This video is part of a series of 12 animated maps.
▶ View series: The Portuguese and Spanish Empires
SubscribePortuguese expansion in the Indian Ocean
This map is part of a series of 12 animated maps showing the history of The Portuguese and Spanish Empires.
Portuguese expansion in the Indian Ocean, after Vasco da Gama’s first voyage, was remarkable.
In 1505, Francisco da Almeida was named Viceroy of India. He built up a powerful fleet and established a series of trading posts and fortified sites.
In 1509, his victory in the naval battle of Diu against the combined fleets of the Mamluks of Egypt and the King of Calicut proved the Portuguese claim that they were now a superior maritime power.
Afonso de Albuquerque, the second Viceroy of India, continued to encourage the development of trading posts and extended the presence of the Portugueseeast of the Indian peninsula.
In 1510 the Portuguese took the city of Goa.
In 1511 they controlled the key commercial centre at Malacca.
In 1512 they explored the Malay Archipelago and expanded their influence as far as the Spice Islands and New Guinea.
In 1515 they took over Ormuz.
In 1518 they began to settle in Sri Lanka.
In 1529 the Treaty of Saragossa established a line separating the Spanish and Portuguese zones to the east of the Spice Islands and confirmed Portugal’s domination of trade in the Indian Ocean.