Volume One
The Portuquese in the Sea of Oman Annals of History 1497 CE – 1757 CE Volume One by: Al Qasimi Publications Author: Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi (United Arab Emirates) Publisher: Al Qasimi Publications, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates Edition: First Year of publication: 2025 ©All rights reserved * ISBN: 978-9948-716-93-8 * Printing Permission: UAE Media Council No. MC 03-01-4838798, Date: 17-03-2025 Printing: AL Bony Press- Sharjah, UAE Age Classification: E The age group that matches the content of the books was classified according to the age classification issued by UAE Media Council * Al Qasimi Publications, Al Tarfa, Sheikh Muhammad Bin Zayed Road PO Box 64009 Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Tel: 0097165090000, Fax: 0097165520070 Email: info@aqp.ae
_ 5 _ Contents Introduction 7 Introduction to Volume One 11 • Episodes of the year 1497 13 • Episodes of the year 1499 121 • Episodes of the year 1500 149 • Episodes of the year 1501 179 • Episodes of the year 1503 181 • Episodes of the year 1504 185 • Episodes of the year 1505 319 • Episodes of the year 1506 355 Researchers’ Guide 403 Volume One Reference 407
_ 7 _ Introduction The trade between the East and the West has, since ancient times, followed two primary routes: the first through the Red Sea and Egypt, and the second through the Arabian Gulf, Iraq, and the Levant, both of which were under Arab control. These routes were frequently disrupted due to political conflicts and disputes. Whenever both routes were closed, luxury goods ceased to reach Europe, except for those that arrived via Central Asia. At the beginning of the 15th century, goods reached Europe through Genoa and Venice ("Venezia"). However, Genoa lost its commercial standing after the Ottomans conquest of Constantinople in 1453, and the ongoing conflict between Venice and the Mamluks in Egypt further removed Venice from competition. The search for a direct route connecting Europe to India became the ambition of all
_ 8 _ European nations, as it promised both fame and immense wealth. In 1497, a Portuguese fleet led by Vasco da Gama reached the eastern coast of Africa via the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa, and from there, it proceeded to India. Subsequently, successive Portuguese military fleets arrived, occupying parts of India as well as territories along the shores of the Sea of Oman and the coasts of Persia. This occupation and exploitation of the region’s resources persisted until 1757. I have gathered all the documents related to this 260-year-long occupation from archival centers across the world, a process that took fifteen years. Following this extensive effort, I had these documents translated from Portuguese into English, and subsequently into Arabic. These documents encompass all the events that transpired during that period, meticulously recording them from various sources. I have classified these documents into volumes, totaling twenty-one volumes in Arabic and an equal number in English. I have titled these volumes: "The Portuguese in the Sea of Oman: Events in Annals from the Year 1497 to the Year 1757." Each volume contains records of the events that occurred in a given year, systematically arranged in the form of annals.
_ 9 _ Each volume includes an index at the end to facilitate the search for specific information, in along with to footnotes accompanying the documents. I sincerely hope that this work will serve as a valuable resource for scholars and researchers interested in the history of Oman and its neighboring regions. I pray that this effort yields great benefit as a fulfillment of my duty and that God Almighty accepts this work as a sincere dedication to Him alone. Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi
_ 11 _ Introduction to Volume One This volume covers the events of ten years, from 1497 to 1506, a period marked by Portuguese voyages around the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa, along the eastern coast of Africa, and onward to India. During this time, the Portuguese were primarily focused on occupying India and solidifying their control over it, either through military conquest, employing firearms and cannons powered by gunpowder, which were unfamiliar to those societies, or through treaties that rendered those kingdoms subordinate to the King of Portugal in exchange for exorbitant payments. At this stage, however, the Portuguese had not yet approached the Sea of Oman. Their primary objective was to transport Indian goods from India to Portugal, using the Cape of Good Hope
_ 12 _ route. However, rather than engaging in legitimate trade or production, their acquisitions were obtained through plunder and looting-though these spoils were presented to Europe as commerce. Dr. Sultan Bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi
_ 13 _ Episodes of the year 1497 In that year, started the journey of Vasco da Gama, which Alvaro Velho described in the notes of “The Journey of Vasco da Gama”, dated 1497:(1) In the name of God, Amen. In the year 1497 King Dom Manuel I of Portugal sent four ships on a voyage of discovery in search of spices. Vasco da Gama went as captain of one of them, his brother, Paulo da Gama, of another, Nicolau Coelho of a third, and Gonçalo Nunes, one of Vasco da Gama's servants, as captain of the supply ship. [Castanheda's interpolation]. We departed from the Restelo on Saturday 8 July 1497, following our course, which may Our Lord God allow us to finish in his service. Amen. The following Saturday we first came in sight of the Canaries, and that night we passed to the leeward of (1) Document no. and reference.
