Antão Gonçalves was a 15th century Portuguese explorer and slave trader who was the first European to take Africans as slaves.
In 1441, Gonçalves was sent by Henry the Navigator to explore the West African coast in an expedition under the command of Nuno Tristão. As Gonçalves was considerably younger than Tristão, his duty was less exploration than it was hunting the Mediterranean monk seals that inhabit West Africa. After he had filled his small vessel with seal skins, Gonçalves, on his own initiative, decided to capture some Africans to return to Portugal. With nine of his crewmen, Gonçalves captured an Azenegue Berber and a black tribesman who had worked as a slave for the Berbers.
By this time, Tristão had arrived at the same place, and the two crews joined together for another raid inland, on which they took 10 slaves, one of them an Azenegue chief. After this, Tristão continued exploration southwards while Gonçalves returned to Portugal.
He embarked on another expedition in 1442, taking the Azenegue chief he had captured the year before. Gonçalves hoped to barter the chief for a number of the Azenegues' black slaves. He received 10 slaves, some gold dust and, curiously, a large number of ostrich eggs. However, this expedition contributed nothing to the cause of exploration; Gonçalves had not even sailed past the Río de Oro.
See also
Reference
- Castlereagh, Duncan. Encyclopedia of Discovery and Exploration - The Great Age of Exploration. Aldus Books London, 1971.
Last updated: 05-27-2005 23:09:58
