(my history essay due today)
Prince Henry (Infante Don Henrique), the Navigator, was the third son of King João of Portugal, born in 1394. He was a very devout man, and was Governor of the Order of Christ from 1420 until his death in 1460. The expedition to capture Ceuta (a Muslim stronghold in Morocco), commanded by him on 24 August 1415, where only eight Portuguese were killed had provided Prince Henry his moment of glory. It was not, however, as a man of war or of politics that Prince Henry had won fame. He was most famous for the voyages of discovery that he organised and financed, which eventually led to the rounding of Africa and the establishment of sea routes to the Indies. He probably never sailed out of sight of land and certainly never ventured farther from Portugal than the closest shores of North Africa. Yet he wondered what lay beyond the known world of his age, and had the money and talent to send people into unknown danger on his behalf.
Prince Henry was responsible for a disastrous attack on Tangier in 1437, which caused the captivity of his brother Fernão, the master of Avis. His brother was imprisoned in bad conditions, held in hostage for the return of Ceuta to the Muslims. For eleven years, the Portuguese debated whether or not to give up Ceuta, until in 1448, Dom Fernão died in captivity. Prince Henry’s military reputation suffered as a result, and most of his last twenty-three years were spent in exploration activities, or in Portuguese court politics.
Prince Henry was a visionary, someone who could imagine something that had not yet happened. He owned a globe when many people believed the world was flat. He knew that Africa was more than endless sand. From the conquest of Ceuta, he learned about the riches of Africa, and started studying the geography, riches and trade of western Africa. He wanted to give Portugal a share in these riches, and if his sailors could circumnavigate the continent, he would even find a water route to India.
Prince Henry knew clearly his aim to discover what lay beyond "The End of the World", Sagres (south-western tip of Europe), and he had five good reasons to support it. Firstly, he hoped to know the country beyond Cape Bojador, the furthest limit of the known world on the west side of Africa of his time. Next and certainly no less important was that he wanted to establish trade with any lands that lay out there, especially if they were Christian lands. Thirdly, he hoped also to catch Islam in a gigantic pincer movement by joining forces with the mythical ‘Indies’ Christian kingdom of Prester John, the wealthy and powerful priest-king of the medieval legend. Fourth, he wanted to learn the extent of the Mohammedan power in Africa. The fifth was to spread the Christian Faith.
Prince Henry was passionate about his grand ideas and was very willing to spend a great deal of money, time and resources to prepare for the expedition. He had to meet the costs largely out of his own pocket or from the revenue of the Order of Christ, and his acts were therefore derided by the many who did not buy his ideas. However, he showed great determination and enthusiasm to achieve what he had set out. He communicated his enthusiasm to his people; shipbuilders and other craftsmen, inspired by their master’s zeal and generosity, worked day and night, and the citizens gave up eating meat so that it could be preserved for the expedition. Prince Henry had great difficulty persuading his captains to sail beyond Cape Bojador. According to legend, beyond this point was an area known as the ‘Sea of Darkness’, where the sun was so close to Earth that a person’s skin would turn black, the sea boiled, ships caught fire, and monsters hid waiting to smash the ships and eat sailors. But Prince Henry never gave up trying. It took fifteen voyages over a period of twelve years until a ship commanded by Gil Eannes finally sailed beyond the dreaded cape and returned.
Prince Henry had made extra effort to learn from history. Sufficient information about Senegal to enable his men to recognise it when they reached it was obtained from some captured natives (Azenegues). Studies were also made on ancient geographers and medieval maps.
Prince Henry knew well the principle of engaging the best man for each task. He enlisted the help of some of Europe’s finest experts to teach him and his sailors in matters of navigation. Several important cartographers and instrument-makers were brought together to create new, more precise charts. Jews, Muslims and Arabs, Italians from Genoa and Venice, German and Scandinavians came to Sagres, which had by then became a high-tech (for the 15th century) base for exploration. This community developed navigational instruments, such as the quadrant, and new mathematical tables to aid in determining latitudes. The nearby port of Lagos saw the development of a new type of ship, the caravel, which combined cargo capability, manoeuvrability and seaworthiness and thus was the ideal ship for exploring. Seamen who knew they were going out in a vessel specially designed for their sure and speedy return were more cheerful, more confident and more willing to risk longer outward voyages.
