Bartolomeu Dias

Bartolomeu Dias was a Portuguese mariner and explorer who led the first European expedition to round the Cape of Good Hope in 1488, Opening the sea route to Asia via the Atlantic and Indian oceans. He is usually considered to be the greatest of the Portuguese pioneers who explored the Atlantic during the 15th century1 Dias was born around 1450 in Portugal. His family had a maritime background, and one of his ancestors, Dinis Dias, explored the African coast in the 1440s and discovered the Cap-Vert peninsula in today’s Senegal in 14452 He was a squire of the royal household and a skilled navigator. In 1481, he accompanied an expedition, led by Diogo de Azambuja, to construct a fortress and trading post called São Jorge da Mina in the Gulf of Guinea3 He may have also participated in Diogo Cão’s first expedition (1482–1484) down the African coast to the Congo River4 In 1486, King John II of Portugal commissioned Dias to lead an expedition in search of a trade route around the southern tip of Africa. Dias was also charged with searching for Prester John, a legendary figure believed to be the powerful Christian ruler of a realm somewhere beyond Europe, possibly in the African interior. Dias was provided with two caravels of about 50 tons each and a square-rigged supply ship captained by his brother Diogo. He recruited some of the leading pilots of the day, including Pêro de Alenquer and João de Santiago, who had previously sailed with Cão. The small fleet left Lisbon in or around July 1487. Like his predecessor, Cão, Dias carried a set of padrãos, carved stone pillars to be used to mark his progress at important landfalls. Also on board were six Africans who had been kidnapped by Cão and taught Portuguese. Dias’s plan was to drop them off at various points along the African coast so that they could testify to the grandeur of the Portuguese kingdom and make inquiries into the possible whereabouts of Prester John. Dias sailed south along the coast of Africa, reaching the mouth of the Orange River in January 1488. He then continued southward, hoping to find the end of the continent. However, he encountered a strong storm that blew his ships out to sea for 13 days. When the weather cleared, Dias realized that he had sailed past the southern tip of Africa without seeing it. He turned east and landed at a bay he named Angra dos Ilheus (Bay of Islands), now Mossel Bay. There he planted a padrão and met some friendly Khoikhoi people. Dias wanted to continue sailing to India, but his crew was exhausted and fearful of the unknown waters ahead. They refused to go further and threatened to mutiny if Dias did not turn back. Dias agreed to return after sailing a little further east to the Great Fish River, where he planted another padrão. He named the southern tip of Africa the Cape of Storms, but King John II later changed it to the Cape of Good Hope, as it represented a great hope for finding a sea route to India. Dias returned to Lisbon in December 1488, after an absence of 16 months and 17 days. He had explored more than 2,000 miles (3,200 km) of unknown African coast. He had shown that the Atlantic and Indian oceans were connected and that the southern end of Africa could be rounded by ships. He had also gathered valuable information about the winds, currents, and coastlines of the southern Atlantic. He was rewarded by the king with a pension and an estate, and he was appointed royal overseer of the royal warehouses. Dias participated in several other expeditions, but none as significant as his first. He helped prepare the fleet of Vasco da Gama, who followed Dias’s route to India in 1497–1499. He also accompanied Pedro Álvares Cabral, who discovered Brazil in 1500. On the return voyage, Dias was in charge of four ships that were sent to explore the coast of Africa. However, he died in a storm near the Cape of Good Hope, along with most of his crew and three other ships. His body was never recovered.