Vasco da Gama
On July 8th of 1497 Vasco da Gama initiated his
voyage. He left Lisbon, Portugal accompanied by 170 men, and 4 ships. The ships
were: the Sao Gabriel, Sao Rafael, the Berrio, and a fourth ship which was not
given a name but was used for storage. Before Gama’s expedition, Bartolemeu
Dias, a Portuguese explorer, discovered the Cape of Good Hope. The Cape of Good
Hope was located at the southern tip of Africa. Vasco and his men passed the Cape
of Good Hope on November 22nd and
headed north, towards Africa. In addition, they discovered two trading ports:
Malindi and Mombasa. A local navigator who knew how to find India aided them
when they stopped in Malindi. In less than a month, they were able to arrive in
Calicut, India.
When Vasco da Gama and his men arrived in
Calicut, they came across issues when trying to trade. The local traders became
suspicious when realizing that the Portuguese brought very little of value in
their ships. They had to leave soon; additionaly and unfortunately, the voyage back to Europe
was quite disastrous. Approximately
half of the 170 men that accompanied him died. Despite the fact that the voyage
back took longer, Vasco da Gama had succeeded in finding the maritime route to
Africa; as a result, he was viewed as a hero by the Portuguese. Some may
question whether Vasco da Gama should or should not have been considered a hero
when he arrived in Portugal after his voyage. It is crucial to keep in mind
that after all, Vasco successfully fulfilled the expedition’s main purpose: to
find an unknown water route to India.
So he discovered a new route to trade through, but when he tried to trade he failed? And he was still viewed as a hero? That doesnt make much sense.
ReplyDeleteI think it makes much sense actually. Maybe I didn't state it clearly enough but the Portuguese were DESPERATE for the Indian goods. The expedition's main goal was to find a maritime route to India, and Vasco da Gama did so. Even though there were some negatives, the result was just what they needed (and desired).
DeletePlease do not plagiarize! Zero points earned :(
ReplyDeletePortugal having a faster access to the African spices at a less expensive cost must have caused a economic boom because they were able to resell the spices to other European countries at a higher price that was affordable.
ReplyDeleteThis is an explorer from the time were everyone was going to the new world who went around africaa into india, why?
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what your question is but...the Portuguese sent Vasco da Gama to find a water route to India since the only other route they new of was a very long(and expensive) overland route.
DeleteCan he truly be considered a hero? I mean he did find the routes, but many lost their lives under his command.
ReplyDeleteTrue. However, I personally think that despite the deaths and all, he was successful and was fully capable of accomplishing his expedition's main purpose. As previously stated it was: find a maritime route to India, since the only other route they new of was a very long(and expensive) overland route.
DeleteVasco de Gama was born into a wealthy family like Coronado.
ReplyDeleteVasco de Gama kind of helped Pedro Cabral due to the fact that Vasco de Gama had writen a map to set sail to India.
ReplyDeleteWell i don't know what to say except it seems as if this man had saved the Portuguese
ReplyDelete