INCIDENTS IN TEE EISTOBY OF PORTUGAL . 15 
formed a warm patch of colour strongly in contrast 
with the cold simplicity of the grey marble. 
The monastery of Santa Maria — commonly called 
the monastery of St. Jeronimo, from its having been 
occupied by monks of that order — is in connection 
with the church, and was founded with it in 1499 by 
KingManoel the Fortunate, on the spot where Vasco 
da Gama embarked on his first eastern voyage, in 
commemoration of the discovery of the Indies. 
Church, gardens, and palaces are scattered about, 
all well worthy of a visit; for there was a time 
when this country was amongst the foremost in the 
world. When in the full tide of its prosperous 
colonisation (a.d. 1500), it was from this port that 
the great Vasco da Gama sailed to the Cape of 
Good Hope, wfiiich had been previously discovered 
by Bartholomeu Dias in 1487 ; and on a second 
occasion, visited India. Lope Luares Francisco de 
Almeida followed with ships and men, conquered 
the Maldives, and established factories in Ceylon, 
Malacca, Sumatra, when the greater portion of the 
Eastern Archipelago was in the hands of the Portu- 
guese. Trading relations were opened up with Pegu 
and Burmah, China and Japan, such as have only 
recently been granted us. In fact, no flag but theirs 
could fly along the whole African coast. No ship, 
without their permission, dared anchor in any harbour 
from Gibraltar to Abyssinia, from Ormuz to Siam. 
But in fifty-seven years— that is, at the end of the 
