The era of the great geographical discoveries is an extremely important milestone in the history of mankind. Of course, the peoples of South and North America are unlikely to agree with this statement, but for our civilization as a whole, the importance of those studies is enormous. The names of the brave captains of the glorious era are forever imprinted in historical documents, and therefore every schoolchild today knows them.
But not everyone can list the true achievements of these great people. Not everyone, for example, will answer the question about what Vasco da Gama discovered. This we will consider in the article.
Milestones in Biography
Vasco da Gama (1460-1524) - the world famous Portuguese navigator, whose life dates back to the era of the Great Discoveries. Known for being the first in history to pave the sea route to India. At one time, he even held the high post of Viceroy of Portuguese India. In short, the biography of Vasco da Gama is rich in outstanding events.
Many historians emphasize that he was not the discoverer in the strict sense of the word (unlike the same Magellan). While Christopher Columbus was forced to persuade the powerful of this world to organize an expedition, Vasco da Gama did not deal with such issues. This is explained by the fact that the monarch simply appointed him "the discoverer of the sea route to India."
The seafarer was also lucky with the campaign organizations: he and the team were provided with all the best, perfectly understanding the importance of the whole event.
How did Vasco da Gama's biography begin? His mother is not much known, but his father belonged to an ancient and wealthy chivalric estate. The future conqueror of the oceans had five brothers and a sister.
Judging by the “yes” in his name, his family belonged to the upper nobility. According to Portuguese historians, one of the ancestors of Vasco da Gama (the traveler’s biography confirms this) distinguished himself in his battle with the Moors, for which he was granted the knighthood.
Where did the future discoverer of the sea route to India get his education? Alas, here you have to judge only by indirect traces. More or less reliably known only that young Vasco da Gama comprehend mathematics and navigation in Evora. Considering that the information was preserved only about these sciences, it can be assumed how much the Portuguese respected people who were able to plot and handle the sextant.
It should be noted that the Portuguese nobles did not have much choice in matters relating to their occupation. If a man belonged to the nobility, and even was a knight, then his path is exclusively a military affair. Given that Portugal did not wage more or less serious land wars with anyone, but was actively exploring lands overseas, almost all the nobles became naval officers.
The young Vasco da Gama did not escape the same path: his biography (including discoveries) clearly shows that Portugal actually had no more talented captains at that time.
Life of Vasco da Gama before his trip to India
In the distant 1492, some French corsairs managed to intercept the rich cargo going to Portugal. The monarch of this glorious country did not tolerate such impudence, and therefore instructed one young nobleman to walk with a punitive raid along the coast, capturing all the French ships found in that area. The bailiff completed the task so quickly and efficiently that the robbers had to return everything. As you might have guessed, this brave knight was Vasco da Gama. For his determination and courage, he quickly approached the royal court.
In 1495, Manuel I ascended the throne of Portugal, who not only with double zeal continued the work of the marine expansion of already known lands, but also seriously thought about opening a seafaring route to India. Initially, Bartolomeo Dias was appointed the leader of the squadron. But the king understood that the expedition would need not only seafaring talents, but also a purely military one. Therefore, our hero was appointed to this place. So what did Vasco da Gama discover later on?
About the sea route to India
It should be noted that the predecessor of the active monarch by that time had already managed to try his luck in finding a land route. It was not easy to do this, since the entire northern part of Africa was in the hands of the aforementioned Moors. Just passing south of the Sahara, you could go on the desired path.
In 1487, a serious expedition set off on a campaign. It was led by experienced officers - Peru da Covilhana and Afonso di Paiva. The first managed to achieve the desired India and to convey to his homeland a message about the possibility of such a transition. Already in 1488, Bartolomeo Dias conducted a detailed study of the southern tip of the Black Continent. It seemed that Juan II was about to have the strongest trump card in his hands - the way to India would guarantee a constant influx of wealth. So why did Vasco da Gama and the opening of the sea route to India become such an important milestone in the history of both Portugal and the entire human civilization?
Fate wanted otherwise: the king’s only heir dies, and therefore he is almost completely removed from politics. However, he managed to do a lot: so, to accompany the expedition, a whole squadron of first-class sea vessels was built, whose design was assigned to the notorious Bartolomeo Diash.
When the monarch passed away in 1495, Manuel I - his successor - at first thought least of all about India. But the international political situation has developed in such a way that without this it soon became impossible. Quick preparations for the great campaign continued.
