Fernando Magellan and the first round the world expedition

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Start of the expedition

September 20, 1519 5 ships went on a voyage from the mouth of Guadalquivir. Magellan developed in advance special for the flotilla a signal system that allowed ships don't lose each other on the high seas. Every day the ships converged at close range to report daily and receive instructions.

Fortunately for posterity and historians, on the flagship Magellan's ship"Trinidad" sailed a man named Antonio Pigafetta who kept a diary and left a detailed report on all events. Thanks to him, Magellan’s flotilla is almost absent from the voyage." white spots", unlike, for example , from the first trip Columba.

Why did Magellan hide his voyage route from everyone?

Magellan deliberately hid the intended voyage route, including from his captains and helmsmen. Why? To prevent information leakage. Confrontation with the Portuguese was a real threat. It was obviously clear that the flotilla would have to descend to the south latitude of Hierro what violated Treaty of Tordesillas. And in America it would inevitably have to go along the Portuguese possessions.

When the Spanish captains set out to sea, they began to demand clarification about the route. But even here Magellan refused them: “Your task is to follow me.” As a result of the right maneuvers, Magellan managed to never run into the Portuguese.

The Spanish captains continued to muddy the waters. The toughest of the Spanish captains, the commander of the San Antonio Cartagena, having been appointed “supervisor” by the king, behaved inappropriately towards the commander. Then Magellan showed firmness and arrested Cartagena. And he made his own man Alvar Mishkita captain of San Antonio.

December 26, 1519 - the mouth of the La Plata River, where the search for the supposed strait began. It quickly became clear that this was not a strait, but river mouth, only very big.

The search for the strait continued, the expedition went south along the coast.

March 31, 1520, reaching 49°S. the flotilla stopped for the winter in a bay called San Julian. (Remember that winter in the southern hemisphere falls during our summer.)

Mutiny in St. Julian's Bay

Having got up for the winter, Magellan ordered to cut rations and reduce food distribution standards. Which caused understandable discontent among the team. A bunch of conspirators took advantage of this. Events began to develop rapidly, as in an action-packed adventure novel.

April 1, 1520, on Palm Sunday, Magellan invited the captains to a church service and a festive dinner. Captain "Victoria" Mendoza and captain "Concepcion" Quesado pointedly ignored the invitation. On the night of April 1-2, the rebellion begins. The rioters entered the San Antonio, captured the sleeping captain Mishkita and put him in chains. The helmsman Juan de Eloriaga, who tried to resist, is killed by Quesado with a knife. The command of San Antonio is entrusted to Sebastian Elcano.

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Magellan learns about the rebellion only in the morning. At his disposal are still two ships, the Trinidad and the Santiago, which are inferior to the other ships in combat equipment. Seeing their superiority, the rebels did not go into armed conflict. It was important for them only to remove Magellan from power. A boat was sent to the commander with a letter saying that their goal was only to force Magellan to correctly carry out the king’s orders. The rebels agree to continue to consider Magellan in charge, but he must take them into account and not act without their consent. And they invited Magellan to their place for negotiations. Magellan responded by inviting them to his place. The rebels refused.

Then Magellan manages to capture their boat. Having extensive experience naval battles Even in India and Southeast Asia, Magellan decides to strike first. He puts the “parliamentarians” under the command of Gomez de Espinosa into the boat and directs it to the Victoria, which had many Portuguese on board. Climbing aboard, Espinosa hands Captain Mendoza a new invitation from Magellan to come for negotiations. The captain begins to read it with a grin, but does not have time to finish reading it. Espinoza stabs him in the neck. Taking advantage of the crew's confusion, another group of Magellan's supporters, already well armed, climbs aboard the Victoria. The “paratroopers” were led by Duerte Barbosa, who arrived on another boat. The Victoria crew surrenders without resistance. After which "Trinidad", "Victoria" and "Santiago" block the exit from the bay. The rebels attempted to slip past them into the ocean, but the San Antonio was fired upon and boarded. "Concepcion" surrendered to the mercy of the winner.

Magellan arranged a tribunal over the rebels, as during military operations. Apparently he had such powers. Several dozen rebels were sentenced to death, but were immediately pardoned for obvious reasons. Only one Quesada was executed. Magellan did not dare to execute the representative of the king of Cartagena and one of the priests who actively participated in the rebellion, and they were left on the shore after the flotilla left. Nothing more is known about them.

