He made the first trip around the world. Who was the first to travel around the world: Magellan's expedition

Hello, dear readers of the Sprint-Response website. The TV game “Field of Miracles” has started on Channel One. Let me remind you that today is March 16, 2018 on our calendars. The program is dedicated to the navigator Fernand Magellan.

This is what the question of the first round sounds like from the mouth of the show’s host, Leonid Yakubovich. The question turned out to be not difficult.

The first trip around the world under the command of Ferdinand Magellan lasted three years. What was one of the main goals of organizing this unique expedition? What is this, what are we talking about?

8 letter word.

What was the purpose of Magellan's trip around the world?

The idea of ​​the expedition was in many ways a repetition of Columbus's idea: to reach Asia by heading west. The colonization of America had not yet brought significant profits, unlike the Portuguese colonies in India, and the Spaniards wanted to sail to the Spice Islands themselves and benefit. First circumnavigation

- Spanish naval expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan, began on September 20, 1519 and ended on September 6, 1522. The expedition was staffed by a large team (according to various estimates, 265-280 people) on 5 ships. As a result of mutinies, a difficult crossing of the Pacific Ocean and clashes with the population of the Philippines and the Spice Islands, the team was greatly reduced. Only one ship, the Victoria, managed to return to Spain with 18 people on board.

June 1st, 2018

Ask anyone, and he will tell you that the first person to circumnavigate the world was the Portuguese navigator and explorer Ferdinand Magellan, who died on the island of Mactan (Philippines) during an armed skirmish with the natives (1521). The same is written in history books. In fact, this is a myth. After all, it turns out that one excludes the other.


Magellan managed to go only half of the way. Primus circumdedisti me (you were the first to circumvent me) - reads the Latin inscription on the coat of arms of Juan Sebastian Elcano crowned with a globe. Indeed, Elcano was the first person to commit.


The San Telmo Museum in San Sebastian houses Salaverria's painting "The Return of Victoria". Eighteen emaciated people in white shrouds, with lit candles in their hands, staggering down the ramp from the ship onto the Seville embankment. These are sailors from the only ship that returned to Spain from Magellan's entire flotilla. In front is their captain, Juan Sebastian Elcano.

Much in Elcano’s biography is still unclear. Oddly enough, the person who first rounded Earth, did not attract the attention of artists and historians of his time. There is not even a reliable portrait of him, and of the documents he wrote, only letters to the king, petitions and a will have survived.

Juan Sebastian Elcano was born in 1486 in Getaria, a small port town in the Basque Country, near San Sebastian. He early connected his own destiny with the sea, making a “career” that was not uncommon for an enterprising person of that time - first changing the job of a fisherman to being a smuggler, and later enlisting in the navy to avoid punishment for his too free attitude towards laws and trade duties. Elcano managed to take part in the Italian Wars and the Spanish military campaign in Algeria in 1509. Basque mastered maritime affairs well in practice when he was a smuggler, but it was in the navy that Elcano received the “correct” education in the field of navigation and astronomy.

In 1510, Elcano, the owner and captain of a ship, took part in the siege of Tripoli. But the Spanish Treasury refused to pay Elcano the amount due for settlements with the crew. Having left military service, which never seriously seduced the young adventurer low earnings and the need to maintain discipline, Elcano decides to start new life in Seville. It seems to Basque that a brilliant future awaits him - in his new city, no one knows about his not entirely impeccable past, the navigator atoned for his guilt before the law in battles with the enemies of Spain, he has official papers allowing him to work as a captain on a merchant ship ... But the trading enterprises in which Elcano becomes a participant turn out to be unprofitable.

In 1517, to pay off debts, he sold the ship under his command to Genoese bankers - and this trading operation determined his entire fate. The fact is that the owner of the sold ship was not Elcano himself, but the Spanish crown, and the Basque, as expected, again had difficulties with the law, this time threatening him with the death penalty. At that time it was considered a serious crime. Knowing that the court would not take into account any excuses, Elcano fled to Seville, where it was easy to get lost and then hide on any ship: in those days, captains were least interested in the biographies of their people. In addition, there were many of Elcano’s fellow countrymen in Seville, and one of them, Ibarolla, was well acquainted with Magellan. He helped Elcano enlist in Magellan's flotilla. Having passed the exams and received beans as a sign of a good grade (those who failed received peas from the examination committee), Elcano became a helmsman on the third largest ship in the flotilla, the Concepcion.


Ships of Magellan's flotilla


On September 20, 1519, Magellan's flotilla left the mouth of the Guadalquivir and headed for the shores of Brazil. In April 1520, when the ships settled for the winter in the frosty and deserted Bay of San Julian, the captains dissatisfied with Magellan mutinied. Elcano found himself drawn into it, not daring to disobey his commander, captain of the Concepcion Quesada.

