ABSTRACT
European voyages of reconnaissance along the coast of western Africa during the fifteenth century were preceded by centuries of indirect trade with western Africa via Berber and Arab intermediaries. The accumulation of European information and misinformation about trans-Saharan trade was a direct stimulus to the voyages of reconnaissance undertaken by Henry the Navigator and his associates during the first decades of the fifteenth century. European voyages to the Canary Islands contributed to a growing familiarity with the Moroccan coastline and with the uninhabited Madeira archipelago consisting of Madeira, the much smaller Porto Santo Island, and a string of islets. Europeans were initially disappointed by the commercial potential of the Jolof Empire as they were offered only hides and small quantities of gold. The year 1456 marked a renewal of impetus in Portuguese reconnaissance voyages and a peaceful accommodation with Banyun-Bak and Biafada-Sapi trading groups.
