What was the significance of the Bartolomeu Dias expedition? Bartolomeu Dias. Discoveries. Biography
He was the first European to circumnavigate Africa from the south, discover the Cape of Good Hope and enter the Indian Ocean. He reached one of the southern capes of Africa, which was called the Cape of Storms.
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Biography
ABOUT early life Almost nothing is known about Dias. For a long time he was considered the son of one of the captains of Enrique the Navigator, but even this has not been proven. The commonly added qualifier "de Novais" to his surname was first documented in 1571, when King Sebastian I appointed Dias' grandson, Paulo Dias de Novais, as governor of Angola.
In his youth he studied mathematics and astronomy at the University of Lisbon. There are references to the fact that for some time Dias served as manager of the royal warehouses in Lisbon, and in 1481-82. participated as captain of one of the caravels in the expedition of Diogo de Azambuja, sent to build Fort Elmina (São Jorge da Mina) on the coast of Ghana.
After Kan died during another expedition (according to another version, he fell into disgrace), the king instructed Dias to take his place and go in search of a route to India around Africa. Dias's expedition consisted of three ships, one of which was commanded by his brother Diogo. Under the command of Dias were excellent sailors who had previously sailed under the command of Kahn and knew the coastal waters better than others, and the outstanding navigator of Peru di Alenquer. The total crew number was about 60 people.
Dias sailed from Portugal in August 1487, on December 4 he advanced south of Caen and in the last days of December dropped anchor in the Gulf of St. Stephen's (now Elizabeth Bay) in southern Namibia. After January 6, storms began that forced Dias to go out to sea. A few days later he tried to return to the bay, but there was no land in sight. The wanderings continued until February 3, 1488, when, turning north, the Portuguese saw the coast of Africa east of the Cape Good Hope.
Having landed on the shore, Dias discovered a Hottentot settlement and, since it was St. Blasius, named the bay after this saint. The blacks accompanying the squadron could not find common language with the natives, who first retreated and then tried to attack the European camp. During the conflict, Dias shot one of the natives with a crossbow, but this did not stop the rest, and the Portuguese immediately had to set sail. Dias wanted to sail further east, but upon reaching Algoa Bay (near the modern city of Port Elizabeth), all the officers under his command were in favor of returning to Europe. The sailors also wanted to return home, otherwise they threatened to riot. The only concession they agreed to was three more days of travel to the northeast.
The limit of Dias' eastward advance was the mouth of the Great Fish, where the padran he had established was discovered in 1938. He turned back, convinced that the mission of the expedition had been completed and, if necessary, by rounding the southern tip of Africa, he could reach India by sea. All that remains is to find this southern tip. In May 1488, Dias landed on the treasured cape and, it is believed, named it the Cape of Storms in memory of the storm that almost destroyed it. Subsequently, the king, who had great hopes for the sea route to Asia opened by Dias, renamed it the Cape of Good Hope.
Dias returned to Europe in December 1488, having spent 16 months and 17 days at sea, and apparently received instructions to keep his discoveries secret. Information about the circumstances of his reception at court has not survived. The king was waiting for news from Presbyter John, to whom Peru and Covilha was sent by land, and hesitated in financing new voyages. Only after the death of John II, 9 years after the return of Dias, did the Portuguese finally equip an expedition to India. Vasco da Gama was placed at its head. Dias was entrusted with supervising the construction of ships, since he personal experience knew what vessel design was needed to navigate South African waters. According to his orders, the slanting sails were replaced with rectangular ones, and the hulls of the ships were built with shallow draft and greater stability in mind. Also, in all likelihood, it was Dias who gave Vasco da Gama advice when sailing south, after Sierra Leone, to move away from the coast and make a detour across the Atlantic, because he knew that this was how he could bypass the strip of unfavorable winds. Dias accompanied him to the Gold Coast (Guinea), and then went to the fortress of São Jorge da Mina, of which he was appointed commandant.
