Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India The discovery of the sea route to India is the description sometimes used in Europe and among the Portuguese for the first recorded trip made directly from Europe to India via the Atlantic Ocean. It was undertaken under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama during the reign of King Manuel I in 1497–1499. Considered by Europe to be one of the most remarkable voyages of the Age of Discovery, it consolidated the Portuguese maritime presence over the Indian Ocean and that country's dominance of global trade routes. The plan for
East Timorese Portuguese the most commonly used form, known as "Tetun-Prasa" used in Dili, was heavily influenced by Portuguese. Following the Carnation Revolution in Portugal in 1974, political parties emerged in Portuguese Timor for the first time, all of which supported the continued use of Portuguese, including APODETI, the only party to advocate integration with Indonesia, which stated that it would support the right to "enjoy the Portuguese language" alongside Indonesian. On December 7, 1975, nine days after declaring independence from Portugal, Timor-Leste was invaded by Indonesia, which declared the territory as its 27th province in 1976, with Indonesian as the sole official