_ 14 _ Lanzarote. In the early hours we reached the Terra Alta, where we spent about two hours fishing. When dusk fell the following evening we were opposite the Rio de Ouro [Gold River]. That night the fog was so thick that Paulo da Gama and the whole fleet were scattered in all directions. When dawn broke, there was no sign either of his or the other ships, so we made our way to the Cape Verde islands, because we had been given orders that anyone who became separated should follow that route. The following Sunday morning we caught sight of Salt island, and an hour later we saw three ships, which we went to meet. Among them we found the supply ship with Nicolau Coelho and Bartolomeu Dias, who was travelling with us as far as Mina. These had also become separated from the captain. When we had met up, we continued our journey, but the wind dropped and we were becalmed until the following Wednesday. Then at ten o'clock we sighted the captain about five leagues ahead of us, and in the afternoon we came within hailing distance and gave expression to our great joy by firing off many guns and blowing out trumpet, all because of our great relief at finding him. The next day, which was Thursday, we arrived at Santiago island where, with great jubilation and rejoicing, we dropped anchor in the port of Santa Maria. There we
_ 15 _ took on meat, water and firewood, and made much needed repairs to the yards of our ships. On Thursday 3 August, we departed with an east wind and, on 18 August, when there was a southerly some six hundred leagues from Santiago island, the yard of the captain's ship broke. On 22nd of that month, while making a detour to the south-south-west, we came across a lot of birds resembling herons and when night fell they flew with great determination to the south-south-east, like birds that were making for land. The same day, we saw a whale, eight hundred leagues out to sea. On Friday 27 October, the eve of Saints Simon and Jude, we saw whales, some of which were known as focas [seals], and sea-lions. One Wednesday, 1st November, the feast of All Saints, we discovered many signs of land, such as gulf-weeds, which grow along the coast. On the fourth of the said month, at two o'clock in the morning, we had soundings of as much as one hundred and ten fathoms. At nine o'clock we came in sight of land. Then we all assembled, dressed in our festive clothing, and greeted the captain with numerous flags, standards and salvoes. On that same day we tacked near in-shore, nevertheless, we could not identify the country.
_ 16 _ On Tuesday we headed for land and found a low-lying area with a large bay. The captain ordered Pero de Alenquer into the ship's boat to take soundings to see if we could find an anchorage. He found the bay very satisfactory and clean, affording shelter from all the winds, except the north-westerlies. The bay extended in an east-westerly direction, and we named it Saint Helena. On Wednesday we dropped anchor in the bay, where we spent eight days cleaning the ships, mending the nets and taking on firewood. Four leagues to the south-east along this bay is the Santiago river, which flows from the interior of the forest. Its mouth is a stone's throw wide and two or three fathoms above all states of the tide. In this country there are dark-skinned men, who eat nothing but sea-lions and whales, the flesh of gazelles and plant roots. They walk about covered with skins and they wear a sheath on their private parts. Their weapons are burnt horns, fixed on olive-wood shafts. They have many dogs, like those in Portugal, which bark the same way. The birds of this country cormorants, sea-gulls, turtle-doves, larks and hosts of others are just like those in Portugal. The land is very healthy and temperate and produces fine plants.
_ 17 _ The next day, which was Thursday, after we had anchored, we went ashore with the captain-major and we captured one of their men, who was small in stature and resembled Sancho Mexia. He was gathering honey on some waste land, because the bees in that country make it beneath the bushes. We took him to the captain-major's ship, who sat him down at table with him and he ate everything that we ate. The following day, the captain-major dressed him up very well and gave orders for him to be set ashore. The day after that, fourteen or fifteen of them came to where our ships lay. The captain-major landed and showed them many goods in order to ascertain if such things were to be found in that country. The goods were cinnamon, cloves, seed pearls, gold, as well as other items, but they knew nothing of such things and acted like people who had never seen them before. Consequently, the captain-major gave them some small bells and tin rings. This was on the Friday, and the same thing happened the following Saturday. On the Sunday, something like forty or fifty of them appeared. When supper was over, we went ashore and with some ceitil coins that we took, we obtained shells that they wore in their ears, which appeared to be silver, and fox-tails that they carried stuck on sticks, with
_ 18 _ which they fanned their faces. It was there that I bought a sheath, that one of them wore on his privates, for one ceitil. Because some of them wore beads made of copper in their ears, it seems that they valued it highly. On this same day, a certain Fernão Veloso, who was with the captain-major, was very keen on going with them to their houses, so as to find out the way they lived and ate, and what kind of life they led. As a favour, he asked the captain-major to give him permission to go with them to their village. After continuously pestering the captain-major to allow him to accompany them, he left him go. We returned to the captain-major's ship to have supper, while he went off with the negroes. When they were some distance from us they caught a sea-lion and they then proceeded to some open ground at the foot of a hill and roasted it. They gave some of it, with the roots of plants that they ate, to Fernão Velosos, who was accompanying them. When they had finished eating, they told him that he should return to the ships because they did not want him to go any further with them. Fernão Veloso made his way straight to the ships and immediately began to call out, while the natives remained hiding in the bush. We were still having supper, and when