When Vasco da Gama returned and confirmed the correctness of Dias' guesses, a more powerful fleet led by Pedro Cabral was equipped to India. On this journey, Dias commanded one of the ships. He participated in the discovery of Brazil, but during the passage towards Africa a storm broke out and his ship was irretrievably lost. Thus, he died in the very waters that brought him fame. The grandson of Bartolomeu Dias, Paulo Dias de Novais, became the first governor of Angola and founded the first European settlement there -
Bartolomeu Dias (born 1450 - disappeared May 29, 1500) is a famous Portuguese navigator. In search of a sea route to India in 1488, he was the first European to circumnavigate Africa from the south, discovered the Cape of Good Hope and reached the Indian Ocean. He was one of the first Portuguese to set foot on Brazilian soil...
After their death, the Portuguese monarchs lost interest in research for some time. Over the course of a number of years, they were engaged in other matters: in the state there were internecine wars, there were battles with the Moors. Only in 1481, after the accession of King John II to the throne, the African coast again saw strings of Portuguese ships and a new galaxy of brave sailors. The most significant of them was undoubtedly Bartolomeu Dias.
What is known about the navigator
Bartolomeu Dias came from a noble family and at one time worked as a manager in Lisbon warehouses. He was a descendant of Dias, who discovered Cape Bojador, and Dias, who discovered Cape Verde. All travelers had a talent that helped them in the struggle to expand the world. Thus, Henry the Navigator was a scientist and organizer, and Cabral were as much warriors and administrators as they were sailors. And Dias was more of a sailor. He taught many of his companions the art of navigation. We know little about the life of Bartolomeu Dias, even the date of his birth cannot be established accurately. But it is known that he was a sailing genius.
First travels
For the first time his name is mentioned in a short official document in connection with his exemption from paying duties on ivory, brought from the coast of Guinea. Thus, we learn that he traded with countries newly discovered by the Portuguese. 1481 - he commanded one of the ships sent to the Gold Coast under the general command of Diogo d'Asambuja.
An unknown at that time also took part in d’Asambuja’s expedition. 5 years later, Dias was the chief inspector of the royal warehouses in Lisbon.
To the shores of Africa
1487 - he again set off along the African coast at the head of an expedition of two ships. They were small (even for those times), each displacing about 50 tons, but so stable that heavy guns could be mounted on them, and they were assigned a transport ship with supplies. The main helmsman was the experienced Guinean sailor Pedro Alenquer. There is no evidence that the goal of the Dias expedition was to reach India. Most likely, the goal was long-range reconnaissance, the results of which were doubtful for the main characters.
It is also not clear what kind of ships Dias had - caravels or “round ships” - nao. As can be seen from the name, the Portuguese of the 15th century distinguished “round ships” from caravels, primarily because of their unique design - because of the rounded contours of the hull. At 26° south latitude Dias placed stone pillar- padran, part of which is still intact.
Dias decided to go further south and, despite the storm, sailed non-stop for 13 days, gradually moving away from the coast. The navigator hoped to make good use of the wind. After all, this endless continent must end someday!
The storm did not subside. Far to the south he found himself in the zone western winds. It was cold here, with only the open sea all around. He decided to find out whether the coast still stretches to the east? 1488, February 3 - he came to Mossel Bay. The coast went to the west and east. Here, apparently, was the end of the continent. Dias turned east and reached the Great Fish River. But the exhausted crew, having already lost hope of overcoming difficulties that seemed to have no end, demanded that the ships turn back. Dias tried to persuade his sailors, threaten, seduce with the riches of India - nothing helped. With a bitter feeling, he ordered to go back. It seemed to him, he wrote, that “he had left his son there forever.”
Return trip
On the way back, the expedition rounded a sharp cape that jutted far into the sea. Beyond the cape the coast turned sharply to the north. In memory of the trials that befell them, Dias called this place the Cape of Storms, but King John II renamed it the Cape of Good Hope - the hope that, in the end, the cherished dream of the Portuguese sailors would come true: the path to India would be open. Dias overcame the most difficult part of this journey.
Sailors rarely received a worthy reward for their labors. And Dias did not receive any reward, although the monarch knew that he was one of the best sailors in Europe.
New expedition, new captain
When preparations began for a new expedition to India, Bartolomeu Dias was appointed head of ship construction. Naturally, he had to be the head of the expedition. However, who can fight the royal decision? Vasco da Gama was appointed head of the expedition.
