Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 248
Episode 248: Henrique, Prince of Navigation (3) When King
Joao I lost his sanction, Henry quickly took action.
“First, we must strengthen Ceuta’s defense.”
Ceuta, known as the southern pillar of the Pillars of Hercules, was an area acquired by Portugal when it invaded Morocco.
It was a strategic point that must be passed through in order to travel from the Mediterranean region to England and France.
Of course, you can travel by land from Italy, but there is a barrier called the Alps.
Therefore, in order to transport the goods desired by the nobility of various countries in Northern Europe such as Britain and France, they had to pass through the Mediterranean Sea and go up to the North Atlantic.
For that reason, the value of Ceuta was becoming increasingly important.
Morocco’s Marin dynasty, which had lost Ceuta, continued to increase its power and look for opportunities to recapture Ceuta.
It wasn’t just the Marin dynasty.
The United Kingdom of Aragon and the United Kingdom of Leon and Castile, which had driven out Islamic dynasties from the Iberian Peninsula through the Reconquista, were also targeting Ceuta.
To prevent this, the first thing to do was to secure the defense of Ceuta, which would be the forward base on the route to Joseon.
To this end, Portugal invested funds to strengthen Ceuta’s defenses.
First, the moat of the fortress used by the Muslims was remodeled and dug wider and deeper, and a large number of cannons were placed there.
However, not all resources were spent solely on defending Ceuta.
Henrique sent out exploration ships and began exploring the western coast of Africa.
The goal of the probes was not to explore a route but to find a supply base.
-Find a suitable place to use as a supply base on the west coast of Africa.
-A place with a geographical environment where ships can take refuge in bad weather.
-A place where it is easy to obtain food, drinking water, and wood for ship repairs.
-A place with a climate similar to Europe.
-A place where contact with slave traders is easy.
Portuguese ships departing from Ceuta explored the west coast of Africa to find a place that met the above conditions.
* * *
“Funds are the problem.”
“already?”
Prince Henrique’s face crumpled as he heard the reports from the officials in charge of the exploration work.
With the king’s assent falling, Enrique’s exploration work was substantially financed.
However, the finances so invested were already starting to run out.
“What is the reason?”
“I don’t have enough stomachs.”
“We also don’t have enough sailors.”
“Ugh…”
Upon hearing the officials’ report, Prince Henrique could not help but groan and hold his head with both hands.
Exploring the west coast of Africa was not possible with one or two ships.
Exploration work could proceed only if two or more ships were sent out at a time, at least at six-month intervals.
The reason this had to happen was because of the limitations of wooden ships and communication problems.
Unlike the relatively calm Mediterranean Sea, the sea west of Africa was turbulent.
Therefore, if one made even the slightest mistake, both the ship and the crew disappeared.
The problem was that even if ships out to sea suffered such disasters, the sender was unknown.
Until the ship returned on the scheduled date, the owners and the families of the crew had no choice but to visit the cathedral and pray for their safe return.
For this reason, there was no choice but to send out two or more ships at least six months apart.
If two or three ships move together, at least one ship can survive and return with the survivors.
This method of exploration inevitably required many ships.
Even now, shipyards in mainland Portugal are working hard to build ships, but before we know it, there has been a shortage of ships.
The sailors’ problem was even more serious.
Even if the expedition ship returned safely, it was almost a miracle that all the sailors who were on board the ship when it departed returned safely.
Loss of life inevitably occurred as a result of various incidents and accidents, such as contracting disease or encountering pirates.
Additionally, a steady stream of sailors became mentally and physically weak due to long-distance voyages in harsh environments, making life on board impossible.
Therefore, when returning ships completed maintenance and departed again, more than half of them were filled with new crew members.
“What is the answer to this?”
The officials responded with one voice to Prince Henrique’s words.
“We need to save more sailors!”
The officials’ opinions were as follows:
-By recruiting and operating a large number of sailors, you can foster sailors with extensive sailing experience.
-If the number of sailors is sufficient, sufficient rest can be provided to sailors returning from long distance voyages.
“Hmm… I see. Just do it.”
“Again, we have a problem with funding.”
Prince Henry frowned at the officials’ answer.
“What is the solution?”
In response to Prince Henrique’s question, officials came up with various solutions.
“We need to buy and sell more spices and Joseon products.”
“That part is not easy because of the Italians. Isn’t that why we are looking for a route to the East?”
“We must take control of Africa’s gold trade routes.”
“The problem is not easy because of the Islamists.”
“We just need to strengthen the slave trade.”
Prince Henry nodded at the last official’s words.
“That’s okay. In any case, as we pioneer the sea route, the road to obtaining slaves will also open up. “Make a plan.”
“Yes, prince.”
In this way, unpleasant exchanges between Europe and the African continent progressed more quickly and on a larger scale.
It was a bad butterfly effect created by the intervention of scent.
* * *
Prince Henry began to expand his crew on a large scale following the suggestions of his officials.
‘Prince Enrique of Portugal is recruiting sailors and captain candidates!’
