Prince Henry The Navigator In Portugal, Infante D. Henrique Of Portugal

“The meeting of two eternities, the past and future….is precisely the present moment.” Infante D. Henrique of Portugal, better know as Prince Henry the Navigator, was born in Portugal in 1394. During his time alive, Henry was a big supporter of multiple sea voyages, mapping the west African coast along the way. Henry not only encouraged sailors in his homeland, but was also able to spread encouragement to other sea explorers for years to come. Without Henry the Navigator, Europe would lose one of its key players in the Age of Exploration, stopping Europe’s further development for some time. On March 4, 1394, Prince Henry the Navigator was born to King John I of Portugal and Philippa of Lancaster in Porto, Portugal. Henry had 11 siblings total, 3 of which were half siblings, and
In 1425, one of Henry’s brothers, Pedro, set out on a journey through Europe. Once Pedro had visited Italy, in 1428, he returned home with a translated copy of Marco Polo’s travels for Henry. From this point on, Pedro had created an enthusiasm for geography in Henry. By 1433, Henry’s older brother, Duarte, was named king, succeeding his father, only to die a year later. Duarte’s son, Alfonso V, was the heir to the throne, but was only 6 at the time. Before Alfonso V’s mother could name Henry as regent, one of his other brothers, Pedro, had already assumed the role. During this time, Henry started to venture to other lands, sailing farther down the Atlantic coast. Henry continued on to sponsor multiple sea voyages along the West African coast. In 1441, Cape Blanco was reached by Nuno Tristao and Antao Goncalves. During the same year, the two men Henry had been sponsoring captured Africans in the area and brought them back to Portugal. One particular African, a chief, promised to exchange some of his own people in order to return home. Due to this, Portugal began to become more involved in the slave