Thanks to the experience and knowledge of Bartolomeu, da Gama's ships were built differently from what was previously customary: they had a more moderate curvature and a less heavy deck than other ships. And of course, the advice of the experienced captain was very useful to the new commander. Bartolomeu Dias was then the only sailor who had once rounded the Cape of Good Hope. He knew what difficulties he would encounter off the southern coast of Africa. It was probably he who advised Da Gama, going south, to stay as far from the coast as possible.
If Dias had gone on an expedition for the second time, he himself would have led the ship this way. But Dias was appointed commander of a fortress built by the Portuguese on the malarial Guinea coast, and he was allowed to accompany the fleet only as far as the Cape Verde Islands. Here Dias, with pain in his heart, saw off the ships that went south under the leadership of a new commander, who set off to success and glory along the road paved by him, Dias.
Discovery of Brazil. Missing
After Europe was stunned by Columbus's discoveries, everything began to move. Everyone wanted their own piece of the New World. And Vasco da Gama returned with full holds of Indian goods, which completely confirmed all the discoveries of Dias. They remembered the old sailor. After the successful return of Vasco da Gama, a large and powerful fleet was equipped to India in 1500 under the command of Pedro Cabral. But India was only the official destination. The monarch's order is to explore the ocean west of Africa. A major expedition, it required specialists. Bartolomeo Dias was invited to command one of the ships of the fleet.
The result of exploration of western waters by Cabral's expedition was the discovery of Brazil. After such a good start, it seemed that everything would go well with India. The Portuguese fleet approached southern Africa at the worst possible time (late spring in the northern hemisphere). The storm scattered the ships over a vast area. The ship commanded by Bartolomeo Dias last time sighted near the “Cape of Good Hope” on May 29, 1500. When the storm subsided, the fleet was missing almost half of the ships. Dias's ship also disappeared without a trace.
No one has ever seen him dead. Officially, he was considered “missing in action.” But some sailors claim that the legendary "" is controlled by none other than Bartolomeo Dias.
No portraits of Dias have survived. 1571 - his grandson Paolo Diaz Novais became the governor of Angola, who founded the first European city in Africa - Sao Paulo de Luanda.
The meaning of discoveries
This was Portugal's breakthrough in African exploration. Dias was not only able to open the way around African continent, but also studied its coast for 1260 miles. This was the longest journey in those days. Captain Dias's crew was at sea for 16 months and 17 days. They found a way to Indian Ocean, the Cape of Good Hope is open.
Dias (port. Dias de Novaes), Bartolomeu - Portuguese navigator, the first European to circumnavigate South coast Africa and reached the Indian Ocean.
The origin of D. is unclear, data on early period lives are fragmentary. He studied mathematics and astronomy at the University of Lisbon, was an Escudeiro of the Royal House, a knight of the Order of Christ. The privileges and coat of arms granted to him were passed on to his descendants (two sons). Presumably in 1481-1482 D. was a captain in the expedition of Diogo de Azambuja to the Gulf of Guinea. The king instructed D. to continue his research, and in 1486 he led an expedition with the official goal of establishing relations with the legendary. The main goal was to explore the coastline of the southern African continent and search for a sea route to India. D.'s expedition consisted of three ships (2 caravels with a displacement of 50 tons and an auxiliary vessel), left Lisbon in August 1487 and in early December reached the southernmost point of the Caen expedition off the coast of modern. After January 6, 1488, he was caught in a fierce storm and saw land again on February 3, 1488, having already circled Africa. Mapping the coast, he advanced to Algoa Bay (near the modern city of Port Elizabeth) 800 km east of the Cape of Good Hope. D.'s desire to sail further met resistance from the team, which demanded a return and at the end of January - beginning of February 1488 from the river. Infanta (modern Cape Great Fish) he set off on the return journey. Returning, D. placed padrans (stone pillars with the coats of arms of the King of Portugal) at the most important points of the coast, and discovered the southernmost point of the continent. In May 1488 D. landed on a cape, which he named the Cape of Storms, which was later renamed by the king to the Cape of Good Hope. He returned to Lisbon in December 1488, aware of the significance of the expedition's results.
