Alvise Cadamosto

Who was Alvise Cadamosto?

Alvise Cadamosto or Alvide da Ca' da Mosto was an Italian slave trader and explorer, who was hired by the Portuguese prince Henry the Navigator and undertook two known journeys to West Africa in 1455 and 1456, accompanied by the Genoese captain Antoniotto Usodimare. Cadamosto and his companions are credited with the discovery of the Cape Verde Islands and the points along the Guinea coast, from the Gambia River to the Geba River, the greatest leap in the Henrican discoveries since 1446. Cadamosto's accounts of his journeys, including his detailed observations of west African societies, have proven invaluable to historians.