Vasco da Gama and His Brother Diogo: Knights of the Convent of Christ
In the annals of Portuguese maritime history, few names shine as brightly as Vasco da Gama’s. The man who opened the sea route to India in 1498 stands as a symbol of Portugal’s Age of Discoveries. Yet behind this triumph lies the story of an enduring legacy—the legacy of the Templars, reborn as the Order of Christ, and the powerful spiritual-military institution based at the Convent of Christ in Tomar.
What is often overlooked is that Vasco da Gama and his brother, Diogo da Gama, were members of this very Order. The Convent of Christ, once the Templar stronghold in Portugal, had by the 15th century become the headquarters of the Order of Christ, an institution that not only preserved the Templar spirit but also became the engine behind Portugal’s global exploration.
The Order Behind the Voyages
The Order of Christ was no mere religious brotherhood. After the suppression of the Knights Templar in 1312, King Dinis of Portugal succeeded in transferring their vast wealth and lands to a new, Portuguese-controlled institution: the Order of Christ. Its headquarters at Tomar inherited not only the Templar fortress but also their mission, now directed toward maritime exploration rather than Holy War in the Holy Land.
By the late 15th century, the Order was under the control of Prince Henry the Navigator and his successors, who funneled its revenues into shipbuilding, navigation, and the training of explorers. The red cross of the Order—derived from the Templar cross—adorned the sails of ships that set forth from Lisbon to chart unknown waters.
The Gama Brothers and Tomar
It is reported though not proven that Vasco da Gama and Diogo da Gama were both appointed as “Comendadores”—Commanders—of the Order of Christ. This title was more than symbolic. It gave them prestige, lands, and the backing of one of the most powerful institutions in Portugal. As knights of the Order, they were part of a tradition that linked martial valour with religious mission, and conquest with evangelisation.
Although Vasco is best known for his journeys east, his association with Tomar and the Order of Christ reminds us that these voyages were not just state-sponsored enterprises. They were also crusades of a new kind—voyages of faith and empire under the red cross of the Order.
Diogo da Gama, while less well-known than his brother, also held significant positions within the Order. He administered lands and revenues, likely participated in planning or supporting maritime expeditions, and remained closely tied to the power structures rooted at Tomar.
The Convent's Enduring Influence
Today, when visitors walk the corridors of the Convent of Christ in Tomar, they tread in the footsteps of these explorers. The Manueline window of the Chapter House, festooned with ropes, corals, and armillary spheres, is a visual celebration of the Age of Discoveries. But the deeper story lies in the institution that made it possible: a spiritual successor to the Templars, housed in a fortress that once guarded the frontier of Christendom—and later helped launch a new world order.
Vasco da Gama may have sailed from Lisbon, but the ideological and institutional wind in his sails came from Tomar.