fl. 1433-1445

Portuguese Explorer

Viewed purely in geographical terms, Gil Eannes's 1434 rounding of west Africa's Cape Bojador was a small achievement. From a psychological standpoint, however, his voyage had an enormous impact, opening the way for other European expeditions further southward.

A native of Lagos, a town in southern Portugal, Eannes had grown up in the service of Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), in whose household he served as a squire. Henry in 1420 established a navigational "school," sponsoring voyages of exploration southward and westward to islands such as the Madeiras, the Canaries, and the Azores, as well as the western coast of Africa.

The latter presented a challenge, however, in the form of Cape Bojador, a 25-mile (40-km) westward projection from the mainland just below latitude 27° north. Hazardous weather conditions and shallows associated with the cape made it difficult to pass, and Portuguese sailors were inclined...