India

Portuguese enter the Indian Ocean, 1497–1542

Portuguese enter the Indian Ocean, 1497–1542

The squadron of Vasco da Gama left Portugal in 1497, rounded the Cape and continued along the coast of East Africa, where a local pilot was brought on board who guided them across the Indian Ocean, reaching Calicut (the capital of the native kingdom ruled by Zamorins) in south-western India in May 1498. The second voyage […]