On September 6, 1522, Victoria, one of Ferdinand Magellan’s five ships, reached Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain. In this way this ship completed the first circumnavigation of the world. The ship Victoria was commanded by the Basque sailor Juan Sebastian de Elcano. He took command of the ship after Magellan’s death in the Philippines in April 1521. During the long and arduous journey home, those on board suffered starvation, scurvy, and harassment from Portuguese ships. Only Elcano and 21 other travelers managed to reach Spain in September 1522.
On September 20, 1519, Magellan departed Spain in an attempt to find a western sea route to the rich spice islands of Indonesia. With five ships and 270 soldiers, Magellan went to West Africa and then Brazil. Where he discovered the strait leading to the Pacific Ocean on the South American coast.
They sought passage into the Rio de la Plata, a large estuary located in the south of Brazil. Failing, they continued south along the coast of Patagonia. At the end of March 1520, the expedition made winter camp at the port of St. Julian’s. At midnight on Easter Day, the Spanish captains rebelled against their Portuguese captain, but Magellan crushed the rebellion.
One captain was hanged and the other left ashore when his ship departed St. Julian’s in August. On October 21, they finally found the strait they were looking for. The Strait of Magellan, as it later became known. Located near the southern tip of South America, separating Tierra del Fuego and the mainland.
Only three ships could enter this strait. One ship was damaged and the other was lying abandoned. It took 38 days to cross this dangerous strait, and when the sea appeared on the other side, Magellan cried with joy. He was the first European explorer to reach the Pacific Ocean from the Atlantic Ocean. His fleet sailed westward in 99 days and crossed waters so calm that the sea was named ‘Pacific’, which is derived from the Latin word pacificus. It means calm.
By the end, they had run out of food and chewed the leather parts of their equipment to keep themselves alive. On March 6, 1521, the expedition landed on the island of Guam. Ten days later, they anchored off the island of Cebu in the Philippines – they were about 400 miles from the Spice Islands.
Magellan met the chief of Cebu, who converted to Christianity and persuaded the Europeans to help him conquer a rival tribe on the neighboring island of Mactan. In the battle on April 27, Magellan was hit by a poisoned arrow and left to die by his retreating companions.
After Magellan’s death, the survivors set sail for the Moluccas Islands in two ships and loaded the ships with spices. A ship made an unsuccessful attempt to return after crossing the Pacific Ocean. The second ship, Victoria, continued west under the command of Juan Sebastian de Elcano. This ship crossed the Indian Ocean, rounded the Cape of Good Hope and reached the port of Sanlucar de Barrameda in Spain on September 6, 1522 and became the first ship to circumnavigate the world. After this, Victoria proceeded up the Guadalquivir River and reached Seville after a few days.
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