Familiar with the requirements of navigation in the waters of southern Africa, D. supervised the preparation and equipment of the ships of the Vashku expedition and even in 1497-1499 accompanied his flotilla until . In 1500 he accompanied Pedro Alvares, commanding one of the ships. Near the Cape of Good Hope, D.'s ship was caught in a storm and went missing. Reaching the southern tip of Africa is one of major events in the history of European navigation. D.'s journey, continued by Vasco da Gama, made it possible to open a sea route to India.
Lit.: Barreto L. F. Viagens de Bartolomeu Dias e Pero da Covilhã por Mar e Terra. Lisboa, 1988; Bartolomeu Dias: Corpo documental, Bibliografia / Ed. L. De Albuquerque. Lisboa, 1988; Bartolomeu Dias: No 500 aniversário da dobragem do Cabo da Boa Esperança 1487/88—1988: Comemorações em Durban. Porto, 1990; Congresso internacional "Bartolomeu Dias e a sua época". Actas. Vol. 1-5. Porto, 1989.
History can be unfair to outstanding people. Brave travelers, politicians, warriors, inventors sometimes leave behind so little information that there is no way to form any reliable idea about their life, character, dreams, not to mention the fact that often the date of birth itself is not recorded anywhere. ..
They were named after the Apostle Bartholomew, the patron saint of merchants, butchers, tailors and winegrowers. The name Bartholomew simply sounds like Bartolomeu in Portuguese. The name is very common in the homeland of the future navigator. The surname Dias also cannot be called rare. Among the Dias there are many famous navigators who made many sea voyages for the glory of the Portuguese crown. But information about the discoverer of the sea route has to be extracted bit by bit from many documents. It still remains perhaps the biggest mystery for researchers.
Brief biography of Bartolomeo Dias
When was Bartolomeo Dias born? no one knows. The year of his birth is considered to be 1450 for one reason only: there is a record of admission to study at the University of Lisbon by Bartolomeo Dias, dated 1466. And 16 years was the usual age for starting to study university wisdom at that time. But much older people studied at the university. Let's assume that our hero joins a group of young and successful people. There is absolutely no information about his parents. It feels like he appeared suddenly and out of nowhere. But it is known that the training was successful. But after that - failure again. It is unknown what he was doing, where he lived, what he was thinking... Next appearance The young Dias takes place in 1478: he is appointed keeper of the royal trade warehouses. Well, no one will trust such a post to a person with a bad reputation. In addition, we can now say with confidence that Bartolomeo Dias is a nobleman, moreover, a knight. Here the youth of the future discoverer ends, begins new period- maturity. Now Dias does not disappear from view.
Looking for India
- a country on the outskirts. While the cunning Venetians, Genoese, Hanseatics, and English divided all known seas and captured all possible trade routes, the Portuguese are forced to receive only the remnants of all eastern riches. In other words, only what was no longer bought in the rest of Europe, or surplus eastern goods, reached Portugal. But prices were the highest on the continent. The Portuguese monarchs were thoroughly fed up with the position of “stepdaughter”. But what can we do? Explore those lands that Europe was not very interested in: the western coast of Africa. This direction was considered by many to be unpromising. According to Ptolemy's world map, Africa occupies all the space to the very edge of the Earth; there is no passage to the Indian Ocean. Official science also considers the Earth to be flat, with clear boundaries, beyond which there is emptiness. Those few scientists who dared to declare that we live on a ball are considered idiotic eccentrics, at best. At worst, the Inquisition takes care of their affairs, and then, after questions asked by a polite man in a cassock, the upstart is most often burned at the stake, gathering crowds of lovers of this kind of entertainment. At that time, treatises about dog-headed people living in the northern lands were perceived with much more faith than the confused and foggy works of Copernicus.
But only the desperate do not take risks. At first, the Portuguese kings looked for trading partners in Africa, but there were either Moorish enemies or Aboriginal tribes with whom there was nothing to talk about. The only benefit was black slaves, but they were more suitable for decorating the rich houses of Lisbon. The first expeditions in search of a route to India (contrary to official science!) were organized by Enrique the Navigator, a prince who received such a loud nickname without ever making a single sea voyage. But the prince spared neither effort nor money in organizing trips to Africa. Under him, Sierra Leone and the Cape Verde Islands were discovered. And most importantly, the way was opened for descendants to the southern tip of the African continent.
