GAMA, VASCO DA

GAMA, VASCO DA
   a famous Portuguese navigator, the discoverer of the route to India round the Cape of Good Hope, born at Sines, in Portugal, of good family; he seems to have won the favour of King Emmanuel at an early age, and already an experienced mariner, was in 1497 despatched on his celebrated voyage, in which he rounded the Cape; on that occasion he made his way to Calicut, in India, where he had to contend with the enmity of the natives, stirred against him by jealous Arabian merchants; in 1499 he returned to Lisbon, was received with great honour, and had conferred on him an array of high-sounding titles; three years later he was appointed to the command of an expedition to Calicut to avenge the massacre of a small Portuguese settlement founded there a year previous by Cabrat; in connection with this expedition he founded the colonies of Mozambique and Sofala, and after inflicting a cruel punishment upon the natives of Calicut, he returned to Lisbon in 1503; the following 20 years of his life were spent in retirement at Evora, but in 1524 he was appointed viceroy of Portuguese India, a position he held only for a short time, but sufficiently long to re-establish Portuguese power in India; he died at Cochin; the incidents of his famous first voyage round the Cape are celebrated in Camoëns' memorable poem "The Lusiad" (1469-1525).

The Nuttall Encyclopaedia. . 1907.

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  • Gama, Vasco da — • The discover of the sea route to East Indies; born at Sines, Province of Alemtejo, Portugal, about 1469; died at Cochin, India, 24 December, 1524 Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006 …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Gama, Vasco da, 1er conde de Vidigueira — ( 1460, Sines, Portugal–24 dic. 1524, Cochin, India). Navegante portugués. En su primer viaje a India (1497–99), navegó con cuatro barcos alrededor del cabo de Buena Esperanza, y visitó varias ciudades mercantiles en Mozambique y Kenia durante el …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Gama, Vasco da — ▪ Portuguese navigator Introduction Portuguese  Vasco da Gama, 1er conde da Vidigueira  born c. 1460, Sines, Port. died Dec. 24, 1524, Cochin, India       Portuguese navigator whose voyages to India (1497–99, 1502–03, 1524) opened up the sea… …   Universalium

  • Gama,Vasco da — Ga·ma (gămʹə, gäʹmə), Vasco da. 1460? 1524. Portuguese explorer and colonial administrator. The first European to sail to India (1497 1498), he opened the rich lands of the East to Portuguese trade and colonization. * * * …   Universalium

  • Gama, Vasco da, 1st count da Vidigueira — born с 1460, Sines, Port. died Dec. 24, 1524, Cochin, India Portuguese navigator. On his first voyage to India (1497–99), he traveled around the Cape of Good Hope with four ships, visiting trading cities in Mozambique and Kenya en route. Portugal …   Universalium

  • Gama, Vasco da — (ca. 1469 1524)    Portuguese explorer, the commander chosen to lead the expedition of 1497 1499 that reached the port of Calicut in India in May 1498 and thus completed Portugal s search for a route to India by way of South Africa. He was a… …   Historical Dictionary of Renaissance

  • Gama, Vasco de — ► (1469 1524) Navegante portugués. Halló el paso oriental hacia las Indias y realizó la circunnavegación de África. Dobló el cabo de Buena Esperanza y arribó a Calicut en 1498. Tras la muerte del virrey de Alburquerque, para poner fin a los… …   Enciclopedia Universal

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  • Gama, Vasco da — …   Useful english dictionary

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