Almeida, Francisco de

Almeida, Francisco de (c. 1450-1510), Portuguese soldier. He first distinguished himself in the conquest of Granada in 1492. In 1505 Emanuel, King of Portugal, appointed him the first Portuguese viceroy of Portuguese India, where he strove to exclude the Muslims and Venetians from all commerce with the East. In 1507 he ravaged the Muslim port of Goa and other seaports on the coast of India and completely destroyed the Muslim fleet at Diu, India. He was slain in battle with the Khoikhoi (formerly called Hottentots) at Cape Saldanha, South Africa, and buried on the site of present-day Cape Town.