Vasco
da Gama
Vasco
da Gama was born in Sines, Portugal,
in 1460, the year Prince Henry of
Portugal, more famously known as
Henry the Navigator, died.
Da Gama’s father was a member of the royal
household of Prince Dom Frenoyo, and young
Vasco grew up in the town of
Lisbon. Estevao da Gama and
Isabel Sodr were good parents to Vasco. They made sure that at a young age he learned how to fish, swim and sail.
Then at school, between 1484 and 1492
and most probably in the town of Evora, he studied astronomy and
navigation.
Major
Achievements
Vasco da Gama helped Portugal become rich and famous. As he was making
Portugal one of the most important trading and naval powers in the Indian Ocean,
he notched up some major achievements for himself. In 1492, he commanded the
defense of Portuguese colonies against the French in Guinea. Then
he set sail for India with four ships: the
Sao Gabriel, the Sao Rafael, the Berrio and one cargo ship that did not have a name. During this
voyage, his ships were fitted with enough food and wine for three years!
Da Gama sailed around the Coast of Africa. That was the same route
Bartolomeu Dias had taken in earlier years. Vasco
da Gama was finishing what
Dias had started. Da Gama’s first
voyage to India took more then two years to complete.
When he got to
India, his final destination, he
bought spices and silk cloth. He left again for
Portugal in 1499. When he got back to Portugal, those things were proof that
there were great treasures in India. On da Gama's second voyage, he stopped at
some of the African Kingdoms. When he stopped in
Mombasa (now Kenya) he made a peace treaty between Africa and Portugal.
That peace treaty was the first ever treaty of peace and friendship between
an African country and a European country. While he was there he put up a
monument.
In 1502 da Gama destroyed the Arab
trading centers in India and along Africa’s East coast and set up Portuguese
trading centers, making Portugal one of the most important trading powers. On
one voyage he came back to Portugal with news of seeing a Christian Kingdom in
East Africa. Many people back in Portugal believed that the empire of Prester
John (a mythical priest-king) had been found. On hearing about this empire, the
King of Portugal sent military people to help defend Christian Ethiopia from
invading Muslims. They thought that if the Muslims found the empire before the
Portuguese, they would take control of it. One of da Gama’s sons was killed in
a battle there in 1504.
Later, in 1524, da Gama had set up trading centers and had made himself
and Portugal rich, King John III named him Viceroy to India. During that
same year he also became Admiral of India.
In September of that same year, he took charge of the Portuguese administration
in India.
Da Gama received many awards for his achievements. One of the awards he
received was Admiral Dom; he was also Count of Vidigueira, Portugal, meaning he
was able to collect taxes and rents in two Portuguese towns.
Country
Vasco da Gama “sailed for
Portugal”. Portugal was competing against Spain for gold and fame. The
Portuguese King had heard a lot about the famous Spanish explorer Christopher
Columbus and was jealous of him. Columbus had not found treasure yet, but
promised to bring some back on his next voyage. The only boost for Portugal was
that Portugal knew where treasure was to be found and Spain did not. The person
they had to thank for that was Bartolomeu Dias, an earlier explorer for Portugal
who had tried to get to India but had had to turn back because of the threat of
mutiny from his crew.
Since da Gama went to India and set up
trading centers, da Gama and Portugal grew rich and famous.
The only major loss that Portugal had was that when da Gama went to India
on both of his voyages, many good sailors died of the disease scurvy (caused by
not enough vitamin C). On one of da Gama’s voyages, so many sailors died that
they had to burn one of their ships because there were not enough sailors to
handle it. On another voyage, da Gama set out with 133 sailors. When he returned
to Portugal there were only 55 sailors. On a ship, scurvy was the main worry of
the sailors.
Impact on New World
Vasco da Gama went to African kingdoms on his way to India. When he went
through these places he thought that he was the best of all the sailors and
better then the native people. He did not dislike the natives, he just
thought he was better than them. When the Portuguese landed in these African
Kingdoms the natives were first nice to them. They danced with the crewmen and
made sure the Portuguese got the best of everything. Da Gama put up a monument
to mark his being there. However da Gama stayed to long in the African kingdoms
and the natives got angry. When he left he saw the natives tearing down and
destroying the stone marker he had put up.
When da Gama got to India, the Indian people greeted him warmly. They
carried him in a chair along the streets to meet their King. As he was being
carried to the King, the Indians were dancing in the streets and beating drums
because they thought he would bring wondrous treasure for their King. They were
also excited because these white and foreign men were here. When
he met the King and showed them his treasures the people were disgusted at the
treasure. It was only a few silk scarves and other small things like that! When
he left, the previously friendly people were yelling at them and were spitting
on the ground. Before he left, he and his men gathered a few spices and precious
items, but just before departure he found out that he had to pay taxes for what
he had bought! But, instead of paying taxes, he captured a few hostages, as if
to warn, “This is what I will do to more of your people if you make
me pay taxes!”
In 1502 da Gama set sail for India once again. Along the way he again
stopped at some of the African kingdoms. There and in India he killed
many innocent Muslims and Indians in revenge for different acts of violence
against the Portuguese sailors.
Personal
Reaction
I think that Vasco da Gama was good and bad. I think that he was good
because he went to Africa and to India and set up trading posts along the way.
That has helped the world become more socialized because in Africa and India, at
the trading posts, many people from all over the world could come and trade.
They would meet some of the different people of the world there and get to know
them. Vasco da Gama was bad too. He killed many Africans, Muslims, Arabs, and
Indians along the way on his voyages. He also sometimes gave the rest of the
world a bad impression of Portugal by the way that he acted, and that might have
given the Africans, Arabs and Indians the idea that the rest of the world was
like the Portuguese.
Vasco da Gama liked being the head of things. He was very happy when he
found out that he was the head of a very important voyage. Vasco da Gama was a
very strict man and made sure that everything was going as planned. Nobody dared
to double cross him for they feared that he was too strong. I did not like da
Gama very much. He was too stubborn to listen to anyone except the King of
Portugal. He did every possible thing, including killing many innocent people,
to make sure Portugal had the best and was the best. I do not like people who
are like that, either today or in the past, like the explorer Vasco da Gama.
Later
Life
Vasco da Gama was 64 and living at his house in Portugal with his wife,
Cateriana de Ataide, and his 6 sons, when in 1524 King John III named him
Viceroy to India. He had planned to settle down and enjoy his retirement in
Portugal, but all of that changed. He had to go to India and make sure
everything was running fine. Along the way on the voyage, da Gama fell ill. Da
Gama died in India shortly after arrival on December 24, 1524. He was buried in
India. Later, in 1539, his remains were reburied in a chapel in Vidigueira,
Portugal.
Bibliography
Fritz,
Jean. Around the World in a Hundred Years
Starkey, Dinah. Atlas of Exploration