0:00:10.214,0:00:14.116
This is a map[br]of the world's shipping lanes

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showcasing the intricate network[br]of maritime routes

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that connect our modern world[br]through global trade.

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Although some of these routes [br]were established in more recent times

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such as the Suez and Panama canals,

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most of these oceanic highways[br]were chartered long ago

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in an age where there was[br]no reliable way of navigation

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other than local knowledge[br]and some rudimentary maps.

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However, just over 500 years ago

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at the beginning of the 16th century

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these international trade routes[br]did not even exist.

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Only due to the emergence[br]of the small Iberian nation of Portugal

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as a maritime superpower,

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were these connections [br]to other parts of the world

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made possible through their daring[br]voyages and navigational prowess.

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Portugal quickly established[br]an empire for itself,

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stretching from Africa, to Asia[br]and South America.

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These maritime exploits[br]not only fueled Portugal's wealth.

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an astonishing rise to power,

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but also laid the foundation[br]for the interconnected global economy

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that we benefit from today.

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But how did this relatively obscure nation[br]on the edge of Europe emerged

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to forge an Empire that would shape[br]the course of History

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for centuries to come?

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This is the History [br]of the Portuguese Empire.

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All of our videos are available to watch[br]ad free over on our substack page.

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you can also read along[br]to the original scripts

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as well as listen to the audio generation[br]as podcasts

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by following the link[br]in the video description below

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and subscribing with your email.

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Thank you.

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The kingdom of Portugal emerged out[br]of the series of events

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known to History as the Reconquista

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which was the the gradual reconquest[br]of Christian lands

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on the Iberian Peninsula[br]from the Muslim Moors

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who had invaded the territory[br]far back in the 8th century,

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having established itself [br]as a sovereign kingdom

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by the middle of the 12th century,

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the Portuguese went on to push[br]out the remaining Moors to the South

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by capturing the territory[br]of the Algarve in 1249,

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effectively setting out the borders[br]of their kingdom

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along the same lines[br]to which they exist today.

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With their own territory secured[br]from external threats

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and the possibility of further expansion[br]on the Iberian Peninsula ruled out

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on account of their friendly relations

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with the neighboring Christian[br]kingdom of Castile to the east.

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Portugal turned its attention[br]towards the sea

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and the possibility[br]of exerting its own influence

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upon both it and the lands[br]that lay beyond in North Africa.

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The year 1415 marked a pivotal[br]moment in Portuguese expansion

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for a decision was made to orchestrate[br]an attack on the city of Ceuta,

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which was held by the Marinid Sultanate.

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Although many at the time[br]considered this

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nothing more than a continuation[br]of the hostilities

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between Christians and Muslims,

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in reality it paved the way [br]for the Portuguese

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to expand their dominions [br]and economic interests

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beyond the Iberian Peninsula

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and marked the beginning [br]of the Portuguese Empire.

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Despite capturing the city,

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the Portuguese were not able[br]to advance further into North Africa

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as they had initially planned,

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owing to determined resistance[br]by local Muslim forces.

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Nevertheless they continued[br]to guarnison Ceuta

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and used its harbor as a base

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to explore the Atlantic [br]coastline of Africa.

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This policy of maritime exploration

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was championed by a prominent figure

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in the early days [br]of the Portuguese Empire´:

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Prince Henry, the Navigator.

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He was curious to know[br]how far the Muslim territories in Africa

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extended Southward,

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and whether it would be possible[br]to reach Asia by an easterly sea route.

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Consequently, scores of Portuguese ships[br]began to set off into the Atlantic Ocean

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and around the coast of North Africa

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probing further and further into what[br]were at the time uncharted waters.

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The islands of Madeira and the Azores

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were first cited in 1419 and 1427,[br]respectively,

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and were subsequently[br]incorporated

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as the latest additions[br]to the expanding Portuguese Empire.

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One of the first natural barriers

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the Portuguese encountered[br]on their explorations

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was Cape Bojador.

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The violent waters that surround it[br]had claimed many vessels

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that had previously tried to pass through

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and it was widely deemed [br]to be a point of no return.

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That was until 1434,

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when Gil Eanes successfully[br]found the navigable passage

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around the cape

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and opened up further[br]exploration South

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towards subsaharan Africa.

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No sooner had this feat been achieved

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that the merchants of Lisbon[br]began to search

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for newer and more exotic markets

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to which they could trade to.

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gold, ivory, pepper, cotton and sugar,[br]all from Africa,

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soon became more commonplace

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amongst the trading stools of Lisbon

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as did the practice[br]of selling African slaves

