![]() ![]() The Portuguese navigator sighted the coast of South Africa on Christmas Day in 1497 and so named the point of landing, Natalis - from the Portuguese word Natal for Christmas. Over the course of two voyages, beginning in 14, da Gama landed and traded in locales along the coast of southern Africa before reaching India on May 20, 1498. ![]() Vasco realized the need to repair the ships and since they were all in need of drinking water as well, he steered towards land. Vasco da Gama was best known for being the first to sail from Europe to India by rounding Africas Cape of Good Hope. There were leaks for which the sailors had to work hard, pumping out the water day and night. The ships had been greatly damaged by the storms. – Storms ripped through, the sailors were distraught and wanted to turn back but Vasco da Gama was determined to go on Some of the men even conspired to kill him but were unsuccessful he simply put the mutineers in iron bars and continued on his quest. Storms ripped through, the sailors were distraught and wanted to turn back but Vasco da Gama was determined to go on. Guns were fired, anchors were heaved and the sails were loosened, but it was a tough sail. ![]() Vasco da Gama leaving the port of Libson, Portugal | Wikimedia Commons The crew was a motley group that included carpenters, blacksmiths, rope makers and other such skilled workers. On 8th July 1497, Vasco set sail on the Sao Gabriel with a fleet of three ships named after the archangels Gabriel, Rafael and Michael and a crew of 170 men from Lisbon, in search of India. In the year 1497, King Manuel I of Portugal appointed Vasco da Gama to command a voyage with ‘any ship he desired’ and discover the sea route to India. 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 Gamas father was Estêvão da Gama, who had served in the 1460s as a knight of the household of Infante Ferdinand, Duke of Viseu. – Vasco Da Gama’s discovery of the sea route to India ensured that Portugal had unopposed monopoly to the precious Indian spices Tracing the journey from Lisbon to Calicut Vasco’s first mover advantage also ensured that Portugal had unopposed monopoly to the precious Indian spices making them the undisputed lords of trade, in Europe for some time. This ocean route, gave the Portuguese a strategic advantage, allowing them to avoid the volatile old trade routes that went through the Mediterranean and Arab world. Vasco Da Gama’s discovery of the sea route to India was significant in establishing a permanent route from Europe to India. For almost four months they sailed across the Atlantic without sight of land until, on *4 November 1497, they reached a bay (current day St Helena).‘Vasco da Gama landed here’ – the memorial marking the moment | Wikimedia Commons Vasco’s brother, Paulo, captained the Sao Raphael. What did Vasco da Gama discover? When did Vasco da Gama reach St Helena? Vasco da Gama was best known for being the first to sail from Europe to India by rounding Africa ’s Cape of Good Hope. Calicut in 1876 p.183 Before arriving in (present-day) Kerala, da Gama and crew stopped at the city of Malindi on the eastern coast of Africa. ![]() When did Vasco da Gama sail from Europe to India? 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. Why did Vasco da Gama go around Africa and reaches India?Īt the time, the Muslims held a monopoly of trade with India and other Eastern nations, thanks to their geographical position. In 1502, he led a squadron of ships to Calicut to avenge the massacre of Portuguese explorers there and succeeded in subduing the inhabitants. Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama becomes the first European to reach India via the Atlantic Ocean when he arrives at Calicut on the Malabar Coast. ![]()
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