Holy War – The Portuguese view

Three years after I first arrived in Lisbon to embark on my journey in Vasco da Gama’s footsteps, I was lucky enough to be invited back for the launch of the Portuguese edition of Holy War. Many thanks to Susana Borges and Marina Ramos of Leya for hosting me so hospitably.

I was intrigued, and not a little trepidatious, to learn how the Portuguese would respond to an outsider writing about their national story. After all, my take on the discoveries is undoubtedly darker than many are used to hearing. (Interviews can be revealing for authors. Shortly before I left, an Indian journalist reminded me that the Portuguese had invited India to join in their celebration of the quincentenary of Vasco da Gama’s arrival on its shores, a proposal which was no doubt made in a fraternal spirit but was roundly rejected.)

Hearteningly, my interest was welcomed and reciprocated. Every interviewer asked what had drawn me to the subject, which made me wonder all over again why this pivotal episode in world history is not better known in the English-speaking world. But what struck me most forcibly was the polarity of Portuguese attitudes to their history. Half said they had learned that the discoveries were all about religion; half that they were all about economics. Mostly though not exclusively, the first group was older and had grown up under the Salazar regime, which drubbed in the neo-medieval notion of holy war as a noble ideal.

In my book, I argue that the Crusading mentality was indeed an essential spur to the Age of Discovery. It earned the Portuguese papal backing, which they took as legal confirmation of their right to conquer and subdue any non-Christians they encountered. It gave them a unifying story and purpose that sustained the explorations for more than a century. It silenced doubters: Faced with compelling arguments about the recklessness of their grand schemes, Portugal’s rulers simply replied that they were doing God’s will. It fed the millenarian fantasies of successive kings, who imagined themselves as the prophesied figures who would usher in a global Christian age. And it inspired many individual acts of heroism – and barbarity. The fifteenth century was a time of failed Crusades; what marked out the Portuguese was that they saw a way to change the rules of engagement, and acted on it.

At the same time, I suggest that this mindset born of the Crusades spelt disaster from the start. The Portuguese found themselves adrift in a world that made no sense to them; for years, they convinced themselves that India’s Hindus were some kind of unorthodox Christians. When they finally realised their mistake, they had already lost their bearings. Though they ushered in the modern age—the age of European global ascendancy—other nations, less weighed down with religious baggage and more focussed on trade, reaped the rewards.

I put it like this in my conclusion: “In the end, the religious certainty that drove Vasco da Gama and his fellow explorers halfway around the world was also their undoing. For all their astonishing achievements, the idea of a Last Crusade—a holy war to end all holy wars—was always a crazy dream.” While I’m sure not everyone will agree, it’ll be fascinating to follow the discussion. Thanks to all listed below; the interviews can be seen, read, or heard on the following outlets:

RTP TV – national news, Rui Lagartinho

RTP TV – national culture show, Câmara Clara

SIC Notícias – TV interview, Nuno Rogeiro

TVI – Cartaz de Artes – TV cultural magazine

Cable TV Q – chat show – Pedro Vieira

RDP National Radio – José Manuel Rosendo

Antena 1 – National Radio – Ana Daniela Soares

Diário de Notícias – João Céu e Silva

Público – Carlos Pessoa

Jornal de Negócias – Lúcia Crespo

Sol – Telma Miguel

Correio da Manhã – Sunday magazine feature – Francisco J. Gonçalves