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which began the long and

9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
dark history of the transatlantic slave[br]5:04[br]trade that would continue for the next[br]5:06[br]400[br]5:08[br]years over the subsequent Decades of the[br]5:10[br]15th century the Portuguese ventured[br]5:12[br]further and further south down the coast[br]5:14[br]of Africa reaching the cape verdie[br]5:16[br]Islands in 1456 and the Gulf of Guinea[br]5:20[br]by the[br]5:21[br]1460s as they explored they left behind[br]5:24[br]a series of padro stone crosses engraved[br]5:27[br]with the Portuguese coat of arms marking[br]5:29[br]out their territorial claims which were[br]5:31[br]followed up with the construction of[br]5:33[br]forts and trading posts from these bases[br]5:36[br]they engaged profitably in the gold and[br]5:38[br]slave trades which they held a virtual[br]5:40[br]monopoly on for well over a[br]5:43[br]century the real prize for the[br]5:45[br]Portuguese Merchants however was a[br]5:47[br]supposed but as yet unconfirmed sea[br]5:49[br]route to Asia they hoped that the[br]5:52[br]discovery of such a route would allow[br]5:54[br]them direct access to the spice markets[br]5:56[br]of the Indies and bypass the expensive[br]5:59[br]Arab and Venetian Merchants who[br]6:01[br]controlled the Overland trade routes[br]6:02[br]through the Middle East and across the[br]6:04[br]Mediterranean into Europe then in 1488[br]6:08[br]news reached the ears of the Portuguese[br]6:09[br]authorities that Bartholomew di had[br]6:12[br]rounded the southern tip of Africa and[br]6:14[br]reached the Indian Ocean proving that[br]6:16[br]such an easterly passage did indeed[br]6:19[br]exist however this Revelation would soon[br]6:22[br]be eclipsed in magnitude Just 4 years[br]6:25[br]later when Christopher Columbus sailed[br]6:27[br]westwards across the Atlantic Ocean in[br]6:29[br]in search of his own theoretical route[br]6:31[br]to the Indies and in the process[br]6:33[br]inadvertently discovered an entirely New[br]6:36[br]World the discovery of the Americas[br]6:39[br]which Columbus claimed in the name of[br]6:40[br]Spain and initially believed to be part[br]6:42[br]of Eastern Asia quickly created a[br]6:45[br]problem for the two Iberian Nations not[br]6:48[br]knowing where one set of recently[br]6:49[br]discovered lands ended and another began[br]6:52[br]they consequently agreed to divide the[br]6:54[br]world in two spheres of influence[br]6:55[br]between themselves marked by a north[br]6:58[br]south line of Meridian roughly halfway[br]7:00[br]between the cape verie Islands[br]7:02[br]controlled by Portugal and the Caribbean[br]7:04[br]islands of the Americas which Columbus[br]7:06[br]had recently discovered and claimed for[br]7:08[br]Spain the Treaty of pesas ratified this[br]7:12[br]agreement in 1494 and effectively carved[br]7:15[br]the world in two with the lands to the[br]7:17[br]east of this line to be claimed solely[br]7:19[br]by Portugal and the lands to the West[br]7:21[br]claimed solely by[br]7:23[br]Spain with the dispute settled Portugal[br]7:26[br]could finally begin to undertake its[br]7:28[br]long-standing ambition of charting a sea[br]7:30[br]route to Asia and so on the 8th of July[br]7:33[br]1497 the Explorer Vasco de Gama left[br]7:37[br]Lisbon with a fleet of four ships and a[br]7:39[br]crew of 170 men Bound for the Indian[br]7:42[br]Ocean in search of Asia after a voyage[br]7:45[br]of some 10 months de's Expedition[br]7:48[br]finally made landfall on the Malibar[br]7:50[br]coast of India in May 1498 and[br]7:53[br]subsequently met with the zamorin or[br]7:55[br]king of Calicut to establish the trade[br]7:58[br]relations that they they had longed hop[br]8:00[br]for whilst the portuguese's arrival was[br]8:03[br]greeted with hospitality the local[br]8:05[br]Indian Traders found little value in the[br]8:07[br]Trinkets and commodities the Europeans[br]8:09[br]had brought with them to exchange and so[br]8:12[br]D's Expedition largely left empty-handed[br]8:15[br]their return Journey back to Portugal[br]8:17[br]took an agonizing amount of time owing[br]8:19[br]to the monsoon conditions they had to[br]8:21[br]face up at Sea which took an immense[br]8:23[br]toll on both the crew and the ships[br]8:26[br]nevertheless the survivors arrived back[br]8:28[br]in Lisbon during the summer of 1499 and[br]8:31[br]were given a hero's welcome despite the[br]8:34[br]me quantities of spices and other Goods[br]8:36[br]they had brought[br]8:37[br]back although the Expedition itself may[br]8:40[br]not have been profitable it demonstrated[br]8:42[br]that Maritime trade to Asia was possible[br]8:45[br]and had huge[br]8:47[br]potential the second expedition to India[br]8:49[br]set sail in 1500 under the command of[br]8:52[br]Pedro Alvarez Cabra although while[br]8:55[br]traversing across the Atlantic Ocean[br]8:56[br]sailed Too Far West and unexpectedly[br]8:59[br]reached the coast of what is now[br]9:01[br]Brazil although this discovery may have[br]9:03[br]been unintentional some speculation[br]9:05[br]suggests that the Portuguese may have[br]9:07[br]already been aware of Brazil's existence[br]9:09[br]and secretly knew that this part of[br]9:11[br]South America fell within their[br]9:13[br]designated territory according to the[br]9:15[br]Treaty of[br]9:16[br]tordas cabal recommended to the[br]9:19[br]Portuguese King Manuel the that the land[br]9:22[br]be settled and two follow-up voyages[br]9:24[br]were sent in 1501 and[br]9:26[br]1503 the land was found to be abundant[br]9:29[br]in brazilwood from which it later[br]9:31[br]inherited its name but the failure to[br]9:33[br]find gold or silver meant that for the[br]9:35[br]time being the Portuguese instead[br]9:38[br]decided to concentrate their efforts on[br]9:39[br]the invaluable trade out of[br]9:41[br]India as the first decade of the 16th[br]9:44[br]century progressed the Portuguese[br]9:46[br]ventured further into other parts of[br]9:48[br]Asia such as Sri Lanka and Indonesia[br]9:51[br]where they discovered the sources of[br]9:52[br]cinnamon and Nutmeg so valuable were[br]9:55[br]these Commodities that Alfonso de[br]9:57[br]Albuquerque the first appointed Vice Roy[br]9:59[br]of Portuguese India ordered the