Interestingly, in a few decades history will repeat itself. In 1577, the ship will enter the same bay and will also have to circumnavigate the world. On his flotilla the conspiracy will be revealed and a trial will take place in the bay. He will offer the rebel a choice: execution, or he will be left on the shore, like Magellan to Cartagena. The defendant will choose execution

The expedition moved on to search for the strait. After some time, the Santiago sent on reconnaissance crashed on the rocks. Magellan made its commander, Joao Serran, captain of the Concepción. Thus, all the remaining four ships ended up in the hands of Magellan's supporters. "San Antonio" was commanded by Mishkita, "Victoria" Barbosa.

Magellan announced to the crew that he would search for the strait up to 75° south latitude. Quite a bold statement - let me remind you that the Arctic Circle is located at 66°, and 75° S. – this is Antarctica!

October 21, 1520 at 52° S. The ships found themselves near a narrow strait leading inland. "San Antonio" and "Concepcion" are sent for reconnaissance. The water was salty all the time, and the lot did not reach the bottom. The ships returned with news of possible success.

We will not go into detail about how the ships sailed into the unknown for several weeks along a narrow, dangerous strait. Magellan called a general meeting of captains to develop a strategy. Esteban Gomes, the helmsman of San Antonio, spoke in favor of returning home due to the complete uncertainty ahead. But Magellan knew well the history of the campaign of Bartolomeo Dias, who went around Africa from the south, but gave in to the demands of the team and did not go further. After which Dias, despite all his merits, was never allowed to lead expeditions again.

", BGCOLOR, "#ffffff", FONTCOLOR, "#333333", BORDERCOLOR, "Silver", WIDTH, "100%", FADEIN, 100, FADEOUT, 100)"> Magellan takes full responsibility and declares that he will go forward no matter what. And they went forward. But Gomes seized the moment, rebelled the crew, arrested captain Mishkita and took the San Antonio to Spain.

The remaining three Magellan ships November 28, 1520 brought out to the ocean expanse.

Pacific Ocean

Coming out of the strait, the flotilla sailed steeply north for 15 days. After 38° S. w. turned to the northwest, and having reached 30° S. sh., turned to the northwest. With such maneuvers, Magellan tried to “get” exactly to the Spice Islands, the latitude coordinates of which he knew.

The new ocean remained calm throughout the transition, for which it received the nickname Quiet from Magellan’s team. And so it stuck with him. In total, we walked 17,000 kilometers along the water surface of this ocean. This voyage lasted almost four months. All supplies ran out, the team was simply dying from exhaustion.

Islands in the ocean

On March 6, 1521, the flotilla sighted the island of Guam from the Mariana Islands group. The crossing of the Pacific Ocean is over. Magellan missed and went north of the Moluccas. (Perhaps deliberately to avoid an accidental collision with the Portuguese). The islands were inhabited and they knew about the existence of Europeans. Here the sailors ate and regained their strength. And for some reason Magellan got involved in the internal political feuds of local leaders.

The last fight of Ferdinand Magellan. This is how the great navigator died

As a result of military clashes with the aborigines, the brave knight Ferdinand Magellan died the death of the brave. That's why he couldn't circumnavigate the world! ", BGCOLOR, "#ffffff", FONTCOLOR, "#333333", BORDERCOLOR, "Silver", WIDTH, "100%", FADEIN, 100, FADEOUT, 100)"> His body remained with the islanders; what they did with it is unknown. Left without a leader, the Spaniards were forced to urgently retreat. The chronicler of the expedition, Antonio Pigafetta, described in sufficient detail how the great navigator died. The expedition was led by Joao Serran and Duarte Barbosa.

It is not clear why it was necessary to spend so much time and effort on the various Mariana and Philippine islands, when the goal - the Spice Islands - was so close? If Magellan had gone straight to the Moluccas, loaded up with spices and provisions, and departed back the same way he came, he would have completed his task 100%. But, alas!

The expedition nevertheless visited the Moluccas and managed to fill the holds with spices. But the Spaniards learned that the Portuguese king ordered Magellan to be detained and the ships to be seized as booty of war. There was no strength for war. The ships are dilapidated. "Concepcien" was burned due to the impossibility of repair. Only Trinidad and Victoria remained. The Trinidad was patched up and she headed back, due east to the shores of Panama. Finding himself in a strip of headwinds, he returned and was captured by the Portuguese.

Back to Spain or partisan round the world "Victoria"

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Moreover, they decided to leave the Moluccas with vegetable gardens, just as the partisans took a steep course to the south in order to pass away from the Portuguese trade routes. "Victoria" boldly crossed the Indian Ocean at its widest point, rounded the Cape of Good Hope, sailed north for 2 months and 9 June 1522 year reached the Cape Verde Islands. It was a Portuguese patrimony, but the Spaniards had no other choice - absolutely all supplies of water and food had run out. I had to resort to cunning.

