Henry the Navigator

Henry became fascinated with Africa

A continent which the Portuguese knew little about

Henry is regarded as an originator of the

Age of Discovery and the Atlantic slave trade.

He became aware of Africa's many resources

And wanted to exploit for Portugal's personal gain.

Henry started a school for navigation in Sagres, at the southwestern tip of Portugal, where he taught

Geography, map making, navigation, cartography, shipbuilding, and instrument making.

Henry first started to become fascinated in navigation when

Henry, his father and his older brothers led an attack on Ceuta, a town in Morocco along the Strait of Gibraltar in 1415.

Some of his sponsored explorations were

In 1415 when his ships reached the Canary Islands, and when in 1418, the Portuguese came upon the Madeira Islands and established a colony at Porto Santo.

He was the third surviving son of

King John I and Philippa of Lancaster.

The Age of Discovery is the

Period when European nations expanded their reach to Africa, Asia, and America

Born in

Porto, Portugal in 1394

The attack succeeded, and Ceuta fell under

Portuguese control.

Henry himself wasn't a sailor or navigator but he did

Sponsor many exploratory sea voyages

He developed a desire to learn about

The Muslims who lived there so he could conquer them and spread Christianity.

Henry died in 1460 in Sagres, Portugal. When he died

The Portuguese explorers and traders had advanced as far as the region of modern-day Sierra Leone.

He sponsored Nuno Tristao's exploration of the African coast, and Antao Goncalves's hunting expedition there in 1441.

The two men captured several Africans and brought them back to Portugal.One of the captured men, a chief, negotiated his own return to Africa, promising in exchange to provide the Portuguese with more Africans.

It would be another 28 years before

Vasco de Gama, would sail clear around Africa and complete an expedition to India.

Portuguese knew almost nothing about Africa, but under Henry's orders, Portuguese sailors moved

beyond Bojador. By 1436, they had traveled as far as the Rio de Oro.

Because of him, Portuguese crews founded the country's

first colonies and visited regions previously unknown to Europeans.

Although he was neither a sailor nor a navigator, he

sponsored a great deal of exploration along the west coast of Africa.

Henry the Navigator, a 15th century Portuguese prince, helped usher

the Age of Discovery and the Atlantic slave trade.