Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 1. / The Exploration of the World

by Jules Verne

It is a curious fact that Albuquerque had long heard Ormuz spoken of, but that as yet he was ignorant of its position. He knew that this town served as an entrepôt for all the merchandise passing from Asia into Europe. Its riches and power, the number of its inhabitants and the beauty of its monuments were at that time celebrated throughout the East, so much so that there was a common saying, "If the world be a ring, Ormuz is the precious stone set in it." Albuquerque had resolved to take this town, not only because in itself it was a prize worth having, but also because it commanded the whole of the Persian Gulf, which was the second of the great commercial roads between the East and West. Without saying anything to the captains of his fleet, who, without doubt, would have rebelled at the idea of attacking so strong a town, and the capital of a powerful empire, Albuquerque gave orders to double Cape Mussendom, and the fleet soon entered the Strait of Ormuz, the door of the Persian Gulf, from whence was seen rising in all its magnificence a busy town built upon a rocky island, provided with formidable artillery, and protected by an army amounting to not less than from fifteen to twenty thousand men, while its harbour enclosed a fleet more numerous than could have been suspected at first sight. At this sight the captains made urgent representations upon the danger that Albuquerque would run in attacking so well-prepared a town, and made the most of the plea how very bad an influence a reverse would exercise. To this discourse Albuquerque answered, that indeed "it was a very great affair, but that it was too late to draw back, and that he had greater need of determination than of good advice."

Albuquerque before Ormuz.

Scarcely was the anchor dropped before Albuquerque declared his ultimatum. Although the forces under his orders were very disproportionate in numbers, the Capitam mõr imperiously demanded that Ormuz should recognize the suzerainty of the King of Portugal and submit to his envoy, if it did not wish to share the same fate as Mascati. The King, Seif-Ed-din, who was then reigning over Ormuz, was still a child, and his Prime Minister, Kodja-Atar, a skilful and cunning diplomatist, governed in the king's name. Without denying in principle the pretensions of Albuquerque, the Prime Minister wished to gain time, to allow contingents to arrive for the help of the capital; but the admiral, who guessed his object, did not hesitate, after waiting three days, to attack the formidable fleet at anchor under the guns of Ormuz, with his five vessels and the Flor de la Mar, the finest and largest ship of that time. The combat was bloody and long undecided, but when they saw fortune was against them the Moors, abandoning their vessels, endeavoured to swim on shore. The Portuguese upon this jumped into their boats, pursuing the Moors vigorously, and causing horrible carnage. Albuquerque next directed his efforts against a large wooden jetty defended by numerous guns and by archers, whose well-aimed arrows wounded a number of the Portuguese and the general himself, who, however, was not hindered thereby from landing and proceeding to burn the suburbs of the town. Convinced that resistance would soon be impossible, and that their capital was in danger of being destroyed, the Moors hoisted a flag of truce, and signed a treaty, by which Seif-Ed-din declared himself the vassal of King Emmanuel, promised to pay him an annual tribute of 15,000 seraphins or xarafins, and gave to the conquerors a site for a fortress, which, in spite of the repugnance and reproaches of the Portuguese captains, was soon put into a condition of resistance. Unfortunately some deserters quickly brought these unworthy dissensions to the knowledge of Kodja-Atar, who profited by them to avoid, under various pretexts, fulfilling the execution of the articles of the new treaty. Some days afterwards Joao da Nova and two other captains, jealous of the successes of Albuquerque, and trampling in the dust every sentiment of honour, discipline, and patriotism, left him to go to the Indies; while Albuquerque was obliged by this cowardly desertion to withdraw without being able even to guard the fortress which he had been at so much pains to construct. He went to Socotra, where the garrison was in need of help, and then returned to cruise before Ormuz, but thinking himself too weak to undertake anything, he retired for a time to Goa, arriving there at the end of the year 1508.

