Henry the Navigator Though Prince

Henry the Navigator Though Prince Henry of the House of Aviz of Portugal is often known as the Navigator, this title is something of a misnomer. Though Henry sponsored many expeditions of discovery and funded a lot of chart and map making, he never actually went on any of these voyages himself. Still, in no way does this diminish from his accomplishments. He was among the first Europeans to truly recognize the importance of the Atlantic Ocean and trade with Africa.

Though all of the results of this might not be looked on too kindly by history, his (or rather, his fleet's) discovery and charting of various African lands proved substantially significant to the history of Europe and the rest of the world. Henry's sponsorship pushed expeditions farther along the coast of Africa -- indeed, farther in general -- than any other prior expeditions, but that is not where the significance of his achievements ends.

His expeditions were so successful, at least in terms of distance, because Henry had ships designed for this specific purpose. It was Henry's desire to have the world explored in the name of Portugal that led to these brand new boats; boats which propelled Portugal to the forefront of world exploration. The caravel, as the ship developed under Henry's patronage was called, was lighter and faster than all previous long-distance sailing vessels, and faster speeds meant shorter traveling times, making supplying long journeys more feasible.

Finding a sea route that would enable faster and more profitable trade with the Indies became a paramount goal during this period, and Portugal's lead in this arena led to something of almost unparalleled historical significance -- the crossing of the Atlantic by three ships under the command of Christopher Columbus. Key Points: Henry was born on March 4, 1394 to King John I of Portugal and Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, a prince of the Plantagenet family of England. He was their third son, but still a prince.

His interest in navigation in general and Africa specifically began when his father conquered the Muslim port of Ceuta on the northern coats of Africa, across the Straits of Gibraltar from Portugal, in 1415.

Other navigational goals he had, such as locating the source of gold in the West African gold trade, finding the legendary Christian kingdom of Prester John in the Middle East, and stopping pirate attacks on the Portuguese coast were not possible with the large, slow ships used to sail the Mediterranean, which led to the development of the lighter and faster caravel under Henry's direction.

Henry received much of the funding for his expeditions not from the coffers of the Portuguese government but from his position as governor of the immensely wealthy Order of Christ, which was the group formed by the Portuguese Knights Templar when.