In 1434 Captain Gil Eanes sailed safely beyond Cape Bojador and the wild stories of molten seas and giant dragons were ended. The age of Portuguese exploration and empire began.

Walter Buehr takes us back through history on the voyages of the great explorers, of Bartolomeo Diaz and Vasco da Gama. We see the excitement of discovery of new lands, of great riches in the golden cities of India and the East Indies, the Spice Islands and China. 

To Prince Henry the Navigator belongs the greatest glory. It was his captains who explored the western coast of Africa almost to the equator, who discovered all the islands off Portugal and the currents of the open Atlantic. It was Prince Henry who developed the science of navigation.

Here is the story of the brave and famous men who gave Portugal an empire and domination of the seas for over a century. 

From the dust jacket