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A review by penguin_emperor_of_the_north
Holy War: How Vasco Da Gama's Epic Voyages Turned the Tide in a Centuries-Old Clash of Civilizations by Nigel Cliff
3.0
It's always amazing to see the details behind well known events. In school I was taught that the Portuguese voyages to reach India were driven by a desire to access India's wealth, end of story. And that's true as far as it goes but Mr. Cliff spends a great deal of time explaining how the Portuguese viewed it as a Crusade to flank the Muslims of the Middle East, link up with lost Christian empires in India and to cut off their cash flow. I guess two out of three ain't bad.
Mr. Cliff starts out with the background such as the rise of Islam, the Muslim conquest of Iberia, the fall of Byzantium and the Reconquista but also the legend of Prester John. A mighty Christian king supposedly living in the Indies on the far side of the Muslim Ottoman and Mamluk empires. Apparently, the reasoning was that if the Western Christians could only link up with Prester John they could launch a two fronted Crusade to retake Jerusalem.
After this set up he launches into the initial voyages of discovery down Africa's west coast that charted they way later followed by Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama. The majority of the book is taken up with Vasco da Gama's first voyage to reach India. His visits and attempts to establish relations with the Muslims of East Africa were quite interesting and the first Christian encounter with Hindus in India was sort of amusing (apparently the first reaction was, "they ain't Muslims so they must be Christians, not sure what's up with these blue, four armed saints though").
Then he moves onto the first arrival in India. Apparently the local rulers were unimpressed with the Portuguese trade goods and then tried to hold them hostage because they hadn't brought the customary gold tribute. Needless to say they got off to a bad start. The book culminates with describing how Portugal set up it's Asian colonial empire. One da Gama proved that the voyage was possible with three light ships, eighteen heavy war ships made the voyage and really shifted the balance of power in Portuguese-Indian negotiations.
On a final note, the book does delve into how the Portuguese operated after establishing their beachhead. To put it mildly they were brutal, forced conversions and slavery were only the start of it. Granted, the local Indian rulers didn't seem likely to treat the Portuguese any better were the situations reversed but it disgusts me that some of these actions were performed in the name of Jesus Christ.
Overall, I'm impressed by the perseverance and the hardships the Portuguese overcame to establish contact between India and Europe but am still shamed that this prelude to imperialism was done under the aegis of Christianity.
Mr. Cliff starts out with the background such as the rise of Islam, the Muslim conquest of Iberia, the fall of Byzantium and the Reconquista but also the legend of Prester John. A mighty Christian king supposedly living in the Indies on the far side of the Muslim Ottoman and Mamluk empires. Apparently, the reasoning was that if the Western Christians could only link up with Prester John they could launch a two fronted Crusade to retake Jerusalem.
After this set up he launches into the initial voyages of discovery down Africa's west coast that charted they way later followed by Bartolomeu Dias and Vasco da Gama. The majority of the book is taken up with Vasco da Gama's first voyage to reach India. His visits and attempts to establish relations with the Muslims of East Africa were quite interesting and the first Christian encounter with Hindus in India was sort of amusing (apparently the first reaction was, "they ain't Muslims so they must be Christians, not sure what's up with these blue, four armed saints though").
Then he moves onto the first arrival in India. Apparently the local rulers were unimpressed with the Portuguese trade goods and then tried to hold them hostage because they hadn't brought the customary gold tribute. Needless to say they got off to a bad start. The book culminates with describing how Portugal set up it's Asian colonial empire. One da Gama proved that the voyage was possible with three light ships, eighteen heavy war ships made the voyage and really shifted the balance of power in Portuguese-Indian negotiations.
On a final note, the book does delve into how the Portuguese operated after establishing their beachhead. To put it mildly they were brutal, forced conversions and slavery were only the start of it. Granted, the local Indian rulers didn't seem likely to treat the Portuguese any better were the situations reversed but it disgusts me that some of these actions were performed in the name of Jesus Christ.
Overall, I'm impressed by the perseverance and the hardships the Portuguese overcame to establish contact between India and Europe but am still shamed that this prelude to imperialism was done under the aegis of Christianity.