This knight of the Royal House was the son of João Gonçalves de Castanheda or João Cotrim Canas. In 1490, he was a member of the guard of King D. João II. He was in Ksar-el-Kebir in 1501 and he set sail, the following year, for the Orient, as captain of the fleet. Between 1507 and 1509 he was the treasurer of Casa da Índia (the body responsible for the administration of Indian trade).

Bibliography
RESENDE, Vasco, A Sociedade da Expansão na época de D. Manuel I: mobilidade, hierarquia e poder entre o Reino, o Norte de África e o Oriente, Lagos, Câmara Municipal de Lagos, 2006.

Author: Teresa Lacerda
Translated by: Dominique Faria