_ 19 _ we heard his shouts, the captains immediately stopped eating, and we did too, and we piled into the ship's boat. The negroes began to run along the beach and they were as quick to reach Fernão Veloso as we were. When we tried to pick him up, they began to throw some spears that they were carrying, whereupon the captain-major and three or four men were wounded. This happened because we trusted them, thinking that they were men of little courage and that they would not dare to do what they subsequently did. Because of this, we had landed unarmed. We then withdrew to the ships. On Thursday morning, 16 November, as soon as we had our ships rigged and clean and firewood on board, we departed from that land. We did not know how far we were from the Cape of Good Hope, apart from Pero de Alenquer, who said that the furthest we could be from there would be thirty leagues. The reason why he did not mention this was because he had left the Cape by day and he had sailed past there by night with a following wind. In fact, on the outward journey they had sailed out to sea, and as a result he had no idea where we were. Consequently, we sailed out to sea with a south-south-easterly, and on Saturday afternoon we
_ 20 _ caught sight of the Cape of Good Hope. That same day, we again sailed towards the shore. On Sunday morning, 19 November, we sailed once more towards the Cape but we were unable to round it, because the wind was south-south-east and the said cape lies north-east-southwest. On the same day, we turned out to sea, and on Monday night we sailed landwards. On Wednesday, with a following wind, we passed by the cape and ran along the coast close to the Cape of Good Hope. To the south, lies a very large bay that curves inland for a good six leagues and at its mouth is quite a few leagues broad. On Saturday afternoon, 25 November, the feast of St. Catherine, we entered the Bay of St. Bras [Mossel Bay] where we spent thirteen days and there dismantled the carrack carrying the supplies and transferred them to the other ships. The following Friday, while we were still in that Bay of St. Bras, about ninety dark- skinned men, resembling those from the bay of St. Helena, appeared. Some of them walked along the beach and others remained among the hills. At that time, all, or most of us, were in the captain-major's carrack. When we saw them, we went ashore in the boats, which were very well armed.
_ 21 _ As we approached land, the captain threw bells onto the beach for them and they picked them up. They not only collected the ones that he had thrown but came to take them from his hand. This surprised us very much because when Bartolomeu Dias was here, the natives ran away from him and they did not take a single thing that he offered them. In fact, one day when he was taking on some excellent water from a watering hole on the sea-shore, they tried to prevent him by flinging stones from an overlooking hill, and Bartolomeu Dias fired a cross-bow and killed one of them. Our guess is that they did not run away from us because they had received news from the Bay of St. Helena, which we visited first (and from one country to the other it is only sixty leagues by sea) that we were men who did no harm, but rather gave of what we had. The captain-major decided not to go ashore, because the spot where the negroes were was covered in forest. He thus moved on to an open area where we anchored. We made signs to the negroes that they should make for the same place as we were going, which they did. Then the captain-major and the other captains landed with armed men, some with cross-bows. He then ordered
_ 22 _ the natives by signs to stand back and to approach in ones and twos. To those who came, the captain gave bells and red caps, and they gave us some ivory bracelets that they wore on their arms. As far as we know, there are a lot of elephants in this country, as we found their dung in clear sight at the watering hole where they came to drink. On Saturday some two hundred negroes, both young and old, appeared, and they brought about a dozen cattle oxen and cows, and four or five sheep. When we saw them we immediately went ashore. They then began to play on four or five flutes, some producing high notes and others low, harmonizing well considering the fact that they were negroes, from whom you do not expect good music, and they danced in the negro style. The captain-major gave orders to play the trumpets. Those of us who were in the longboats danced and the captain-major jigged with us. When the party was over, we stepped ashore in the place where we had landed previously, and there we bought an ox in exchange for three bracelets. This we had for Sunday lunch. It was very fat and its flesh was very tasty like that of Portugal. Several others came on Sunday, and they brought their wives and little boys with them. The women stayed at the
_ 23 _ top of a hill near the sea, and they brought many oxen and cows. They collected in two places along the seashore and played and danced as they had on Saturday. It was the custom among these men for the young boys to remain in the bush with their weapons while the men came to parley with us. They carried short sticks in their hands with fox tails, with which they fanned their faces. While we were talking in this way by signs, we could see the young men crouching and moving about in the forest holding their weapons in their hands. The captain-major sent ashore a man called Martim Afonso, who had already lived in Manicongo, and he gave him bracelets to exchange for an ox. When the natives had received the bracelets, they took him by the hand and went to show him the water hole, asking him why we were taking their water. Meanwhile they began to herd the oxen into the forest. When the captain-major saw this, he ordered us to assemble and to recall Martim Afonso because he believed that they were preparing some treachery. Then, when we were all together we went to the place where we had been originally and the natives followed behind us. The captain ordered us to go ashore with lances, spears and armed crossbows and wearing our breastplates. This was more to
_ 24 _ show them that we were powerful enough to inflict injury on them, but that we did not wish to do so. When they saw this, they bunched together and ran away. So as to avoid the possibility of some of them being killed, the captain ordered all our men into the boats. When we were all assembled, the captain gave instructions to fire off two bombards that were in the stern of the ship so as to make it clear to them that we were capable of hurting them but chose not to. The natives were all seated on the beach at the edge of the forest. When they heard the bombards firing, they began to flee into the bush with such haste that they left behind the skins with which they were covered and their weapons. After retreating to the forest, two of them returned to collect them. Then they joined the others and took to their heels, disappearing over the brow of the hill with their cattle. The oxen of this country are enormous like those of the Alentejo, and extremely fat and tame. They are gelded and some of them are without horns. On the fattest of them, the negroes place some saddles made of wood, just like they do in Castile, with some poles in the form of a litter on top of them, upon which they ride. They stick a plough handle through the nostrils of those they want to sell and lead them by it.
