Explores of Portugal

Prince Henry The Navigator

Below is a portrait of Prince Henry the Navigator

This page gives an introduction to his life and times, concentrating on the discoveries and his activities with the Order of Christ.

Prince Henry the Navigator (Dom Henrique) was the son of King João of Portugal, born in 1394. He is most famous for the voyages of discovery that he organised and financed, which eventually led to the rounding of Africa and the establishment of sea routes to the Indies. Henry was also a very devout man, and was Governor of the Order of Christ from 1420 until his death in 1460.(http://www.thornr.demon.co.uk/kchrist/phenry.html)

To celebrate his formal treaty of friendship with Castile in 1411, King João planned a tournament, to last a year, with knights invited from all over Europe. The jousts would give his three eldest sons who had just reached manhood the opportunity to earn their knighthoods by acts of chivalry. But the three princes, reinforced by the King's treasurer, dissuaded João, and urged him instead to launch a Crusade against Ceuta

At the age of nineteen, Henry was sent to the North to recruit, equip and train forces for the expedition, including the task of building an additional fleet of ships in Oporto.("Prince Henry The Navigator" the book)

At this time, no Europeans had sailed past the treacherous Cape Bojador and returned alive. Cape Bojador is on the coast of Africa and had frequent, violent storms and strong currents. The Europeans called the ocean beyond that point the "Sea of Darkness."According to legend, beyond this point in an area known as the "Green Sea of Darkness," the sun was so close to the Earth that a person’s skin would burn black, the sea boiled, ships caught on fire, and monsters hid waiting to smash the ships and eat the sailors. It took fourteen voyages over a period of 12 years until a ship finally reached the equator as stated. Most sailors refused to go there. Prince Henry sent 14 expeditions there over 12 years, trying to go farther than Cape Bojador. Prince Henry convinced Gil Eannes to try, and Eannes succeeded in 1434.

Although he was called Prince Henry the Navigator by the English, Prince Henry never actually sailed on any of the voyages of discovery he sponsored. Instead, Prince Henry established a school for the study of the arts of navigation, mapmaking, and shipbuilding. This would allow sailors to better guide their ships and to come up with new ship. designs.by http://library.thinkquest.org/J002678F/prince_henry_the_navigator.htm

BY:ADRAIN DIAZ

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