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What did Vasco da Gama sell in India?
When Da Gama returned to Portugal with spices and silk, the legend says that he earned four times the money he spent on voyage just by selling the spices. This lucrative trade made Da Gama instant sensation back home and the king of Portugal again sent him to India in 1502-03.
What goods did Vasco da Gama discover?
Vasco Da Gama crossed 6,000 miles of ocean, and Monbasa (where he met pirates) , Malindi, and Calicut, India. Vasco brought back cinnamon and pepper, silk and jewels, and together with some Indian hostages. He was rewarded the town of Sines. He was also rewarded with 300,000 reis.
Why did Vasco da Gama find a trade route to India?
In 1497, John's successor, King Manuel I (crowned in 1495), chose da Gama to lead a Portuguese fleet to India in search of a maritime route from Western Europe to the East. At the time, the Muslims held a monopoly of trade with India and other Eastern nations, thanks to their geographical position.
What effect did Vasco da Gama's discovery have on trade?
One example would be Vasco da Gama from Portugal. He became famous and achieved success due to his discovery of first ocean route from Europe to India and Asia. This discovery changed the trade markets in Europe and allowed Europeans to easily access to spices and other common goods from Asia.
What are some fun facts about Vasco da Gama?
Fun Facts about Vasco da Gama There is a crater named Vasco da Gama on the Moon. His fleet on the second voyage consisted of 20 armed ships. He had six sons and one daughter. His second son became governor of Portuguese India.
What did Vasco de Gama accomplish 1498?
On 20th May 1498, two years after he set sail from Lisbon, Portugal, Vasco da Gama arrived on the Western sea coast of India at Kozhikode (Calicut), Kerala. This was the first time that a European had arrived in India via the sea. Thus, da Gama is credited with the discovery of the sea route to India.
What did da Gama trade in India?
Da Gama learned that they traded with Arab merchants and that four Arab vessels laden with gold, jewels, silver, and spices were then in port; he was also told that Prester John, the long-sought Christian ruler, lived in the interior but held many coastal cities.
Who Discovered India's trade route?
Vasco da Gama'sVasco da Gama's name has figured in all history books, whether they relate to World, European,1 Asian or Indian history,2 as a great sailor and adventurer. He has been solely credited with the honour of having discovered the sea-route from Europe to India via the Cape of Good Hope.
Who invented the new trade route to India?
explorer Vasco da GamaThe Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India was the first recorded trip directly from Europe to the Indian subcontinent, via the Cape of Good Hope. Under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, it was undertaken during the reign of King Manuel I in 1495–1499.
How did da Gama help to develop the Portuguese trading empire?
Vasco De Gama was the first European to find an ocean trading route to India. He accomplished what many explorers before him could not do. His discovery of this sea route helped the Portuguese establish a long-lasting colonial empire in Asia and Africa.
Who were the first European to reach India for trade?
Portuguese explorer Vasco de GamaPortuguese explorer Vasco de Gama becomes the first European to reach India via the Atlantic Ocean when he arrives at Calicut on the Malabar Coast.
Why trade was so important during the Age of discovery?
These trade routes were very valuable as they brought in expensive products such as spices and silk. New expeditions tried to discover oceangoing routes to India and the Far East. Some expeditions became rich by discovering gold and silver, such as the expeditions of the Spanish to the Americas.
Why did Portugal want a sea route to India?
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.
Did da Gama find a sea route to India?
In 1498, Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese sailor, found a sea route directly from Europe to India by going around Africa. After Vasco da Gama's discovery of the new sea route to India, other countries of Southeast Asia and China came on the trade radar.
Why did Christopher Columbus want to find a new trade route to India?
Columbus wanted to find a new route to India, China, Japan and the Spice Islands. If he could reach these lands, he would be able to bring back rich cargoes of silks and spices.
Who were Vasco da Gama’s parents?
Although his exact birth date is unknown, Vasco da Gama was the third son of Estêvão da Gama, a minor provincial nobleman who was commander of the...
What was Vasco da Gama best known for?
Vasco da Gama was best known for being the first to sail from Europe to India by rounding Africa’s Cape of Good Hope. Over the course of two voyage...
What did Vasco da Gama discover?
During Vasco da Gama’s first voyage, he carried padrões (stone pillars) as marks of discovery. He erected one on an island near Mossel Bay, South A...
Why did Da Gama come to Goa?
Da Gama arrived in Goa with the task of combating the growing corruption that had tainted the Portuguese government in India. He soon fell ill, and in December 1524 he died in Cochin. His body was later taken back to Portugal for burial there.