_ 25 _ In this bay there is an island three crossbow shots out to sea. On it there are many seals and some of them are as big as grown bears. They are very frightening and have enormous tusks. They attack the men and no lance, no matter what force is used, is capable of wounding them. There are other smaller ones and some that are quite tiny. The big ones let out roars like lions and the little ones [walruses] bleat like goats. One day we were there amusing ourselves and we counted around three thousand, between big and the small ones, and we fired at them from the water with our bombards. On this island there are some birds about the same size as ducks, but they cannot fly because they have neither feathers nor wings and they are called soliticairos [penguins]. These birds bray like asses and we killed them at will. One Wednesday, while we were in this bay of St. Bras taking on water, we erected a cross and a padrão [commemorative column] there. We made the cross, which was very tall, from a mizzen mast. The following Thursday, when we were about to leave that bay, we saw ten or a dozen negroes knock down both the cross and the pillar, even before we had departed from there.
_ 26 _ We left there after we had loaded everything we needed, but the wind was light and that same day we anchored once more two leagues from where we had set off. On Friday morning, the feast of the Immaculate Concepcion [8 December], we set sail and continued our route. The following Tuesday, the eve of St. Lucia, we were hit by a great storm and we ran before a following wind with the foresail very low. On the morning of that day, we lost sight of Nicolau Coelho. When sunset came, he was seen from the crow's nest four or five leagues astern of us, and we had the impression that he had seen us too. We set up signal lamps and lay to. When the first watch had ended he came in our direction, not because he had seen us during the day, but because the wind was on the bowline and he could do nothing but come on our course. On Friday morning we sighted a landmass, a place known as the Ilheus Chãos [Bird islands], which are five leagues beyond that of St. Croix. From the bay of St. Bras to the island of St. Croix is sixty leagues, and as much again from the Cape of Good Hope to the island of St. Bras. From the Bird islands to the last padrão that Bartolomeu Dias placed is another five leagues, and from the Infante river it is fifteen leagues.
_ 27 _ The following Saturday we passed by the final padrão, and just as we were sailing along the coast, we saw two men running on the beach, in the opposite direction to the route we were following. This country is very pleasing and quiet, and we saw a lot of cattle wandering about ashore, and the more we advanced the better the land became and the taller the trees. The following night we lay to, since we were beyond the Rio do Infante [Great Fish River], which was the last place that Bartolomeu Dias discovered. The next day we sailed with the wind astern, skirting the coast until the hour of vespers when the wind sprang up to the east of us and we made out to sea. We proceeded to tack seaward and landward until nearly sunset on Tuesday, when the wind veered to the west. Because of this we lay to that night, so that the next day we might recognise the land or in what roadstead we were. When morning came, we made straight for land and at ten o'clock we found ourselves off the island of St. Croix, which was sixty leagues short of where we were heading. This was caused by the currents, which are very strong there. That same day, we again proceeded by the route that we had already sailed, helped by a strong following wind that lasted three or four days, and we overcame the currents, which we had greatly feared would not allow us
_ 28 _ to accomplish what we had planned. From that day on, it was God's will that we moved forwards and not backwards. May it please Him that it may always be so. By Christmas Day, 25 December, we had discovered seventy leagues of coast. On that day, after we had eaten, while we were putting up an auxiliary sail, we discovered a split in the mast about six feet below the crow's nest, and it kept opening and shutting. Accordingly, we strengthened it with backstays until we could put in at port where we would be able to repair it in shelter. On Thursday, we anchored near the coast where we caught a lot of fish. At sunset we got under sail again and continued on our route. We left one of our anchors behind because a hawser snapped when we were at sea. We sailed from there and were so long at sea without finding port that we no longer had water to drink (apart from brine) or food to eat. We were rationed to a quartilho [pint] of water a day, so we needed to put in to port. It was Thursday, 10 January, when we caught sight of a small river and there we anchored near the coast. The next day we went ashore in our boats, where we came across a crowd of powerfully built male and female negroes with their chief. The captain-major instructed a certain Martim
_ 29 _ Afonso, who had spent a lot of time in Manicongo, to go ashore with another man, where they were given a great welcome. The captain-major sent the chief a jacket, some red trousers, a Moorish hood and a bracelet. The latter told him that he would be more than pleased to give him anything he needed in his country. That was how Martim Afonso understood it. That night Martim Afonso and another man went with the chief to sleep in his village, and we returned to our ships. As the latter was walking along the road he put on the clothes they had given him and he said with great satisfaction to those who had come to meet him: "Do you see what they gave me?" And they showed their pleasure by clapping their hands. They repeated this three times until he arrived at the village, where he wandered about everywhere, dressed up as he was, until he entered his house. He gave orders for the two men to be lodged and they went with him into a compound where he ordered corn porridge for them, as there is a lot in that country, and a chicken like those in Portugal. Then crowds of men and women came to stare at them the whole night long. When morning came, the chief went to see them and he told them to leave. He sent two men with them and gave them chickens for the captain-major, explaining that
