The Portuguese Atlantic, 1415–1808

• Main Author: Russell-Wood, A J R
• Format: Book Part
• Language: unknown
• Published: Oxford University PressNew York, NY 2008
• Subjects: Arctic; Greenland; Labrador Sea
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195320336.003.0004; https://academic.oup.com/book/chapter-pdf/52495965/isbn-9780195320336-book-part-4.pdf

Abstract In 1415 Prince Henry, “The Navigator,” participated in the capture of the Muslim city of Ceuta in Morocco, marking the beginning of a formal Portuguese presence outside continental Europe. In 1822 Brazil declared its independence from Portugal. In the intervening centuries, Portuguese navigators sailed as far north as the Arctic Circle and west of Greenland and the Labrador Sea, and pioneered southeast and southwest passages from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean and the Pacific, respectively. The Portuguese Crown claimed sovereignty over Atlantic archipelagoes and the territories bordering the Atlantic in continental Africa and South America. Merchants created networks of trade as far north as the Baltic and as far south as Benguela and RÍo de la Plata. Portuguese settled islands and continents bordering the Atlantic and established towns, cities, and institutions. Portuguese became the most widely spoken European language in the Atlantic sphere. By exposing them to Christianity and slavery, Portuguese transformed the lives of millions of Amerindians and Africans.