In the fifteen sail of vessels composing the second expedition, there were “eight hundred men at arms, honourable men, and many gentlemen of birth, with the captain-major and others, his relations and friends, with the captains.”[23] Each soldier had three cruzados a month, and one for his maintenance on shore, besides the privilege of shipping on his own account two quintals of pepper, at a nominal rate of freight, and subject only to a small tax, “paid towards the completion of the monastery at Belem.” Considerably greater space was allowed in the ship to the masters, pilots, bombardiers, and other officers, a practice which prevailed to our own time in the ships of the English East India Company.
“When the fleet was quite ready to set sail from the river off Lisbon, after cruising about with a great show of banners, and standards, and crosses of Christ on all the sails, and saluting with much artillery, they went to Belem, where the crews were mustered, each captain with his crew, all dressed in livery and galas, and the king was present, and showed great favour and honour to all.”[24] Here the fleet lay for three days, and when the wind became fair, the king went in his barge to each ship, dismissing them with good wishes, the whole of the squadron saluting him with trumpets as they took their departure.
Reaches Mozambique and Quiloa, where De Gama makes known his power,
With the exception of some sickness, when crossing the equator in the vicinity of Guinea, of which one of the captains and a few of the men died, the expedition had a favourable passage round the Cape of Good Hope, but immediately afterwards encountered a heavy gale, which lasted for six days. During this storm most of the vessels were dispersed and one of them lost, though her crew and cargo were saved. When the weather moderated, each ship, in accordance with previous instructions, steered for Mozambique as the appointed rendezvous, where they again assembled under the captain-major, some of them, however, having joined company before reaching that place. Here the sheikh, who does not appear to have been the same person who held that office on Gama’s first expedition, sent to the ships presents of cows, sheep, goats, and fowls, for which, however, the captain-major paid, and ordered a piece of scarlet cloth to be given to him. From Mozambique the expedition proceeded to Quiloa, but remembering the treachery of the king of that place, De Gama, after he had moved his fleet within range of the town, sent the following message to his sable majesty: “Go,” he said to an ambassador whom the king had sent on board, “go and say to the king that this fleet is of the king of Portugal, lord of the sea and of the land, and I am come here to establish with him good peace and friendship and trade, and for this purpose let him come to me to arrange all this, because it cannot be arranged by messenger. And in the name of the king of Portugal, I give him a safe conduct to come and return, without receiving any harm, even though we should not come to an agreement; and if he should not come, I will at once send people on shore, who will go to his house to take and bring him.”[25]
and threatens to capture the city.
The king, on receipt of this apparently friendly, but very peremptory message, was with his chiefs amazed and greatly alarmed. Having held a council, he despatched a reply to the captain-major, that he would send him a signed paper to the effect that he and his crew might land freely, if no injury were done to him or the city. De Gama, however, resolved to put pressure upon the king; who, over persuaded by a crafty and rich Moor, ventured on board the ship of the Portuguese admiral, with large, and, so far as we can judge, true professions of friendship and amity.
But the captain-major required something more than this. “If,” said he, “the king of Quiloa became a friend of the king, his sovereign, he must also do as did the other kings and sovereigns who newly became his friends, which was that each year he should pay a certain sum of money or a rich jewel, which they did as a sign that by this yearly payment it was known that they were in good friendship.”[26] In a word, that he should subject himself and his dominion to the government of Portugal. The African king seems to have clearly understood and felt the force of this plausible mode of abdicating his sovereign rights, for he replied, “That to have to pay each year money or a jewel was not a mode of good friendship, because it was tributary subjection, and was like being a captive; and, therefore, if the captain-major was satisfied with good peace and friendship without exactions, he was well pleased, but that to pay tribute would be his dishonour.” The captain-major, however, cared little for anything except submission. “I am the slave of the king, my sovereign,” he haughtily replied, “and all the men whom you see here, and who are in that fleet, will do that which I command; and know for certain, that if I chose, in one single hour your city would be reduced to embers; and if I chose to kill your people, they would all be burned in the fire.” Thus the Western nations, under the plea of peace and friendship, and on the pretence at first of only desiring to establish factories for the purposes of peaceful and mutually beneficial commerce, became lords of the East, and for centuries exercised a dominion founded on despotism and injustice over its native sovereigns. The king of Quiloa might remonstrate as he pleased, submission was his only course. “If I had known,” he replied, with great warmth and energy, “that you intended to make me a captive, I would not have come, but have fled to the woods, for it is better to be a jackal at large than a greyhound bound with a golden leash.”[27] “Go on shore and fly to the woods,” said the now exasperated representative of the Christian king—“go on shore to the woods, for I have greyhounds who will catch you there, and fetch you by the ears, and drag you to the beach, and take you away with an iron ring round your neck, and show you throughout India, so that all might see what would be gained by not choosing to be the captive of the king of Portugal.” And this Christian speech was accompanied with an order to his captains “to go to their ships, and bring all the crews armed, and go and burn the city.”
His unjust demands.
As De Gama refused to grant the king even one hour for consultation, he submitted, and this submission, having been ratified on a leaf of gold, and signed by the king and all who were with him, presents were exchanged, while the rich Arab, whose treachery soon afterwards became known, was left on board, by way of security for the delivery of other articles which had been promised; but the king sent word that Mahomed Arcone “might pay himself, since he had deceived him.” On receipt of this information the captain-major became very angry with the rich Moor, and ordered him and the Moors who had accompanied him to be “stripped naked, and bound hand and foot, and put into his boat, and to remain thus roasting in the sun until they died, since they had deceived him; and when they were dead he would go on shore and seek the king, and do as much for him, lading his ships with the wealth of the city, and making captive slaves of its women and children.” It was not, however, necessary to carry into effect these terrible threats. The Moor sent to fetch from his house a ransom, valued at 10,000 cruzados (£1,000 sterling), which he gave with other perquisites to the “Christian” ambassador, who immediately afterwards pursued his voyage to Melinde.
Arrives at Melinde.