One other trait that aided his success was his requirement for details in charts, maps and note-taking. On these papers he wanted bearings, wind directions, dangerous anchorages, places where food and water could be found, landmarks, and so on. The Catalan Jew from Majorca, Jehuda Cresques, son of the cartographer Abraham Cresques, was brought to Sagres to supervise the collation of these geographic facts brought back by all the explorers for use on future voyages. This is quite significant, as most mariners of the time did not bother to write down anything.
Most of Prince Henry’s crew had been brought up in his household, and quite a number of them were very close to the Prince’s heart for their courage and resourcefulness. Therefore, the loss of Nuno Tristao and most of his crews, all killed by the natives while exploring the Rio Nuno sixty leagues south of Cabo Verde, definitely brought particular grief to Prince Henry. He gave handsome pensions to the wives and children of the dead.
Prince Henry made his contributions in numerous and varied ways, but one way he did not do it was through navigation, despite his title. He certainly sailed in his life, but most of his efforts were on land where he organised voyages and improved navigation devices and techniques. By his voyages, he removed the imagined terrors of the deep and established the first exploring and commercial companies of modern times. His contributions to navigation were so impressive that it was thought for years that he actually had a ‘School of Sagres’ that focused only on navigation. It is now known that this is not true, but the fact that it was assumed to be, showed how heavily Prince henry contributed.
Prince Henry’s work began the Great Age of Discovery that lasted from the 1400s to the early 1500s. His captains explored the Atlantic islands and coast of Africa to an extent never before attempted. By sending out ships and soldiers he made Portugal into a world power with colonies in Africa, India and South America. Brazilians today speak Portuguese in large part because of Prince Henry’s efforts. The discovery of America by Columbus was also inspired by his achievements. His talent of obstinacy and his power to organise had proved essential for the first great enterprise of modern discovery.
No. of words: 1272
Prince Henry (Infante Don Henrique), the Navigator, was the third son of King João of Portugal, born in 1394. He was a very devout man, and was Governor of the Order of Christ from 1420 until his death in 1460. The expedition to capture Ceuta (a Muslim stronghold in Morocco), commanded by him on 24 August 1415, where only eight Portuguese were killed had provided Prince Henry his moment of glory. It was not, however, as a man of war or of politics that Prince Henry had won fame. He was most famous for the voyages of discovery that he organised and financed, which eventually led to the rounding of Africa and the establishment of sea routes to the Indies. He probably never sailed out of sight of land and certainly never ventured farther from Portugal than the closest shores of North Africa. Yet he wondered what lay beyond the known world of his age, and had the money and talent to send people into unknown danger on his behalf.
Prince Henry was responsible for a disastrous attack on Tangier in 1437, which caused the captivity of his brother Fernão, the master of Avis. His brother was imprisoned in bad conditions, held in hostage for the return of Ceuta to the Muslims. For eleven years, the Portuguese debated whether or not to give up Ceuta, until in 1448, Dom Fernão died in captivity. Prince Henry’s military reputation suffered as a result, and most of his last twenty-three years were spent in exploration activities, or in Portuguese court politics.
Prince Henry was a visionary, someone who could imagine something that had not yet happened. He owned a globe when many people believed the world was flat. He knew that Africa was more than endless sand. From the conquest of Ceuta, he learned about the riches of Africa, and started studying the geography, riches and trade of western Africa. He wanted to give Portugal a share in these riches, and if his sailors could circumnavigate the continent, he would even find a water route to India.
Prince Henry knew clearly his aim to discover what lay beyond "The End of the World", Sagres (south-western tip of Europe), and he had five good reasons to support it. Firstly, he hoped to know the country beyond Cape Bojador, the furthest limit of the known world on the west side of Africa of his time. Next and certainly no less important was that he wanted to establish trade with any lands that lay out there, especially if they were Christian lands. Thirdly, he hoped also to catch Islam in a gigantic pincer movement by joining forces with the mythical ‘Indies’ Christian kingdom of Prester John, the wealthy and powerful priest-king of the medieval legend. Fourth, he wanted to learn the extent of the Mohammedan power in Africa. The fifth was to spread the Christian Faith.
