Pedro Alvares Cabral | Accomplishments, Route, & Facts

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<div class="drawer d-flex flex-column open"> <div class="left-rail-section-content"> <div class="topic-left-rail-header text-truncate bg-gray-50 position-relative text-right d-flex align-items-center"> <div class="tlr-title px-20 py-15 text-left"> <em class="material-icons text-gray-400 d-lg-none" data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral">Pedro Álvares Cabral</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <span class="toc-extra-link selected link-gray-900 mt-15"> Introduction </span> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral">Quick Facts & Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral/images-videos">Images</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-050-31D3D669/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg" data-href="/media/1/87709/197018" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-004-4CFAE37E/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg" alt="Belmonte, Portugal: Pedro Álvares Cabral monument" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-050-55D1962E/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg" data-href="/media/1/87709/197017" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-004-1460A958/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg" alt="Pedro Álvares Cabral" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/61/103661-050-2CDC5259/Map-exploration-European-New-World-voyages-others.jpg" data-href="/media/1/87709/140082" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/61/103661-004-63E94D45/Map-exploration-European-New-World-voyages-others.jpg" alt="European exploration: early voyages" height="50" /> </a> </div> <button disabled 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They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="qf-title font-weight-bold font-14 mb-10 text-center"> Quick Facts</div> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Born: </dt> <dd>1467/68, Belmonte, <a href="/place/Portugal">Portugal</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> </div> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Died: </dt> <dd>1520, Santarém?</dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref154331"></span>Pedro Álvares Cabral</strong> (born 1467/68, Belmonte, Portugal—died 1520, Santarém?) was a Portuguese navigator who is generally <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="credited" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/credited" data-type="EB">credited</a> as the first European to reach <span id="ref154333"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Brazil" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Brazil</a> (April 22, 1500). (The Spanish explorer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Alonso-Pinzon" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Vicente Yáñez Pinzón</a>, who had been on <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Christopher-Columbus" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Christopher Columbus</a>’s first voyage to <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Americas" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">America</a>, may have reached Brazil slightly earlier in 1500 than Cabral.) His expedition was also the second from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Europe" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Europe</a> to reach India via the sea route around the Cape of Good Hope (<a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vasco-da-Gama" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Vasco da Gama</a> had done so in 1498).</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="197018" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-050-31D3D669/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/87709/197018"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-050-31D3D669/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-050-31D3D669/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg?w=300" alt="Belmonte, Portugal: Pedro Álvares Cabral monument" data-width="1189" data-height="1600" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/94/154494-050-31D3D669/Statue-Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-Belmonte-Portugal.jpg" data-href="/media/1/87709/197018">Belmonte, Portugal: Pedro Álvares Cabral monument</a><span>Statue of Pedro Álvares Cabral in Belmonte, Portugal.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">The son of Fernão Cabral, a nobleman, and of Isabel de Gouveia, Pedro Cabral was heir to a long tradition of service to the throne. He himself enjoyed the esteem of King <span id="ref154334"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Manuel-I" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Manuel I</a> of <span id="ref154332"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Portugal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Portugal</a>, from whom he received various privileges in 1497; these included a personal allowance, the title of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="counselor" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/counselor" data-type="MW">counselor</a> to his highness, and the habit of the military Order of Christ. Following up on da Gama’s pioneering voyage, three years later the king entrusted him with the command of the second major expedition to India, expressing “the great confidence we have in Pedralvares de Gouveia, nobleman of our household.” Cabral was named admiral in supreme command of 13 ships, which set out from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Lisbon" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lisbon</a> on March 9, 1500. He was to follow the route taken earlier by <span id="ref154335"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vasco-da-Gama" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Vasco da Gama</a>, strengthen commercial ties, and further the conquest his predecessor had begun.</p><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In accordance with da Gama’s instructions, based on his experiences during the first <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="voyage" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/voyage" data-type="EB">voyage</a>, Cabral was to sail southwest so as to bypass the becalmed waters of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Gulf-of-Guinea" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Gulf of Guinea</a>. This course, which later became known as the “circle around Brazil,” had the added advantage of providing the Portuguese with opportunity to reconnoitre along the coast of the lands to the west. They had previously sighted those lands, which belonged to them in accordance with the <span id="ref154336"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Treaty-of-Tordesillas" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Treaty of Tordesillas</a> (1494), which divided the still almost completely unknown New World between <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Spain" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Spain</a> and Portugal.