Almeida Crushes Mamluks at Diu

1507

The Portuguese viceroy Francisco de Almeida engaged a combined Mamluk, Ottoman, and Gujarati fleet off the Indian port of Diu. Cannon fire tore the Muslim galleys apart. The battle, which Almeida fought to avenge his son, ended Arab dominance of the Indian Ocean spice routes within a generation. The victory shifted Indian Ocean commerce from the Red Sea to the Cape route, redirecting spice trade from Venice to Lisbon.