Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese explorer and the first European to reach India by sea. Vasco da Gama was born in 1460 in Sines, Portugal, and set sail for the East around 1487. He made a stop-over in Morocco on his way, and returned to Lisbon with a number of Moorish subjects with whom he had converted to Christianity before continuing on his voyage. Vaskodigama bharat kab aaya tha 1497. Although he continued to sail around the coasts of Africa and Arabia, da Gama didn’t reach India until 1498, when he landed at Calicut.
After taking over a local ruler’s territory, Da Gama returned to Portugal in 1500. He was made Viceroy of India in 1510 and established trading posts along the Malabar Coast. He also founded Goa, which became the base of Portuguese power there. In 1541 da Gama set out again to India but died on his way there in 1522 or 1523 after his ship wrecked during a storm near the coast of Brazil.
The explorer is most famously known for traveling 5,500 miles around Africa and across the Indian Ocean to reach India – affording him an all but unheard of water route that became known as the “Maritime Silk Road”. Vasco da Gama’s voyage opened up trade between Europe and Asia which has changed dramatically since then.
Here are some interesting facts about Vasco da Gama that may have you thinking:
1. The explorer was very much a family man
Vasco da Gama had three wives in his life. His first wife, Teresa, was the daughter of D. Estevão, the Lord of Calangute. Da Gama and Teresa had a son when she died giving birth to him in 1491 (Estevão da Gama). Da Gama then married Dona Beatriz de Vilhena, with whom he had four children – Bartolomeu, Joao (who became an admiral), Estevão and Carolina (who became the wife of Diogo Lopes de Sequeira). He married for a third time to Isabel Sodré, the daughter of Tristao Vaz Sodré (one of da Gama’s principal sponsors), with whom he had an additional three children.
2. His second wife was da Gama’s first cousin
Vasco da Gama married his second wife Beatriz de Vilhena because her brother, Pedro de Vilhena was one of da Gama’s principal sponsors. They started living together only after Beatriz reached the age of 20 and once all other legal obstacles were removed – unlike in his case, which didn’t have any legal obstacles since they weren’t even related then!
3. Da Gama was in the service of King John II of Portugal
Vasco da Gama’s father, Estêvão da Gama, was also a Portuguese explorer. When his father died in 1468, Vasco da Gama and his brother Miguel took to piracy, plundering Moorish ships at sea. They also began trading spices from India and Ceylon that they procured during their piracy activities – this is when da Gama first met João de Santarém who later became one of his principal financial backers.
With the death of his older brother Miguel in 1491, da Gama took over command of a fleet and was made commander of the India armada in 1497. He set sail for India with thirteen ships and 1200 men on March 9, 1497. Out of these ships, only four vessels returned from the trip – two were lost at sea and one wrecked near Cape St. Augustine (now in South Africa). Da Gama is known as the first European to reach India by sea since he sailed all the way around Africa bypassing other routes used by other explorers.
4. He was a talented artist and engineer
There is a famous painting of Vasco da Gama in which he’s depicted alongside his crew. Measuring 44 x 33 cm, the canvas of the painting is thought to have been painted while da Gama was in India. It contains information on da Gama’s first trip to India (1497-1499), and includes numerous details on the journey including dates, place names, ships engaged in the voyage, flags and coats of arms featured on the ships. The painting also features a self-portrait of da Gama. The original for this painting is located at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
5. He was the first European to explore the Malacca Strait
Once da Gama returned from his journey, he wrote a book called “The Discovery of the Sea of India”, which detailed the entire trip that he took – a very rare case in which someone made such an enormous effort to document his travels. He also won the title “Admiral of India” and was created Viscount of Vidigueira and appointed Admiral of Portugal, on June 7, 1500. You can read more about this amazing explorer here.
Conclusion :
Vasco da Gama was a fascinating person who changed the world forever. The explorer made his own way in life and was a very brave and talented man who improved the lives of many people during his lifetime. If you’re looking for someone to inspire you, da Gama is a great place to start.
