Preste João (Priester Jan) en die Portugese omseiling van die suidpunt van Afrika

Abstract

Preste João [Prester John] and the circumnavigation of the southern tip of Africa
by the Portuguese:
The Moslem threat in the Middle Ages led Europeans, especially the Portuguese, to search for the legendary Christian priest-king, Prester John, as an ally. Originally they believed his mighty empire to be somewhere in Central Asia, but gradually the search shifted to an indeterminate “India”, and still later to north-east Africa, until eventually it was concentrated on Ethiopia [Abyssinia]. The myth of Prester John was of the utmost importance to the Portuguese monarchy, because it was necessary to convince the pious and gullible advisors, on religious grounds, that the voyages of discovery were meant to find Prester John, whereas in fact they were intended to discover a route to the spice-rich East. When no genuine Prester John could be found, the successive Christian rulers of Ethiopia were presented as such, right up to the 17th century. The myth had far-reaching consequences including the circumnavigation of the southern tip of Africa.

Keywords: Abyssinia, Central Asia, Ethiopia, India, legends, myths, Portugal,
Portuguese, Preste João, Prester John, Southern tip of Africa, voyages of discovery

South Africa Journal of Cultural History Vol. 21 (2) 2007: pp. 105-137