Here's what Pigafetta writes:

“On Wednesday, July 9, we reached the St. James Islands and immediately sent a boat ashore for provisions, inventing a story for the Portuguese that we had lost our foremast under the equator (in fact, we lost it at the Cape of Good Hope) , and during this time that we were restoring it, our captain-general left with two other ships for Spain. Having won them over in this way, and also given them our goods, we managed to get from them two boats loaded with rice... When our boat again approached the shore for rice, thirteen crew members were detained along with the boat. Fearing that some caravels might also detain us, we hastily moved on."

Victoria's victorious return

September 6, 1522"Victoria" reached Spain. 18 barely alive sailors and only one ship out of five returned to their home harbor. This ship was the first in the world to circumnavigate the world, leaving behind three world oceans and more than fifty thousand kilometers.

Later, in 1525, four more of the 55 crew members of the ship Trinidad were taken to Spain. Also, those members of the Victoria crew who were captured by the Portuguese during a forced stop on the Cape Verde Islands were also redeemed from Portuguese captivity.

Results of Magellan's expedition

This first circumnavigation in the history of mankind was the main and final proof of the sphericity of the earth.

The expedition proved that following the west, Can reach the Moluccas Islands. Thus, these islands (as well as other territories) automatically passed into the sphere of influence of Spain according to (*).

The sale of the cargo brought by Victoria not only covered all the expenses of the expedition, but also, despite the death of four of the five ships, made a significant profit.

Unlike previous expeditions, an account of Magellan's expedition was published and detailed travel notes by Antonio Pigafetta were published.

Lost day

In addition, it was the Victoria team that first discovered the “lost day.” A logbook was carefully kept on board the ship. Not a single day was missed. But since there were no chronometers on ships at that time, time was measured using hourglasses - flasks. If they had a reliable mechanical watch, already in the Pacific Ocean it would have become clear that the watch was showing something wrong - if it was noon in Spain, then in the Strait of Magellan the sun was already setting. But there were no chronometers; it was impossible to notice the gradual change in standard time. In total, it turned out that the expedition members lost a whole day. And yet, as it turned out, the expedition members “lost”, or rather, won the whole day. Thus, the travelers returned one day younger! This phenomenon is now described in school textbooks, but then it caused everyone great bewilderment.

The biography of Ferdinand Magellan begins with the fact that the future navigator was born in 1480, in the Portuguese city of Sabrosa, into a not very noble family.

At the age of twelve, he and his brother Diogo went to Lisbon to serve as pages in the court of Queen Leonora. There he learned of the intense competition that existed between Spain and Portugal to explore new sea routes and dominate the spice trade from the East Indies, particularly the Moluccas (also called the Spice Islands).

It was during these young years that young Fernando developed a passion for maritime affairs. Magellan's first voyage took place in 1505, when he and his brother boarded a ship bound for India. From then on, for seven years he participated in expeditions to India and Africa and was wounded in several battles.

In 1513, King Manuel sent a flotilla of five hundred ships to Morocco to challenge the Moroccan ruler, who refused to pay annual tribute to the Portuguese treasury. Portuguese troops easily broke the enemy's resistance. In one of the battles, Magellan was seriously wounded in the leg and was left lame.

In those days, spices meant as much as oil means today. People were willing to pay huge amounts of money for black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and garlic, because they helped preserve food in times when there were no refrigerators. In addition, the spices fought off the smell of spoiled meat.

It was impossible to grow them in cold, arid Europe, so it was vital for Europeans to find the shortest route to the Moluccas. The eastern route has long been known. Magellan had to build a sea route from the west.

Magellan, a traveler who by that time had gained extensive experience in numerous campaigns, decided to turn to King Manuel to enlist support for a planned campaign to the Moluccas along a new route. Several times the king rejected his requests. In 1517, a disappointed Magellan renounced his Portuguese citizenship and moved to Spain to try his luck there. This act was already a small feat: Fernando had no connections in the country and practically did not speak Spanish.

There he met his fellow countryman and soon married his daughter. The Barbosa family, which had good connections at court, managed to get him permission to meet with the Spanish monarch. King Charles, only 18 years old at the time, was the great-grandson of the king who financed Columbus's expedition. He did not break tradition, and Magellan's expedition received approval and much-needed funds.

Thus, Magellan's trip around the world set itself the task of circumventing Earth from the west. Fernand hoped that perhaps this route would be shorter. On August 10, 1519, five ships left the Spanish port. Magellan was on the Trinidad, followed by the San Antonio, Concepcion, Santiago and Victoria.

