This is a map
of the world's shipping lanes

showcasing the intricate network
of maritime routes

that connect our modern world
through global trade.

Although some of these routes 
were established in more recent times

such as the Suez and Panama canals,

most of these oceanic highways
were chartered long ago

in an age where there was
no reliable way of navigation

other than local knowledge
and some rudimentary maps.

However, just over 500 years ago

at the beginning of the 16th century

these international trade routes
did not even exist.

Only due to the emergence
of the small Iberian nation of Portugal

as a maritime superpower,

were these connections 
to other parts of the world

made possible through their daring
voyages and navigational prowess.

Portugal quickly established
an empire for itself,

stretching from Africa, to Asia
and South America.

These maritime exploits
not only fueled Portugal's wealth.

an astonishing rise to power,

but also laid the foundation
for the interconnected global economy

that we benefit from today.

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

to forge an Empire that would shape
the course of History

for centuries to come?

This is the History 
of the Portuguese Empire.

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Thank you.

The kingdom of Portugal emerged out
of the series of events

known to History as the Reconquista

which was the the gradual reconquest
of Christian lands

on the Iberian Peninsula
from the Muslim Moors

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

having established itself 
as a sovereign kingdom

by the middle of the 12th century,

the Portuguese went on to push
out the remaining Moors to the South

by capturing the territory
of the Algarve in 1249,

effectively setting out the borders
of their kingdom

along the same lines
to which they exist today.

With their own territory secured
from external threats

and the possibility of further expansion
on the Iberian Peninsula ruled out

on account of their friendly relations

with the neighboring Christian
kingdom of Castile to the east.

Portugal turned its attention
towards the sea

and the possibility
of exerting its own influence

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

The year 1415 marked a pivotal
moment in Portuguese expansion

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

which was held by the Marinid Sultanate.

Although many at the time
considered this

nothing more than a continuation
of the hostilities

between Christians and Muslims,

in reality it paved the way 
for the Portuguese

to expand their dominions 
and economic interests

beyond the Iberian Peninsula

and marked the beginning 
of the Portuguese Empire.

Despite capturing the city,

the Portuguese were not able
to advance further into North Africa

as they had initially planned,

owing to determined resistance
by local Muslim forces.

Nevertheless they continued
to guarnison Ceuta

and used its harbor as a base

to explore the Atlantic 
coastline of Africa.

This policy of maritime exploration

was championed by a prominent figure

in the early days 
of the Portuguese Empire´:

Prince Henry, the Navigator.

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

extended Southward,

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

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

and around the coast of North Africa

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

The islands of Madeira and the Azores

were first cited in 1419 and 1427,
respectively,

and were subsequently
incorporated

as the latest additions
to the expanding Portuguese Empire.

One of the first natural barriers

the Portuguese encountered
on their explorations

was Cape Bojador.

The violent waters that surround it
had claimed many vessels

that had previously tried to pass through

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

That was until 1434,

when Gil Eanes successfully
found the navigable passage

around the cape

and opened up further
exploration South

towards subsaharan Africa.

No sooner had this feat been achieved

that the merchants of Lisbon
began to search

for newer and more exotic markets

to which they could trade to.

gold, ivory, pepper, cotton and sugar,
all from Africa,

soon became more commonplace

amongst the trading stools of Lisbon

as did the practice
of selling African slaves

which began the long and dark history
of the transatlantic slave trade

that would continue for the next 400 years

Over the subsequent decades
of the 15th century,

the Portuguese ventured 
further and further South

down the coast of Africa.

reaching the Cape Verde Islands
in 1456

and the Gulf of Guinea by the 1460s.

As they explored, they left behind
a series of "padrões",

stone crosses engraved
with the Portuguese coat of arms,

marking out their territorial claims

which were followed up
with the construction of forts

and trading posts.

From these bases they engaged
profitably in the gold and slave trades

which they held a virtual monopoly on

for well over a century.

The real prize for the
portuguese merchants however

was a supposed, but as yet unconfirmed,
sea route to Asia .

They hoped that the discovery
of such a route

would allow them direct access 
to the spice markets of the Indies

and bypass the expensive
arab and venetian merchants

who controlled the overland trade routes
through the Middle East

and across the Mediterranean
into Europe.

