Nice story behind Rio Grande. :rofl:
Well I figured it was easier than coming up with all new names on my own
.
The New World Part II
(1466 – 1490)
Charles de Vienne
As Phillippe II was being crowned Emperor of Burgundy Charles de Vienne was sailing around the southernmost tip of the Americas. He would continue north discovering the Incan tribe before turning back convinced that he would not find a route to Asia continuing west. Frustrated with his failure he took a risk and began searching the South Atlantic in hopes of finding a friendly port from which to continue east.
While Charles searched the South Atlantic an emissary from Normandy approached Phillippe about the separation of colonization interests between Normandy and Burgundy. For several years Burgundy had been allowing the Normans to use ports in South America and they had followed the path Barthelemy took into the Caribbean. With the people of Burgundy not overly interested in moving out to the colonies at a reasonable rate Phillippe knew he could not monopolize the new world and more interested in the goods from India decided to split the Americas in a most generous manner. In 1467 the treaty was finalized and Phillippe signed away Burgundies rights to colonize in the Caribbean and North America for sole rights to the South American continent.
Meanwhile in the South Atlantic Charles was not successful in finding a port to continue the search east and so he ended up building his own on the island of St. Helena, which he discovered in 1469. He left behind one hundred men to set up a base while he sailed back to Rio Grande to get the supplies they would require to live on the island. By April 1470 the port was ready for use and Charles set sail east. His voyages met with enormous success as he managed to not only get around the African continent but continued up the coast all the way to the Gulf of Suez.
Feeling like his goal was close Charles pressed on despite being low on supplies claiming he would not pull into a port unless it was in India. Again Charles de Vienne would be rewarded for his boldness when his fleet came across land and made contact with the nation of Ahmadnagar in 1473. Despite many barriers to communication and the locals’ mistrust of the explorers Charles miraculously got the local populous to allow his ships to land and resupply. After almost a year of repairs in the Indian state Charles would continue east following the Indian coast line.
As Charles sailed further east news of his arrival in India reached Phillippe II in Burgundy, along with his treaty with the nation of Ahmadnagar. Unhappy with the need to rely on heathens for a safe port Phillippe decided to send an army to secure a port for Burgundian traders. Five carracks and transports loaded with ten thousand soldiers set sail in 1475 to India via St. Helena. They would reach Ahmadnagar near the end of 1476 and while it is believed that they were originally supposed to take the city of Bombay that Charles was using as a port to press further east they instead only stopped briefly to rest for a month before pressing on. It is reported that Charles de Vienne happened to be in port when the armies were making land fall and was able to convince them of a better target having just discovered the island nation of Ceylon to the south east.
Ceylon would take a little over five years to fall to the Burgundian army with the Jaffna, the northern half of the island, being secured in Jan of 1478 and Korales finally being conquered in Dec 1483. During this period Charles de Vienne took control of the small fleet, combining it with his own four ships, and fought several battles with Ceylon’s allies as they attempted to bring troops to the island to destroy the Burgundian armies. Under his leadership the Burgundian navy was able to capture several useable ships to bolster his numbers and destroyed over a dozen enemy vessels before Ceylon’s allies made peace with Burgundy, realizing they could do nothing against the much superior naval forces against them.
Burgundian soldiers suppress rebels in the newly aquired island provinces in India.
With the new ports secure Charles continued east while Phillippe II set up the Burgundian East Indian Trading Company to ship trade goods up the Gulf of Suez and into Granada’s ports. There they travelled briefly overland into Gaza and then by ship into Vienna. Phillippe II would pass away shortly after commissioning the company and Louis-Joseph I would rise to the throne in April of 1484. Louis-Joseph’s reign was short lasting only until September of 1487 when his son Charles I, believed to be named in honour of Charles de Vienne, became Emperor.
Charles’s further efforts into the Far East would open up a route to China in 1485 and lead to the discovery of the island nation of Japan in 1487 as well as discovering the continent of Australia and mapping a large portion of the Pacific Ocean. In 1490 He would turn back west towards home ports in Europe.
Charles de Vienne would remain only long enough in Europe to receive his payment and attend a banquet the Emperor held in his honour. With fresh supplies he would then sail west again to chart the few regions left unknown in the North American continent and the Atlantic Ocean. He would die of complications due to frostbite in the Arctic ocean after being caught by an early winter storm while exploring the Hudson’s Bay. His four ships would return to Burgundy with his body where a state funeral was held for the man who no other explorer would ever match in accomplishment.
