established the first Portuguese trading post in India. The troop arrived at India in just under six months, and the expedition comprised a fire-fight with Muslim merchants, where Cabral’s crew killed 600 men on Muslim cargo vessels.
Vasco da Gama – India Where did Vasco da Gama go on his second voyage? In an effort to protect the trade path with India and usurp Muslim traders, Portugal dispatch another team of vessels headed by Pedro Alvares Cabral. Vasco da Gama was considered a hero after he arrived in Lisbon. He could not establish any trade relationship with the Indians and had to leave for Portugal with just a few Hindus with him to learn about their traditions and customs. He had also mistaken the Muslims in India to be Christians.
0 kommentar(er)