In September, the ships crossed the Atlantic Ocean, then known as simply the Ocean, and reached the shores of South America. They moved along the coast in the hope of finding a strait that would allow them to sail further west. One of the discoveries of Ferdinand Magellan after a year of wanderings was the strait, which was later named after him.

Leaving the strait behind, the travelers became the first Europeans to see a new ocean in front of them, which the fearless captain called “Pacifico”, which meant “quiet”. Now Magellan's path lay through completely uncharted waters. Next they were waiting for the Philippines, where he tried to work as a preacher and made friends with the local population. At that moment he was almost at his goal - the Moluccas were very close.

However, he allowed himself to be drawn into battle local population with a tribe from a neighboring island. Believing that European weapons would help him win an easy victory, the great traveler walked ahead of his army... An arrow poisoned with poison put an end to the trip around the world and the biography of Ferdinand Magellan.

He died on April 27, 1521. The two remaining ships reached the Moluccas six months later. As a result, in 1522, only the Victoria arrived in Spain, loaded to the brim with spices, but with only a couple of dozen people on board.

In search of fame and fortune, the daring escapade of the traveler around the world brought more than just spices to the Europeans. Ferdinand Magellan discovered a new ocean, geographical knowledge of that time made a huge leap forward, and it was recognized that the earth was much larger than previously thought. The route taken by Magellan to circumnavigate the world was considered too long and dangerous a route to the Moluccas and was never used for trade again.

Why do they say that Magellan is the first person to circumnavigate the world if he never returned to Spain? He is the first person to visit the Philippines from both sides: first arriving there through the Indian Ocean and subsequently through the Pacific and Atlantic.

The first person to travel around the world “from point A to point A” was his slave Enrique: he was born on one of the islands and was brought by Magellan to Spain, and a few years later he went with him on the famous journey, which eventually led him to home island.

The flotilla left the port of San Lucar at the mouth of the Guadalquivir on September 20, 1519. When crossing the ocean, Magellan developed a good signaling system, and the different types of ships of his flotilla were never separated.

On September 26, the flotilla approached, on November 29 it reached the coast of Brazil, on December 13 - Guanabara Bay, and on December 26 -. The expedition's navigators were the best at that time: they determined latitudes and made adjustments to the map of the already known part of the continent. Thus, Cape Cabo Frio, by their definition, is not located at 25° south. sh., and at 23°. Magellan explored both low-lying banks of La Plata for about a month; Continuing the discovery of the flat territory of Pampa, begun by Juan Lizboa and Juan Solis, the chief pilot of Castile, he sent the Santiago up the river and, of course, did not find a passage to the South Sea. Further on stretched an unknown, sparsely populated land. And Magellan, fearing to miss the entrance to the elusive strait, on February 2, 1520, ordered to weigh anchor and move as close to the coast as possible only during the day, and stop in the evening. At a stop on February 13 in the large bay of Bahia Blanca he discovered, the flotilla withstood a terrifying one, during which St. Elmo's lights appeared on the masts of the ships - electrical discharges in the atmosphere, shaped like luminous brushes. On February 24, Magellan discovered another large bay - San Matias, went around the Valdez Peninsula that he had identified and took refuge for the night in a small harbor, which he called Puerto San Matias (Golfo Nuevo Bay on our maps). Further south, near the mouth of the Chubut River, on February 27, the flotilla came across a huge concentration of penguins and southern elephant seals. To replenish food supplies, Magellan sent a boat to the shore, but an unexpected squall threw the ships into the open sea. The sailors who remained on the shore, in order not to die from the cold, covered themselves with the bodies of killed animals. Having collected the “procurers,” Magellan moved south, pursued by storms, explored another bay, San Jorge, and spent six stormy days in a narrow bay. On March 31, he decided to spend the winter in San Julian Bay. Four ships entered the bay, and the Trinidad anchored at its entrance. The Spanish officers wanted to force Magellan to “follow the royal instructions”: turn to the Cape of Good Hope and take the eastern route to the Moluccas. That same night a riot began. Magellan treated the rebel captains harshly: he ordered Quesada's head to be cut off, Mendoza's corpse to be quartered, Cartagena and the conspirator-priest to be thrown onto the deserted shore, and the rest of the rebels were spared.