First Expedition Equipment
Which ships did Vasco da Gama spend his journey on? At the head of the squadron stood "San Gabriel." A similar class ship, the San Rafael, came under the command of Paulo, the brother of Vasco da Gama. Both sailboats belonged to the so-called Nao class. These were very large vessels, the displacement of which reached 120-150 tons. Due to the wide rectangular sails, they could develop decent speed, but they were rather clumsy, and the sailors did not like to use them for long transitions without reference to the shore.
The opposite of the flagship was the Berriu. The ship is a nimble maneuverable caravel. It was equipped with slanting sails, commanded by Nicolau Coelho. Finally, the squadron included a certain transporter, neither the name nor other information about which was preserved.
About navigation
It is not surprising that with such attention to the organization of the expedition, the best navigation instruments of that time stood out to equip it. Peru Alenker became the chief navigator. This outstanding seafarer has already managed to prove himself perfectly in the campaign with Diash (which we talked about above). In addition to the main officers on board were a priest, a clerk and an astronomer. They also took care of several translators who helped in communicating with the natives. According to some historians, the crew reached 170 people.
Humane tradition
In those days, there was one curious tradition. Convicted criminals were taken aboard during such trips. Of course, they did not do this in order to acquaint prisoners with the beauties of overseas lands. They were used as scouts, assault forces and in other situations when they did not want to risk the lives of the full-time crew. However, for the prisoners themselves there was also "light at the end of the tunnel." No matter how heavy the transgression that a person committed in freedom, he received freedom at the end of the voyage. If you survived, of course.
Nutrition issues
Remember, we mentioned some kind of transport ship? They began to include him in expeditions since the time of Diash, when a similar approach to business proved the highest efficiency. A huge supply of provisions, uniforms, spare rigging, tools was stored on a warehouse vessel. The ration of the team did not shine in abundance: cereals, corned beef, crackers. In addition, a small volume of wine was included in the standard ration. Greens and fruits, fish and fresh meat were obtained by the forces of the sailors themselves in the parking lots.
All sailors and officers received a good salary (with the exception of the "penal battalion"). For the sake of the romance of sea travels, no one went on hikes. However, the trip of Vasco da Gama was a purely commercial event, so there is no reason to be surprised.
What were the squadron ships armed with?
By that time, weapons on ships had already gone far from those primitive mortars that were everywhere found at the beginning of the era. Each of the "Nao" had at least 20 guns, and the caravel was armed with twelve cannons. The team’s personal weapon resembled the Spanish: the same cuirasses and halberds, daggers and swords. There were also several muskets and pistols. The quality and prevalence of personal firearms was so small that it usually did not have a major impact on the outcome of a fight.
July 8, 1497 squadron with great honors sailed from the port of Lisbon. The
great navigator of that era, Vasco da Gama, set off on a journey. The discovery of India (more precisely, the sea route there) was just around the corner!
The beginning of the campaign
The process took place as usual: ships sailed along Sierra Leone. Using Diash’s good advice, the expedition deviated to the west from the intended course in order to avoid a strong headwind. He himself, by the way, by this time had already departed from the armada in a separate ship, heading for the fortress of San Jorge da Mina. There Diash took over as commandant.
Meanwhile, our squadron had already made an impressive detour in the Atlantic Ocean, after which the Portuguese again saw the shores of the Black Continent. November 4, 1497 there was a significant descent of the anchor in the bay, which immediately received the name of St. Helena. The crews of the ships received orders for long-term parking, as the ships were still badly battered in the open ocean, but they could not complete all the work. On the way, nevertheless, we managed to find several shreds of land on which the desperately running ships patched up desperately. This is how Vasco da Gama discovered the uninhabited islands.
The local population was extremely hostile. However, given the number of slave traders in those places, there was nothing surprising in this. Vasco da Gama himself received an arrow in one of the skirmishes in the leg, after which the squadron moved on.
But the main tests were yet to come. With great difficulty circling the Cape of Storms (Good Hope), the flotilla dropped anchors in the bay of Mossel Bay. The hulking cargo ship weather-beaten so badly that I had to burn it. Fortunately, the local natives turned out to be much kinder to the travelers, and therefore it was possible not only to repair the ships without interference, but also to replenish the supplies of water and provisions. The further path lay to the northeast.
