In 1492, King Jo ão II had selected da Gama to confiscate French shipping in the ports of the Algarve, in retaliation for the French seizure of a Portuguese ship returning from Africa loaded with gold, and he accomplished this task with "great brevity." He received a solid education in nautical matters and had also demonstrated martial skills in campaigns against Castile. Not much is known about the early years of Vasco da Gama's life. King Jo ão II (ruled 1481 –1495) may have asked Estev ão to undertake the search for an all-water trade route between Europe and India, but he died before he could make the voyage. He also became a commandery holder, or possessor of a revenue-generating land grant, in the powerful Order of Santiago, thus elevating the family's social and economic status, a process that would culminate with the career of his son. His family had longstanding service ties to the crown in its struggles against Castile and Islam, and Vasco's father, Estev ão, had won grants, including the post of alcaide-mor (governor-major) of Sines, for these services. Vasco da Gama was born in the Alentejo coastal town of Sines about 1469.
1469 –1524), Portuguese explorer, first count of Vidigueira, and "discoverer" of the sea route to India.
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