Lourenço de Almeida

Lourenço de Almeida (c. 1480 – March 1508)^[1] was a Portuguese explorer and military commander.

Lourenço de Almeida
Born	c. 1480 Martim, Kingdom of Portugal
Died	March 1508 Chaul, Portuguese India
Nationality	Portuguese
Occupation(s)	Explorer, military commander
Parent	Francisco de Almeida (father)

He was born in Martim, Portugal, the son of Francisco de Almeida, first viceroy of Portuguese India. Acting under his father, Lourenço distinguished himself in the Indian Ocean, and made Ceylon (present Sri Lanka) tributary to Portugal (see Portuguese Ceylon). He belonged to the Order of Christ.

He made the first Portuguese voyage to Ceylon in 1505 and established a settlement there,^[2] thus permitting the expansion of the Portuguese Empire in Asia.

He defeated the fleet of the Zamorin at the Battle of Cannanore in 1506. Two years later however, he died in a naval action off Chaul,^[3] in India, at the Battle of Chaul.

See also

• Portuguese India
• Portuguese Ceylon
• Gujarati-Portuguese conflicts

References

1. Lourenço de Almeida at the Encyclopædia Britannica
2. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
3. Rose, Hugh James (1857). "Almeida, Lorenzo de". A New General Biographical Dictionary. Vol. 1 AA–ANS. London: B. Fellowes et al. p. 356.