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/exploration-and-discovery" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/24/71324-131-CA22C4BA/Edwin-Aldrin-Moon-July-20-1969.jpg" alt="Buzz Aldrin. Apollo 11. Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin Aldrin, photographed July 20, 1969, during the first manned mission to the Moon's surface. Reflected in Aldrin's faceplate is the Lunar Module and astronaut Neil Armstrong, who took the picture." class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Exploration and Discovery</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">He sailed westward under favourable conditions, and on April 22 Cabral sighted the land he named Island of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/True-Cross" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">True Cross</a>. Later renamed Holy Cross by King Manuel, the country ultimately took its modern name, Brazil, from a kind of dyewood, <em><span id="ref154337"></span>pau-brasil</em>, that is found there.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="197017" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-050-55D1962E/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/87709/197017"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-050-55D1962E/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-050-55D1962E/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg?w=300" alt="Pedro Álvares Cabral" data-width="1148" data-height="1600" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/30/160430-050-55D1962E/Pedro-Alvares-Cabral-possession-name-Brazil-Portugal-April-22-1500.jpg" data-href="/media/1/87709/197017">Pedro Álvares Cabral</a><span>Pedro Álvares Cabral taking possession of Brazil in the name of Portugal, April 22, 1500.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Cabral is reported to have made a special effort to treat the inhabitants kindly, receiving them on board his <a href="https://www.britannica.com/technology/caravel" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">caravel</a>. Nonetheless, he took formal possession of the country and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="dispatched" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/dispatched" data-type="EB">dispatched</a> one of his ships to Portugal to inform the king. Thenceforth, maps of the region showed Portugal as ruler of a great expanse of land with vaguely defined boundaries that came to serve as a point of call on the long voyage from Europe to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Cape-of-Good-Hope" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Cape of Good Hope</a> and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Indian-Ocean" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Indian Ocean</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">After a stay of only 10 days in Brazil, Cabral sailed for India, in a voyage that was plagued by a series of misfortunes. On May 29, while the fleet was rounding the Cape of Good Hope, four ships were lost with all hands aboard. The remaining ships cast anchor on September 13, 1500, at Calicut (now <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Kozhikode" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Kozhikode</a>), India, where the <em>zamorin</em> (dynastic ruler) welcomed Cabral and allowed him to establish a fortified trading post. Disputes with Muslim traders soon arose, however, and on December 17 a large Muslim force attacked the trading post. Most of the Portuguese defenders were killed before reinforcements could arrive from the Portuguese fleet lying at anchor in the harbour.</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Cabral retaliated by bombarding the city and then by capturing 10 Muslim vessels and executing their crews. He then sailed for the Indian port of Cochin (now <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Kochi-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Kochi</a>), farther south, where he was affably received and permitted to trade for <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="precious" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/precious" data-type="MW">precious</a> spices, with which he loaded his six remaining ships. Cabral also made port at Carangolos and Cananor (Cannanore; now <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Kannur" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Kannur</a>) on the same coast, completed his cargo, and on January 16, 1501, began the return voyage to Portugal. On his way, however, two ships foundered, and it was with only four vessels that Cabral finally reached the mouth of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Tagus-River" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Tagus River</a> in Portugal on June 23, 1501.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=black-friday-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">King Manuel was pleased at the outcome of the undertaking, in spite of the misfortunes that had beset it. He is said to have at first favoured making Cabral head of a new and more powerful <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="expedition" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/expedition" data-type="EB">expedition</a>, but in the end it was Vasco da Gama and not Cabral who was appointed to that command. Accounts differ as to the reason for the king’s change of heart. One chronicler attributes it to disagreement over division of authority within the new fleet; another offers the explanation that da Gama opposed the appointment of Cabral on the grounds that da Gama himself already held the title of admiral of all the fleets that might leave Portugal for India and that the disasters of Cabral’s expedition should disqualify him for the new mission.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Whatever the true explanation, Cabral held no further position of authority at the Portuguese court. He retired to his estate in the Beira Baixa province of Portugal and spent his remaining years there. His tomb at <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Santarem-Portugal" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Santarém</a> was identified in 1848 by the Brazilian historian <span id="ref154339"></span>Francisco Adolfo Varnhagen.</p><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/contributor/Pedro-Calmon/462">Pedro Calmon</a></span><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":87709,"pageLength":847,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"BIO_MEDIUM","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Pedro Alvares Cabral | Accomplishments, Route, & Facts | Britannica