Prince Henry the Navigator was a Portuguese explorer, soldier and prince. Although Prince Henry rarely participated in explorations, he sent many expeditions from
Portugal
to the west coast of Africa, and was responsible for Portugal’s influence in the Great Age of Exploration.
Henry himself was neither a sailor nor a navigator, his name notwithstanding. He did, however, sponsor many exploratory sea voyages. In
1415
, his ships reached the Canary Islands, which had already been claimed by Spain. In 1418, the Portuguese came upon the Madeira Islands and established a colony at Porto Santo.
Prince Henry the Navigator, the Hero of
Portugal
and of Modern Discovery, 1394–1460 A.D.: With an Account of Geographical Progress Throughout the Middle Ages As the Preparation for His Work.
Truth is,
Prince Henry of Portugal never set sail on voyages of discovery
. A nobleman of English, French, and Spanish ancestry, Prince Henry gained his reputation by sponsoring many voyages of discovery along the western coast of Africa. Prince Henry had several reasons for dispatching his expeditions.
What is Prince Henry known for?
Prince Henry the Navigator (aka Infante Dom Henrique, 1394-1460) was a Portuguese prince who famously
helped capture the North African city of Ceuta
, sponsored voyages of exploration with the aim of building colonies in the North Atlantic and West Africa, and began the Portuguese involvement in the African slave trade.
What did Prince Henry do to improve sea travel?
Prince Henry’s expeditionary goals were
to increase navigational knowledge along the western coast of Africa and find a water route to Asia, to increase trade opportunities for Portugal, to find gold to provide the trips’ own funding, to spread Christianity around the world, and defeat Muslims
—and perhaps even to find …
The last two important mariners sent out by Henry were
the Venetian explorer Alvise Ca’ da Mosto and the Portuguese Diogo Gomes
, who between them discovered several of the Cape Verde Islands. Afonso V had small interest in discovery but great zeal for Crusading and knight-errantry.
What were some of Prince Henry’s accomplishments?
Prince Henry sponsored
explorations
that accomplished much for Portugal. Not only did his expeditions succeed in mapping much of the coast of west-Africa, but they also succeeded in spreading Christianity, defeating Muslims (enemies of the Portuguese at the time), and establishing new trade routes.
Why did the Portuguese travel to Africa?
Portuguese expansion into Africa began with
the desire of King John I to gain access to the gold-producing areas of West Africa
. The trans-Saharan trade routes between Songhay and the North African traders provided Europe with gold coins used to trade spices, silks and other luxuries from India.
Traditional biographies of Henry have credited him with other revolutionary achievements such as the invention of the oceangoing caravel ship and the perfection of the critical navigational instrument called
the astrolabe
.
What did Prince Henry establish?
During his lifetime, Prince Henry not only made significant advances in navigation and shipbuilding, he helped establish
Christian Europe’s authority over Africa and Asia
, while breaking down Muslim control over trade and sea routes.
What did the Portuguese do in order to try to create a trading post empire?
Portuguese mariners built the earliest trading -post empire. They did not want to conquer territories,
but to control trade routes by forcing merchant vessels to call at fortified trading sites and pay duties there
.
His
goals were to test and gain scientific knowledge
, find a route to the rich spice trade of the Indies, and spread the Christian faith. About 1418, Prince Henry started the first school for oceanic navigation along with an astronomical observatory at Sagres, Portugal.
Who was the first European to sail around Africa and land in India?
Vasco da Gama
was a Portuguese explorer who followed in the footsteps of Dias and became the first European to sail around the southern tip of Africa and all the way to India. Da Gama sailed from Lisbon, Portugal in July 1497, with four ships.
Who was the first person to sail around Africa?
In 1488,
Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias
(c. 1450-1500) became the first European mariner to round the southern tip of Africa, opening the way for a sea route from Europe to Asia.
Which country first started Exploration?
The Age of Exploration began in the nation of
Portugal
under the leadership of Henry the Navigator.
