Pacific crossing[edit]

The western hemisphere of Johannes Schöner's globe, created

in 1520, reflects Europeans' misconception of the proximity of South America and Asia.
(Zipangri, the large island outlined in yellow, is Japan)
Magellan (along with contemporary geographers) had no conception of the vastness of the Pacific
Ocean. He imagined that South America was separated from the Spice Islands by a small sea,
which he expected to cross in as little as three or four days.[88] In fact, they spent three months and
twenty days at sea, before reaching Guam and then the Philippines.

The fleet entered the Pacific from the Strait of Magellan on 28 November 1520 and initially sailed
north, following the coast of Chile. By mid-December, they altered their course to west-north-west.
[89]
They were unfortunate in that, had their course differed slightly, they might have encountered a
number of Pacific islands which would have offered fresh food and water, such as the Marshall
Islands, the Society Islands, the Solomon Islands or the Marquesas Islands. As it was, they
encountered only two small uninhabited islands during the crossing, at which they were unable to
land, the reason why they named them Islas Infortunadas. The first, sighted 24 January, they named
San Pablo (likely Puka-Puka).[90] The second, which they sighted 21 February, was likely Caroline
Island.[91] They crossed the equator on 13 February.

Not expecting such a long journey, the ships were not stocked with adequate food and water, and
much of the seal meat they had stocked putrefied in the equatorial heat. Pigafetta described the
desperate conditions in his journal:

we only ate old biscuit reduced to powder, and full of grubs, and stinking from the dirt which the rats
had made on it when eating the good biscuit, and we drank water that was yellow and stinking. We
also ate the ox hides which were under the main-yard, so that the yard should not break the rigging:
they were very hard on account of the sun, rain, and wind, and we left them for four or five days in
the sea, and then we put them a little on the embers, and so ate them; also the sawdust of wood,
and rats which cost half-a-crown each, moreover enough of them were not to be got. [48]
Moreover, most of the men suffered from symptoms of scurvy, whose cause was not understood at
the time. Pigafetta reported that, of the 166 men[92][93][need quotation to verify] who embarked on the Pacific
crossing, 19 died and "twenty-five or thirty fell ill of diverse sicknesses". [48] Magellan, Pigafetta, and
other officers were not afflicted with scorbutic symptoms, which may have been because they ate
preserved quince which (unbeknownst to them) contained the vitamin C necessary to protect against
scurvy.[94]
Guam and the Philippines[edit]
On 6 March 1521, the fleet reached the Mariana Islands. The first land they spotted was likely the
island of Rota, but the ships were unable to land there. Instead, they dropped anchor thirty hours
later on Guam, where they were met by native Chamorro people in proas, a type of outrigger
canoe then unknown to Europeans. Dozens of Chamorros came aboard and began taking items
from the ship, including rigging, knives, and any items made of iron. At some point, there was a
physical confrontation between the crew and the natives, and at least one Chamorro was killed. The
remaining natives fled with the goods they had obtained, also taking
Magellan's bergantina (the ship's boat kept on the Trinidad) as they retreated.[95][96] For this act,
Magellan called the island Isla de los Ladrones (Island of Thieves).[97]

The next day, Magellan retaliated, sending a raiding party ashore which looted and burned forty or
fifty Chamorro houses and killed seven men.[98] They recovered the bergantina and left Guam the
next day, 9 March, continuing westward.[99]

The Philippines[edit]
The fleet reached the Philippines on 16 March, and remained there until 1 May. The expedition
represented the first documented European contact with the Philippines.[100] Although the stated goals
of Magellan's expedition were to find a passage through South America to the Moluccas and return
to Spain laden with spices, at this point in the journey, Magellan seemed to acquire a zeal for
converting the local tribes to Christianity. In doing so, Magellan eventually became embroiled in a
local political dispute, and died in the Philippines, along with dozens of other officers and crew.

On 16 March, a week after leaving Guam, the fleet first sighted the island of Samar, then landed on
the island of Homonhon, which was then uninhabited. They encountered friendly locals from the
nearby island of Suluan and traded supplies with them. They spent nearly two weeks on Homonhon,
resting and gathering fresh food and water, before leaving on 27 March. [101] On the morning of 28
March, they neared the island of Limasawa and encountered some natives in canoes who then
alerted balangay warships of two local rulers from Mindanao who were on a hunting expedition in
Limasawa. For the first time on the journey, Magellan's slave Enrique of Malacca found that he was
able to communicate with the natives in Malay (an indication that they had indeed completed a
circumnavigation, and were approaching familiar lands).[101] They exchanged gifts with the natives
(receiving porcelain jars painted with Chinese designs), and later that day, Magellan was introduced
to their leaders, Rajah Kolambu[n 6] and Rajah Siawi. Afterwards, Magellan would become a "blood
brother" to Kolambu, undergoing the local blood compact ritual with him.[102]

