Elmina

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Elmina fishing fleet

Elmina is a town situated on a south-facing bay on the Atlantic Ocean coast of Ghana, lying west of Cape Coast. The first European settlement in West Africa, it now has a population of around 20,000 people.

The town grew around São Jorge da Mina Castle, built by the Portuguese Diogo de Azambuja in 1482, and was Portugal's West African headquarters for trade and exploitation of African wealth. The original Portuguese interest was gold but this later expanded to include ten of thousands of slaves channeled through the trading post of El Mina. The location of Elmina made it a significant site for reprovisioning ships headed south towards the Cape of Good Hope on their way to India. The Dutch West India Company captured it in 1637; in subsequent centuries it was mostly used for the slave trade. The city remained in Dutch hands until 1872, when it was sold to the English.

Elmina is also home to Fort St Jago, built by the Dutch in 1666, several Asafo shrines and a lagoon. Today, Elmina's main industry is fishing.

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Portuguese Empire

North Africa

15th century
1415–1640 Ceuta
1420 Madeira
1458–1550 Alcácer Ceguer (El Qsar es Seghir)
1471–1550 Arzila (Asilah)
1471–1662 Tangier
1485–1550 Mazagan (El Jadida)
1488–1541 Safim (Safi)

16th century
1505–1769 Santa Cruz do Cabo de Gué (Agadir)
1506–1525 Mogador (Essaouira)
1506–1525 Aguz (Souira Guedima)
1506–1769 Mazagan (El Jadida)
1513–1541 Azamor (Azemmour)
1577–1589 Arzila (Asilah)

Sub-Saharan Africa

15th century 1455–1633 Arguin 1470–1975 São Tomé¹ 1474–1778 Annobón 1478–1778 Fernando Póo (Bioko) 1482–1637 Elmina (São Jorge da Mina) 1482–1642 Portuguese Gold Coast 1496–1550 Madagascar (part) 1498–1540 Mascarene Islands	16th century 1500–1630 Malindi 1500–1975 Príncipe¹ 1501–1975 Portuguese E. Africa (Mozambique) 1502–1659 St. Helena 1503–1698 Zanzibar 1505–1512 Quíloa (Kilwa) 1506–1511 Socotra 1557–1578 Accra 1575–1975 Portuguese W. Africa (Angola) 1588–1974 Cacheu² 1593–1698 Mombassa (Mombasa)	17th century 1642–1975 Cape Verde 1645–1888 Ziguinchor 1680–1961 São João Baptista de Ajudá 1687–1974 Bissau² 18th century 1728–1729 Mombassa (Mombasa) 1753–1975 São Tomé and Príncipe 19th century 1879–1974 Portuguese Guinea 1885–1975 Portuguese Congo (Cabinda)
¹ Part of São Tomé and Príncipe from 1753. ² Part of Portuguese Guinea from 1879.

Southwest Asia

16th century
1506–1615 Gamru (Bandar Abbas)
1515–1622 Hormuz (Ormus)
1515–1650 Muscat
1521–1602 Bahrain

Indian subcontinent

15th century
1498–1545 Laccadive Islands (Lakshadweep)

16th century
Portuguese India
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   1559–1962 Daman and Diu
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1558–1573 Maldives

17th century
Portuguese India
1687–1749 São Tomé de Meliapore

18th century
Portuguese India
1779–1954 Dadra and Nagar Haveli

East Asia and Oceania

	16th century 1511–1641 Malacca (Melaka) 1512–1621 Banda Islands 1512–1621 Moluccas (Maluku Islands) 1522–1575 Ternate 1576–1605 Ambon 1578–1650 Tidore 1512–1665 Makassar 1553–1999 Macau 1571–1639 Decima (Dejima, Nagasaki)	17th century 1642–1975 Portuguese Timor (East Timor)¹ 19th century Macau 1864–1999 Coloane 1851–1999 Taipa 1890–1999 Ilha Verde 20th century Macau 1938–1941 Lapa and Montanha (Hengqin)
¹ 1975 is the date of East Timor's Declaration of Independence and subsequent invasion by Indonesia. In 2002, the independence of East Timor was recognized by Portugal and the rest of the world.