At the beginning of May, the admiral sent the Santiago south for reconnaissance, but the ship crashed against the rocks near the Santa Cruz River and its crew barely managed to escape. On August 24, the flotilla left San Julian Bay and reached the mouth of Santa Cruz, where it remained until mid-October. On October 18, the flotilla moved south along the Patagonian coast, which forms the wide bay of Bahia Grande in this area. Before going to sea, Magellan told the captains that he would look for a passage to the South Sea and turn east if he did not find a strait to 75° S. sh., i.e. he himself doubted the existence of the “strait” (as Magellan called it), but wanted to continue the enterprise until the last opportunity. The bay or strait leading to the west was found on October 21, 1520 after Magellan discovered the previously unknown Atlantic coast of South America for about 3.5 thousand km. Having rounded Cape Dev (Cabo Virgenes), the admiral sent two ships forward to find out whether there was access to the open sea in the west. At night a storm arose that lasted two days. The sent ships were in danger of death, but at the most difficult moment they noticed a narrow strait, rushed there and found themselves in a relatively wide bay; They continued their journey along it and saw another strait, behind which a new, wider bay opened. Then the captains of both ships - Mishkita and Serrano - decided to return and report to Magellan that, apparently, they had found a passage leading to the South Sea. However, it was still far from entering the South Sea: Magellan sent San Antonio and Concepcion for reconnaissance. The sailors returned “three days later with the news that they had seen the cape and the open sea.” The admiral shed tears of joy and named this cape “Desired.”

"Trinidad" and "Victoria" entered the southwestern channel, anchored there for four days and returned back to join two other ships, but only the "Concepcion" was there: in the southeast it came to a dead end - in the Bay of Bahia -Inutil - and turned back. "San Antonio" on the way back found itself in another dead end. The officers, not finding the flotilla on the spot, wounded and shackled Mishkita and at the end of March 1521 returned to. To justify themselves, the deserters accused Magellan of treason, and they were believed: Mishkita was arrested, Magellan’s family was deprived of government benefits. The admiral did not know under what circumstances the San Antonio disappeared. He believed that the ship was lost, since Mishkita was his trusted friend. Following along the northern shore of the greatly narrowed "Patagonian Strait", he rounded the southernmost point of the South American continent - Cape Froward (on the Brunswick Peninsula, 53с54 "S) and for another five days (November 23 - 28) led three ships to the northwest as if along the bottom of a mountain gorge. The high mountains (the southern end of the Patagonian Cordillera) and the bare shores seemed to be deserted, but in the south during the day one could see smoke, and at night - the lights of fires. And Magellan called this southern land, the size of which he did not know, "Land of Fire" (Tierra del Fuego). On our maps it is called Tierra del Fuego. Thirty-eight days after Magellan found the Atlantic entrance to the strait that actually connects the two oceans, he passed Cape Desired (now Pilar) at the Pacific outlet from the Strait of Magellan (about 550 km).

On November 28, 1520, Magellan left the strait into the open ocean and led the remaining three ships first north, trying to quickly leave the high latitudes and staying about 100 km from the rocky coast. On December 1, it passed near the Taitao Peninsula, and then the ships moved away from the mainland - on December 5, the maximum distance was 300 km. On December 12 - 15, Magellan again came quite close to the shore and saw high mountains- Patagonian Cordillera and the southern part of the Main Cordillera. From Mocha Island the ships turned to the northwest, and on December 21 - to the west-northwest. It cannot, of course, be said that during his 15-day voyage north from the Strait, Magellan discovered the coast of South America over 1,500 km, but he at least proved that the western coast of the mainland to the latitude of Mocha Island has an almost meridional direction.

Crossing, Magellan's flotilla traveled at least 17 thousand km, most of them in the waters of South and, where countless small islands are scattered. It is amazing that during this entire time the sailors encountered only “two deserted islands, on which they found only birds and trees.” Historians are puzzled why Magellan crossed the equator and went beyond 10° N. sh., - he knew that the Moluccas were located. And it is there that the South Sea lies, already known to the Spaniards. Perhaps Magellan wanted to make sure whether it was really part of the newly discovered ocean. On March 6, 1521, two inhabited islands finally appeared in the west (Guam and Rota, the southernmost of the Mariana group).

On March 15, 1521, having traveled to the west about another 2 thousand km, the sailors saw mountains rising from the sea - it was the island of Samar of the East Asian group of islands, later named. Magellan looked in vain for a place to anchor - the coast of the island was rocky, and the ships moved a little south, to the islet of Siargao, near the southern tip of Samar Island, and spent the night there. The length of the path traveled by Magellan from South America to the Philippines turned out to be many times greater than the distance shown on maps of that time between the New World and Japan. In fact, Magellan proved that between America and tropical Asia lies a gigantic expanse of water, much wider than the Atlantic Ocean. The discovery of the passage from the Atlantic Ocean to the South Sea and Magellan's voyage through this sea produced a real revolution in geography. It turned out that most of the surface of the globe is occupied not by land, but by the ocean, and the existence of a single World Ocean was proven.

