Pêro da Covilhã (1450–1530)
Born 1450 CE, died 1530 CE.
Pêro da Covilhã (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpeɾu ðɐ kuviˈʎɐ̃]; c. 1460 – after 1526), sometimes written Pero de Covilhã, was a Portuguese diplomat and explorer. He was a native of Covilhã in Beira. In his early life he had gone to Castile and entered the service of Don Juan de Guzmán, brother of Enrique de Guzmán, 2nd Duke of Medina Sidonia. Later, when war broke out between Castile and Portugal, he returned to his own country, and attached himself, first as a groom, then as a squire, to Afonso V of Portugal and his successor John II of Portugal. Covilhã was commissioned by King John II of Portugal, together with Afonso de Paiva, on a secret intelligence mission to gather information on the Indian Ocean spice trade and the maritime routes linking India with the east coast of Africa. Disguised as an Arab merchant, Covilhã spent around two years travelling between the ports of India and the east coast of Africa, studying the monsoon winds, ocean currents, harbours and spice markets while secretly recording his observations on a chart. After returning to Cairo in 1490 and learning of Paiva's death, he entrusted his chart and report to Portuguese agents for transmission to Lisbon.
Text from the Wikipedia article Pêro_da_Covilhã, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.