_ 30 _ he was going to show the sort of things that were given to their great chief, who we thought was probably the king of that country. When they arrived in the port where the ships were a good two hundred men had already come to see them. We had the impression that this country was densely populated and with many chiefs. It seemed to us that the women outnumbered the men, because whenever twenty men appeared, forty women came too. The dwellings in this country are made of straw and the weapons of the people are long bows and arrows and iron-tipped spears. According to our observation, there is a lot of copper in this country too. They wear this on their legs and arms and in their curly hair. In addition, there is tin in this country, with which they decorate the hilts of their daggers, whose sheaths are made of ivory. The inhabitants of this country rate linen cloth very highly and they exchanged a large amount of copper for the shirts that we were prepared to give them. These people use large gourds to take salt water from the sea to the interior. They pour it into shallow pits in the ground and produce salt from it. We spent five days here anchored close inland among the breakers, taking on water, which those who had come
_ 31 _ to see us carried to our boat. We did not load as much water as we would have wished because the wind invited us to proceed on our journey. We called this country the Terra da Boa Gente [Land of Good People] and the river was named the Rio do Cobre [Bronze River]. While at sea one Monday, we caught sight of a low-lying land with very tall dense forests, and while we continued on our journey, we spotted the broad estuary of a river. Because we needed to know and find out where we were, we dropped anchor. When we entered on Thursday evening, with eight days of January left, we found the Berrio already there, having entered the day before. This country is very low and swampy and covered in large forests. These produce great quantities of fruit of all sorts, which the natives eat. The people are black and well-built. They walk about naked, apart from small loincloths with which they cover their private parts, and the chiefs of this country wear larger loincloths. The young women of this country, who seem very attractive, have their lips pierced in three places and they wear pieces of twisted tin in them. These people were very much at ease with us, and they brought whatever they had to our ships in almadias, while we went in the same way to their village to obtain water.
_ 32 _ After we had been two or three days in that country, two of their chiefs came to see us. These were so disdainful that they did not appreciate anything they were given. One of them wore a touca (cap) on his head with some piping embroidered with silk and the other wore a green satin hood. Moreover, according to what they indicated by gestures, there was a youth in their company who had come from a country far from there. He claimed to have seen large ships like those that brought us. We were very pleased with these good omens because it seemed to us we were approaching the place we were looking for. These noblemen had some shelters made of foliage built along the riverbank, where they stayed for about seven days. Each day they sent people to the ships to barter cloth that bore marks of red ochre. When they tired of this they left in the almadias to go up-river. We spent thirty-two days in this river, during which time we took on water, careened the ships and repaired the mast of the S. Rafael. Here many men fell sick. Their hands and feet swelled and their gums covered their teeth to such an extent that they were unable to eat. And we placed a padrão there, on which we put the name S. Rafael, because it had been transported in that ship and we called the river the River of Good Signs [Cuama/Quelimane].
_ 33 _ We left that place on Saturday, 24 February, and sailed out to sea. Then the following night we again withdrew far from the coast, which was very attractive, and sailed to the east. On the Sunday we proceeded to the northeast, and when the hour of vespers came we discerned three small islands out at sea. Two of them had extensive forests and the other was bare and smaller. The distance between each one was about four leagues. Because it was night we turned out to sea and passed them by. The next day we continued on our journey and sailed for six days on the open the sea, while at night we lay to. On Thursday evening, 1st March, we caught sight of some islands and the mainland ahead but, because it was late, we moved out to sea and lay to till morning. Then we moved on to the next country. On Friday morning when Nicolau Coelho tried to enter the bay, he mistook the channel and noticed some sandbanks. While putting about towards the other ships that were following, he saw a sailing boat approaching from the village behind the island. This promptly went to help the captain and his brother. We, meanwhile, allowed ourselves to drift out to sea because we needed to anchor.
_ 34 _ The further out we went the more they followed us, calling on us to wait for them. When we had anchored in the roadstead off the island, from which the boat had come, seven or eight of their boats or almadias approached us. The crews were blowing some anafils [Moorish trumpets] that they had brought, and indicating to us to go further inshore and they would take us into the port if we so wished. These came aboard our ships and ate and drank what we were having. When they became tired they left. The captains conferred and decided to enter the bay to learn what sort of people we were dealing with. Meanwhile, Nicolau Coelho was to go with his ship and take soundings at the bar and if there was sufficient clearance they would enter. When Nicolau Coelho attempted to approach the island he broke his rudder. No sooner had his ship hit the bank than he freed himself and made for the open sea. I was with him at the time. When we were again in deep water, we furled our sails and dropped anchor two bow-shots from the village. The people of this country are of ruddy complexion and fine physique. They belong to the Mohammedan religion and speak like Moors. Their clothing is of very fine linen
_ 35 _ and cotton, with many coloured stripes, of fine quality and workmanship. They all wear toucas on their heads, with piping of embroidered silk with a golden thread. They are merchants and trade with white Moors, four of whose ships were here in this harbour bringing gold, silver, cloth, cloves, pepper, ginger, silver rings, as well as many pearls, precious stones and rubies. The natives of this country also trade in these articles. According to what they said, we understood that the Moors brought all these things, apart from the gold, by caravan. Moreover, further on, where we were heading, there was an endless supply of them. Indeed, there were so many stones, pearls and spices that there was no need to buy them as they could be collected by the basketful. We learned all this through a sailor whom the captain-major brought with him. He had been a Moorish captive and therefore understood those that we met here. These Moors also told us that on the route that we were following we would encounter many shallows and we would also come across many cities along the coast. We would also find an island, half of whose inhabitants were Christians, the other half Moors. These were at war with each other. There were also many riches on that island.