Why did King John send da Gama to the Algarve?
Little else is known about his early life, but in 1492 King John II sent da Gama to the port city of Setubal (south of Lisbon) and to the Algarve region to seize French ships in retaliation for French attacks on Portuguese shipping interests.
What was Vasco da Gama's last voyage?
Da Gama’s Later Life and Last Voyage to India. The Portuguese nobleman Vasco da Gama (1460-1524) sailed from Lisbon in 1497 on a mission to reach India and open a sea route from Europe to the East. After sailing down the western coast of Africa and rounding the Cape of Good Hope, his expedition made numerous stops in Africa before reaching ...
How many days did Vasco da Gama spend at sea?
Did you know? By the time Vasco da Gama returned from his first voyage to India in 1499, he had spent more than two years away from home, including 300 days at sea, and had traveled some 24,000 miles. Only 54 of his original crew of 170 men returned with him; the majority (including da Gama's brother Paolo) had died of illnesses such as scurvy.
Why did Da Gama sail from Lisbon?
Da Gama sailed from Lisbon that July with four vessels, traveling south along the coast of Africa before veering far off into the southern Atlantic in order to avoid unfavorable currents.
Where did Vasco da Gama go?
Vasco da Gama’s Early Life and First Voyage to India. Born circa 1460, Vasco da Gama was the son of a minor nobleman who commanded the fortress at Sines, located on the coast of the Alentejo province in southwestern Portugal.
When did Gama reach India?
With the help of a local navigator, da Gama was able to cross the Indian Ocean and reach the coast of India at Calicut (now Kozhikode) in May 1498.
Why was Vasco da Gama chosen?
He was chosen by Portugal's King Manuel I to find a maritime route to to India. Portugal required access to India so that they could participate in the spice trade of the Far East. A land route was not possible due to the Muslim occupation of the Arabian Peninsula.
Where did Gama go on his voyage?
Da Gama set out from Portugal and sailed around the southern tip of Africa, the Cape of Good Hope. Da Gama reached Calicut, India, where he traded with local Hindus whom he mistook for Christians. He loaded his ships with valuable spices, but Muslim traders in the area forced him to barter the spices for sailing provisions in order to get back home. These spices were unique to the Asian market—peppercorns and cinnamon among many others—as Calicut was a major trading port for the entire region. The spices fetched a large price back in Portugal and made da Gama a hero even though he lost considerable numbers of men due to scurvy. Da Gama made a second voyage on which he attacked Muslims living in Calicut and made Portugal a major trading partner in the region. Da Gama would finish his career as an explorer while serving as a viceroy in India.
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What was Vasco da Gama's plan for the 4th Armada?
Vasco da Gama invoked his royal letter to take command of the 4th India Armada, scheduled to set out in 1502, with the explicit aim of taking revenge upon the Zamorin and force him to submit to Portuguese terms. The heavily armed fleet of fifteen ships and eight hundred men left Lisbon on 12 February 1502. It was followed in April by another squadron of five ships led by his cousin, Estêvão da Gama (the son of Aires da Gama), which caught up to them in the Indian Ocean. The 4th Armada was a veritable da Gama family affair. Two of his maternal uncles, Vicente Sodré and Brás Sodré, were pre-designated to command an Indian Ocean naval patrol, while brothers-in-law Álvaro de Ataíde (brother of Vasco's wife Catarina) and Lopo Mendes de Vasconcelos (betrothed to Teresa da Gama, Vasco's sister) captained ships in the main fleet.
How many people were on the ship Vasco da Gama?
On 8 July 1497 Vasco da Gama led a fleet of four ships with a crew of 170 men from Lisbon. The distance traveled in the journey around Africa to India and back was greater than the length of the equator. The navigators included Portugal's most experienced, Pero de Alenquer, Pedro Escobar, João de Coimbra, and Afonso Gonçalves. It is not known for certain how many people were in each ship's crew but approximately 55 returned, and two ships were lost. Two of the vessels were carracks, newly built for the voyage; the others were a caravel and a supply boat.
What did Vasco da Gama do when he became king?
Upon becoming king in 1481, John II of Portugal set out on many long reforms. To break the monarch's dependence on the feudal nobility, John II needed to build up the royal treasury; he considered royal commerce to be the key to achieving that.
What gifts did Gama send to the Zamorin?
The presents that da Gama sent to the Zamorin as gifts from Dom Manuel – four cloaks of scarlet cloth, six hats, four branches of corals, twelve almasares, a box with seven brass vessels, a chest of sugar, two barrels of oil and a cask of honey – were trivial, and failed to impress.