Then, in 1488 news reached
the ears of the Portuguese authorities

that Bartholomew Dias had rounded
the southern tip of Africa

and reached the Indian Ocean,

proving that such an easterly
passage did indeed exist.

However, this revelation would soon
be eclipsed in magnitude,

just four years later,

when Christopher Columbus sailed
westwards across the Atlantic Ocean

in search of his own theoretical route
to the Indies

and in the process inadvertently
discovered an entirely New World.

The discovery of the Americas

which Columbus claimed
in the name of Spain

and initially believed to be part
of Eastern Asia

quickly created a problem
for the two Iberian Nations.

Not knowing where one set of recently
discovered lands ended

and another began,

they consequently agreed to divide
the world in two spheres of influence,

between themselves, marked 
by a north/south line of Meridian

roughly halfway

between the Cape Verde Islands
controlled by Portugal

and the Caribbean Islands of the Americas

which Columbus had recently discovered 
and claimed for Spain.

The Treaty of Tordesilhas
ratified this agreement in 1494

and effectively carved the world in two.

with the lands to the East of this line
to be claimed solely by Portugal

and the lands to the West 
claimed solely by Spain.

With the dispute settled,
Portugal could finally begin to undertake

its long-standing ambition
of charting a sea route to Asia

and so, on the 8th of July 1497,

the explorer Vasco de Gama left Lisbon

with a fleet of four ships 
and a crew of 170 men

bound for the Indian Ocean
in search of Asia.

After a voyage of some 10 months
Vasco da Gama's expedition

finally made landfall 
on the Malibar coast of India

in May 1498

and subsequently met with the Zamorin,
or king of Calicut

to establish the trade relations

that they they had long hoped for.

Whilst the Portuguese's arrival
was greeted with hospitality,

the local indian traders
found little value

in the trinkets and commodities

the Europeans had brought with them
to exchange

and so, da Gama's expedition
largely left empty-handed.

Their return journey back to Portugal
took an agonizing amount of time

owing to the monsoon conditions
they had to face up at sea

which took an immense toll
on both the crew and the ships

Nevertheless the survivors arrived back
in Lisbon during the summer of 1499

and were given a hero's welcome.

Despite the meager quantities
of spices and other goods

they had brought back.

Although the expedition itself 
may not have been profitable,

it demonstrated that maritime trade
to Asia was possible

and had huge potential .

The second expedition to India
set sail in 1500

under the command of
Pedro Alvares Cabral.

Although while traversing

across the Atlantic Ocean
sailed too far West

and unexpectedly, reached 
the coast of what is now Brazi.

Although this discovery
may have been unintentional

some speculation suggests

the Portuguese may have
already been aware of Brazil's existence

and secretly knew that this part
of South America

fell within their designated territory 
according to the Treaty of Tordesilhas.

Cabral recommended
to the Portuguese King, Manuel I,

that the land be settled

and two follow-up voyages
were sent in 1501 and 1503.

The land was found to be abundant
in brazilwood

from which it later inherited its name

but the failure to find gold or silver
meant that for the time being

the Portuguese instead decided
to concentrate their efforts

on the invaluable trade out of India.

As the first decade of the 16th century
progressed,

the Portuguese ventured further
into other parts of Asia

such as Sri Lanka and Indonesia,

where they discovered the sources 
of cinnamon and nutmeg.

So valuable were these commodities
that Alfonso de Albuquerque.

the first appointed Vice-Roy
of Portuguese India

ordered the construction
of trading posts and fortifications

along the 14,000 miles long route,

stretching from Portugal 
to the East Indies.

These served as basis of operations
for conducting trade

and ensured the safeguarding
of their valuable cargos

that were to be transported 
on the long arduous journey

back to the markets of Europe.

Shortly thereafter,
the Portuguese trading network

stretched to cover an area
surrounding the coastlines of Africa,

Arabia, India, Indonesia 
and even as far as China and Japan.

Although the Portuguese were
primarily motivated

to establish trade relations
through peaceful means

their arrival into Asia was often met
with a fair degree of suspicion

from local merchants
who saw them

as nothing more than foreign
interlopers on their territory.

