Read Online The Indian Ocean by Michael Pearson - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Michael Pearson
Tags: General History
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hampered by their lack of knowledge, and new conditions which affected them. An example of each is gold, and disease, in both cases in relation to East Africa. As to the former, the Portuguese thought that gold on the plateau must come from great mines, just as silver came from Potosí. If they could find the mines they would be able to control them and monopolise gold exports. Dos Santos described well their disappointment once they realised the true situation:
When the Portuguese found themselves in the land of gold they thought that they would immediately be able to fill sacks with it, and carry off as much as they chose; but when they had spent a few days near the mines, and saw the difficulty and labor of the Kaffirs, and with what risk and peril of their lives they extracted it from the bowels of the earth and from the stones, they found their hopes frustrated. 39
Gold was mined and washed only as a part-time occupation by the Shona, being done more or less on need when cloth was desired. The activity was very dispersed; there was no central mine that could be controlled, and nor could the actual producers be forced to mine full-time and provide large quantities. Coutorecognised this, in a somewhat back-handed way. 'As the Kaffirs are numerous, they always obtain a great quantity [of gold] although they are by nature so indolent that when they have found sufficient to buy two pieces of cloth to clothe themselves, they will not work any more.' 40
As for new conditions, while the Portuguese adapted to some parts of this new environment, such as the monsoon pattern, in other areas they found it difficult. The best example is disease, which laid a heavy toll indeed on Portuguese manpower. This was made worse by Portuguese clothing and diet. Mozambique Island in particular was notoriously unhealthy, with literally hundreds dying in its hospital. The building of this hospital had been seen as a prime necessity even as the fort was being built in 1507, yet the mortality rate was very high. 41 Nor were other areas much better. In 1528 Nuno da Cunha's fleet travelled up the east coast. He was on his way to India to be viceroy. He left 200 sick Portuguese in Zanzibar so they could recover. Then he wintered in Mombasa with a force of 800 men. Of them 370 died during the 'winter' months. 42 Ironically, it seems that the Portuguese suffered more from African diseases than did Africans from European ones. Certainly the arrival of the Portuguese did not unleash the devastating epidemics which resulted from the arrival of Europeans in Oceania and the Americas. Most East Africans seem to have had some immunity to Eurasian endemic strains. This may have been a result of the movement south of Bantu people, or the penetration of immunity from the coast to the interior. It seems that East Africa was more closely connected to Eurasian, or perhaps in this context Afrasian, disease pools than were the Portuguese.
Portuguese efforts were not helped by what seems today to be inefficiency, and even corruption. Peculation was rife in the state; every office holder expected to make large profits from his three-year term. It is a question of whether corruption is the correct term to use, for ideal standards of official conduct today are hardly an appropriate measure to assess the standards of the Portuguese, or anyone else, in this early modern period. However, there is no doubt that Portuguese officials very often engaged in conduct which was highly detrimental to the interests of the state. It could be that the underlying cause here, while in part to do with pre-modern notions of appropriate official behaviour, was also a result of the way the Portuguese presence was by no means a monolith. Rather, there were various layers and interests, many of them in competition with official policy, and among these were even the officials themselves quite often. Officials had to serve the king and his trade, but had also to think of their own trade, for
When the Portuguese found themselves in the land of gold they thought that they would immediately be able to fill sacks with it, and carry off as much as they chose; but when they had spent a few days near the mines, and saw the difficulty and labor of the Kaffirs, and with what risk and peril of their lives they extracted it from the bowels of the earth and from the stones, they found their hopes frustrated. 39
Gold was mined and washed only as a part-time occupation by the Shona, being done more or less on need when cloth was desired. The activity was very dispersed; there was no central mine that could be controlled, and nor could the actual producers be forced to mine full-time and provide large quantities. Coutorecognised this, in a somewhat back-handed way. 'As the Kaffirs are numerous, they always obtain a great quantity [of gold] although they are by nature so indolent that when they have found sufficient to buy two pieces of cloth to clothe themselves, they will not work any more.' 40
As for new conditions, while the Portuguese adapted to some parts of this new environment, such as the monsoon pattern, in other areas they found it difficult. The best example is disease, which laid a heavy toll indeed on Portuguese manpower. This was made worse by Portuguese clothing and diet. Mozambique Island in particular was notoriously unhealthy, with literally hundreds dying in its hospital. The building of this hospital had been seen as a prime necessity even as the fort was being built in 1507, yet the mortality rate was very high. 41 Nor were other areas much better. In 1528 Nuno da Cunha's fleet travelled up the east coast. He was on his way to India to be viceroy. He left 200 sick Portuguese in Zanzibar so they could recover. Then he wintered in Mombasa with a force of 800 men. Of them 370 died during the 'winter' months. 42 Ironically, it seems that the Portuguese suffered more from African diseases than did Africans from European ones. Certainly the arrival of the Portuguese did not unleash the devastating epidemics which resulted from the arrival of Europeans in Oceania and the Americas. Most East Africans seem to have had some immunity to Eurasian endemic strains. This may have been a result of the movement south of Bantu people, or the penetration of immunity from the coast to the interior. It seems that East Africa was more closely connected to Eurasian, or perhaps in this context Afrasian, disease pools than were the Portuguese.
Portuguese efforts were not helped by what seems today to be inefficiency, and even corruption. Peculation was rife in the state; every office holder expected to make large profits from his three-year term. It is a question of whether corruption is the correct term to use, for ideal standards of official conduct today are hardly an appropriate measure to assess the standards of the Portuguese, or anyone else, in this early modern period. However, there is no doubt that Portuguese officials very often engaged in conduct which was highly detrimental to the interests of the state. It could be that the underlying cause here, while in part to do with pre-modern notions of appropriate official behaviour, was also a result of the way the Portuguese presence was by no means a monolith. Rather, there were various layers and interests, many of them in competition with official policy, and among these were even the officials themselves quite often. Officials had to serve the king and his trade, but had also to think of their own trade, for
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