Bartolomeu Dias
1450 – 1500 Portuguese explorer, navigator
First European to round the southern tip of Africa.
- Religion
- Catholic
- Affiliations
- Kingdom of Portugal
Bartolomeu Dias led the expedition that rounded the Cape of Good Hope in 1488, showing a sea route toward the Indian Ocean was possible. His voyage opened the way for later Portuguese trade with India. He drowned in a storm near the Cape during Cabral's 1500 expedition.
In the timeline
- 1488 Portuguese navigators round the Cape mentioned
- 1488 Bartolomeu Dias rounds the Cape of Good Hope central figure