Where did the Da Gama expedition go?
The expedition set sail from Lisbon on 8 July 1497. It followed the route pioneered by earlier explorers along the coast of Africa via Tenerife and the Cape Verde Islands. After reaching the coast of present-day Sierra Leone, da Gama took a course south into the open ocean, crossing the Equator and seeking the South Atlantic westerlies that Bartolomeu Dias had discovered in 1487. This course proved successful and on 4 November 1497, the expedition made landfall on the African coast. For over three months the ships had sailed more than 10,000 kilometres (6,000 mi) of open ocean, by far the longest journey out of sight of land made by that time.
Where is the statue of Vasco da Gama?
Bronze statue of Vasco da Gama at his birthplace, Sines, Portugal. Vasco da Gama was born in 1460 or 1469 in the town of Sines, one of the few seaports on the Alentejo coast, southwest Portugal, probably in a house near the church of Nossa Senhora das Salas.
Who was the king of Portugal when Vasco da Gama was awarded the town of Sines?
In December 1499, King Manuel I of Portugal rewarded Vasco da Gama with the town of Sines as a hereditary fief (the town his father, Estêvão, had once held as a commenda ). This turned out to be a complicated affair, for Sines still belonged to the Order of Santiago. The master of the Order, Jorge de Lencastre, might have endorsed the reward – after all, da Gama was a Santiago knight, one of their own, and a close associate of Lencastre himself. But the fact that Sines was awarded by the king provoked Lencastre to refuse out of principle, lest it encourage the king to make other donations of the Order's properties. Da Gama would spend the next few years attempting to take hold of Sines, an effort that would estrange him from Lencastre and eventually prompt da Gama to abandon his beloved Order of Santiago, switching over to the rival Order of Christ in 1507.
What was Vasco da Gama's principal voyage?
Voyages. Principal Voyage. On 8 July 1497 Vasco da Gama sailed from Lisbon with a fleet of four ships with a crew of 170 men from Lisbon. Da Gama commanded the Sao Gabriel. Paulo da Gama – brother to Vasco – commanded the São Rafael, a three masted ship.
How many sons did Vasco da Gama have?
They had six sons, and lived in the town Évora. Da Gama continued advising on Indian affairs until he was sent overseas again in 1524. Vasco da Gama left Portugal for India, and arrived at Goa in September 1524. Da Gama quickly re-established order among the Portuguese leaders. By the end of the year he fell ill.
How did Da Gama help the Europeans?
Da Gama accomplished the task. By doing so, he helped open a major trade route to Asia. Portugal celebrated his success, and his voyage launched a new era of discovery and world trade. Biography.
Why did King John III send Da Gama to India?
He made da Gama a Portuguese viceroy in India.9 King John III sent da Gama to India to stop the corruption and settle administrative problems of the Portuguese officials. Da Gama’s third journey would be his last. Later Years and Death.
What was Vasco da Gama's career?
Vasco da Gama’s maritime career was during the period when Portugal was searching for a trade route around Africa to India.
Where did Gama sail?
After trading with the local Muslim merchants, da Gama sailed on once more stopping briefly in Malindi (in present day Kenya). He hired a pilot to help him navigate through the Indian Ocean. They sailed for 23 days, and on May 20, 1498 they reached India.7 They headed for Kappad, India near the large city of Calicut.
Where did Vasco da Gama stop?
He sailed once again beginning in February 1502 with a fleet of 10 ships. They stopped at the Cape Verdes Islands, Mozambique, and then sailed to Kilwa (in modern day Tanzania).
Why was Gama so friendly to the Portuguese?
They were treated friendly because the inhabitants believed the Portuguese sailors were Muslims like themselves. While in port, da Gama learned that the natives traded with Arab merchants, and the Sultan of Mozambique supplied da Gama with a pilot to help guide them. The expedition reached Malindi (present-day Kenya) on April 14, and another pilot who knew the route to Calicut was taken aboard. He proved to be very skilled, and they safely made the treacherous crossing to Calicut in less than a month. They were now in the most important trading center in Southern India at that time and were initially welcomed by Zamorin, the Hindu ruler. Da Gama could not persuade him to make a trade agreement, though, partly because of the cheap gifts that da Gama had brought and partly because the Muslim merchants were extremely hostile to the Christian sailors. As tensions mounted, da Gama left for Malindi in late August with little to show for his efforts.
What was the name of the ship that Da Gama sailed on?