Out of caution, Magellan moved from Siargao on March 17 to the uninhabited island of Homonkhon, lying south of the large island of Samar, to stock up on water and give people a rest. Residents of the neighboring island delivered fruits, coconuts and palm wine to the Spaniards. They reported that “there are many islands in this region.” Magellan named the archipelago San Lazaro. The Spaniards saw gold earrings and bracelets, cotton fabrics embroidered with silk, and edged weapons decorated with gold from the local elder. A week later, the flotilla moved southwest and stopped at the island of Limasawa. A boat approached the Trinidad. And when the Malayan Enrique, Magellan's slave, called out to the rowers on his native language, they understood him immediately. A couple of hours later, two large boats arrived with people and with the local ruler, and Enrique freely explained himself to them. It became clear to Magellan that he was in that part of the Old World where the Malay language was widespread, that is, not far from the “Spice Islands.” Thus, Magellan completed the first circumnavigation in history. As the patron of new Christians, Magellan intervened in the internecine war of the rulers of the island of Mactan, located opposite the city of Cebu, as a result of which eight Spaniards, four allied islanders and Magellan himself died. The old saying was confirmed: “God gave the Portuguese a very small country to live in, but the whole world to die.”

After the death of Magellan, “Victoria” and “Trinidad”, leaving the strait, passed by the island “where the people are black, as in” (the first indication of the Philippine Negritos); The Spaniards named this island Negros. In Mindanao, they first heard of the large island of Luzon located to the northwest. Random pilots guided ships through the Sudu Sea to Palawan, the westernmost island of the Philippine group. From the island of Palawan, the Spaniards arrived - the first of the Europeans - to the giant island of Kalimantan and anchored near the city, after which they, and then other Europeans, began to call the entire island Borneo. The Spaniards entered into alliances with local rajahs, bought food and local goods, sometimes robbed oncoming ships, but still could not find out the way to the “Spice Islands”. On September 7, the Spaniards set sail along the northwestern coast of Kalimantan and, having reached its northern tip, stood for almost a month and a half near a small island, stocking up on food and firewood. They managed to capture a junk with a Malay sailor who knew the way to the Moluccas, who on November 8 led the ships to the spice market on the island of Tidore off the western coast of Halmahera, the largest of the Moluccas. Here the Spaniards bought spices cheaply - cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves. The Trinidad needed repairs, and it was decided that upon completion, Espinosa would go east to the Gulf of Panama, and Elcano would take the Victoria to her homeland by the western route, around the Cape of Good Hope.

Of Magellan's five ships, only one circumnavigated the globe, and only 18 people from its crew returned home (there were three Malays on board). But Victoria brought so many spices that their sale more than covered the costs of the expedition, and Spain received the “right of first discovery” to the Mariana and Philippine Islands and laid claim to the Moluccas.

Ferdinand Magellan.

Ferdinand Magellan is a Portuguese and Spanish navigator who made the first trip around the world, as well as the first European to sail from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

Youth

Ferdinand Magellan born November 20, 1480 year, but the exact place of birth is not known. Little is known about the family, it is only known that Magellan came from a noble family. IN 1505 year made his first voyage with the first admiral and king of Portugal, Francisco Almeida. And under the command of Almayda, Magellan began his expeditions to India, Malki.

Expeditions

IN 1511 year Magellan set off with an expedition to conquer Malak (now Malaysia), the expedition was successful. Afterwards, Magellan asks the Portuguese king to finance an expedition to the Spice Islands (Moluccas) and find the Western route to India, but the king refuses to help him. And then Magellan asks for help from the Spanish king Charles I, and he agrees to support the expedition.
Ferdinand Magellan sets off on five ships along the coast of South America, then goes around it from the South and reaches Melaka through the West.
The expedition went with September 20, 1519 to September 6, 1522- later this journey was called the first around the world. 18 people and one ship returned from the expedition, but five ships departed with a crew of 280 people on board. Most of the crew died from disease, food shortages and military clashes with the natives.

Achievements

Made the first trip around the world;
He gave the name to the Pacific Ocean because while he walked through it for 30 days, the ocean was calm, he met not a single storm (in fact, the Pacific Ocean is the most violent of all);
He opened a strait, which was called the Strait of Magellan;
He became the first European to travel from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean.
Ferdinand Magellan was killed by the natives who did not want to submit to the Spanish crown on the island of Mactan Lapu-Lapu April 27, 1521.

