The History of the Lands across the Atlantic 1440 1820 Research Paper

The History of the Lands across the Atlantic 1440 1820 - Research Paper Example The Portuguese chronicler, Azarura identifies that there were nearly 1,000 African slaves in Portugal by 1446. He was the head of the royal library. In his account of events in The Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of Guinea, he gave a vivid account of the separation of African slaves from their families during one of such journeys. He said of the Africans: â€Å"faces bathed in tears †¦ others stuck their faces with the palms of their hand, throwing themselves upon the ground† However, this kind of activity was not seen as cruelty. Rather, the Portuguese saw it as an opportunity to 'civilize' the Africans and introduce them to Christianity. The Portuguese government-sponsored explorations of new lands across Africa. This was done through a school of navigators that was funded by the Royal government of Portugal. Also, there were private interests because the Portuguese Crown promised the monopoly and control of new lands discovered by private sailors to the individ uals who found them. Some of the notables were Prince Henry the Navigator. The main commodities the Portuguese sailors sought was ivory, gold, spices, and slaves. Prince Henry, who was a notable royal and sailor explored the African coastline as far as Senegal and Sierra Leone by 1460. In 1469, Fernando Gomes discovered the island of Sao Tome which is 350 miles away from the African coast. In 1471, the Portuguese landed in Elmina, now part of Ghana. They moved further to the Benin Kingdom which is now a part of Nigeria.