outlined his plan to King Manuel I in modest terms, steering clear away from Medievalist fantasies. Almeida's plan was to only open a few critical coastal and island fortresses at strategic locations, just enough to allow the Portuguese navy to range over the length and breadth of the Indian Ocean, rather than attempt ruinous large territorial conquests. The king approved the plan and chose the locations of the fortresses himself. It is common to wonder why Vasco da Gama was overlooked for the position. Gama was available and, by royal letter, he was entitled to a say in Indies matters, so why wasn't he chosen for viceroy? In effect, he was just beaten to the prize. Like Almeida, Gama was connected to the opposition party, Santiago, etc., but had been too slow to switch over to the king's party and did not promise the king what he wanted to hear. Moreover, Almeida was of higher blood and patronizing the mighty Almeidas promised bigger political returns for the king than the lowly Gamas (even though the two families became connected after the marriage - in 1499 - of Vasco da Gama to Catarina de Ataíde, a first cousin of Francisco de Almeida). More pertinently, Gama's judgment was also questioned in whispers through the court. The 4th Armada that Vasco da Gama had commanded to India in 1502 had not been a success. He had failed to bring the Zamorin to terms and, more egregiously, the coastal patrol he left behind, under his uncle Vicente Sodré, had nearly cost the Portuguese their position in India. While the fault should be properly assigned to the Sodré brothers for dereliction of duty, there was a sense in the royal court that the patrol's failure was at least partly Gama's fault. He had insisted on the appointment of the Sodrés, he was their familiar and their superior, and could not have been wholly ignorant of their plans. Finally, Gama was a bit distracted – he was still trying to secure his hold on the granted town of Sines, and pestering the king to no end about it, with the result that Gama was not, at that moment, particularly welcome in Manuel's court. The Fleet The Seventh Armada was the largest Portuguese armada yet sent to India — 21 ships (or 22, if Bom Jesus is counted separately), carrying 1500 armed men with 1000 in crew