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Portuguese explorer who became the first man to sail around the Cape of
Good Hope to India. In 1497, King
Manuel I of Portugal commissioned
Da Gama to lead a four-ship expedition
to pioneer an ocean route to India.
After rounding the Cape, Da Gama
sailed up the east coast of Africa and
across the Arabian Sea to India. He
arrived at Calicut in May, 1498. Moslem
traders resented the arrival of the
Portuguese because they feared their
competition. The Moslems influenced
the Indian ruler, and, as a result. Da
Gama and his men had a cool recep-
tion. Before they returned to Portugal,
however, the ruler of Calicut laid down
his terms for trade with Portugal, and
the way to further transactions was
open. In 1502-1503, Da Gama made
a second voyage to India to establish
Portuguese supremacy in the Arabian
Sea, and in the trading ports of India.
D'Albuquerque, Afonso (1453- 1515) Portuguese viceroy of India for six years from 1509. During his rule he conquered Goa, Malacca, and Hormuz, and sent the first Portuguese expe- dition to the Spice Islands. Plotters in Lisbon caused him to be recalled in 1515.
DARWIN, CHARLES ROBERT (1809-1882) British naturalist and discoverer
of the principle of natural selection.
His father intended that he should
become a clergyman, but Darwin was
more interested in natural science. In
1831, he accepted the post of honorary
naturalist aboard H.M.S. Beagle, a
scientific survey vessel headed for
South American waters. The voyage
lasted nearly five years, during which
time Darwin traveled widely in South
America, studying plants and animals.
From his geological observations, he
became convinced that the earth had
evolved over millions of years, rather
than being created in seven days, as
was generally believed at that time.
Darwin's observations of animals in
the Galapagos Islands led him to his
theory of evolution, which he published under the title on the Origin of
Species by Means of Natural Selection.
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