WEBVTT

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This is a map
of the world's shipping lanes

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showcasing the intricate network
of maritime routes

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that connect our modern world
through global trade.

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Although some of these routes 
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
were chartered long ago

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in an age where there was
no reliable way of navigation

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other than local knowledge
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
did not even exist.

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

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as a maritime superpower,

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were these connections 
to other parts of the world

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made possible through their daring
voyages and navigational prowess.

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Portugal quickly established
an empire for itself,

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stretching from Africa, to Asia
and South America.

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These maritime exploits
not only fueled Portugal's wealth.

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an astonishing rise to power,

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but also laid the foundation
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
on the edge of Europe emerged

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to forge an Empire that would shape
the course of History

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for centuries to come?

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This is the History 
of the Portuguese Empire.

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

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you can also read along
to the original scripts

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as well as listen to the audio generation
as podcasts

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by following the link
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
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
of Christian lands

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on the Iberian Peninsula
from the Muslim Moors

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

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having established itself 
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
out the remaining Moors to the South

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by capturing the territory
of the Algarve in 1249,

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effectively setting out the borders
of their kingdom

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along the same lines
to which they exist today.

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With their own territory secured
from external threats

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

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on account of their friendly relations

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with the neighboring Christian
kingdom of Castile to the east.

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Portugal turned its attention
towards the sea

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and the possibility
of exerting its own influence

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

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The year 1415 marked a pivotal
moment in Portuguese expansion

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for a decision was made to orchestrate
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
considered this

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nothing more than a continuation
of the hostilities

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between Christians and Muslims,

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in reality it paved the way 
for the Portuguese

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to expand their dominions 
and economic interests

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beyond the Iberian Peninsula

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and marked the beginning 
of the Portuguese Empire.

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Despite capturing the city,

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the Portuguese were not able
to advance further into North Africa

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as they had initially planned,

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owing to determined resistance
by local Muslim forces.

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Nevertheless they continued
to guarnison Ceuta

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and used its harbor as a base

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to explore the Atlantic 
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 
of the Portuguese Empire´:

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Prince Henry, the Navigator.

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

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extended Southward,

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

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Consequently, scores of Portuguese ships
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
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,
respectively,

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and were subsequently
incorporated

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as the latest additions
to the expanding Portuguese Empire.

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One of the first natural barriers

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the Portuguese encountered
on their explorations

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was Cape Bojador.

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The violent waters that surround it
had claimed many vessels

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that had previously tried to pass through

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

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That was until 1434,

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when Gil Eanes successfully
found the navigable passage

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around the cape

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and opened up further
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
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,
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
of selling African slaves

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

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that would continue for the next 400 years

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Over the subsequent decades
of the 15th century,

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the Portuguese ventured 
further and further South

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down the coast of Africa.

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reaching the Cape Verde Islands
in 1456

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and the Gulf of Guinea by the 1460s.

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

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stone crosses engraved
with the Portuguese coat of arms,

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marking out their territorial claims

NOTE Paragraph

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which were followed up
with the construction of forts

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and trading posts.

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

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which they held a virtual monopoly on

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for well over a century.

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The real prize for the
portuguese merchants however

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

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They hoped that the discovery
of such a route

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

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and bypass the expensive
arab and venetian merchants

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who controlled the overland trade routes
through the Middle East

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and across the Mediterranean
into Europe.

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

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that Bartholomew Dias had rounded
the southern tip of Africa

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and reached the Indian Ocean,

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proving that such an easterly
passage did indeed exist.

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However, this revelation would soon
be eclipsed in magnitude,

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just four years later,

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when Christopher Columbus sailed
westwards across the Atlantic Ocean

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in search of his own theoretical route
to the Indies

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and in the process inadvertently
discovered an entirely New World.

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The discovery of the Americas

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which Columbus claimed
in the name of Spain

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and initially believed to be part
of Eastern Asia

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quickly created a problem
for the two Iberian Nations.

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Not knowing where one set of recently
discovered lands ended

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and another began,

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

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

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roughly halfway

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between the Cape Verde Islands
controlled by Portugal

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and the Caribbean Islands of the Americas

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which Columbus had recently discovered 
and claimed for Spain.

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The Treaty of Tordesilhas
ratified this agreement in 1494

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and effectively carved the world in two.

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

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and the lands to the West 
claimed solely by Spain.

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With the dispute settled,
Portugal could finally begin to undertake

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

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and so, on the 8th of July 1497,

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the explorer Vasco de Gama left Lisbon

NOTE Paragraph

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

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bound for the Indian Ocean
in search of Asia.

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

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finally made landfall 
on the Malibar coast of India

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in May 1498

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and subsequently met with the Zamorin,
or king of Calicut

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to establish the trade relations

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that they they had long hoped for.

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Whilst the Portuguese's arrival
was greeted with hospitality,

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the local indian traders
found little value

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in the trinkets and commodities

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the Europeans had brought with them
to exchange

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

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

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

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

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

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and were given a hero's welcome.

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Despite the meager quantities
of spices and other goods

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they had brought back.

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Although the expedition itself 
may not have been profitable,

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it demonstrated that maritime trade
to Asia was possible

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and had huge potential .

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The second expedition to India
set sail in 1500

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under the command of
Pedro Alvares Cabral.

