The minor gentry and the lower nobility exercised the overall leadership of the Portuguese settlement in the Indian Ocean throughout the 15th century, simultaneously assuming control of trade, diplomatic affairs, administration of justice and finance, command of the armadas and fortresses and, obviously, warfare. The studies compiled in this volume show that, at the time of King Manuel I, the commitment of the leading lords of the kingdom to the establishment of the ‘Estado da Índia’ was minimal.

A Alta Nobreza e a Fundação do Estado da Índia, Actas do Colóquio Internacional, João Paulo Oliveira e Costa (ed.), Lisboa: CHAM, IICT, 2004, 388p., (Colecção Estudos & Documentos, 2).

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Available at RUN - Repositório da NOVA (web)