What had been occurring on the Malabar coast during this long and adventurous campaign? The answer may be summed up in a few lines. It will be remembered that Almeida had set out from Belem in 1505 with a fleet of twenty-two sail, carrying soldiers to the number of 1500 men. First he seized Quiloa and then Mombaz, of which the "cavaliers, as the inhabitants loved to repeat, did not yield as easily as the chicken hearts of Quiloa." Out of the enormous booty, which by the fall of this town fell into the hands of the Portuguese, Almeida only took one arrow as his share of the spoil, thus giving a rare example of disinterestedness. After having stopped at Melinda he went on to Cochin, where he delivered to the Rajah the golden crown sent to him by Emmanuel, whilst he himself, with the presumptuous vanity of which he gave so many proofs, assumed the title of viceroy. Then, after commencing a fortress at Sofala, destined to overawe the Mussulmen of that coast, Almeida and his son, Lorenzo, scoured the Indian Seas, destroying the Malabar fleets, capturing some trading vessels, and causing great injury to the enemy, whose accustomed commercial roads were thus intercepted. But for this cruising warfare a numerous fleet of light vessels was needed, for there was scarcely any other harbour of refuge except Cochin upon the Asiatic coast. How preferable was Albuquerque's system of establishing himself in the country in a permanent manner, by constructing fortresses in all directions, by seizing upon the most powerful cities, whence it was easy to branch off into the interior of the country, by rendering himself master of the keys of the straits, and thus ensuring with much less risk, and more solidity, the monopoly of the Indian commerce.

Meantime the victories of Almeida, and the conquests of Albuquerque had much disquieted the Sultan of Egypt. The abandonment of the Alexandrian route caused a great diminution in the amount of imposts and dues of customs, anchorage, and transit, which were laid upon the merchandise of Asia as it passed through his states. Therefore, with the help of the Venetians, who furnished him with the wood for ship-building as well as with skilful sailors, he fitted out a squadron of twelve large ships, which came as far as Cochin, seeking the fleet of Lorenzo d'Almeida, and defeating it in a bloody combat in which Lorenzo was killed. If the sorrow of the viceroy were great at this sad news, at least he did not let it appear outwardly, but set to work to make all preparations for taking prompt vengeance upon the Roumis,—an appellation which shows the lasting terror attaching to the name of the Romans, and commonly used at this time upon the Malabar coast, for all Mussulman soldiers coming from Byzantium. With nineteen sail Almeida appeared before the fort where his son had been killed, and gained a great victory, but one sullied, it must be confessed, by most frightful cruelties, so much so that it soon became a common saying: "May the anger of the Franks fall upon thee as it fell upon Daboul." Not content with this first success, Almeida, some weeks later, annihilated the combined forces of the Sultan of Egypt, and the Rajah of Calicut, before Diu. This victory made a profound impression in India, and put an end to the power of the Mahumetists of Egypt.

Joao da Nova and the other captains, who had abandoned Albuquerque before Ormuz, had decided to rejoin Almeida; they had excused their disobedience by calumnies, in consequence of which a judicial process was about to be instituted against Albuquerque, when the viceroy received the news of his being replaced in his office by Albuquerque. At first Almeida declared that obedience must be rendered to this sovereign decree, but afterwards influenced by the traitors, who feared that they would be severely punished when the power had passed into the hands of Albuquerque, he repaired to Cochin in the month of March, 1509, with the fixed determination not to give up the command to his successor. There were disagreeable and painful disputes between these two great men, in which all the wrong done was on the side of Almeida. Albuquerque was about to be sent to Lisbon with chains on his feet, when a fleet of fifteen sail entered the harbour, under the command of the grand Marshal of Portugal, Ferdinand Coutinho. The latter took the part of the prisoner, whom he immediately released, notifying again to Almeida the powers held by Albuquerque from the king, and threatening him with the great anger of Emmanuel if he refused to obey. Almeida could do nothing but yield, and he then did it nobly. As for Joao da Nova, the author of these sad misunderstandings, he died some time afterwards, forsaken by everybody, and had scarcely any one to follow him to the grave except the new viceroy, who thus generously forgot the injuries done to Alfonzo Albuquerque.

