Portuguese expedition to Rio Grande (1447)

Portuguese expedition to Rio Grande (1447)
Date	1447
Location	Rio Grande, South of Cap-Vert
Result	Native victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Portugal	Natives
Commanders and leaders
Nuno Tristão †	Unknown
Strength
22 sailors	80 armed men; 13 cannons
Casualties and losses
Heavy	Unknown

The Portuguese expedition to Rio Grande (1447) was an expedition led by Nuno Tristão to explore the coast of Cape Verde, he was resisted by the inhabitants, which ended the expedition in failure.

Background

In 1446, Nuno Tristão doubled Cape Verde ninety miles to the north of the mouth of the Gambia River. Nuno got into touch with the locals at Cape Verde and agreed on a treaty of friendship and commerce with them. Afterwards, ships were sent from Portugal every year to trade with them.^[2]

Expedition

In 1447, Nuno made his final voyage to explore the coast to the south of Cape Verde. He stood out to sea from that point and consequently failed to discover the mouth of the Gambia River. Eventually he reached the Rio Grande. However, he was met with hostility, his party was attacked by the natives and he himself was killed.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Zurara (1453, ch.30)".
^ Gray, J.M (1940). The History of the Gambia. London: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-51196-5.

[Zurara-1] "Zurara (1453, ch.30)".

[renamed_from_1_on_20240924110000-2] Gray, J.M (1940). The History of the Gambia. London: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-51196-5.

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