Portuguese Empire years for the Portuguese to follow up on Dias's voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, though it has also been speculated that other voyages were in fact taking place in secret during this time. Whether or not this was the case, the long-standing Portuguese goal of finding a sea route to Asia was finally achieved in a ground-breaking voyage commanded by Vasco da Gama. The squadron of Vasco da Gama left Portugal in 1497, rounded the Cape and continued along the coast of East Africa, where a local pilot was brought on board who guided them across the Indian
Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India warn that both the routes would explored by the Portuguese Crown. There is news of an Italian merchant who spread the good news in Florence. The merchant refers to Melinde. With the opening of the sea route to the East Indies, the Venetians, who controlled the trade of the Mediterranean, bought pepper from the Portuguese, at half the price they paid to the Arabs in Egypt. The fall of the Venetian monopoly on the spice trade in Europe and the resulting drop in prices of spices contributed to the commercial development of the continent. Portuguese discovery of the sea route