PIGAFETTA’S ACCOUNT OF

MAGELLAN’S VOYAGE
GE105 - READINGS IN THE PHILIPPINE HISTORY

Jenelyn A. Bustillo, MBA

 Historical Background

! Europe was experiencing some ! Desire of the Europeans to know

changes because of:
more of the countries of the
• growth of industry and commerce

“Orient” as told by Christian

• advances in science
crusaders who went Holy Land
improvement of navigation

•
• invention of machines and maritime instruments to reclaim from Muslims
 Historical Background

! Venetians of citizen of
Venice
! Portuguese and
Spaniards and other
• Enjoyed the monopoly of
trading
Europeans began trade
with Oriental countries
 Historical Background

! Venetians of citizen of ! Portuguese and

Venice
Spaniards and other
• Enjoyed the monopoly of trading Europeans began trade
with Oriental countries
 ! Pope Alexander IV

• Issued a papal bull in 1493

• Spain - All lands south and

west o the Azores and Cape
Verde

• Portugal – Continent of Africa

ff
Tordesillas (1494): Castile/Spain and Portugal
 Provisions of Treaty of Tordesillas

An imaginary line was drawn from north to south at a distance of 370

leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Lands to be discovered east of
this sine would belong to Portugal, those on the west belong to Spain

If ships discovered lands east of demarcation line, the said lands should be
turned over to Portugal, lands discovered by Portuguese ships west of the
line should be turned over to Spain

No Portuguese ship shall be sent to lands belonging to Spain, and vice

versa, for the purpose of trading with them
Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521)
• Engaged in post VDG Asian endeavors

• Battle of Mallaca (Malaysia, 1511)

• Portugal trades with Moluccas Islands for spices

• Became Spanish citizen in 1517

• Project to open spice trade licensed in 1518

 ! Mar 31, 1520
• Port of St. Julian

! August • 3 ships mutiny at Port

10, 1519 ! December 13 – St. Julian

• Left Europe with 26, 1519 • One mutineer killed,

5 ships another one
• Rio de Janeiro beheaded

! October 21 –
! September ! February 2, November 26,
21, 1519 1520 1520
• Tenerife • Rio St. Christopher • In the channel for 36
days

! Mar 6, 1521 ! Apr 28,1521

• Isla de Ladrones
• Ferdinand Magellan
• Burn village dies

! Apr 2, 1519 ! Sept 6, 1522

• Cebu
• Victoria returns to
• Royal families and Spain commanded
800 baptized as by Sebastian el Cano
Christians

• Magellan burns
villages of those who
will not convert

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE FIRST

VOYAGE AROUND THE WORLD
BY MAGELLAN
LADRONES ISLAND

• The Ladrones Islands is

presently known as the
Marianas Island. These islands
are located south-southeast of
Japan, west southwest of
Hawaii, north of New Guinea,
and east of the Philippines

• He met two kings:

• Raia Siagu (Si Agu)

• Raia Calambu (Kulambu), king of

Zuluan and Calagan (Butuan and
Caragua)
FIRST MASS

• Easter Sunday, March 31, 1521 - Magellan ordered Father Pedro de

Valderama to preside a mass by the shore

• The two kings heard of this of this plan and sent two dead pigs and attended
the mass

• After the mass, Magellan ordered that the cross be brought with nails and
crown in place

• The king concurred and allowed for the cross to be planted

FIRST MASS

• This mass would go down in

history as the rst mass in the
Philippines, and the cross would
be the famed Magellan’s cross
still preserved at present day
fi
• Magellan also reached the island of Cebu, where he met and, as a sign of
friendship, made a blood compact with Raia Humabon, king of Cebu

• A principal man from the island of Mactan by the name of Zula went to see
Magellan and asked him to ght the chief named Si LapuLapu (Lapu Lapu)

• Magellan expressed to go to Mactan himself to ght the said chief

• Outnumbered 49 to 1,500. Magellan died in the Battle of Mactan.

fi
fi
 CONTEXT ANALYSIS

• The chornicles of Pigafetta was one of the most cited documents by

historians who wished to study the pre-colonial Philippines

• Being the earliest detailed documentation, it was believed that Pigafetta’s

writings account for the “purest” pre-colonial society

• There needs to have a more nuanced reading of the source within a

contextual backdrop

• Students of history should recognize certain biases accompanying the author

and his identity, loyalties, and the circumstances that he was in, how it
a ected
ff
CONTEXT ANALYSIS

• In reading Pigafetta’s description of the people, one has to keep in mind that
he was coming from a sixteenth century European perspective

• It should be understood that such observations were rooted from the context
of PIgafetta and of his era

• These context should be used and understood in order to have a more

quali ed reading of Pigafetta’s account
fi