_ 36 _ Furthermore, they told us that Prester John lived nearby and that he had many cities on the coast whose inhabitants were great merchants and owned large ships. However, Prester John's kingdom lay deep in the interior and it was impossible to reach except by camel. These Moors had brought two Christian prisoners here from India. They recounted these and many other things, which filled us with such happiness that we wept with joy, and we prayed to God that He would be pleased to grant us health so that we might one day see what we so much longed for. This country and island, known as Mozambique, had a chief, just like a viceroy, to whom they gave the title of sultan. He often came to our ships, accompanied by other members of his tribe. The captain served him very fine food. He also presented him with a set of hats and short capes with hoods, some corals and many other articles. Despite this, the chief was so haughty that he disdained whatever was given to him. Instead, he asked us to give him some scarlet cloth, but we had not brought any. However, anything we had we gave him. One day the captain-major gave him a gift consisting of a great quantity of figs and delicacies. In return he asked the chief to allow two pilots to accompany us. He gave his
_ 37 _ consent, provided they were rewarded. The captain-major gave them thirty mitkals of gold and two marlotas [cloaks] each. This was on condition that from the day that they received this remuneration, if either of them wanted to go ashore one would remain on board the ship. They were very pleased with this arrangement. On Saturday, 10 March we departed and we anchored one league out to sea, near an island, so that on Sunday mass would be said, and those who wished could confess and receive communion. One of the pilots had stayed on the island and, after we had anchored, we equipped two boats to catch him. The captain-major went in one boat and Nicolau Coelho in the other. While they were proceeding in this way, five or six boats came out to meet them, full of men, armed with long bows and arrows and shields. These signalled to them that they should return to the town. When the captain-major saw this, he seized the pilot and gave orders to fire the bombards on those who were approaching in the boats. Paulo da Gama remained with the ships so that, should the need arise, he would come to our aid. When he heard the bombards, he set sail in the Bérrio. When the Moors, who had already taken flight, saw
_ 38 _ his ship under sail, they fled even faster and took refuge ashore before the Berrio arrived. We then returned to the anchorage. The ships in this country are large and without decks. They do not have any pegs or nails and are tied together with coir rope. It is the same with the boats, whose sails are made of palm matting. Their sailors have Genoese compasses, quadrants and maps by which they navigate. The palm trees of this country yield a fruit as large as a melon, and the natives eat the kernel, which tastes like tiger nuts. There are also a lot of cucumbers and melons there, which they brought to trade with us. On the day that Nicolau Coelho entered the port, the chief of the island, came aboard his ship with many men. The former gave him a hearty welcome and presented him with a red hood. In return, the chief gave him some black beads, that he used for praying, to act as a surety. He then asked Nicolau Coelho to allow him to go ashore in his boat. This he granted him, and after he had landed, he took those that had accompanied him to his house and invited them to eat. Afterwards he gave orders for them to return, and he sent Nicolau Coelho a jar of crushed dates, made into a
_ 39 _ jam with cloves and cumin. Later on he sent many things to the captain. This was during the time they thought that we were Turks or Moors from another area, because they asked if we had come from Turkey and requested us to show them the bows of our country and the books of our religion. When they learned that we were Christians, they gave orders for us to be seized and treacherously killed, but the pilot whom we had taken with us, revealed to us everything that they intended doing given the opportunity. On Sunday we celebrated mass on the island in the shade of a tall grove and after mass we returned to the ships. We immediately set sail and continued our journey, taking with us many chickens, goats and pigeons which we had received in exchange for some yellow glass beads. On Tuesday we saw a country, with high mountains and a cape. The seaboard of this cape was sparsely covered with a forest of tall trees that looked like elms. The land itself was about twenty leagues at the most from the place from which we had set out. We were becalmed here on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the next night we made our way out to sea with a light easterly wind. When dawn broke we found ourselves four leagues short of Mozambique. That
_ 40 _ day we sailed until the evening and anchored off the island where mass had been said for us the previous Sunday, and there we remained for eight days waiting for a fair wind. In the meantime, the King of Mozambique sent word to us that he wanted to make peace and be our friend. The Ambassador negotiating this peace was a white Moor, who was a sharif (that is, a "cleric"), and a heavy drinker. While we were there, a Moor arrived with his young son. He boarded one of our ships, explaining that he wished to travel with us because he came from near Mecca and had come here to Mozambique to be a pilot of a ship from that country. Since we were not blessed with favourable weather, we entered the port of Mozambique to take on water, which we needed. This was on the other side of the mainland. It was the water drunk by the inhabitants of the island because this was the only water that was not salty. We entered the port on Thursday and at night we launched the longboats. At midnight the the captain-major, Nicloau Coelho and some of us went to find the water. We took the Moorish pilot with us. He was keener on fleeing, if there was any chance, than showing us where the water was. He got into such a muddle that he never managed to show us its location, or did not want to.
