Latest / The History of Portugal: The Small Nation That Built a Global Empire — Fexingo History / Portugal's Forgotten Pirate: Fernão Mendes Pinto's Asian Adventures
Transcript
- Lucas: So, we've covered a lot of the big names in Portuguese expansion — Vasco da Gama, Afonso de Albuquerque, the governors and viceroys. But there's this one figure who's more of a footnote in most history books, yet his life story is absolutely bonkers. Fernão Mendes Pinto. Luna: I've heard that name — wasn't he like a Portuguese Marco Polo or something? Lucas: Exactly, but way more chaotic. Pinto was born around 1509 in montemor o velho, a small town near Coimbra, to a poor family. He ran away from home as a teenager and ended up in Lisbon, where he shipped out for the East in 1537. From there, he spent the next 21 years wandering across Asia, from the Red Sea to Japan. Luna: Twenty-one years? That's like a whole lifetime. Lucas: It is. And according to his memoir, the 'Peregrinação' — published posthumously in 1614 — he was captured by pirates no fewer than five times, sold into slavery at least twice, and fought on both sides of various wars. He claims to have visited 70 different kingdoms and even helped introduce the arquebus to Japan. Luna: Wait, he brought guns to Japan? That's huge. Lucas: That's the story. In 1543, a Chinese junk carrying Portuguese traders — possibly including Pinto — was blown off course and landed on the island of Tanegashima, south of Kyushu. The local daimyo was fascinated by the matchlock guns the Portuguese had. Within a few decades, Japan was producing its own versions, and the arquebus became a game-changer in the Sengoku period civil wars. Luna: So Pinto might have been one of the first Europeans to set foot in Japan? Lucas: Maybe. The problem is that Pinto's memoir is notoriously unreliable. He himself starts it with a line: 'I have told more lies than truth, but my lies are more entertaining than my truths.' Scholars have been arguing for centuries about what's real and what's embellished. Lucas: But even if you strip away the exaggerations, the core of his story is plausible. He definitely spent time in Malacca, the hub of Portuguese trade in Southeast Asia. He worked as a merchant, probably a smuggler and occasional pirate. He also claims to have been enslaved in the Maldives and later rescued by a Portuguese fleet. Luna: The Maldives? That's a random stop. Lucas: It was a regular stop for ships crossing the Indian Ocean. But Pinto's account of the Maldives includes a king who tried to have him killed, a love affair with a local woman, and an escape in a small boat. It reads like a picaresque novel. Lucas: One of the most famous episodes he describes is the Siege of Diu in 1538. That was a huge battle between the Portuguese and a combined Ottoman-Gujarati force. Pinto says he was there, fighting alongside the Portuguese defenders. But some historians point out that the siege happened while he was supposedly still in the Maldives, so it might be a fabrication. Luna: So he's a liar, but a fascinating one? Lucas: Pretty much. The 'Peregrinação' was hugely popular in its time, translated into several languages. It shaped European perceptions of Asia for generations. And even if some details are wrong, it captures the chaotic, opportunistic spirit of the Portuguese presence in the East. Lucas: Pinto also claims to have met St. Francis Xavier, the Jesuit missionary, in Malacca. He says he travelled with Xavier to Japan and helped establish the first Christian mission there. That's plausible — Xavier did reach Japan in 1549, and Pinto was in the region around that time. Luna: He seems to have been everywhere. Did he ever go back to Portugal? Lucas: He returned in 1558, after 21 years. He brought back a small fortune, but he also joined the Jesuits later in life, donating much of his wealth to the order. He died in 1583, near Lisbon, still working on his manuscript. Lucas: One of the most debated claims in the 'Peregrinação' is that he visited the Banda Islands, the only source of nutmeg in the world at that time. If true, he might have been one of the first Europeans to see them, decades before the Dutch took control. Luna: Did he actually go there? Lucas: We don't know. No other Portuguese source confirms it. But it's not impossible. Portuguese traders were pushing eastward, and a few reached as far as the Moluccas. Pinto's account includes detailed descriptions of nutmeg cultivation and local customs that sound authentic. Lucas: Another big claim: he says he was present at the founding of Macau in 1557. That's the Portuguese settlement in China that lasted until 1999. According to Pinto, he was part of the group that negotiated with Ming officials to establish a trading post. Again, no contemporary record backs him up. Luna: So his whole life story is a mix of fact and fiction? Lucas: That's why he's so interesting. He's not just a historical figure — he's a literary character. The 'Peregrinação' is one of the great works of Portuguese literature, full of adventure and moral reflection. Pinto presents himself as a sinner who eventually repents, which fits the Jesuit narrative. Lucas: If today was actually useful to you, the way these stay ad-free is listener support — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, it really helps keep the research going for deep dives like this. Lucas: Anyway, back to Pinto. One of the most vivid episodes in his book is his capture by pirates in the South China Sea. He describes being chained in the hold of a junk, then sold to a Muslim merchant in Sumatra, and eventually escaping during a storm. It's cinematic. Luna: It sounds like a movie script. Lucas: It does. And that's part of the problem — it's too good to be true. But even if Pinto embellished, his book gives us a rare view of the grassroots level of the Portuguese empire, not just the governors and admirals. He shows us the traders, the outcasts, the renegades. Luna: That's the side we don't usually see. Lucas: Exactly. The Estado da Índia wasn't just a network of fortresses and fleets. It was also thousands of Portuguese — and other Europeans — who blended into Asian societies, took local wives, learned languages, and operated outside official channels. Pinto is the voice of that world. Lucas: After his return, he spent years trying to get his story published, but the Inquisition was wary of his accounts of pagan lands. The book only came out after his death, and even then, some passages were censored. The full unexpurgated version wasn't published until the 19th century. Luna: What did the Inquisition object to? Lucas: Pinto was critical of some Portuguese practices in Asia — the brutality, the greed, the corruption. He also described non-Christian cultures in respectful, even admiring terms. That didn't sit well with the religious authorities. Lucas: So ultimately, Fernão Mendes Pinto leaves us with more questions than answers. But that's what makes him fascinating. He's a mirror for how we remember history — what's fact, what's legend, and what we choose to believe. Luna: I think I need to read the 'Peregrinação' now.