Manuel Godinho de Erédia

Manuel Godinho de Erédia, or Emanuel Godinho de Erédia (16 July 1563 – 1623), was a Bugis-Portuguese writer and cartographer. He wrote a number of books, including an early account of the Malay Peninsula that is a source of information on the region of that period. In the early 17th century, he became interested in exploring a "southern land", which is thought to be Australia.

Life Godinho de Erédia was the youngest of four children of João de Erédia Aquaviva, a Portuguese of Aragonese and Italian descent. His mother was Dona Elena Vessiva from Sulawesi, a Bugis princess, the daughter of La Putebulu the recently baptized King of Suppa.

His mother died in 1575, and soon after when he was 13, Erédia was sent to a Jesuit college in Goa where he was trained in astronomy, cartography and mathematics. He was received into Company of Jesus in 1579, but left to work for the Portuguese government in Goa in 1580 as his Superiors felt it would better suit his interest in exploration. They had two children: a daughter born in 1587 and a son in 1588.

Erédia became interested in finding the legendary "land of gold", and returned to South East Asia in 1600 on a mission to explore further the Indonesian Archipelago. However, he had to stay in Malacca for four years, commanding a fleet of 70 ships guarding the southern approach to the Malacca. He founded a fort in Muar in 1604, and captured Kota Batu, the capital of Johore, with General Andre Furtado de Mendoça.

Erédia heard of a land to the south or Luca Antarawhich may have been Australiain 1601 and was interested in exploring it but fell ill in 1605 and had to return to Goa. He sent a servant to accompany Javanese seamen to Luca Antara in 1610, although unbeknownst to him the Dutch had already discovered the existence of the northern shore of Australia by 1606. Among his works are:

1597–1600 — Report on the Golden Chersonese, or Peninsula, and Auriferous, Carbuncular and Aromatic Islands (a broad account of the Malay Archipelago); Report on Meridional India 1610 — Plantas de plaças das conquistas de Portugal 1611 — Discourse on the Province of Indostan, termed Mogûl 1612 — Summary of the Trees and Plants of India intra Ganges (Suma de árvores e plantas da Índia Intra Ganges) 1613 — Description of Malaca, Meridional India, and Cathay (Declaraçam de Malaca e da India Meridional com Cathay) 1615 — History of the Martyrdom of Luiz Monteiro Coutinho 1616 — Treatise on Ophir (Tratado Ophirico). An autobiography is included in this work. c. 1620 — Lyvro de Plataforma das Fortalezas da India (an illustrated accounts of Portuguese territories in 1620 between East Asia and East Africa, including Macau, Bacaim, Colombo, Ormuz and Mozambique. )