Vasco da Gama
Sailed from Lisbon in 1497 around the Cape of Good Hope and reached Calicut in 1498, opening the sea route from Europe to India; he died in India.
| Lived | c. 1469 – 1524 |
| Known as | Navigator |
| Birthplace or main place | Lisbon |
| Places on the map | Lisbon, Calicut, Goa |
LisbonSee the world of Vasco da Gama in the interactive map
Who ruled these places in his lifetime
| Place | At birth (map of 1400) | At death (map of 1500) |
|---|---|---|
| Lisbon | Portugal | same |
| Calicut | Sultanate of Delhi | Vijayanagara |
| Goa | Sultanate of Delhi | Vijayanagara |
From the border maps nearest to each date; borders are approximate.
Events in his lifetime
| Year | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 1497 | Vasco da Gama sails from Lisbon for India | Lisbon |
| 1498 | Vasco da Gama reaches Calicut, opening the sea route from Europe | Calicut |
| 1510 | Afonso de Albuquerque captures Goa | Goa |
Further reading
Contemporaries
| Lived | Person | |
|---|---|---|
| c. 1443 – 1538 | Askia Muhammad | Emperor of Songhai |
| 1469 – 1527 | Niccolò Machiavelli | Political thinker |
| 1471 – 1528 | Albrecht Dürer | Painter and printmaker |
| 1471 – 1529 | Krishnadevaraya | Emperor of Vijayanagara |
| c. 1466 – 1520 | Moctezuma II | Aztec emperor |
| 1473 – 1543 | Nicolaus Copernicus | Astronomer |
| 1452 – 1519 | Leonardo da Vinci | Painter and inventor |
| 1475 – 1564 | Michelangelo | Sculptor, painter and architect |
| c. 1478 – 1541 | Francisco Pizarro | Spanish conquistador |
| c. 1480 – 1521 | Ferdinand Magellan | Navigator |
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.