‘They say that if you go to Africa once, you will become rich!’
As word spread throughout Europe, sailors and would-be captains flocked to Portugal from Italy and other countries.
Young people who had no tomorrow, living as serfs or guild apprentices, headed to Portugal hoping to make a fortune.
Those weren’t the only ones. Those who built their careers driving other people’s ships in the Mediterranean also moved to Lisbon, Portugal.
“I can’t work for someone else forever, right?”
Those who gathered were moved to Ceuta.
Prospective sailors began receiving training in Ceuta, and would-be captains were also appointed as vice-captains of newly deployed expedition ships and tested for their qualifications.
In this process, many people – not only those who wanted to become sailors but also those who wanted to become captains – were eliminated.
This was due to a superstition circulating among European sailors at the time.
In order for Prince Henrique’s goal to be achieved, breaking through the equator and heading south was a gateway that must be passed.
However, crossing the equator was taboo not only for newcomers but also for Portuguese sailors who were accustomed to the rough seas around Portugal.
Such taboos were based on experience.
The name ‘Nun’s Cape’, located at 29 degrees north latitude on the west coast of Africa, was given the name because none of the sailors who passed there returned. (Note 1)
As a result, many people quit on their own and turned back.
“Crossing the equator is profane!”
However, there were more people flocking with dreams of good luck than those who quit like that.
This was because there were neighbors who were making a lot of money by selling slaves brought in from Africa and goods brought in from places as far away as India, China, and Joseon.
* * *
Prince Henry was also well aware of this problem.
To solve this problem, they recruited sailors and captain candidates and gathered geographers in Sagres.
The mission of the assembled geographers was to conduct research based on Islamic Byzantium and the logbooks of captains recorded during their voyages.
The results and newly received information were delivered to the expedition commander and captains leaving for the expedition.
It was natural for all of this process to cost money. In the case of sailors, training costs could be deducted in the process of settling profits after returning from a voyage, but this was not possible for scholars.
In the end, Prince Henrique found his father.
“I will have to borrow the help of merchants.”
* * *
‘Prince Henry is raising money from merchants. The purpose is to find a roundabout route to the East!’
These rumors quickly spread to Italian merchants.
Italy. Florence.
“Cowards have shown courage.”
Cosimo de’ Medici, the head of the Medici family, who heard the rumor, chuckled and muttered.
There was a reason why Cosimo was discounted as a ‘coward’.
He was an outstanding intellectual who went on to establish the Medici family, which was renowned and infamous.
He learned Latin, Greek, Arabic, and Hebrew from a young age and interacted with scholars and artists.
In particular, as the eldest son, he was able to collect old books as compensation for his father’s wish to take over the family business. (Note 2) He collected old books from
Europe and Byzantium and obtained them through Islamic merchants. The information he received gradually enriched his knowledge.
That’s why Cosimo said ‘coward’.
At the time, people in Northern Europe firmly believed that they could not cross the equator, as mentioned above.
However, Cosimo knew that Muslim merchants were crossing the equator without incident, albeit by land.
Of course, excluding attacks by thieves, which are like natural disasters that cannot be controlled.
Not only that, but I also knew that the Ming Empire, which had newly appeared in Kitai, had sent a large fleet to the ends of Africa.
I also knew that, in addition to the large fleet of 1500 people, many Muslim merchants attempted to use ships to sail from the East Sea of Africa to the West Sea.
And I also knew that the attempt ended in a miserable failure.
* * *
The sea near the apex where the east and west coasts of Africa, the southernmost part of Africa, meet has become a graveyard for Islamic ships due to its topographical characteristics – natural adverse conditions such as ocean currents and winds.
The triangular waves created when the two oceans meet were difficult to overcome for the dhows used by Islamic merchants.
In the end, Islamic merchants gave up the challenge because such natural restrictions and lucrative trade took place in the Mediterranean region.
In the end, Cosimo knew that the development of a detour route was possible through various types of information, so when he saw Prince Henrique’s challenge, he evaluated it as ‘cowards have shown courage.’
* * *
“Hmm… what should I do?”
Cosimo, who had figured out Prince Henrique’s movements, thought about his next response.
As mentioned above, Cosimo’s knowledge was great. If he cooperated with Henry, Prince Henry’s attempt was likely to succeed in a short period of time.
“But the problem is that it doesn’t benefit me.”
The background to Cosimo’s enormous wealth was the Medici Bank, which was located in 16 European countries.
However, the capital that maintained the bank came through intermediate trade between Islam and Europe.
Because of this, Cosimo did not unravel his knowledge.
Of course, there were many others with outstanding knowledge. However, there were few people who had accumulated such comprehensive knowledge and at the same time were in a position where they could exercise political and economic power.
* * *
Note 1) Age of Exploration. Hankook Ilbo Time Life. Published in 1978.
Note 2) https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EC%BD%94%EC%8B%9C%EB%AA%A8_%EB%8D%B0_%EB%A9%94%EB%94% 94%EC%B9%98