Magellan and his men noted that the Rajahs had golden body ornaments and served food on golden
plates. They were told by the Rajahs that gold was plentiful in their homelands in Butuan and
Calagan (Surigao), and found that the locals were eager to trade it for iron at par. While at
Limasawa, Magellan gave some of the natives a demonstration of Spanish armour, weapons, and
artillery, by which they were apparently impressed.[103]

First mass[edit]
Main article: First Mass in the Philippines
On Sunday, 31 March, Easter Day, Magellan and fifty of his men came ashore to Limasawa to
participate in the first Catholic Mass in the Philippines, given by the armada's chaplain. Kolambu, his
brother (who was also a local leader), and other islanders joined in the ceremony and expressed an
interest in their religion. Following Mass, Magellan's men raised a cross on the highest hill on the
island, and formally declared the island, and the entire archipelago of the Philippines (which he
called the Islands of St Lazarus) as a possession of Spain.[104]
Cebu[edit]
On 2 April, Magellan held a conference to decide the fleet's next course of action. His officers urged
him to head south-west for the Mollucas, but instead he decided to press further into the Philippines.
On 3 April, the fleet sailed north-west from Limasawa towards the island of Cebu, which Magellan
learned of from Kolambu. The fleet was guided to Cebu by some of Kolambu's men. [105] They sighted
Cebu 6 April, and made landfall the next day. Cebu had regular contact with Chinese and Arab
traders and normally required that visitors pay tribute in order to trade. Magellan convinced the
island's leader, Rajah Humabon, to waive this requirement.

As he had in Limasawa, Magellan gave a demonstration of the fleet's arms in order to impress the
locals. Again, he also preached Christianity to the natives, and on 14 April, Humabon and his family
were baptised and given an image of the Holy Child (later known as Santo Niño de Cebu). In the
coming days, other local chieftains were baptised, and in total, 2,200 locals from Cebu and other
nearby islands were converted.[106]

When Magellan learned that a group on the island of Mactan, led by Lapu-Lapu, resisted Christian
conversion, he ordered his men to burn their homes. When they continued to resist, Magellan
informed his council on 26 April that he would bring an armed contingent to Mactan and make them
submit under threat of force.[107]

Battle of Mactan[edit]
Main article: Battle of Mactan

19th-century artist's depiction of Magellan's death at the hands of

Mactan warriors.
Magellan mustered a force of 60 armed men from his crew to oppose Lapu-Lapu's forces. Some
Cebuano men followed Magellan to Mactan, but were instructed by Magellan not to join the fight, but
merely to watch.[108] He first sent an envoy to Lapu-Lapu, offering him a last chance to accept the king
of Spain as their ruler and avoid bloodshed. Lapu-Lapu refused. Magellan took 49 men to the shore
while 11 remained to guard the boats. Though they had the benefit of relatively advanced armour
and weaponry, Magellan's forces were greatly outnumbered. Pigafetta (who was present on the
battlefield) estimated the enemy's number at 1,500.[109] Magellan's forces were driven back and
decisively defeated. Magellan died in battle, along with several comrades, including Cristóvão
Rebelo, Magellan's illegitimate son.[110]

1 May Massacre[edit]
Following Magellan's death, the remaining men held an election to select a new leader for the
expedition. They selected two co-commanders: Duarte Barbosa, Magellan's brother-in-law, and Juan
Serrano. Magellan's will called for the liberation of his slave, Enrique, but Barbosa and Serrano
demanded that he continue his duties as an interpreter for them, and follow their orders. Enrique had
some secret communication with Humabon which caused him to betray the Spaniards.[111]

On 1 May, Humabon invited the men ashore for a great feast. It was attended by around thirty men,
mostly officers, including Serrano and Barbosa. Towards the end of the meal, armed Cebuanos
entered the hall and murdered the Europeans. Twenty-seven men were killed. Juan Serrano, one of
the newly elected co-commanders, was left alive and brought to the shore facing the Spanish ships.
Serrano begged the men on board to pay a ransom to the Cebuanos. The Spanish ships left port,
and Serrano was (presumably) killed. In his account, Pigafetta speculates that João Carvalho, who
became first in command in the absence of Barbosa and Serrano, abandoned Serrano (his one-time
friend) so that he could remain in command of the fleet.[112]

Moluccas[edit]
With just 115 surviving men, out of the 277 who had sailed from Seville, it was decided the fleet did
not have enough men to continue operating three ships. On 2 May, the Concepción was emptied
and set on fire.[112] With Carvalho as the new captain-general, the remaining two ships,
the Trinidad and Victoria, spent the next six months meandering through Southeast Asia in search of
the Moluccas. On the way, they stopped at several islands including Mindanao and Brunei. During
this time, they engaged in acts of piracy, including robbing a junk bound for China from the
Moluccas.[113]

On 21 September, Carvalho was made to step down as captain-general. He was replaced by Martin
Mendez, with Gonzalo de Espinosa and Juan Sebastián Elcano as captains of
the Trinidad and Victoria, respectively.