Arab cunning
On December 16, 1497, the sailors saw the last memorial pillar that Diash's expedition left back in 1488. Everyone considered this a good omen, and the forebodings were justified: for a month the voyage went without delays or incidents. This is largely due to the fact that the expedition ships sailed along completely civilized shores.
The fact is that the eastern coast of Africa has long been an Arab patrimony, and even they, unlike the semi-wild tribes of the west coast, knew Europeans very well. Largely because of this, the Vasco da Gama expedition went quite peacefully (for those years). The sea route to India took the lives of many sailors, but they died due to poor nutrition and infectious diseases.
Despite the Crusades, the attitude towards them was quite acceptable, but still could not do without difficulties.
So, in Mozambique, friction began with the local administration. And it was not at all a religion, to which very cynical Arabs paid little attention at all, but that local merchants suspected competitors in the Portuguese. Vasco da Gama did not remain in debt, slightly firing at inhospitable shores.
In the ports of Mombasa and Malindi, the expedition was met unmatched by better. Oddly enough, but the local sheikh welcomed them as best friends. However, he had his own reasons: flattered Portuguese easily signed an allied treaty against some common enemies. In Malindi, the expedition finally met Indian merchants. Huge work and considerable money cost the procedure of finding a reliable pilot. On May 20, 1498, the ships of the flotilla finally reached the shores of Hindustan.
First, Vasco visited the city of Calicut (current Kozhikode). The mayor met the guests very solemnly. But even here, the Muslim merchants began to reinsert their wheels with wheels. Relations with the mayor sharply worsened, trade went badly. However, they managed to sell a lot of precious stones and spices. According to the old tradition, Vasco da Gama repaid the ungrateful townspeople, planting several cores in the city walls and capturing a couple of valuable hostages. In Goa, the Portuguese tried to establish a merchant trading post, but even here they failed.
The sea route to the shores of India is what Vasco da Gama discovered!
Return trip
I had to turn around and go home. However, it was a sin to complain: the area was explored, trade relations, albeit poorly, were established. Subsequently, this turned out to be an important factor in establishing the rule of the Portuguese in those parts, which Vasco da Gama himself contributed a lot to. The great travelers of those years often became talented politicians and military leaders, so there is nothing surprising in this fact about his biography.
But this was ahead, and while the sailors had a long and dangerous way back. They were harassed by
Somali pirates (how little has changed since then in that area), terrible heat and food-borne infections. On January 2, 1499, the city of Mogadishu was "fired from guns" for prevention, after which the squadron headed for Malindi.
Relaxation
January 7, 1499 they reached the already familiar city, in which they were finally able to take a break from the hardened sea and ship tightness. And this time, the sheikh provided excellent food and apartments, but because in just five days the team pretty perked up.
The path continued, but not without loss: on January 13, near Mombasa, due to a strong leak, I again had to say goodbye to one of the ships. By mid-April, the greatly thinned flotilla was still able to reach Cape Verde. The house was already nearby. To encourage family members and the king, a ship was sent forward, which was the first to deliver the news of the successful completion of the expedition. At the same time, Vasco's brother, Paulo, became seriously ill, and therefore the captain himself was delayed.
And only at the end of August (or already in September) in 1499 the remains of the armada proudly moored at the port of Lisbon. This is what Vasco da Gama discovered. Marco Polo and other great sailors of past years could rightfully be proud of the work of their colleague!
Return and reward
Only two ships and 55 crew members came to their native shores. But from a financial point of view, success was simply phenomenal: the proceeds from trade with Arabs and Indians were 60 times (!) Higher than all the costs of organizing the expedition itself. Not surprisingly, the name Vasco da Gama and the opening of the sea route to India became synonymous for many years to come!
Manuel I was thrilled. Vasco received the high title of Don, a considerable pension and a huge land allotment. Given that Vasco da Gama opened the way to India, which since ancient times was famous for its wealth, such honors are easily explained. In addition, our hero became a close adviser to the king, so that all the hardships were not in vain. He will go to India more than once, defending the interests of his native land on distant shores.
At the end of 1524, Vasco da Gama died, having passed away on Indian soil. Nevertheless, he managed to establish a trading post on Goa, which remained under the protectorate of Portugal until the middle of the 20th century. To this day, compatriots highly honor the memory of the legendary navigator, and they learn the discoveries and life of Vasco da Gama in schools. The bridge in Lisbon is named in his honor, and the number of works of art dedicated to him is completely impossible to calculate.
We examined what Vasco da Gama discovered. We hope the above information will be useful to you.