King Juan II continued to implement the ideas of his relative. Having equipped an expedition led by Diogo Cana, the king ordered to find a way to India, to go south of the previous expeditions. Kahn honestly swam to Angola, installed a stone pillar there with the coat of arms of Portugal and turned back. He had very little time left to open a passage to the Indian Ocean. There is still debate about why he did not complete the expedition. Some believe that Kahn was convinced that he had reached southern Africa and considered his mission complete. Others claim that the seafarer’s poor health is to blame. Still others are sure that the amount of supplies was insufficient, and the team refused to continue the expedition “to nowhere.” Nobody knows the truth. The result of the activities of Bartolomeu Dias' predecessors was the discovery of the western coast of Africa from the Sahara to southern Angola. was not found.
Expedition of Bartolomeo Dias
The incompleteness of Kahn's expedition irritated the king. A new mission is urgently organized under the leadership of the favorite João II. Yes, already a favorite. Most likely, in addition to guarding the royal goods, Dias also carried out other assignments of the crown, quite successfully. In addition, it is reliably known that he had already visited Africa at least once.
When preparations for the voyage were in full swing, someone asked for a reception with the Portuguese king, who offered a very bold project- go not along the coast of Africa, but strictly to the West. What if these weirdos who claim that the Earth is round are right? Then you can save time and, at the same time, make friends with China. This proposal did not find a response in the soul of the king. Too revolutionary. Too fantastic. Too unreliable. So much effort has been poured into this damn Africa, and now we have to start all over again? No way! We will move along the well-known route! Columbus did not grieve for long. He goes to, captivates the gullible and impressionable Queen Isabella with his project, and she, in turn, captivates her husband the king. How the heirs of João II cursed with bad words: a little less stubbornness, a little more adventurism, and not Spain, but Portugal would have become a great power for many centuries...
Three ships - two with crew and one with food - under the leadership set off in the summer of 1487. In four months, the squadron covered the path traversed by Kahn and moved a little further south - to the south of Namibia. Winter has come, or rather the very beginning of summer in the Southern Hemisphere - a time of storms. The coast was deserted and rocky, so as not to expose the ships to danger, Dias orders to go out to the open sea and move away from the coast. For two weeks the ships were tossed by the sea, the sailors prayed and no longer hoped to see their relatives and friends. The worst thing was that Dias could not determine the direction in which the shore was located. He ordered to sail to the West (there was still a timid hope that they had circumnavigated Africa) - there was no shore.
He ordered to turn north - on February 3, 1488, the Portuguese saw land. It turned out to be a very welcoming land: green fields, cows, shepherds. The shepherds, however, when they saw the Europeans, disappeared. And a few hours later they appeared, accompanied by menacing-looking warriors. he sincerely wanted to establish contact: his crew included several black sailors who were supposed to help with the translation and convince of the peaceful intentions of the expedition. But the natives did not understand the language of the “Afro-Portuguese” and began to wave spears and throw stones at the newcomers. Dias ordered to take out crossbows and wave them too. The European intricate weapons did not frighten the local warriors, but provoked them even more. Not only stones flew, but also spears and arrows. The Portuguese had to defend themselves. In the heat of battle, Bartolomeu Dias fired and hit one of the aborigines in the eye. The range and power of the weapon made the locals think, but not for long. The Portuguese realized that they had to leave. Having barely managed to place a stone pillar with the country's coat of arms (to stake out the territory, so to speak), the squadron went to sea.
The ships had barely headed to the East when another storm struck. The sailors and officers made it clear to their leader that they would like to go home, that they had already done a lot, and that they had to leave something undiscovered next. He gave a lot of arguments in favor of continuing the expedition, argued that they were almost at their goal and would see India very soon, and urged them to remember the words of their oath to the king. Nothing helped. Then the captain called only the officers for a conversation. There he asked everyone to repeat aloud the oath of allegiance to the king, which was given by all the nobles of Portugal. The officers repeated, but did not give up their demands. Then Dias invited the most authoritative sailors to his place. Here the conversation went in a different direction: Dias described the treasures of India, cited quotes from books of travelers, talked about the wonders of the country of elephants, about the riches that await anyone who reaches this magical land. The sailors listened with their mouths open, but stood their ground - go home! What frightened the expedition members so much? Nothing could scare them! It is no secret that every expedition of that time was a journey to nowhere. Final goal was not known to anyone. To go on such a journey you need to be a brave person, an adventurer and a fatalist. Such were the officers and sailors expeditions of Bartolomeo Dias, But...