Consequently as tensions grew,

the Portuguese took to enforcing
their trading activity

with the use of force

Throughout the 16th century
numerous conflicts broke out

across the wider indopacific region,

as the Portuguese engaged in warfare

against the numerous
sultanates and empires of Asia.

Often possessing
superior military technology

over their adversaries,

the Portuguese were largely successful
at defending their commercial enterprises

as well as going on the offensive
to capture strategic targets

that they wish to take for themselves.

However, it was not just
trade and conquest

that advanced the realms 
of the Portuguese Empire.

Religion also had its part to play

Accompanying the officials, merchants,
mariners and soldiers,

on board the ships leaving Lisbon

were small numbers 
of priests and missionaries

typically belonging to the Jesuit order.

They had been ordered
by the Portuguese monarchy

to spread the Catholic faith

amongst the native peoples
of Asia and Africa

who they had come into contact with.

this policy had mixed successes

for, though their efforts
help towards establishing relations

and new settlements, such as the port
of Nagasaki in Japan, in 1571,

Elsewhere the priests and missionaries

spread the word of God
through violence and coercion.

In the case of the Goa,
Inquisition for example,

they heavily persecuted the Hindu
population of Portuguese India

in a bid to convert them 
to Christianity.

The early period 
of the Portuguese Empire

was concentrated on developing
trade across Asia and Africa,

which were much more lucrative
and easily accessible compared to Brazil.

12:25
attitudes towards this quickly changed
12:27
however when other Europe European
12:29
explorers particularly the French began
12:31
to develop interests of their own in the
12:33
territory and established a trading post
12:35
there in
12:37
1531 the Portuguese response as decreed
12:40
by King XO III on the 28th of September
12:43
1532 was to deter further French
12:45
incursions to the region by initiating a
12:47
large-scale colonization program that
12:50
would see the land divided up and ruled
12:52
by 15 separate captaincies with
12:55
instructions to build settlements Grant
12:57
allotments and administer Justice
12:59
each Captain was responsible for
13:01
developing and absorbing the costs of
13:03
colonization although they were not
13:05
allowed to own the land
13:06
outright despite their best efforts
13:09
however only two of the captaincies
13:11
reached any stage of significant
13:12
development owing principally to their
13:15
dedication in growing the highly
13:16
profitable crop of sugar cane this
13:19
required an enormous amount of Labor to
13:21
produce and over time it became
13:23
exclusively reliant on enslaved Africans
13:25
to work in its Fields such was the scale
13:28
and importance of the sugar industry
13:30
that of the estimated 4 million Africans
13:32
who were sold into slavery in the
13:33
Americas between the 16th and 19th
13:35
centuries up to 40% ended up in Brazil
13:40
the Portuguese presence in South America
13:42
began to slowly develop As Time passed
13:44
with the cities of Bahia sa Paulo and
13:47
Rio de Janeiro all being founded in the
13:49
mid-6th
13:50
century however a significant change in
13:53
the progress of the Portuguese Empire
13:55
occurred in 1580 when a succession
13:58
crisis triggered by the untimely death
14:00
of King Sebastian 2 years earlier saw
14:02
Philip II of Spain invade Portugal and
14:05
take the throne for himself with that
14:09
the two crowns and overseas empires of
14:11
Spain and Portugal were United under the
14:13
Iberian Union although they would
14:16
continue to be ruled separately and
14:18
distinctly from one
14:19
another during this time however in the
14:22
late 16th century Spain was at war with
14:25
England France and the Netherlands and
14:28
as a result of the union with its
14:29
Iberian neighbor Portugal quickly found
14:31
itself embroiled in The Wider conflict
14:33
with European Rivals who were all
14:35
competing to establish overseas empires
14:37
of their own the Dutch in particular
14:40
posed the most comprehensive threat to
14:42
Portugal at this time for they had just
14:44
gained their independence from the
14:45
Spanish hapsburg monarchy in 1581 and
14:48
being Adept merchants and Maritime
14:50
explorers were Keen to participate in
14:52
the lucrative trade to Asia for
14:54
themselves these Ambitions were also
14:56
shared by the English and both soon
14:58
learned of the navigational routes