Magellan energetically and brutally suppressed the rebellion: Quesada and another of the leaders of the conspiracy had their heads cut off, the corpses were quartered and the mutilated remains were stuck on poles. Magellan ordered Captain Cartagena and one priest, also the instigator of the rebellion, to be landed on the deserted shore of the bay, where they subsequently died. Magellan spared the remaining forty rebels, including Elcano.

1. The first circumnavigation in history

On November 28, 1520, the remaining three ships left the strait and in March 1521, after an unprecedentedly difficult passage through Pacific Ocean approached the islands, which later became known as the Mariana Islands. That same month Magellan discovered Philippine Islands, and on April 27, 1521 he died in a skirmish with local residents on the island of Matan. Elcano, stricken with scurvy, did not take part in this skirmish. After the death of Magellan, Duarte Barbosa and Juan Serrano were elected captains of the flotilla. At the head of a small detachment, they went ashore to the Rajah of Sebu and were treacherously killed. Fate again - for the umpteenth time - spared Elcano. Karvalyo became the head of the flotilla. But there were only 115 people left on the three ships; There are many sick people among them. Therefore, the Concepcion was burned in the strait between the islands of Cebu and Bohol; and his team moved to the other two ships - Victoria and Trinidad. Both ships wandered between the islands for a long time, until, finally, on November 8, 1521, they dropped anchor off the island of Tidore, one of the “Spice Islands” - the Moluccas. Then it was generally decided to continue sailing on one ship - the Victoria, of which Elcano had recently become captain, and leave the Trinidad in the Moluccas. And Elcano managed to guide his worm-eaten ship with a starving crew through Indian Ocean and along the coast of Africa. A third of the team died, about a third were detained by the Portuguese, but still “Victoria” entered the mouth of the Guadalquivir on September 8, 1522.

It was an unprecedented transition, unheard of in the history of navigation. Contemporaries wrote that Elcano surpassed King Solomon, the Argonauts and the cunning Odysseus. The first circumnavigation in history has been completed! The king granted the navigator an annual pension of 500 gold ducats and knighted Elcano. The coat of arms assigned to Elcano (since then del Cano) immortalized his voyage. The coat of arms depicted two cinnamon sticks framed with nutmeg and cloves, and a golden castle topped with a helmet. Above the helmet is a globe with the Latin inscription: “You were the first to circle me.” And finally, by a special decree, the king granted Elcano a pardon for selling the ship to a foreigner. But if it was quite simple to reward and forgive the brave captain, then to resolve everything controversial issues related to the fate of the Moluccas turned out to be more complicated. The Spanish-Portuguese Congress met for a long time, but was never able to “divide” the islands located on the other side of the “apple of the earth” between the two powerful powers. And the Spanish government decided not to delay the departure of the second expedition to the Moluccas.


2. Goodbye La Coruña

La Coruña was considered the safest port in Spain, which “could accommodate all the fleets of the world.” The importance of the city increased even more when the Chamber of Indian Affairs was temporarily transferred here from Seville. This chamber developed plans for a new expedition to the Moluccas in order to finally establish Spanish dominance on these islands. Elcano arrived in La Coruña full of bright hopes - he already saw himself as an admiral of the armada - and began equipping the flotilla. However, Charles I appointed as commander not Elcano, but a certain Jofre de Loais, a participant in many naval battles, but completely unfamiliar with navigation. Elcano's pride was deeply wounded. In addition, from the royal chancellery came the “highest refusal” to Elcano’s request for payment of the annual pension granted to him of 500 gold ducats: the king ordered that this amount be paid only after returning from the expedition. Thus, Elcano experienced the traditional ingratitude of the Spanish crown towards famous navigators.

Before sailing, Elcano visited his native Getaria, where he, a famous sailor, easily managed to recruit many volunteers onto his ships: with a man who has walked around the “apple of the earth,” you will not be lost in the devil’s mouth, the port brethren reasoned. In the early summer of 1525, Elcano brought his four ships to A Coruña and was appointed helmsman and deputy commander of the flotilla. In total, the flotilla consisted of seven ships and 450 crew members. There were no Portuguese on this expedition. The last night before the flotilla sailed in La Coruña it was very lively and solemn. At midnight, a huge fire was lit on Mount Hercules, on the site of the ruins of a Roman lighthouse. The city said goodbye to the sailors. The cries of the townspeople who treated the sailors with wine from leather bottles, the sobs of women and the hymns of pilgrims mixed with the sounds of the cheerful dance “La Muneira”. The sailors of the flotilla remembered this night for a long time. They were sent to another hemisphere, and they now faced a life full of dangers and hardships. For the last time, Elcano walked under the narrow arch of Puerto de San Miguel and descended the sixteen pink steps to the shore. These steps, already completely erased, have survived to this day.