Aganduru Moriz' account of the expedition[114] describes how Elcano's crew was attacked somewhere
off the southeastern tip of Borneo by a Bruneian fleet commanded by one of the Luzones. Historians
such as William Henry Scott and Luis Camara Dery assert that this commander of the Bruneian
Fleet was actually the young prince Ache of Maynila (Manila) a grandson of the Bruneian sultan who
would later become Maynila's Rajah Matanda.[114][115]

Elcano, however, was able to defeat and capture Ache.[114] According to Scott, Ache was eventually
released after a ransom was paid.[116] Nevertheless, Ache left a Spanish speaking Moor in Elcano's
crew to assist the ship on the way back to Spain, "a Moor who understood something of our Castilian
language, who was called Pazeculan."[117] This knowledge of the Spanish language was scattered
across the Indian Ocean and even into Southeast Asia after the Castilian conquest of the Emirate of
Granada forced the Spanish speaking Granadan Muslims to migrate across the Muslim world even
as far as Islamic Manila.[118]

The ships finally reached the Moluccas on 8 November, when they reached the island of Tidore.
They were greeted by the island's leader, al-Mansur (known to the officers by the Spanish
name Almanzor).[119] Almanzor was a friendly host to the men, and readily claimed loyalty to the king
of Spain. A trading post was established in Tidore and the men set about purchasing massive
quantities of cloves in exchange for goods such as cloth, knives, and glassware.[120]

Around 15 December, the ships attempted to set sail from Tidore, laden with cloves. But
the Trinidad, which had fallen into disrepair, was found to be taking on water. The departure was
postponed while the men, aided by the locals, attempted to find and repair the leak. When these
attempts were unsuccessful, it was decided that the Victoria would leave for Spain via a western
route, and that the Trinidad would remain behind for some time to be refitted, before heading back to
Spain by an eastern route, involving an overland passage across the American continent. [121] Several
weeks later, Trinidad departed and attempted to return to Spain via the Pacific route. This attempt
failed. Trinidad was captured by the Portuguese, and was eventually wrecked in a storm while at
anchor under Portuguese control.[122]

Return to Spain[edit]
The Victoria set sail via the Indian Ocean route home on 21 December 1521, commanded by Juan
Sebastián Elcano. By 6 May 1522 the Victoria rounded the Cape of Good Hope, with only rice for
rations. Twenty crewmen died of starvation by 9 July 1522, when Elcano put into Portuguese Cape
Verde for provisions. The crew was surprised to learn that the date was actually 10 July 1522,[123] a
day after their own meticulous records indicated. They had no trouble making purchases at first,
using the cover story that they were returning to Spain from the Americas. However, the Portuguese
detained 13 crew members after discovering that Victoria was carrying spices from the East Indies.[55]
[124]
The Victoria managed to escape with its cargo of 26 tons of spices (cloves and cinnamon).

On 6 September 1522, Elcano and the remaining crew of Magellan's voyage arrived in Sanlúcar de
Barrameda in Spain aboard Victoria, almost exactly three years after they departed. They then
sailed upriver to Seville, and from there overland to Valladolid, where they appeared before the
Emperor.

Survivors[edit]
When Victoria, the one surviving ship and the smallest carrack in the fleet, returned to the harbour of
departure after completing the first circumnavigation of the Earth, only 18 men out of the original 270
men were on board. In addition to the returning Europeans, the Victoria had aboard three Moluccans
who came aboard at Tidore.[125]

18 men returned to Seville aboard Victoria in 1522[126]

Name Origin Final rank

Juan Sebastián Elcano Getaria Captain

Francisco Albo Chios Pilot

Miguel de Rodas Rhodes Shipmaster

Juan de Acurio Bermeo Boatswain

Martín de Judicibus Savona Sailor

 Hernándo de Bustamante Mérida Barber

Antonio Pigafetta Vicenza Man-At-Arms

Maestre Anes [de] (Hans)[127] Aachen Gunner

Diego Gallego Bayona Sailor

Antonio Hernández Colmenero Huelva Sailor

Nícolas de Napolés Nafplio Sailor

Francisco Rodríguez Sevilla Sailor

Juan Rodríguez de Huelva Huelva Sailor

Miguel de Rodas Rhodes Sailor

Juan de Arratía Bilbao Shipboy

Juan de Santander (Sant

Cueto Shipboy
Andrés)