Remember how Neil Amstrong said famous phrase, calling his first step on the lunar surface a giant leap for humanity? But long before him, such feats were performed by the Middle Ages. For example, Magellan's discoveries became a real revolution in people's understanding of their planet and made them doubt the inviolability of dogmas catholic church. So who was the person who proved that the Earth is round, who discovered where the Strait of Magellan is on the map? What consequences did his discoveries have for the development of science? To find answers to these questions, it is worth getting acquainted with historical facts, most of which are known thanks to Antonio Pigafetta, an Italian navigator who participated in the first voyage around the world.

Ferdinand Magellan: biography

Unfortunately, today no one can say exactly where the first European to circumnavigate the South American continent was born. However, most researchers believe that this event took place on October 17, 1480 in Porto or Sabrosa. At the same time, according to historical documents, Fernand served as a page to Queen Leonora of Aviz as a teenager, so it is assumed that he was of noble origin.

When Magellan turned 25, he went to India as part of Francisco Almeida's squadron. Having served the required 5 years, Fernand tries to return to his homeland, but by chance he is forced to stay in India, where he seeks the favor of the colonial authorities and gains great authority among the military. Thus, the future great traveler ends up in Lisbon only in 1512. And he participates in the war with Morocco, during which his unauthorized actions provoke the wrath of King Manuel I. During the audience, Magellan asks the monarch for permission to go on a naval expedition, but is refused. At the same time, Manuel the First makes it clear to him that he will not mind if he begins to serve another overlord. I wonder if he knew then that Magellan’s future discoveries would glorify Spain, would he have given him similar advice?

What preceded the first trip around the world

Insulted, Magellan leaves his homeland and goes to Spain, buys a house in Seville, marries, and has a son. Having acquired useful connections, Magellan turns to the organization that finances sea expeditions - the “Chamber of Contracts”, but they refuse to allocate money for the implementation of his project to find a western route to the Spice Islands. At the same time, Juan de Aranda shows personal interest, demanding 1/8 of the possible profits, and King Charles the First of Spain gives permission to equip five ships. Now you know who Magellan was before his famous journey. What he discovered will be described further.

Magellan: expected economic benefits

Although Columbus made Spain a superpower, still the main objective This expedition, namely reaching the coast of India by the western route, was not achieved. But this promised enormous economic benefits! In particular, in this way it would be proven that the famous Spice Islands, ceded to Portugal under the Treaty of Tordesillas, are located in the “Spanish” South Sea. In turn, this meant that Magellan's expected discoveries could significantly expand the possessions of Charles the First and end the Portuguese monopoly on the trade in spices, which were then worth their weight in gold.

Travel to Brazil and Patagonia

Magellan's heroic naval epic began on September 20, 1519, when 5 ships, supplied with food for 2 years in advance, left San Lucar. In total, up to 280 people took part in the expedition, 100 of whom were equipped as soldiers. In addition, the ships were equipped with 10 cannons and 50 arquebuses. The main ship, the Trinidad, and the caravel, the Santiago, were captained by Magellan himself and another Portuguese, João Serran. The remaining three ships set out under the leadership of high-born Spanish hidalgos, who agreed to stage a mutiny if they thought that Commander Fernand had lost his way.

Having overcome the Atlantic Ocean with great difficulty, on November 29, Magellan's expedition reached the coast of Brazil and began to explore the shores of La Plata, hoping that this was the strait through which one could get to the “South Sea.” Convinced of the fallacy of this assumption, the squadron proceeded further south, along the coast of the South American continent and, meeting penguins along the way, mistook them for natives. The wandering continued until the end of March 1420, when Magellan decided to stop for the winter and cut the crew's rations. During the winter, the Spaniards met local residents who walked with hay wrapped around their feet. And they called them Patagonians (big-footed), and their country Patagonia.

Strait of Magellan

On October 21, 1520, the ships of the expedition find themselves at a narrow strait. The ships "San Antonio" and "Concepcion" are sent out for reconnaissance, and they miraculously manage to avoid death during a sudden storm. However, as they say, there would be no happiness, but misfortune helped. At the moment when the wave carried the ships to the shore, they fell into a narrow passage, studies of which showed that in it salty water, and the lot does not reach the shore. Both ships return to Magellan and report the good news that the sea route to the “South Sea” has been found, and many years later it is designated as the Strait of Magellan on the world map. Unfortunately, this discovery, neither at that historical moment nor centuries later, could bring any benefit to humanity from an economic point of view, since this route is extremely long and dangerous for shipping. However, he gave a huge impetus to the development of such sciences as cartography and geography.

