When the Portuguese arrived in Benin, Nigeria, in the fifteenth century, they quickly started trading brass and copper for pepper, cloth, ivory and slaves. In the 1490s a Portuguese trader wrote that at Benin copper bracelets were more highly prized than brass ones.
Why did the Portuguese come to Nigeria?
The country was discovered in the 1470’s by Portuguese adventurers. Like most other things in life, they encountered the area mostly by accident. They were seeking a more economical trade route to Asia when they landed on the sandy beaches of this exotic African land.
When did the Portuguese come to Africa?
The most momentous discovery in western Africa, however, came in 1471, when Portuguese captains first reached the coast of modern Ghana between the mouths of the Ankobra and Volta rivers.
Why did the Portuguese come to West Africa?
Portuguese expansion into Africa began with the desire of King John I to gain access to the gold-producing areas of West Africa. The trans-Saharan trade routes between Songhay and the North African traders provided Europe with gold coins used to trade spices, silks and other luxuries from India.
Why does Lagos Portugal and Lagos Nigeria have the same name?
It turns out that Lagos actually means ‘Lakes’ in Portuguese. There are different explanations for the name itself: according to some historians, Lagos was the name given by the Portuguese explorer Rui de Sequeira when he visited the area in 1472, naming the area around the city, Lago de Curamo, or Lake of Healing.
Did Portugal ever colonize Nigeria?
When the Portuguese arrived in Benin, Nigeria, in the fifteenth century, they quickly started trading brass and copper for pepper, cloth, ivory and slaves. … Millions were made in Europe, along with brass and copper pots and pans, and imported into Africa for trade.
How did Britain buy Nigeria?
Following the revoking of its charter, the the Royal Niger Company sold its holdings to the British government for £865,000 (£46,407,250 today). That amount, £46,407,250 (NGN12,550,427,783.81 at today’s exchange rate) was effectively the price Britain paid, to buy the territory which was to become known as Nigeria.
Who sold African slaves to the Portuguese?
Benin’s conflict over slavery is particularly intense. For over 200 years, powerful kings in what is now the country of Benin captured and sold slaves to Portuguese, French and British merchants.
Did Spain ever own Portugal?
Portugal was officially an autonomous state, but in actuality, the country was in a personal union with the Spanish crown from 1580 to 1640.
Who Found Africa?
Portuguese explorer Prince Henry, known as the Navigator, was the first European to methodically explore Africa and the oceanic route to the Indies.
Which country started the fight against slavery in Africa?
The transatlantic slave trade began during the 15th century when Portugal, and subsequently other European kingdoms, were finally able to expand overseas and reach Africa. The Portuguese first began to kidnap people from the west coast of Africa and to take those they enslaved back to Europe.
How did the Portuguese change African slavery?
Henrique began selling African slaves in Lagos in 1444. In 1455, Pope Nicholas V gave Portugal the rights to continue the slave trade in West Africa, under the provision that they convert all people who are enslaved. The Portuguese soon expanded their trade along the whole west coast of Africa.
Who first colonized Nigeria?
Nigeria became a British protectorate in 1901. The period of colonisation lasted until 1960, when an independence movement succeeded. Nigeria first became a republic in 1963, but succumbed to military rule three years later, after a bloody coup d’état.
Is Lagos a Portuguese word?
Lagos means “lakes” in Portuguese, the language of the first European immigrants known to visit the settlement, then already inhabited by the Awori and Bini and known to them as Oko.
Who named Lagos?
Following its early settlement by the Awori nobility and its conquest by the Oyo warlords, the state first came to the attention of the Portuguese in the 15th century. Portuguese explorer Rui de Sequeira visited the area in 1472, naming the area around the city Lago de Curamo, which means Lake of Curamo.
Why is Lagos in Portugal?
Yet, Lagos is also a historic centre of the Portuguese Age of Discovery, frequent home of Henry the Navigator, historical shipyard and, at one time, centre of the European slave trade.
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Lagos, Portugal.
| Lagos | |
|---|---|
| • Total | 212.99 km2 (82.24 sq mi) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 31,049 |
| • Density | 150/km2 (380/sq mi) |