In search of fame and fortune, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan c. En route he discovered what is now known as the Strait of Magellan and became the Amerigo Vespucci was an Italian-born merchant and explorer who took part in early voyages to the New World on behalf of Spain around the late 15th century. By that time, the Vikings had established settlements in present-day North America as early as 1, A. The explorer Christopher Columbus made four trips across the Atlantic Ocean from Spain: in , , and He was determined to find a direct water route west from Europe to Asia, but he never did.
Instead, he stumbled upon the Americas. Though he did not really Henry Hudson made his first voyage west from England in , when he was hired to find a shorter route to Asia from Europe through the Arctic Ocean.
After twice being turned back by ice, Hudson embarked on a third voyage—this time on behalf of the Dutch East India Company—in Leonardo da Vinci was a painter, architect, inventor, and student of all things scientific. Francisco Pizarro was an explorer, soldier and conquistador best known for conquering the Incas and executing their leader, Atahuapla.
He was born around in Trujillo, Spain. Sir Francis Drake participated in some of the earliest English slaving voyages to Africa and earned a reputation for his privateering, or piracy, against Spanish ships and possessions. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. Eventually, da Gama and his crew were forced to barter on the waterfront in order to secure enough goods for the passage home.
In August , da Gama and his men took to the seas again, beginning their journey back to Portugal. Da Gama's timing could not have been worse; his departure coincided with the start of a monsoon. By early , 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. In all, da Gama's first journey covered nearly 24, miles in close to two years, and only 54 of the crew's original members survived. When da Gama returned to Lisbon, he was greeted as a hero. The crew reached India in just six months, and the voyage included a firefight with Muslim merchants, where Cabral's crew killed men on Muslim cargo vessels.
More important for his home country, Cabral established the first Portuguese trading post in India. In , da Gama helmed another journey to India that included 20 ships. Ten of the ships were directly under his command, with his uncle and nephew helming the others. In the wake of Cabral's success and battles, the king charged da Gama to further secure Portugal's dominance in the region. To do so, da Gama embarked on one of the most gruesome massacres of the exploration age.
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. Finally, on February 20, , da Gama and his crew began to make their way home.
They reached Portugal on October 11 of that year. Little was recorded about da Gama's return home and the reception that followed, though it has been speculated that the explorer felt miffed at the recognition and compensation for his exploits.
Married at this time, and the father of six sons, da Gama settled into retirement and family life. He maintained contact with King Manuel, advising him on Indian matters, and was named count of Vidigueira in 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.
That same year, da Gama died in Cochin — the result, it has been speculated, from possibly overworking himself. At Mozambique Island, they forcefully engaged two Arab pilots and when the Muslim inhabitants realized the explorers were Christians, they grew hostile.
To keep them at bay, da Gama bombarded the town and then sailed away. On 7 April, Da Gama anchored off Mombasa. The sultan generously sent them sheep, fresh vegetables and fruit; but when one of the Arab pilots jumped overboard as they were entering the harbour, the Portuguese became suspicious of the sultan's intentions. Da Gama forced some Muslims on board, tortured them with boiling oil, and learned of a plot to avenge the Portuguese attack on Mozambique.
Thus forewarned, they were able to stave off an attack and continued on their way. Nearing Malindi near Mombasa , they found the sultan much more friendly and helpful. He provided them with an expert pilot to steer them to India, thus laying the foundation of a long and mutually profitable alliance. There, Muslim traders swayed the Hindu ruler against the Christian explorers, who again narrowly escaped death.
The Portuguese squadron sailed from India on 20 September , but on the return voyage, disaster overtook them. First, they were becalmed for many days, and then, contrary winds and currents dragged out their crossing. Thirty men died. The survivors arrived at Malindi on 7 January Lacking able-bodied men to sail all the ships, da Gama burned the Sao Raphael.
On 20 March , the two remaining ships rounded the Cape and sailed on for the Portuguese outpost on the Azores where da Gama delayed sailing because his brother Paulo had died. The Berrio sailed on to Portugal, where it dropped anchor at the Tagus on 10 July When Da Gama arrived at Lisbon about three weeks later, the Portuguese gave him a hero's welcome.
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