Before the Armada’s Arrival

The African Patrol was again rather ineffective at raiding the mouth of the Red Sea. It was not possible to find unpopulated or friendly watering holes closer than Malindi. The Indian Patrol was more succesful in its mission, being allowed to trade in Colombo, which it reported to the commander of the Armada, Francisco de Almeida, upon his arrival.

The outbound journey of the 6th Portuguese India Armada was initially off to a good start, as they rounded the Cape safely and sailed into the Mozambique Channel with good hope. However, the large fleet threaded the currents badly, and a squadron ran into shoals. Of the five ships that ended up damaged, three caravels had to be scuttled. They reached Mozambique in time, but with instructions to extract tribute from Kilwa, the fleet would not immediately travel to India. Kilwa refused to pay, so Almeida ordered the city bombarded and swiftly achieved its surrender. In the capitulation, the tribute was paid and Mozambique was ceded to the Portuguese.

The Second Sack of Kozhikode

Following repairs in Mozambique, the fleet left for India and arrived near Anjediva in early September. Here, Francisco de Almeida was declared Viceroy of India. The Armada set sail to Kannur, where they recruited 3,000 local warriors and withdrew some men from the garrison. With this army and their own large fleet of more than 20 ships, they went to Kozhikode with an ultimatum, which the Zamorin promptly rejected.

The Portuguese bombarded the city again, landed soldiers, and assumed control. By now, the authority of the Zamorin had taken serious blows, and several of his coastal subjects began openly questioning it. While they did not outright join the Portuguese, whose anti-Muslim temperament was not exciting to anybody, they shared an enemy. However, the Zamorin maintained control over the hinterlands, which were key in spice production, and also still controlled a large number of nairs. With these, he raided the Portuguese army, which was trying to erect a fort in the ruins of Kozhikode.

Almeida himself realised after one month in Kozhikode that the position was untenable if they wanted to actually profit from the spice trade. The longer this war went on, and the more brutal Portuguese demands became, the destruction wrought on the Malabar Coast would have far reaching implications for their bottom line. For one, coastal areas were getting separated from the best spice growing areas. Secondly, open season on the Muslims was really hurting the entire social fabric of the region, which in turn had terrible implications for the economy. Finally, the viceroy was getting word that northern Sultanates of Bijapur, Gujarat and even Sindh were talking to the Zamorin, and potentially preparing for a war against the Portuguese.

Given all of that, Franscisco de Almeida and the Zamorin of Kozhikode came to terms. The Zamorin offered a formal apology for his heinous attack on the Portuguese 2nd Armada (not a word on the three bombardments of Kozhikode), he promised to pay an indemnity to the Portuguese, offered fixed prices for spices in the city, and would allow (and pay for) the construction of a small Portuguese fort and feitoria in Kozhikode. The expulsion of Arab merchants was scrapped from the list of Portuguese demands, because as the Zamorin explained and Almeida understood, this would be unenforcable or destroy any value the city had left.

Now well into November, Almeida ordered the Armada to load up on spices in Kochi and Kollam, where they were finally permitted to construct another feitoria. Departing the Indian coast soon after bolstering the local patrol yet again, the fleet set sail to the northwest, instead of the southwest.

The Siege of Aden

Following the news of the Mamluk defeat at the hands of the Ottomans, Francisco de Almeida saw a chance to gain a permanent foothold on the Red Sea. The city of Aden, held by the Tahirids of Yemen, was an important city from which the Portuguese could constrain the sea and attempt a full blockade, which could seriously harm the spice trade between India and the Italian states. Furthermore, victorious Ismail Safavid had sent an offer to the Portuguese of access to Basra, which could mean complete control of the Arab seas and a complete end to the Venetian access to spices. While he remained in India as viceroy, he ordered Lopo Soares de Albergaria to assault the city.

Confident in their superior strength, the Portuguese Armada decided to attack Aden by surprise, overwhelm the defenses, and take the city. However, some time prior to the Mamluk defeat in Syria, they had sent a large but off-the-radar expedition to the Tahirids, placating the Sultan with luxurious gifts, and constructing many new shore batteries. The artillery was far from as accurate or effective as the Portuguese, but they were large cannons and well-placed in shielded areas which were difficult for ships in the bay to target. As it were, the first sack of Kozhikode had sent shockwaves throughout the Muslim world, and the Mamluks had responded promptly by strengthening Aden, which they saw as a logical target given the Portuguese aggression in capturing the spice trade.

Lopo Soares de Albergaria did not know about this and was himself caught by complete surprise as the Mamluk cannons came to life. Still pressing on with his attack, it soon became apparent that the city was too well-fortified for this to work and he ordered a retreat. However, it was at this moment that the wind cursed the Portuguese, and two ships laden with spices were caught out in the crossfire and too slow to escape. One of the ships caught ablaze in the harbour and was abandoned. It was lost with all hands, most of whom drowned or were killed by the Adenites. Another one was so badly damaged that Albergaria ordered it to be scuttled two days later. All in all, the assault was quite a disaster and Lopo decided that it was time to return to Portugal.

Bad luck still outdid bad decisionmaking, however. Again the Mozambique Channel claimed a victim, as a carrack caught the rocks and was abandoned. Then, a storm on the Atlantic Ocean quite unexpectedly broke a second carrack. The final bad news came when one of the few returning caravels, the ship that had been sent farthest ahead to Lisbon, apparently never arrived. Albergaria found out about this when he arrived himself, and the caravel itself was never seen again.

Results

Portuguese achievements:

• Mozambique Island annexed.
• Fort Anjediva
• Fort Calicut in Kozhikode.
• Feitoria constructed in Kozhikode.
• Feitoria constructed in Kollam.

Portuguese losses:

• 5 gun caravels
  • 3 on the outbound journey
  • 1 in Aden
  • 1 on the return journey
• 3 gun carracks
  • 1 after Aden
  • 2 on the return journey
• 70 mercenary pikemen
• 40 rodeleros
• 25 mercenary polearms
• 30 mercenary arquebusiers
• 10 mercenary crossbows

Portuguese expenses:

• Fort Anjediva: 40,000 fl. (military)
• Recruiting nairs for Kozhikode: 24,000 fl. (military)
• Feitoria in Kollam: 25,000 fl. (civilian)
• Spice ships lost: 28,000 fl. (civilian)

Portuguese income:

• Kilwa tribute: 40,000 fl. (military)
• Kozhikode indemnity: 100,000 fl. (military)
• Spice revenue: 391,020 fl. (military) and 123,480 fl. (civilian)