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Although while traversing

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across the Atlantic Ocean
sailed too far West

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

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Although this discovery
may have been unintentional

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some speculation suggests

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

00:09:09.929 --> 00:09:12.768
and secretly knew that this part
of South America

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

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Cabral recommended
to the Portuguese King, Manuel I,

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that the land be settled

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

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The land was found to be abundant
in brazilwood

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from which it later inherited its name

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

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the Portuguese instead decided
to concentrate their efforts

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on the invaluable trade out of India.

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As the first decade of the 16th century
progressed,

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the Portuguese ventured further
into other parts of Asia

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such as Sri Lanka and Indonesia,

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where they discovered the sources 
of cinnamon and nutmeg.

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So valuable were these commodities
that Alfonso de Albuquerque.

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the first appointed Vice-Roy
of Portuguese India

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ordered the construction
of trading posts and fortifications

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along the 14,000 miles long route,

00:10:07.671 --> 00:10:10.107
stretching from Portugal 
to the East Indies.

00:10:10.164 --> 00:10:13.620
These served as basis of operations
for conducting trade

00:10:13.631 --> 00:10:16.484
and ensured the safeguarding
of their valuable cargos

00:10:16.556 --> 00:10:19.617
that were to be transported 
on the long arduous journey

00:10:19.627 --> 00:10:21.968
back to the markets of Europe.

00:10:22.028 --> 00:10:24.803
Shortly thereafter,
the Portuguese trading network

00:10:24.823 --> 00:10:27.909
stretched to cover an area
surrounding the coastlines of Africa,

00:10:27.949 --> 00:10:32.693
Arabia, India, Indonesia 
and even as far as China and Japan.

00:10:34.283 --> 00:10:37.075
Although the Portuguese were
primarily motivated

00:10:37.135 --> 00:10:39.576
to establish trade relations
through peaceful means

00:10:39.591 --> 00:10:43.897
their arrival into Asia was often met
with a fair degree of suspicion

00:10:43.937 --> 00:10:46.264
from local merchants
who saw them

00:10:46.294 --> 00:10:49.318
as nothing more than foreign
interlopers on their territory.

00:10:49.868 --> 00:10:51.995
Consequently as tensions grew,

00:10:52.055 --> 00:10:54.654
the Portuguese took to enforcing
their trading activity

00:10:54.684 --> 00:10:56.643
with the use of force

00:10:56.876 --> 00:10:59.740
Throughout the 16th century
numerous conflicts broke out

00:10:59.770 --> 00:11:01.737
across the wider indopacific region,

00:11:01.757 --> 00:11:03.702
as the Portuguese engaged in warfare

00:11:03.702 --> 00:11:06.629
against the numerous
sultanates and empires of Asia.

00:11:07.319 --> 00:11:09.463
Often possessing
superior military technology

00:11:09.523 --> 00:11:11.048
over their adversaries,

00:11:11.048 --> 00:11:14.982
the Portuguese were largely successful
at defending their commercial enterprises

00:11:15.042 --> 00:11:18.489
as well as going on the offensive
to capture strategic targets

00:11:18.489 --> 00:11:21.133
that they wish to take for themselves.

00:11:21.213 --> 00:11:23.808
However, it was not just
trade and conquest

00:11:23.865 --> 00:11:26.447
that advanced the realms 
of the Portuguese Empire.

00:11:26.506 --> 00:11:29.041
Religion also had its part to play

00:11:29.251 --> 00:11:33.199
Accompanying the officials, merchants,
mariners and soldiers,

00:11:33.239 --> 00:11:35.323
on board the ships leaving Lisbon

00:11:35.418 --> 00:11:38.707
were small numbers 
of priests and missionaries

00:11:38.747 --> 00:11:40.919
typically belonging to the Jesuit order.

00:11:41.089 --> 00:11:43.404
They had been ordered
by the Portuguese monarchy

00:11:43.444 --> 00:11:45.145
to spread the Catholic faith

00:11:45.165 --> 00:11:47.446
amongst the native peoples
of Asia and Africa

00:11:47.496 --> 00:11:49.632
who they had come into contact with.

00:11:49.642 --> 00:11:52.085
this policy had mixed successes

00:11:52.085 --> 00:11:54.959
for, though their efforts
help towards establishing relations

00:11:55.049 --> 00:11:58.817
and new settlements, such as the port
of Nagasaki in Japan, in 1571,

00:11:58.949 --> 00:12:01.649
Elsewhere the priests and missionaries

00:12:01.679 --> 00:12:04.566
spread the word of God
through violence and coercion.

00:12:04.839 --> 00:12:07.334
In the case of the Goa,
Inquisition for example,

00:12:07.354 --> 00:12:11.231
they heavily persecuted the Hindu
population of Portuguese India

00:12:11.314 --> 00:12:13.913
in a bid to convert them 
to Christianity.

00:12:14.461 --> 00:12:16.796
The early period 
of the Portuguese Empire

00:12:16.846 --> 00:12:20.069
was concentrated on developing
trade across Asia and Africa,

00:12:20.279 --> 00:12:23.338
which were much more lucrative
and easily accessible compared to Brazil.

00:12:23.405 --> 00:12:24.962
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