Da Gama sailed from Lisbon on July 8, 1497, with a four-vessel fleet consisting of two medium-sized sailing ships, a caravel (a small, fast ship), and a large storeship. Because of previous voyages, da Gama knew that the currents along the African coast would impede his progress, so he boldly set a course that took him far from land, sailing in uncharted waters. The explorers rounded the southern tip of Africa, which da Gama named the Cape of Good Hope, on November 22. At this point they no longer need the storeship, so it was broken up and burned. They continued sailing up the eastern African coast but stopped because many of the crews were sick with scurvy. The expedition rested a month so that the men could heal and the ships could be repaired.
What was the importance of the discovery of the sea route to India?
The discovery of a sea route to India proved to be extremely valuable to the Portuguese. They amassed huge profits in a limited amount of time due to their exclusive hold on commerce in that area. Da Gama opened a passage for his countrymen to follow, and the route was one of the most closely guarded secrets of that era. Pedro Álvares Cabral (1460?-1526) traveled to the Orient within a year of da Gama's return and established a trade treaty with Calicut, which gave the Portuguese a foothold on the commerce of that area. Things did not go smoothly, however, and after some serious fighting, Cabral moved on to another port, Cochin. The ruler of this port was the bitter rival of those at Calicut, so Cabral was able to trade quite easily by playing the ruling parties against one another. He also set up a depot, where trading could take place and where ships could unload. This pattern set the precedent for trading in that area. The Portuguese would play the various mercantile factions against each other to get what they wanted, and if that was not successful, they would use force. Although more than half the fleet and men were lost, Cabral returned ladened with spice, which was sold at a huge profit. Expeditions became annual events, and Portugal profited greatly from these trips. Portugal was now at the forefront of maritime European commerce.
What was the purpose of the Portuguese sea route to India?
King John II of Portugal sought to establish both a land route and a sea route to India. The sea route was to go around the southern tip of Africa, which was not even believed to exist by some at that time. In 1487 Portuguese navigator Bartholomeu Dias (1450?-1500) rounded the cape of Africa in stormy seas and began sailing in a northeast direction to reach what is now South Africa. Dias had shown that there was indeed a possible route to India via the southern tip of Africa. Upon his return voyage, he set up a pillar on the Cape to commemorate its discovery.
What did the Portuguese discover?
The Portuguese discovered very important sea routes that had not previously been used by other people. In their quest, they had significantly advanced maritime knowledge, including fine-tuning systematic nautical practices, furthering scientific and technical innovations, increasing cartographical and navigational skills, and fostering a spirit of adventure and endurance. These achievements are important contributions to world history and had a significant influence on other nations of Europe.
What was the purpose of Prince Henry the Navigator?
He wanted to establish new routes of trade, find a possible route to attack the Moors from the rear, test new advances in shipbuilding and navigational aids, and fulfill his curiosity regarding the world. He commissioned numerous expeditions throughout the fifteenth century to explore and chart the African coast. Although Prince Henry died in 1460, his legacy was firmly established and exploration continued.
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What happened to the first ship in the Gama fleet?
By early 1499, several crew members had died of scurvy and in an effort to economize his fleet, da Gama ordered one of his ships to be burned. The first ship in the fleet didn't reach Portugal until July 10, nearly a full year after they'd left India.
How long did the Gama crew stay in Calicut?
Still, the local Hindu ruler welcomed da Gama and his men, at first, and the crew ended up staying in Calicut for three months. Not everyone embraced their presence, especially Muslim traders who clearly had no intention of giving up their trading grounds to Christian visitors.
Why did Gama return to India?
Late in life, after the death of King Manuel, da Gama was asked to return to India, in an effort to contend with the growing corruption from Portuguese officials in the country.
Where was Da Gama born?
Early Years. Da Gama was born into a noble family around 1460 in Sines, Portugal. Little is known about his upbringing except that he was the third son of Estêvão da Gama, who was commander of the fortress in Sines in the southwestern pocket of Portugal.
How many people survived the first voyage of the Gama?
In all, da Gama's first journey covered nearly 24,000 miles in close to two years, and only 54 of the crew's original 170 members survived.
What was the first voyage of the Gama?
First Voyage. Historians know little about why exactly da Gama, still an inexperienced explorer, was chosen to lead the expedition to India in 1497. On July 8 of that year, he captained a team of four vessels, including his flagship, the 200-ton St. Gabriel, to find a sailing route to India and the East.
Where did Gama go to set ablaze?
He and his crew terrorized Muslim ports up and down the African east coast, and at one point, set ablaze a Muslim ship returning from Mecca, killing the several hundreds of people (including women and children) who were on board. Next, the crew moved to Calicut, where they wrecked the city's trade port and killed 38 hostages. From there, they moved to the city of Cochin, a city south of Calicut, where da Gama formed an alliance with the local ruler.