Islands of Tierra del Fuego discovered by Magellan

To the south of the discovered strait, members of the expedition saw land on which lights lit up at night. Magellan mistakenly assumed that this was the northern tip of Terra Australis Incognita - Southern mainland- and called it Tierra del Fuego. As it turned out later, it was an archipelago consisting of 40 thousand islands and islets. Thus, to the questions: “What did Ferdinand Magellan do?”, “What did he discover?” One can rightfully name Tierra del Fuego as an answer. Today everyone knows that the archipelago is separated from the mainland by the Strait of Magellan, and on the largest of its islands, Isla Grande, is the southernmost city on the planet, Ushuaia.

Discovery of the Mariana Islands

Having crossed the strait in 38 days, the ships of the expedition entered the ocean and sailed about 17,000 km to the first uninhabited island that they encountered on their way. The sailors were surprised, since before this it was assumed that America was located near the coast of Asia. Then Magellan realized that he had revealed to the world the true relationship between land and ocean waters, and also gave people an idea of ​​​​the size of the Earth. They failed to land, and they continued their journey until they reached the island of Guam, which belongs to the Mariana Islands group. It turned out that the local residents had no idea about private property, and therefore tried to take away from the ships any objects that came to their hands. That is why the Spaniards named the islands Landrones, which translates as thieves' island. There the travelers stocked up on food and fresh water and continued on their way.

Discovery of the Philippine Islands

Since it was obvious that the expedition was already in the Eastern Hemisphere, Magellan, fearing meetings with the Portuguese, sought to stay away from the waters where shipping routes passed. Soon his ships reached unknown islands. It was decided to call them the Archipelago of St. Lazarus, and later they were renamed the Philippine Islands. Homonkhom was chosen for landing, so when answering the question: “What is the name of the first island, discovered by Magellan in Asia?", it should be pointed out specifically.

Death of a traveler

Today everyone knows what lands Magellan discovered. However, few know the details of his death.

So, how did the man who was the first man to circumnavigate the South American continent meet death? It all started with the fact that the leader of the island of Mactan refused to obey the ruler of the neighboring Humabon, who swore allegiance to the Spanish crown and even was baptized, along with his family and close nobles. Magellan decided to show the locals that Europeans valued and protected their vassals, and set out to pacify the rebellious Mactanians. At the same time, he did not calculate that the natives, who had managed to study the European methods of warfare, no longer treated them as celestials. In addition, Magellan's military expedition was poorly prepared, and the Spaniards did not calculate that their ships would not be able to get close enough to the shore. Almost immediately after the start of the battle, Magellan’s army suffered great damage, as the native warriors aimed their spears at the unprotected legs of the Spanish soldiers, and when they tried to get to their ships, they began to finish them off with arrows. The same fate befell Commander Fernand, who, wanting to cover his retreating comrades, remained to fight in the water with a handful of loyal warriors, but was wounded first in the face and then stabbed with spear tips. This is how one of the greatest travelers in human history died. However, he forever inscribed his name in the annals of world history, and today every schoolchild knows which strait Magellan discovered.

The further fate of the expedition sailors

The death of Magellan and eight of his companions undermined the prestige of the Spaniards in the eyes of the natives. Therefore, Humabon decides to get rid of the aliens and organizes a dinner party, during which he deals with a significant part of the commanders. Those who remain have to flee. Finally, having reached the Spice Islands, the surviving members of Magellan's expedition purchase goods and gather in Return trip, when they learn that the Portuguese king declared Magellan a deserter and issued an order to detain his ships. At that moment, only two ships remain afloat, the commanders of which decide to go home in different ways. So the ship "Trinidad" is captured by the Portuguese, and its crew members end their lives in hard labor in India. The fate of those who go to Spain on the Victoria, under the command of Juan Elcanto, through the Cape of Good Hope, is completely different. At the cost of incredible efforts, they managed to get to Seville. Thus, before answering the questions: “Who is Magellan?”, “What did he discover?”, it is worth thinking about it. After all, the fact that he is called the first traveler to circumnavigate the world is not entirely true. Moreover, he never set such a goal for himself, since his only desire was to find a western route along which spices could be brought to Spain and make a profit from it.

Ferdinand Magellan: what he discovered

Such short life, only 40 years long, but what brilliant results! These are exactly the thoughts that arise when you read a story about the journey that Magellan made. What did you open? The famous strait named after him, Tierra del Fuego, the Mariana and Philippine Islands. And most importantly, Magellan proved that you can get from Europe to Asia not only by skirting Africa, but also by moving in a western direction.