On the way to uncharted lands, the squadron landed several times on the shore, sometimes for quite some time. long time. These were places where Portuguese colonies were already located, and trade with the aborigines was active: beads in exchange for gold and pearls. The sailors and officers managed to sell enough for themselves to live a comfortable life. There were even a few new slaves in the holds, bought by the officers for their homes. Each team member had something to lose. Except Bartolomeo Dias. When persuasion fails, the squadron commander invites all crew members to gather on the main ship. He invites everyone to sign an official statement about their refusal to obey the captain, about the end of the expedition, about their refusal to serve the king. Dias asks absolutely everyone to sign the document - from the senior officer to the cabin boy, the assistant cook. After a short hesitation, everyone signs. The last thing Dias can do is kneel down in front of his team and beg to continue forward for three more days and three nights. Promising with an oath that after this time the squadron will turn back. The officers refused, but then the sailors stood up for the captain. The decision was made - they sail to India for three more days.
Three days flew by quickly. The wind was fair and the squadron covered more than 200 nautical miles. invited officers to admire the opening shore from a barrel on the mast of the main ship. Coastline goes further north. Which means the passage is open. During the next landing on the shore, the squadron commander calls open land named after one of the officers... All this in the hope that the team will change their decision. But no. The team wants to go home. On the way back, having discovered a cape near which the sea is never calm, Dias gives it the name “Cape of Storms” (later “”), marking it on the map as the southernmost point of Africa. The way back was boring and uninteresting.
The route of the Bartolomeo Dias expedition
Returning to his homeland in the winter of 1488, he makes a detailed report to the king: there is a passage to India, Ptolemy’s map is incorrect! The king is perplexed as to why Dias did not swim to India. The sailor is shy and mumbles. He never showed the king the seditious paper and did not betray anyone from his team. João II is disappointed; he suspects his Bartolomeo Dias of elementary cowardice. The discoverer was removed from expeditions.
Life of Bartolomeo Dias after the expedition
Despite everything, the experience is very valuable for Portugal. He is entrusted with the efforts of preparing a new expedition to India, under the leadership of a young and ambitious man. The navigator makes changes to the design of the ships of the new squadron, changes the sails, and takes an innovative approach to crew training and collecting supplies. He knows everything, he can do everything, he wants to prove that he can be useful in the expedition, he wants to see India, finally... Together with the new expedition, Bartolomeu Dias sails to Guinea, where he remains commandant of one of the fortresses. For a long time he watches the sailing ships of Vasco da Gama... After Europe was stunned by the discoveries of Columbus, everything began to move. Everyone wanted their own special piece of the New World. And then Vasco da Gama returned with full holds of Indian goods, fully confirming all the discoveries of Bartolomeo Dias. They remembered the old sailor. After the happy return of Vasco da Gama, a large and powerful fleet under the command of Pedro Cabral was equipped in India. India, however, was only the official destination. The king's orders are to explore the ocean west of Africa, where that sneaky Columbus discovered something. The expedition is substantial, it requires specialists. Bartolomeo Dias was invited to command one of the ships of the fleet. It was a moment of absolute happiness for the experienced sailor.
The result of the exploration of western waters by Cabral's expedition was the discovery of Brazil. After such a successful start, it seemed that everything would go well with India. The Portuguese fleet approached southern Africa at the most unpleasant time (the end of spring in the northern hemisphere). The storm scattered the ships over a vast area. The ship under command was last seen near the Cape of Good Hope on May 29, 1500. When the storm subsided, the fleet was missing almost half of its ships. Dias' ship also disappeared.