Prince Henry was passionate about his grand ideas and was very willing to spend a great deal of money, time and resources to prepare for the expedition. He had to meet the costs largely out of his own pocket or from the revenue of the Order of Christ, and his acts were therefore derided by the many who did not buy his ideas. However, he showed great determination and enthusiasm to achieve what he had set out. He communicated his enthusiasm to his people; shipbuilders and other craftsmen, inspired by their master’s zeal and generosity, worked day and night, and the citizens gave up eating meat so that it could be preserved for the expedition. Prince Henry had great difficulty persuading his captains to sail beyond Cape Bojador. According to legend, beyond this point was an area known as the ‘Sea of Darkness’, where the sun was so close to Earth that a person’s skin would turn black, the sea boiled, ships caught fire, and monsters hid waiting to smash the ships and eat sailors. But Prince Henry never gave up trying. It took fifteen voyages over a period of twelve years until a ship commanded by Gil Eannes finally sailed beyond the dreaded cape and returned.
Prince Henry had made extra effort to learn from history. Sufficient information about Senegal to enable his men to recognise it when they reached it was obtained from some captured natives (Azenegues). Studies were also made on ancient geographers and medieval maps.
Prince Henry knew well the principle of engaging the best man for each task. He enlisted the help of some of Europe’s finest experts to teach him and his sailors in matters of navigation. Several important cartographers and instrument-makers were brought together to create new, more precise charts. Jews, Muslims and Arabs, Italians from Genoa and Venice, German and Scandinavians came to Sagres, which had by then became a high-tech (for the 15th century) base for exploration. This community developed navigational instruments, such as the quadrant, and new mathematical tables to aid in determining latitudes. The nearby port of Lagos saw the development of a new type of ship, the caravel, which combined cargo capability, manoeuvrability and seaworthiness and thus was the ideal ship for exploring. Seamen who knew they were going out in a vessel specially designed for their sure and speedy return were more cheerful, more confident and more willing to risk longer outward voyages.
One other trait that aided his success was his requirement for details in charts, maps and note-taking. On these papers he wanted bearings, wind directions, dangerous anchorages, places where food and water could be found, landmarks, and so on. The Catalan Jew from Majorca, Jehuda Cresques, son of the cartographer Abraham Cresques, was brought to Sagres to supervise the collation of these geographic facts brought back by all the explorers for use on future voyages. This is quite significant, as most mariners of the time did not bother to write down anything.
Most of Prince Henry’s crew had been brought up in his household, and quite a number of them were very close to the Prince’s heart for their courage and resourcefulness. Therefore, the loss of Nuno Tristao and most of his crews, all killed by the natives while exploring the Rio Nuno sixty leagues south of Cabo Verde, definitely brought particular grief to Prince Henry. He gave handsome pensions to the wives and children of the dead.
Prince Henry made his contributions in numerous and varied ways, but one way he did not do it was through navigation, despite his title. He certainly sailed in his life, but most of his efforts were on land where he organised voyages and improved navigation devices and techniques. By his voyages, he removed the imagined terrors of the deep and established the first exploring and commercial companies of modern times. His contributions to navigation were so impressive that it was thought for years that he actually had a ‘School of Sagres’ that focused only on navigation. It is now known that this is not true, but the fact that it was assumed to be, showed how heavily Prince henry contributed.
Prince Henry’s work began the Great Age of Discovery that lasted from the 1400s to the early 1500s. His captains explored the Atlantic islands and coast of Africa to an extent never before attempted. By sending out ships and soldiers he made Portugal into a world power with colonies in Africa, India and South America. Brazilians today speak Portuguese in large part because of Prince Henry’s efforts. The discovery of America by Columbus was also inspired by his achievements. His talent of obstinacy and his power to organise had proved essential for the first great enterprise of modern discovery.
No. of words: 1272
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