_ 41 _ We engaged in this search till morning, then we returned to our ships. During the afternoon we again went ashore with the same pilot. As we approached the watering hole, about twenty of the natives came charging along the beach brandishing spears to defend the water from us. The captain-major ordered three bombards to be fired at them, so as to afford us room to jump ashore. Having made our landing, these men hid in the jungle and we took all the water we wanted. When we withdrew it was nearly sunset, and we discovered a negro who had run away from the pilot João de Coimbra. On Saturday morning, 24 March, the eve of the feast of Our Lady, a Moor approached the ships and said that if we wanted water we should go and get it, thereby giving us to understand that there were people there who would force us to turn back. When the captain-major heard this he was determined that we should go there, so as to show them that we could inflict injury on them if we so wished. Accordingly, with the longboats armed and with bombards in their sterns, we went to the village. The Moors had built strong stockades of thick planks, lashed together in such a way that it was impossible to see those who were behind them. Then they marched along
_ 42 _ the beach with shields, spears, scimitars and bows, and slings with which they fired stones at us. We replied with the bombards to such effect that they decided to abandon the beach and take refuge in the stockade that they had built. This did them more harm than good. After we had been engaged in this exchange for about three hours, we left two men dead there, one killed on the beach and the other inside the stockade. When we had had enough, we returned to the ships to eat. They at once began to flee carrying their belongings in almadias to a village on the other shore. After supper, we went in the boats to see if we could take a few of them prisoner, to use as a ransom for the two Christian Indians they had captured and the negro who had deserted to them. We thus went in pursuit of an almadia belonging to the sharif, which was loaded with clothes, and another that had four negroes, that Paulo da Gama captured. When they reached land, they all took to their heels abandoning the almadia loaded with clothes on the seashore, and we found both craft on the beach. We took the negroes that we captured there to the ships. In the almadias we found many bolts of fine cotton, palm baskets, a glazed pot of butter, bell jars with water, books of their
_ 43 _ religion, and a chest with numerous skeins of cotton thread. We also found a cotton hammock and many baskets full of corn. The captain-major gave all the things that were there to the sailors and the captains that had been with him there, apart from the books which he kept to show the King. The following Sunday we took on water. On the Monday we stood off the town, with our boats armed, and the Moors spoke to us from behind their houses because they did not dare to come to the beach. Having fired a few bombards at them, we went to anchor near the islands of St. George [Goa and Sena] where we stayed for three more days waiting for God to give us fine weather. On Thursday, the twenty-ninth of that month, we left those islands, but because there was little wind, when Saturday morning, the thirtieth (sic) of that month, dawned, we were 28 leagues from the said islands. By the morning of that day we had progressed as far as the land of the Moors, from which we had been forced back by the powerful currents. On Sunday, 1 April, we went to some islands lying parallel to the mainland. The first of these was given the name "The Island of the Flogged Man" [Quisiva] because, on the Saturday evening, the Moorish pilot whom we were taking with us, lied to the captain claiming that
_ 44 _ these islands were the mainland. Because of that, he was flogged. The ships of this country sail between the mainland and the islands where it is four fathoms deep, but we kept out to sea. These islands are numerous and very close together, so we were unable to distinguish one from another. They are also populated. On Monday we caught sight of other islands five leagues out to sea. On Wednesday, 4 April, we left and sailed to the northwest. Before mid-day we caught sight of an extensive landmass and two adjacent islands. This land was surrounded by many shoals and as soon as we came near enough the pilots recognised it and said that the island of the Christians [Kilwa] lay three leagues astern. We then toiled the whole day trying to reach it, but because the westerly wind was strong, we were unable to do so. The captains then decided that we should make for a city called Mombasa, which was four days sailing from us. This was one of the places that we had come to find, because the pilots who brought us to it told us it was Christian. We arrived when it was already late, carried along by a strong wind. At nightfall we saw a very large island [Mafia] lying to the north of us on which, according to the pilots account, there were two towns, one Christian
_ 45 _ the other Moorish. That night we made our way out to sea and when morning came we could no longer see land. Then we proceeded north-westwards, and in the afternoon we again saw land. That night we travelled north by northwest, and during the morning watch we changed course to north-northeast. As we were sailing thus with the wind filling our sails, two hours before dawn, the S. Rafael ran aground on some sandbanks two leagues from the mainland. As soon as it hit bottom the captain warned the others who were following. When they heard his shouts, they dropped anchor a bombard's shot away from him and lowered the boats. At low tide the ship was high and dry and, with the help of the boats, they cast numerous anchors into the sea. When high tide came during the day, the ship broke loose, much to everyone's relief. On the mainland facing these sandbanks there is a towering chain of beautiful mountains. These were named after the St. Rafael and so were the sandbanks. While the ship was stranded, two almadias approached us. They brought a lot of wonderful, sweet oranges both for them and us, better than those from Portugal. Two of the Moors stayed on board and next day went with us to a city known as Mombasa.
