When did henry the navigator explore the coast of Africa?

Henry the Navigator, whose full name was Infante Dom Henrique of Portugal, did not personally explore the coast of Africa. Instead, he was a patron of exploration and played a key role in the Portuguese Age of Discovery. Henry the Navigator was born in 1394 and died in 1460.

Henry sponsored and encouraged various Portuguese explorers to venture south along the western coast of Africa in the 15th century. The period of intense exploration associated with Henry the Navigator is generally considered to have begun in the early 15th century, around the 1410s and 1420s. The primary goal of these explorations was to find a sea route to Asia, bypassing the overland trade routes that were controlled by rival powers.

Explorers like Gil Eanes, Diogo Cão, and Bartolomeu Dias undertook voyages along the African coast, with each expedition pushing further south. Bartolomeu Dias, in 1488, became the first known European explorer to sail around the southern tip of Africa, which he named the Cape of Good Hope. This accomplishment paved the way for subsequent explorers, including Vasco da Gama, who successfully reached the shores of India in 1498.

While Henry the Navigator did not personally explore the African coast, his sponsorship and support of exploration were instrumental in the early successes of Portuguese navigators and contributed to the opening of maritime trade routes that would eventually connect Europe with Asia.