At This Period Juan De Costa Cruised Upon The Malabar Coast With Two
Gallies And Twenty-Four Other Vessels.
The town of Guipar near Bracalore
being in rebellion, he landed there and set the town on fire after
killing 1500 of the inhabitants.
He likewise cut down the woods[383] in
revenge for the rebellion of the natives. After this he destroyed an
island belonging to the zamorin in the river of Chale, and ruined the
city of Parapangulem belonging to the same sovereign, where the heir of
the kingdom was slain with 200 of his followers. At Capocate 300 of
the natives were slain with the loss of two only of the Portuguese. The
town of Nilacharim near mount Dely was destroyed by fire. In the
intervals between these exploits on the land, several vessels belonging
to the enemy were taken, by which the fleet was supplied with slaves and
provisions.
[Footnote 383: Probably the groves of cocoa-nut trees are here alluded
to. - E.]
At this period, after long petty wars occasioned by the injustice and
tyranny of the Portuguese, they were expelled from the Molucca islands,
and their fort in the island of Ternate was forced to surrender to the
king, who protested in presence of the Portuguese that he took
possession of it in trust for the king of Portugal, and would deliver it
up to any one having authority for that purpose as soon as the murder of
his father was punished[384].
[Footnote 384: A great number of trifling incidents in the misgovernment
and tyranny of the Portuguese in the Moluccas, have been omitted at this
and other parts the history of Portuguese Asia in our version. - E.]
In the year 1576, Antonio Moniz Barreto was succeeded in the government
of India by Don Diego de Menezes; but it may be proper to suspend for a
time our account of the affairs of India, to give some account of the
transactions in Monomotapa under the government of Francisco Barreto and
his successor Vasco Fernandez Homeiri.
SECTION VIII.
Transactions of the Portuguese in Monomotapa, from 1569 to the end of
that separate government[385].
On the return of Francisco Barreto from the government of India in 1558,
as formerly mentioned, he was appointed admiral of the gallies, in which
employment he gained great honour in the memorable action of Pennon;
and on his return to Lisbon, king Sebastian, who had determined upon
making the division of the Portuguese governments in the east already
mentioned, appointed Barreto to that of Monomotapa[386], with the
additional title of Conqueror of the Mines. The great inducement for
this enterprise was from the large quantities of gold said to be found
in that country, and particularly at Manica in the kingdom of
Mocaranga. Francisco Barreto sailed from Lisbon in April 1569, with
three ships and 1000 soldiers. He might easily have had more men if the
vessels could have contained them, as the reports of gold banished all
idea of danger, and volunteers eagerly pressed forwards for the
expedition, among whom were many gentlemen and veterans who had served
in Africa.
[Footnote 385: In De Faria no dates are given of these transactions,
except that Barreto sailed from Lisbon in April 1569. - E.]
[Footnote 386: In modern geography the country called Monomotapa in the
text is known by the name of Mocaranga, while Monomotapa is understood
to be the title of the sovereign. It is sometimes called Senna by the
Portuguese, from the name of a fort possessed by them in the
interior. - E.]
On his arrival at Mozambique, Barreto went to subdue the king of Pate,
who had revolted against the Portuguese authority. In his instructions,
Barreto was ordered to undertake nothing of importance without the
advice and concurrence of Francisco do Monclaros, a Jesuit, which was
the cause of the failure of this enterprise. It was a great error to
subject a soldier to the authority of a priest, and a most presumptuous
folly in the priest to undertake a commission so foreign to his
profession. There were two roads to the mines, one of which was through
the dominions of Monomotapa, and the other by way of Sofala. Barreto was
disposed to have taken the latter, but Monclaros insisted upon the
former, and carried his point against the unanimous votes of the council
of war; so that the first step in this expedition led to its ruin. But
before entering upon the narrative of events, it may be proper to give
some account of the climate, quality, and extent of the country.
From Cape Delgado in lat. 10 deg. 1O' S. to Mozambique in 14 deg. 50', the coast
is somewhat bent in the form of a bow, in which space are the islands of
Pujaros, Amice, Mocoloe, Matembo, Querimba, Cabras, and others, with the
rivers Paudagi, Menluanc, Mucutii, Mucululo, Situ, Habe, Xanga, Samoco,
Veloso, Pinda, Quisimaluco and Quintagone, with the bays of Xanga and
Fuego, and the sands of Pinda. From Mozambique in lat. 14 deg. 5O' S. to the
port or bay of Asuca in 21 deg. 8O', the coast falls off to the westwards,
opposite to the Pracel de Sofala or great bank of Pracel, on the
coast of Madagascar, the dangerous Scylla and Charibdis of those
seas. On this coast are the rivers Mocambo, Angoxa, or Bayones, Mossige,
Mojuncoale, Sangage, and others, with many islands, and the ports of
Quilimane and Luabo; the rivers Tendanculo, Quiloe, Sabam, Bagoe, Miaue,
and Sofala, with the opposite islands of Inbausato, Quiloane, Mambone,
Molimon, and Quilamancohi. Between Cape Bosiqua or St Sebastian in lat.
21 deg. 40' S. and Cape Corientes in 24 deg. S. is the great bay of Sauca, into
which falls the river Inhamhane, where there is a great trade for ivory.
From the frequent recurrence of the soft letters L and M in these
names, it may be inferred that the language of that country is by no
means harsh. From the mouth of the Cuama or Zambeze in the east, the
empire of Monomotapa extends 250 leagues into the interior of Africa,
being divided by the great river Zambeze, into which falls the Chiri
or Chireira, running through the country of Bororo[387], in which
country are many other large rivers, on the banks of which dwell many
kings, some of whom are independent, and others are subject to
Monomotapa.
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