Portuguese Fleet Operations in the Gulf of Aden

Timeline

1. 1513Socotra Island · YemenAlbuquerque, under royal orders to blockade the Red Sea route, led his fleet west from Goa, stopping at Socotra en route. A council of commanders rejected a plan to negotiate a surrender and resolved to storm Aden before Mamluk reinforcements arrived.
2. 1513Aden · YemenOn Easter morning the Portuguese forced barges ashore, briefly capturing outer works and capturing artillery, but the siege ladders broke under the weight, leaving troops isolated and suffering casualties. Before noon Albuquerque ordered a retreat, severely undermining the Portuguese plan to blockade the Red Sea.
3. 1513Bab el-Mandeb and Red Sea · Bab el-MandebAfter raising the siege, the Portuguese burned and plundered ships in Aden's harbor and bombarded the city, then sailed through the Bab el-Mandeb into the Red Sea, attempting without success to approach Jeddah; after a temporary anchorage at Kamaran Island in May, disease and lack of water forced a return voyage, and a renewed attack on Aden in August also failed before withdrawing to India.