Vasco Gómez Gallego Bayona Shipboy

Juan de Zubileta Barakaldo Page

King Charles pressed for the release of the 12 men held captive by the Portuguese in Cape Verde,
and they were eventually returned to Spain in small groups over the course of the following year.
[128]
They were:

12 men returned to Spain from Cape Verde[129]

 Name Origin Final rank

Martín Méndez Sevilla Scrivener

Pedro de Tolosa Tolosa Sailor

Richard de Normandy,
Carpenter
Normandía France

Roldán de Argote Bruges Gunner

Felipe de Rodas Rhodes Sailor

Gómez Hernández Huelva Sailor

Ocacio Alonso Bollullos Sailor

Pedro de Chindurza Galvey Shipboy

Vasquito Gallego Bayona Shipboy

Juan Martín Bayona Man-At-Arms

Pedro de Tenerife Tenerife Man-At-Arms

Simon de Burgos Burgos Man-At-Arms

Between 1525 and 1526, the survivors of the Trinidad, who had been captured by the Portuguese in
the Moluccas, were transported to a prison in Portugal and eventually released after a seven-month
negotiation. Only five survived:[130]
 5 men returning between 1525 and 1526[129]

Name Origin Final rank

Ginés de Mafra Jerez Sailor

Leone Pancaldo Genoa Sailor

Hans Varga (Hans Barge [de])[n 7] Germany Constable

Juan Rodríguez "El Sordo" Sevilla Sailor

Gonzalo Gómez de Espinosa Burgos Alguacil Mayor

The following five nonsurvivors are considered to have successfully circumnavigated since they died
after the Victoria and Trinidad had crossed the tracks of the outbound fleet. [130]

5 men buried at sea after completing the circumnavigation [130]

Name Origin Final rank

Diego Garcia de Trigueros Huelva Sailor

Pedro de Valpuesta Burgos Man-At-Arms

Martín de Magallanes Lisbon Man-At-Arms

Estevan Villon Trosic, Brittany Sailor

Andrés Blanco Tenerife Shipboy

Accounts of voyage[edit]

Cover page of Roman edition of Maximilianus Transylvanus's De

Moluccis Insulis.... Initially published in Cologne in January 1523, it was the first account of the
Magellan expedition to appear in print. [131]

Antonio Pigafetta's journal, later published as Relazione del primo viaggio intorno al mondo, is the
main primary source for much of what is known about Magellan's expedition. [132] The first published
report of the circumnavigation was a letter written by Maximilianus Transylvanus, a relative of
sponsor Cristóbal de Haro, who interviewed survivors in 1522 and published his account in 1523
under the title De Moluccis Insulis....[131][133] Initially published in Latin, other editions later appeared in
Italian, Spanish, and English.[131]

In addition, there is an extant chronicle from Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, which was written in Spanish
in 1522 or 1523, misplaced, then published again in 1530.[134]

Another reliable secondary source is the 1601 chronicle and the longer 1615 version, both by
Spanish historian Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas. Herrera's account is all the more accurate as he
had access to Spanish and Portuguese sources that are nowhere to be found today, not
least Andrés de San Martín's navigational notes and papers. San Martin, the chief pilot-
cosmographer (astrologer) of the Armada, disappeared in the Cebu massacre on 1 May 1521. [135][136]

In addition to Pigafetta's surviving journal, 11 other crew members kept written accounts of the
voyage:

 Francisco Albo: the Victoria's pilot logbook ("Diario ó derrotero"), first referred to in 1788,
and first published in its entirety in 1837[137][138] and a deposition on 18 October 1522[139]
 Martín de Ayamonte: a short account first published in 1933[140][141]
 Giovanni Battista: two letters dating from the 21 December 1521[142] and 25 October
1525[143][144] respectively
 Hernando de Bustamante: a deposition on 18 October 1522[139][145]
 Juan Sebastián Elcano: a letter written on 6 September 1522[146] and a deposition on 18
October 1522[139][147]
 Gonzalo Gómez de Espinosa: a letter written on 12 January 1525,[148] a statement on 2
August 1527[149] and a deposition from the 2nd to the 5 September 1527[150][151]
 Ginés de Mafra: a detailed account first published in 1920,[152] a statement on 2 August
1527[149] and a deposition from 2 to 5 September 1527[150][153]
 Martín Méndez : the Victoria's logbook[154][155]
 Leone Pancaldo: a long logbook 'by the Genoese pilot' (first published in 1826), [156] a
letter written on 25 October 1525,[157] a statement on 2 August 1527[158] and a deposition
from 2 to 5 September 1527[159][160]
 an anonymous Portuguese crew member: a long manuscript, first published in 1937,
known as "the Leiden manuscript", possibly written by Gonzalo Gómez de Espinosa and,
in all likelihood, a Trinidad crew member[161][151]
 and another anonymous Portuguese crew member: a very short account, first published
in 1554, written by a Trinidad crew member[162]