Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique

Coordinates: -25.9830, 32.7000
Updated: 15 Apr 2026

https://cdn.britannica.com/s:700x500/72/12372-004-C9E1BCF5/Delagoa-Bay-Marine-Drive-Mozambique-Maputo.jpg — Delagoa Bay from Marine Drive, Maputo, Mozambique

Delgoa Bay is a Bay on the South East coast of Mozambique, East Africa, near the South African border. Discovered by António do Campo, a member of Vasco da Gama’s expedition (1502), it was first explored by Lorenzo Marques, a Portuguese trader, in 1544. It was important as an outlet for ivory and slaves, as a way station for Indian Ocean trade, and as an avenue of approach to South African diamond fields and goldfields. Ownership was contested by the Portuguese, Dutch, English, and Boers until by arbitration (1875) it was awarded to Portugal.

Location Map

Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique

How we know this

01https://www.britannica.com/place/Delagoa-Bay

Last updated · 15 Apr 2026

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2020, October 19). Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/nso/ref/P-0150487

South African History Online (2020) 'Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique', South African History Online, 19 October. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/nso/ref/P-0150487 (Accessed: 22 July 2026).

South African History Online, Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique [website], https://sahistory.org.za/nso/ref/P-0150487, (accessed 22 July 2026).

"Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique." South African History Online, 19 Oct. 2020, https://sahistory.org.za/nso/ref/P-0150487. Accessed 22 July 2026.

South African History Online. "Delgoa Bay Now Known as Maputo Bay, Mozambique." South African History Online. October 19, 2020. https://sahistory.org.za/nso/ref/P-0150487.