Biografía:
Pero Vaz de Camina was a scribbler in the expedition led by Pedro Alvarez Cabral and served as a knight for a number of Portuguese kings like Alfonso V, Juan II and Manuel I. He belonged to the group of scholars under the kingdom's wing and gave himself a good name as an illustrious citizen of Oporto, just like his father. This Portuguese chronicler has gone down in the history records as the man who played a historic role in Portugal's discoveries in the New World and in the history of Brazil. Camina wrote the famous Letter of the Discovery (Carta do achamento) or Letter to King Manuel, a few days after May 1, 1500. In that letter, the chronicler scribbles a detailed recount of Cabral's expedition to Bahia and the events that marked the coming of this expedition to a completely unknown land since the departure from Portugal to the overtake of the alien territories in the name of the king of Portugal. He also retold the many meetings they had with the indigenous population, made lots of landscape descriptions and referred to the two holy masses officiated by Franciscan Fray Enrique. In the letter, the author tells King Manuel I about the new possessions and conquered lands, without ruling out a single detail of the king could have considered interesting at the time. Camina passed away in 1500 during a battle against the Moorish armies. His letter remained unknown until 1817 when it was finally published.