To this day no one has seen him dead. Officially, he is still considered “missing in action.” But some sailors claim that the famous "Flying Dutchman" is flown by none other than Bartolomeo Dias. Even dead, he stands on the captain's bridge and looks forward, trying to withstand unfavorable currents and winds. He simply cannot finally die without seeing India. This is the kind of man he was: he came from nowhere and went to nowhere. Portuguese navigator named after Saint Bartholomew.
Bartolomeu Dias (c. 1450 - 1500) - Portuguese navigator.
Introduction
He was the first to circumnavigate the southern tip of Africa and discover the Cape of Good Hope. We can say that he saw India, but, like Moses in the promised land, he did not enter it. The sources remain silent about the life of Bartolomeo Dias before the start of his famous voyage. Moreover, authentic reports about the voyage itself have not reached us. Scientists have only brief mentions in the writings of chroniclers.
The full name of the Portuguese navigator is Bartolomeu (Bartolomeo) Dias de Novais. It has been established that he came from the family of Joao Dias, who was the first to circumnavigate Cape Bojador, and Dinis Dias, who discovered Cape Verde.
It is known that Dias was a fidalgu (nobleman), a courtier of King João II, at one time he was the manager of the royal warehouses in Lisbon, but was also known as an experienced sailor. In 1481, as part of Diogo Azambuja's expedition, he sailed to the shores of Africa. Apparently, this is why King Juan, who continued the work of his great-uncle Henry the Navigator, appointed him commander of one of the two flotillas sent to explore the coast of Africa and search for a sea route to India.
At the end of the 15th century, many people had a question: is Ptolemy’s map of the world correct? On this map, Africa extended to the South Pole, separating the Atlantic Ocean from the Indian Ocean. But Portuguese navigators established: the further south you go, the more the coast of Africa deviates to the east. Maybe the continent ends somewhere, or is washed by the sea from the south. Then it would be possible to go around the land, get into the Indian Ocean, and along it travel by ship to India and China and from there by sea bring spices and other valuable goods to Europe.
This exciting mystery was solved by the Portuguese traveler Bartolomeu Dias. Leaving Lisbon in 1487 on three ships, he sailed to the southern tip of Africa in 1488 and even circled it, despite a severe storm. Dias called the southernmost protrusion of Africa the Cape of Storms. Beyond this cape, his ships entered the waters of the Indian Ocean. But Bartolomeu Dias had to end his journey here: the team, exhausted by storms, demanded to return to their homeland. After Bartolomeu's report Dias about the results of the voyage, the Portuguese government ordered to call the southern cape of Africa not the Cape of Storms, but the Cape of Good Hope - the hope of reaching India and other countries of the East by sea.
Purpose
The appointment took place in October 1486, but the ships went to sea only in August of the following year. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the king considered the expedition to be especially important and difficult, since they prepared for it very carefully. The flotilla of three ships included a special vessel loaded with food supplies, water, weapons and even spare ship gear in case of repairs. Peru d'Alenquer, the most famous navigator of the time, was appointed chief helmsman, who was allowed to sit at the same table with the king when the courtiers were forced to stand. Other officers were also true experts in the matter.
Finally, three caravels under the command of Dias left Lisbon and moved along the African coast. At the port, in addition to the crew, there were several blacks, men and women, who were to be landed on the coast of Africa along the route of the flotilla. Former slaves were supposed to talk about the wealth and power of Portugal. In this way, the Portuguese hoped to finally attract the attention of “Priest King John.” In addition to the first, the blacks were dressed in European clothes and had with them samples of gold, silver, spices and other goods that were of interest in Europe. They were supposed to convince the natives to trade with Portugal.
Stone crosses
First, Dias headed to the mouth of the Congo, and then, with great caution, sailed along the unfamiliar African coast to the south. He was the first of the Portuguese to begin erecting padranas on the shores he discovered - stone crosses with inscriptions indicating that the territory belonged to the Portuguese crown.
Beyond the Tropic of Capricorn, the flotilla was carried south by a storm. The sailors did not see land for thirteen days and considered themselves dead. After the storm, they sailed first to the east, then, in search of land, to the north. Finally, on February 3, 1488, they saw a coast with high mountains. Soon the happy sailors found a convenient bay and landed on the shore, where they saw cows and black shepherds. At first, the blacks, frightened by the strangely dressed white people, ran away, but then began to throw stones at the sailors. Dias threatened them with a crossbow, but the natives, not knowing what it was, continued to behave aggressively. Then Dias shot an arrow and killed one of the attackers, becoming the first victim of white aggression in South Africa.
