The Career and Legend of Vasco Da GamaVasco da Gama (?1469-1524) is well known as one of a generation of discoverers, along with Magellan, Cabral, and Columbus. Yet little is known about his life, or about the context within which he 'discovered' the all-sea route to India in 1497-99. This book, based on a mass of published and unpublished sources in Portuguese and other languages, delineates Gama's career and social context, focusing on the delicate balance between 'career' and 'legend'. The book addresses broad questions of myth-building and nationalism, while never losing sight of Gama himself. |
Contents
Overture bones of contention | xxiii |
The heritage of Santiago | 22 |
To Calicut and back | 74 |
The attempt to consolidate | 162 |
The wilderness years | 233 |
A career culminates | 283 |
Finale The judgements of posterity | 350 |
Bibliography | 367 |
Index | 389 |
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Common terms and phrases
Aden Afonso de Albuquerque Africa Almeida Álvaro AN/TT anonymous António arrived Asia Ataíde Barbosa Barros Bartolomeu Dias Bouchon Cabral Calicut Camões Cannanur Cape captain Cartas Castanheda Christians chroniclers coast Cochin Coimbra Correia Couto Crown dated Descobrimentos Dias Diogo Lopes document Dom Manuel Duarte early Estêvão Estêvão da Gama expedition Fernando Fernão fidalgo fleet fortress Francisco Gama e a Gama's Gaspar Gavetas Henrique História Hurmuz India Indian Ocean Jean Aubin João João III Jorge Kerala King land late later letter Lisbon Livro Lopo Soares Lusíadas Magalhães Malindi Mamluks Manuel Manueline Mappila Melaka Meneses merchants Mexia Moors Muslim noted Order of Christ Order of Santiago Paris Pedro pepper Pereira Pêro pilot political port Portugal Português Portuguese Red Sea reis Revista royal ruler Samudri sent ships Silva sixteenth century spices Sultan Teixeira de Aragão Thomaz trade Vasco da Gama vessels viceroy Vidigueira voyage