<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article does not cite any sources . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (February 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article does not cite any sources . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (February 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> The discovery of the sea route to India is the description sometimes used in Europe and among the Portuguese for the first recorded trip made directly from Europe to India via the Atlantic Ocean . It was undertaken under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama during the reign of King Manuel I in 1497 - 1499 . Considered by Europe to be one of the most remarkable voyages of the Age of Discovery, it consolidated the Portuguese maritime presence in Indian Ocean and that country's dominance of global trade routes . </P> <P> The plan for working on the Cape Route to India was charted by Portuguese King John II as a cost saving measure in the trade with Asia and also an attempt to monopolize the spice trade . Adding to the increasingly influential Portuguese maritime presence, John II craved for trade routes and for the expansion of the kingdom of Portugal which had already been transformed into an Empire . However, the project would not be realized during his reign . It would be his successor, King Manuel I, who would designate Vasco da Gama for this expedition, while maintaining the original plan . </P>

Who commanded the portuguese fleet that rounded the cape of good hope and reached india