Bahia dos Vaqueiros
The bay was named Bahia dos Vaqueiros - the Shepherds' Harbor (modern Mossel). She was located beyond the yet undiscovered Cape of Good Hope, more than 200 miles away. However, Dias realized that they had rounded Africa only when he noticed that the coast stretched to the east. He headed east and reached Algoa Bay and a small island. They put a pad-run on him. Dias wanted to continue the journey, but the crew, exhausted by the food of the journey and suffering from hunger ( cargo Ship lagged behind), opposed this. Persuasion and consultations with officers and sailor leaders led nowhere. Even when Dias invited the team to say under oath how, but in their opinion, people carrying royal service, The situation has not changed. Then the commander drew up a document recording common decision, and invited everyone to sign it. When the formalities were completed, he still managed to obtain the favor of sailing ahead for two or three more days. The flotilla reached the mouth of a large river, which was named Rio di Infanti - in honor of Joao Infanti, one of the captains of the flotilla, who was the first to go ashore here.
From here the expedition turned back. Passing near the padran, placed in Algoa Bay, Dias, as one of the wrote! chroniclers, said goodbye to him “with such a deep feeling of sadness, as if parting with a son doomed to eternal exile; he recalled with what danger both for himself and for all his subordinates he went through such long haul, having in mind one single goal, - and so the Lord did not allow him to achieve his goal.
But on the way back, Dias had another discovery. His gaze opened up to a view of the majestic cape and Table Mountain. Now he has passed by the southernmost tip of Africa and given it a name. It is usually said that the navigator called it the Cape of Storms, but in December 1488, the king, during Dias’s report on the journey, proposed calling it the Cape of Good Hope, since he was confident that the sea route to India had been found. In fact, this is apparently nothing more than a legend that arose on the basis of a report by a famous Portuguese historian of the 16th century. Barrosa. Contemporaries testified that the author of the name was Dias himself.
San Gregorio
Near Cape Dias went ashore, recorded his observations in a nautical chart and journal and set up a padran that has survived to this day, calling it San Gregorio.
Now it was necessary to find a cargo ship. He was discovered, but out of the nine crew members, only three remained on board, one of whom also soon died of illness. The rest died during skirmishes with the natives, who coveted the sailors' belongings.
The supplies were placed on two ships, the cargo ship was burned as beyond repair, and then they headed back along the west coast of Africa. Along the way, the sailors picked up castaway Duarte Pasheco Pireiro and the surviving sailors, on the Gold Coast, took the gold bought from the natives by the royal trading post, and finally in December 1488 they dropped anchor in Rishtella, a western suburb of Lisbon.
The most significant Portuguese voyage before Vasco da Gama's voyage was completed. The navigator, in addition to opening the route around Africa, increased the length of the explored African coast by 1260 miles, and carried out the longest of all Portuguese voyages at that time. His ships spent 16 months and 17 days at sea. And yet, apart from the gratitude of his descendants, he received no reward. He was no longer assigned any expeditions. They were only allowed to observe the construction of ships for da Gama’s expedition, and then accompany the discoverer of the route to India. However, he went with the expedition only to the fortress of Georges de la Mina on the Gold Coast of Africa. Finally, as a simple captain, Dias was released along with Cabral to India, and he took part in the discovery of Brazil. But this trip was his last. On May 23, 1500, the captain died along with his ship during a strong storm not far from the Cape of Good Hope he discovered.
Conclusion
Dias's discovery was of great significance. In addition to opening the way to the Indian Ocean for Portuguese and later other European ships, his journey dealt a crushing blow to Ptolemy’s theory of an uninhabited hot zone. Perhaps it also played a role in organizing Columbus’s expedition, since the latter’s brother, Bartolomeo, who accompanied Dias during the voyage around the Cape of Good Hope, a year after its completion, went to England to King Henry VII asking for help for his brother’s expedition. In addition, during Dias's report to the king, Christopher Columbus himself was at court, on whom Bartolomeu's journey made a strong impression.