Portugal was largely responsible for introducing the slave trade to the Americas through colonies on previously uninhabited Atlantic African islands that served as collection points for captives and commodities.īy the time Henry died in 1460, Portuguese sailors and settlers had reached as far as modern-day Sierra Leone, and formed active colonies on the islands of Porto Santo, Madeira and the Azores. In the decades to come, John’s son Prince Henry the Navigator financed numerous expeditions along the western coast of Africa, aimed at spreading Christianity and making Portugal rich with profits from gold, spices and slaves. In 1415, a Portuguese fleet crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and captured the heavily fortified Moroccan port of Ceuta, announcing Portugal’s arrival on the world stage. Its depiction of the Atlantic Ocean stretches from Scandinavia down to the Rio de Oro. Gabriel de Valseca's 'Portolan Map' from 1439 documents discoveries of the captains of the Portuguese Prince Henry the Navigator.
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