International News
During the Age of Exploration
Portuguese Exploration
Prince Henry was the leader of International Exploration for Portugal. Prince Henry himself was not doing the exploring, he sponsored the widespread exploration of the world. His explorers discovered the Madeira and Azorean Islands, by 1415 they expanded into the port of Ceuta in North Africa. In 1519, there was a man named Ferdinand Magellan, who was a nobleman and led 5 ships to find a way to reach the pacific. In 1520, his fleet went around the tip of South America. After the fleet got around the tip they entered Balboa's South Sea, Magellan later renamed the sea the Pacific, which in Latin means peaceful. When the fleet reached the Philippines, they got into a fight with the locals and Magellan would be killed in battle. The rest of the fleet who survived would be the first people to circumnavigate the world. Antonio Pigafetta was a survivor of the trip and would say "I believe of a certainty that no one will ever again make such a voyage." Portugal was one of the most influential countries to impact exploration around the world.