Immediately after the departure of Almeida, the grand Marshal Coutinho declared that, having come to India with the intention of destroying Calicut, he intended to turn to account the absence of the Zamorin from his capital. In vain the new viceroy endeavoured to modify his zeal and induce him to take the wise measures recommended by experience. Coutinho would listen to nothing, and Albuquerque was obliged to follow him. Calicut, taken by surprise, was easily set on fire; but the Portuguese, having lingered to pillage the Zamorin's palace, were fiercely attacked in rear by the Nairs, who had succeeded in rallying their troops. Coutinho, whose impetuous valour led him into the greatest danger, was killed, and it required all the skill and coolness of the viceroy to effect a re-embarkation of the troops under the enemy's fire, and to preserve the soldiers of the King of Portugal from total destruction.

On his return to Cintagara, a sea-port which was a dependency of the King of Narsingue, with whom the Portuguese had been able to form an alliance, Albuquerque learnt that Goa, the capital of a powerful kingdom, was a prey to political and religious anarchy. Several chiefs were contending there for power. One of them, Melek Çufergugi, was just on the point of seizing the throne, and it was important to profit by the circumstances of the moment, and attack the town before he should have been able to gather a force capable of resisting the Portuguese. The viceroy perceived all the importance of this counsel. The situation of Goa, giving access as it did to the kingdom of Narsingue and to the Deccan, had already struck him forcibly. He did not delay, and soon the Portuguese reckoned one conquest more. Goa the Golden, a cosmopolitan town, where were mingled with all the various sects of Islam Parsees, the worshippers of Fire, and even some Christians, submitted to Albuquerque, and soon became, under a wise and strict government which understood how to conciliate the sympathies of opposing sects, the capital, the chief fortress, and the principal seat of trade of the Portuguese empire of the Indies.

By degrees and with the course of years the knowledge of these rich countries had increased. Much information had been gathered together by all those who had ploughed these sunny seas in their gallant vessels, and it was now known what was the centre of production of those spices which people went so far to seek, and for whose acquisition they encountered so many perils. It was already several years since Almeida had founded the first Portuguese factories in Ceylon, the ancient Taprobane. The Islands of Sunda, and the Peninsula of Malacca, were now exciting the desires of King Emmanuel, who had already been surnamed "the fortunate." He resolved to send a fleet to explore them, for Albuquerque had enough to do in India to restrain the trembling Rajahs, and the Mussulmen—Moors as they were then called—who were always ready to shake off the yoke. This new expedition was under the command of Diego Lopez Sequeira, and according to the traditional policy of the Moors, was at first amicably received at Malacca; but when the suspicions of Lopez Sequeira had been lulled to sleep by reiterated protestations of alliance, the whole population suddenly rose against him, and he was forced to return on board, but not without leaving thirty of his companions in the hands of the Malays. These events had already happened some time when the news of the taking of Goa arrived at Malacca. The bendarra, or Minister of Justice, who exercised regal power in the name of his nephew who was still a child, fearing the vengeance which the Portuguese would doubtless exact for his treachery, resolved to pacify them. He went to visit his prisoners, excused himself to them by swearing that all had been done unknown to him and against his will, for he desired nothing so much as to see the Portuguese establish themselves in Malacca; also he was about to order the authors of the treason to be sought out and punished. The prisoners naturally gave no credence to these lying declarations, but profiting by the comparative liberty which was henceforth granted to them, they cleverly succeeded in conveying to Albuquerque some valuable information upon the position and strength of the town.

Albuquerque with much trouble collected a fleet of nineteen men of war, carrying fourteen hundred men, amongst whom there were only eight hundred Portuguese. This being the case, ought he to venture in obedience to the wish of King Emmanuel to steer for Aden, the key of the Red Sea, which it was important to master in preparation for opposing the passage of a new squadron, which the Sultan of Egypt was intending to send to India? Albuquerque hesitated, when a change in the trade-winds occurred which put an end to his irresolution. In fact, it was impossible to reach Aden in the teeth of the prevailing wind, while it was favourable for a descent upon Malacca. This town, at that time in its full splendour, did not contain less than 100,000 inhabitants. If many of the houses were built of wood, and roofed with the leaves of the palm-tree, yet they were equalled in number by the more important buildings, such as mosques and towers built of stone, which stretched out in a long panorama for the distance of three miles. The ships of India, China, and of the Malay kingdoms of the Sunda Islands, met in its harbour, where numerous vessels coming from the Malabar coast, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, and the coast of Africa traded in merchandise of all kinds and of every country.