Vasco da Gama
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese explorer who in 1498 became the first European to reach India by sea, sailing around the Cape of Good Hope.
His voyage established a direct trade route between Europe and Asia, breaking the monopoly of overland spice routes.
The achievement made Portugal a maritime superpower and reshaped global commerce.
European maritime expansion era
- Cape of Good HopeSouth African peninsula tip
- ColumbusOhio's seat of government
- Henry the NavigatorExploration's royal patron
- expeditionOrganized exploratory journey
Magellan · caravel · maritime · exploration · cartography · circumnavigation · patronage · conquistador
Aromatic food flavorings
- KeralaCoastal Indian state
- GoaCoastal Indian state
- pepperPungent dried berry spice
- cinnamonAromatic bark spice
monsoon · subcontinent · trading post · Cochin · colonial outpost · Indian Ocean · spice trade · landfall
Small Portuguese exploration ship
- galleonLarge historical sailing ship
- fleetVehicles under unified command
- sailorSeafaring crew member
- captainOne who commands
admiral · crew · ocean · ship · mast · sail · provisions · scurvy
Ancient altitude-measuring instrument
- compassDevice showing cardinal directions
- sextantMaritime angular measurement device
- latitudeGeographic or personal freedom
- celestialOf the sky above
charts · currents · pilot · mariner · dead reckoning · stars · quadrant · magnetic
Aromatic food flavorings
- pepperPungent dried berry spice
- cinnamonAromatic bark spice
- clovesDried flower-bud spice
- nutmegAromatic seed spice
merchants · commodities · monopoly · commerce · import · export · trading post · mercantilism
Portugal's largest city
- colonialismDomination through foreign settlement
- TagusMajor Iberian watercourse
- nobilityTitled ruling class
- courtTrial venue or sports surface
crown · legacy · monument · national hero · tomb · commemoration
Age of Discovery
European maritime expansion era
- Cape of Good HopeSouth African peninsula tip
- ColumbusOhio's seat of government
- Henry the NavigatorExploration's royal patron
Magellan · expedition · caravel · maritime · exploration · cartography · circumnavigation · patronage · conquistador · New World
spices
Aromatic food flavorings
cinnamon · monsoon · subcontinent · trading post · Cochin · colonial outpost · Indian Ocean · spice trade · landfall · Hindu
caravel
Small Portuguese exploration ship
captain · admiral · crew · ocean · ship · mast · sail · provisions · scurvy · mutiny
astrolabe
Ancient altitude-measuring instrument
- compassDevice showing cardinal directions
- sextantMaritime angular measurement device
- latitudeGeographic or personal freedom
celestial · charts · currents · pilot · mariner · dead reckoning · stars · quadrant · magnetic · bearing
spices
Aromatic food flavorings
nutmeg · merchants · commodities · monopoly · commerce · import · export · trading post · mercantilism · cargo
Lisbon
Portugal's largest city
- colonialismDomination through foreign settlement
- TagusMajor Iberian watercourse
- nobilityTitled ruling class
court · crown · legacy · monument · national hero · tomb · commemoration
- 15th Century FiguresChristopher Columbus, Leonardo da Vinci, Johannes Gutenberg, Joan of Arc, Isabella I
- Portuguese ExplorersFerdinand Magellan, Henry the Navigator
- Portuguese IconsCristiano Ronaldo, Henry the Navigator, Jose Mourinho, Ferdinand Magellan
- Portuguese Africacolonial forts, trading posts, captaincy, colonial expansion
- explorationexploration, explore, expedition, expeditions, voyage
- Age of ExplorationColumbus, Marco Polo, exploration, explorers, expeditions
Vasco da GamaMarco Polo
Medieval Venetian who reached China
Leif Erikson · Christopher Columbus · Hernán Cortés · Lewis and Clark · Ferdinand Magellan
Vasco da Gamahomebody
One preferring domestic life
stay-at-home · landlubber · recluse · hermit · provincial