Compare the expeditions of Bartolomeo Dias and Vasco da Gama. What events, circumstances
Compare the expeditions of Bartolomeo Dias and Vasco da Gama. What events, circumstances, actions of captains are similar?
The Portuguese were the first Europeans who were able to round the southern tip of Africa and enter the Indian Ocean. Moreover, before the expeditions of Bartolomeo Dias and Vasco Da Gama, they already knew the countries of West Africa. Therefore, these expeditions became a logical continuation of the naval policy of the Portuguese kings.
The main events of the expeditions
The expeditions of Bartolomeo Dias and Vasco Da Gama are only a few years apart. And the voyage of Da Gama was a continuation of Diash’s expedition. Therefore, they had similar tasks and sailed the same route. But during these voyages, different events occurred and the voyages themselves had different consequences:
Dias’s main achievement was the discovery of the possibility of getting to the Indian Ocean from Portugal, bypassing the southern tip of Africa. Diash could not advance further, since the sailors and officers were afraid to get to the end of the world and started a riot. Da Gama was able to walk as far as India with great firmness;
Diash did not establish political connections with the local population, since he met only African tribes. Da Gama in India found a developed civilization with its centers of trade and established relationships for centuries. He established the first contacts with the Indian and Muslim rulers of the eastern part of India;
Diash’s expedition had only geographical significance, proving the possibility of reaching India. And Da Gama learned about the main trade routes and was personally convinced of the riches of the Eastern countries, which aroused the greed of Europeans;
Da Gama launched direct military action against local rulers, trying to subordinate their trade to the interests of Portugal.
History testifies that Da Gama did better on his mission as he sailed to India on numerous occasions. And Diash was sent by the commandant to a seedy fortress on the Guinean coast.
The similarity of the actions of the captains
All their actions were subordinated to the task of finding a sea route to India. This was necessary to open access to the European market for oriental goods bypassing the monopoly of Muslim states.
And only Da Gama coped with this task. Using superior weapons, he laid the foundation for the Portuguese colonial empire, which lasted for several centuries.
Both captains were notable for their indiscriminate choice of methods to achieve their goals. But Dias followed the rebellious crew, which he paid for, falling into disgrace.
