António Mota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
António Mota
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António da Mota giving gun demos to the Japanese
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| Born | |
| Died | Unknown |
| Nationality | Portuguese |
| Occupation | Trader, Explorer |
António da Mota was a Portuguese trader and explorer. He is famous for being one of the first Europeans to visit Japan. This important event happened in 1543.
Contents
António da Mota's Journey to Japan
A Stormy Voyage to Asia
In 1543, António da Mota was traveling to Ningbo, a city in China. He was on a large Chinese ship called a junk. During this journey, a very bad storm hit the ship. The strong winds and waves pushed the ship far off its planned course.
There were about one hundred East Asians and several Portuguese people on board. The Portuguese travelers included António da Mota, Francisco Zeimoto, and António Peixoto. Another explorer, Fernão Mendes Pinto, later said he was on this trip too. However, it's not likely he was, because he was in Burma at the same time.
Landing in Japan
The storm-driven ship finally reached land on August 25, 1543. They landed on an island called Tanegashima in Japan. This moment was very important in history. António da Mota and Francisco Zeimoto officially became the first Europeans to step onto Japanese soil. Sadly, António Peixoto is not mentioned as landing. He might have died at sea before they reached the island.
Introducing Guns to Japan
When Mota and Zeimoto arrived, they brought something new to Japan: handheld guns. The Japanese were very interested in these new weapons. They found the guns fascinating and wanted to learn more about them.
Because of this first meeting, the Japanese quickly started making their own firearms. In the decades that followed, Japan began to produce many guns. This changed how wars were fought in Japan.
After their ship was fixed, António da Mota left Japan. What happened to him after that is not known.
See also
In Spanish: António da Mota para niños