How long did Vasco da Gama travel?
Vasco da Gama arrived in Lisbon on 18 September and rode in triumph through the city. He had been away for more than two years, travelled 38,600km (24,000 miles) and spent 300 days at sea. Only 54 of the original crew of 170 had survived, but King Manuel was very pleased.
How many ships did Vasco da Gama have?
The following year, Vasco da Gama commanded Portugal's third major voyage to India. He set out with a fleet of 20 ships, including ten of his own and five each under the command of his uncle and nephew. Their task was to consolidate Portuguese dominance of the route to India, but it was to lead to one of the worst maritime massacres in history.
What was Vasco's father's name?
His mother was of English ancestry. His father, Estevao da Gama, was head of one of Portugal's most noble families, had a distinguished military history, and was the provincial governor. When Vasco grew up he joined the navy, where he learned navigational skills and served with distinction in the war against Castille.
How long did it take for the Da Gama to get to Malindi?
It was a terrible voyage back to Malindi. The pilot could not be found, the monsoons were against them and the 3,700km (2,300 mile) journey took three months. Da Gama's crew suffered terribly from scurvy and 30 men died. Only the kindness of the Sultan of Malindi saved the rest of the crew, with his gifts of fresh meat and oranges.
What was Vasco da Gama's voyage to India?
Vasco da Gama's pioneering sea voyage to India is one of the defining moments in the history of exploration. Apart from being one the greatest pieces of European seamanship of that time - a far greater achievement than Christopher Columbus's crossing of the Atlantic - his journey acted as a catalyst for a series of events that changed the world.
What did Bartholomew Diaz prove?
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.
What was the task of Da Gama?
Their task was to consolidate Portuguese dominance of the route to India, but it was to lead to one of the worst maritime massacres in history. Da Gama began a campaign of terror against Muslim shipping...
Overview
First voyage
On 8 July 1497 Vasco da Gama led a fleet of four ships with a crew of 170 men from Lisbon. The distance traveled in the journey around Africa to India and back was greater than the length of the equator. The navigators included Portugal's most experienced, Pero de Alenquer, Pedro Escobar, João de Coimbra, and Afonso Gonçalves. It is not known for certain how many people were in each s…
Early life
Vasco da Gama was born in 1460 in the town of Sines, one of the few seaports on the Alentejo coast, southwest Portugal, probably in a house near the church of Nossa Senhora das Salas.
Vasco da Gama's father was Estêvão da Gama, who had served in the 1460s as a knight of the household of Infante Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu. He rose in the ra…
Exploration before da Gama
From the earlier part of the 15th century, Portuguese expeditions organized by Prince Henry the Navigator had been reaching down the African coastline, principally in search of west African riches (notably, gold and slaves). They had greatly extended Portuguese maritime knowledge, but had little profit to show for the effort. After Henry's death in 1460, the Portuguese Crown showed little …
Rewards
In December 1499, King Manuel I of Portugal rewarded Vasco da Gama with the town of Sines as a hereditary fief (the town his father, Estêvão, had once held as a commenda). This turned out to be a complicated affair, for Sines still belonged to the Order of Santiago. The master of the Order, Jorge de Lencastre, might have endorsed the reward – after all, da Gama was a Santiago knight, o…
Second voyage
The follow-up expedition, the Second India Armada, launched in 1500 under the command of Pedro Álvares Cabral with the mission of making a treaty with the Zamorin of Calicut and setting up a Portuguese factory in the city. However, Pedro Cabral entered into a conflict with the local Arab merchant guilds, with the result that the Portuguese factory was overrun in a riot and up to 70 Portuguese were killed. Cabral blamed the Zamorin for the incident and bombarded the city. Thu…
Interlude
For the next two decades, Vasco da Gama lived out a quiet life, unwelcome in the royal court and sidelined from Indian affairs. His attempts to return to the favor of Manuel I (including switching over to the Order of Christ in 1507), yielded little. Almeida, the larger-than-life Afonso de Albuquerque and, later on, Albergaria and Sequeira, were the king's preferred point men for India.
After Ferdinand Magellan defected to the Crown of Castile in 1518, Vasco da Gama threatened to …
Third voyage and death
After the death of King Manuel I in late 1521, his son and successor, King John III of Portugal set about reviewing the Portuguese government overseas. Turning away from the old Albuquerque clique (now represented by Diogo Lopes de Sequeira), John III looked for a fresh start. Vasco da Gama re-emerged from his political wilderness as an important adviser to the new king's appointments an…