_ 46 _ On Saturday morning, 7th of that month and the eve of Palm Sunday, we sailed along the coast and saw some islands fifteen leagues out from the mainland, stretching for about six leagues. On these islands [Pemba], which are all populated with Moors, they make masts for the ships of that country. At sunset, we dropped anchor off the city of Mombasa but did not enter the port. On our arrival, a zavra loaded with Moors came to us. In front of the city were many ships bedecked with flags. Not to be outdone by them, we displayed quite a few of our own, even though we were short of men and the few we had were very sick. We anchored there in high spirits, thinking that we would go ashore the next day to attend mass with the Christians, whom we were assured lived there under their own alcaide, set apart from the Moors. The pilots sailing with us told us that there were Moors and Christians residing on the island of Mombasa, each group living in its own quarter and with its own leader. Moreover, when we arrived, they would treat us with great honour and welcome us into their houses. This was said to give that impression, and not because it was so in reality. At twelve o'clock that night, about a hundred men approached in a zavra, all armed with cutlasses and shields.
_ 47 _ When they reached the captain-major's ship, they wanted to come aboard with their weapons but he did not allow them to. No more than four or five of the most important men came aboard and they spent about two hours with us before leaving. This made us think that they had come to see if it was possible to capture one of our ships. On Palm Sunday the King of Mombasa sent a sheep and a lot of oranges, lemons and sugar cane to the captain-major. He also sent him a ring as a guarantee, and said that if he decided to enter the port he would give him everything that he needed. Two light-skinned men brought these gifts, stating that they were Christians, and we took them at their word. The captain-major sent the King a string of corals and informed him that he would enter the port the following day. The same day four of the leading Moors stayed on the captain's ship, and the captain sent two men to the King of that city to give further assurances of peace. When these went ashore, a large crowd immediately followed them to the palace gate. Before reaching the King, they passed through four doors, flanked by four doorkeepers with drawn cutlasses in their hands.
_ 48 _ When they arrived in the King's presence, he treated them with great hospitality and gave orders for them to be shown the entire city. They were taken to the house of two Christian merchants, who showed the two men a letter, which they venerated. On it was a drawing of the Holy Spirit. When they had seen everything, the King sent them back with samples of cloves, pepper, ginger and corn for the captain, saying that we would be allowed to load them. On Tuesday, while raising the anchor to enter the port, the captain-major's ship was unable to turn and became stuck stern-first on a sandbank, so we dropped the anchors once again. When the Moors who were in our ships, saw that we were not leaving, they piled into a zavra. While we were going backwards, the two pilots whom we had brought from Mozambique, dived into the sea and were picked up by those in the zavra. When night fell, the captain tortured two Moors, from among those we had on board, with boiling oil to make them reveal if any treachery had been ordered. These confessed that they had orders to seize us when we entered the port, and thus avenge what we had done in Mozambique. The captain was about to torture one of them again when he threw himself into the sea, even though his hands were tied. The other jumped overboard during the
_ 49 _ morning watch. One of them again when he threw himself into the sea, even though his hands were tied. The other jumped overboard during the morning watch. At midnight, two almadias arrived full of men, who dived in and swam towards the Berrio, while the almadias kept their distance. Others made for the S. Rafael. Those who went to the Berrio began to cut the cable. The guards thought they were porpoises, but when they realised what was happening they shouted to the other ships. When those who were hanging on to the shrouds of the Rafael's foresail were discovered, they kept quiet, lowered themselves into the water and swam off. Those dogs organised this and other kinds of mischief, but because they did not believe in Him, it was not Our Lord's wish that they should succeed. Mombasa is large and is built on high ground, pounded by the sea. It is a port that many ships enter every day. At its entrance there is a padrão and in the town close to the sea there is a small fortress. Those who went ashore told us that they saw a lot of men in chains walking through the town. In our opinion, these men must have been Christians, because the Christians of this country are at war with the Moors.
_ 50 _ The Christians who are in this city are like resident merchants, who are subjugated and they are not allowed to do anything except what the Moorish King commands. It was God's will that when we approached this city, all the sick men that we had with us promptly recovered, through His mercy, because this country has a very healthy climate. We were still there on Wednesday and Thursday, after realising the malice and treachery that those dogs had tried to commit against us. We left in the morning with a light breeze and anchored close inshore about eight leagues from Mombasa. At dawn we saw two ships to our leeward some three leagues out to sea, and we decided to approach and capture them because we needed pilots to guide us to where we wanted to go. As evening drew in, we made for one of the boats and seized it, while the other took refuge ashore. In the one we took we found seventeen men and some gold, silver and a great quantity of maize and food, as well as a Moorish woman, the wife of an old but honest Moor, who was aboard. As we closed in, they all threw themselves into the sea, and we proceeded to pick them up in our small boats. At sunset on that same day we dropped anchor off
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