Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia
| Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia | |
|---|---|
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| Born | c. 1415 Porto, Kingdom of Portugal |
| Died | 1481 Praia da Vitória, Azores, Kingdom of Portugal |
| Nationality | Portuguese |
| Occupation | Explorer, colonist |
| Known for | Explorer of the coast of Western Sahara. |
Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia was a 15th-century Portuguese nautical explorer. He explored much of the coast of Western Sahara in 1435–1436 on behalf of the Portuguese prince Henry the Navigator. He would later become one of the first colonists of Terceira Island in the Azores.
Next to nothing is known of Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia's background and origins. He is said to be the first person with that surname in Portuguese records, and thus likely to be from a family of foreign origin. It is known that he served as a cup-bearer (copeiro) in the household of the Portuguese Prince Henry the Navigator.
In 1434 (or 1433) one of Prince Henry's household squires, Gil Eanes, sailed past Cape Bojador, the physical and psychological barrier which European sailors had long considered the non plus ultra of navigation. In the follow-up trip of 1435, Henry sent Eanes out again, this time accompanied by a second ship, a barinel under the command of Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia, with instructions to explore the coast beyond Bojador.
There is scant information on the barinel, other than that it was a new deep-hulled, two-masted sail-and-oar-powered ship, larger than Eanes's single-mast barca and said to be especially designed for coastal exploring (and thus might have already had a lateen sail in the mizzen mast). Unlike Eanes, there is no indication that Baldaia had any prior maritime experience.
Eanes and Baldaia sailed as far south as Angra dos Ruivos (Garnet Bay, named after the shoals of sea robin (ruivo) they found there), some 50 leagues (250 km) south of Cape Bojador. Sailing primarily along the largely deserted coast of the Western Sahara, Eanes and Baldaia saw some traces of human presence - footprints of men and camels - but encountered no one on this expedition.
In 1436 Baldaia set off again on his barinel, this time by himself, with instructions to find and bring back a local inhabitant. A pair of horses were taken aboard, in case they had to give chase.
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