Vasco da Gama was a famous navigator and Portuguese explorer. In the Age of Discovery, he was noted for having been the commander of the first ships that sailed directly from Europe to India. Manuel, I entrusted him with the command of a small squadron, with the title of captain-chief of the fleet, and on a Saturday, July 8, 1497, sailed from the port of Santa Maria de Belem, on the banks of the Tajo River (Lisbon) with the intention of bordering the African coast, to bend the Cape of Good Hope and to go in search of India.