Death of Magellan

3. The misfortunes of the chief helmsman

Loaiza's powerful, well-armed flotilla set sail on July 24, 1525. According to the royal instructions, and Loaysa had fifty-three in total, the flotilla was to follow the path of Magellan, but avoid his mistakes. But neither Elcano, the king's chief adviser, nor the king himself foresaw that this would be the last expedition sent through the Strait of Magellan. It was Loaisa's expedition that was destined to prove that this was not the most profitable path. And all subsequent expeditions to Asia were sent from the Pacific ports of New Spain (Mexico).

On July 26, the ships rounded Cape Finisterre. On August 18, the ships were caught in a strong storm. The main mast on the admiral's ship was broken, but two carpenters sent by Elcano, risking their lives, still got there in a small boat. While the mast was being repaired, the flagship collided with the Parral, breaking its mizzenmast. The swimming was very difficult. There was not enough fresh water and provisions. Who knows what the fate of the expedition would have been if on October 20 the lookout had not seen the island of Annobon in the Gulf of Guinea on the horizon. The island was deserted - only a few skeletons lay under a tree on which a strange inscription was carved: “Here lies the unfortunate Juan Ruiz, killed because he deserved it.” Superstitious sailors saw this as a terrible omen. The ships hastily filled with water and stocked up on provisions. On this occasion, the captains and officers of the flotilla were convened for a festive dinner with the admiral, which almost ended tragically.

A huge, unknown breed of fish was served on the table. According to Urdaneta, Elcano’s page and chronicler of the expedition, some sailors who “tasted the meat of this fish, which had teeth like a large dog, had such stomach pain that they thought they would not survive.” Soon the entire flotilla left the shores of inhospitable Annobon. From here Loaisa decided to sail to the shores of Brazil. And from that moment on, a streak of misfortune began for the Sancti Espiritus, Elcano’s ship. Without having time to set sail, the Sancti Espiritus almost collided with the admiral's ship, and then fell behind the flotilla for some time. At latitude 31º, after a strong storm, the admiral's ship disappeared from sight. Elcano took command of the remaining ships. Then the San Gabriel separated from the flotilla. The remaining five ships searched for the admiral's ship for three days. The search was unsuccessful, and Elcano ordered to move on to the Strait of Magellan.

On January 12, the ships began to river mouth Santa Cruz, and since neither the admiral's ship nor the San Gabriel came here, Elcano called a council. Knowing from the experience of a previous voyage that there was an excellent anchorage here, he suggested waiting for both ships, as was provided for in the instructions. However, the officers, who were eager to enter the strait as quickly as possible, advised leaving only the Santiago pinnace at the mouth of the river, burying a message in a jar under the cross on the island that the ships were heading to the Strait of Magellan. On the morning of January 14, the flotilla weighed anchor. But what Elcano took for a strait turned out to be the mouth of the Gallegos River, five or six miles from the strait. Urdaneta, who, despite his admiration for Elcano. retained the ability to be critical of his decisions, writes that Elcano’s mistake really amazed him. That same day they approached the present entrance to the strait and anchored at the Cape of the Eleven Thousand Holy Virgins.

An exact copy of the ship "Victoria"

At night a terrible storm hit the flotilla. The raging waves flooded the ship to the middle of the masts, and it could barely stay on four anchors. Elcano realized that everything was lost. His only thought now was to save the team. He ordered the ship to be grounded. Panic began on the Sancti Espiritus. Several soldiers and sailors rushed into the water in horror; everyone drowned except one, who managed to reach the shore. Then the rest crossed to the shore. We managed to save some of the provisions. However, at night the storm broke out with the same force and finally destroyed the Sancti Espiritus. For Elcano, the captain, the first circumnavigator and chief helmsman of the expedition, the crash, especially through his fault, was a big blow. Elcano had never been in such a difficult situation. When the storm finally subsided, the captains of other ships sent a boat for Elcano, inviting him to lead them through the Strait of Magellan, since he had been here before. Elcano agreed, but took only Urdaneta with him. He left the rest of the sailors on the shore...

But failures did not leave the exhausted flotilla. From the very beginning, one of the ships almost ran into rocks, and only Elcano’s determination saved the ship. After some time, Elcano sent Urdaneta with a group of sailors to pick up the sailors left on the shore. Urdaneta's group soon ran out of provisions. It was very cold at night, and people were forced to bury themselves up to their necks in sand, which also did little to warm them. On the fourth day, Urdaneta and his companions approached the sailors dying on the shore from hunger and cold, and on the same day Loaiza’s ship, the San Gabriel, and the pinassa Santiago entered the mouth of the strait. On January 20, they joined the rest of the flotilla.

JUAN SEBASTIAN ELCANO

On February 5, a strong storm broke out again. Elcano's ship took refuge in the strait, and the San Lesmes was thrown further south by the storm, to 54° 50′ south latitude, that is, it approached the very tip of Tierra del Fuego. In those days, not a single ship sailed further south. A little more, and the expedition could open a route around Cape Horn. After the storm, it turned out that the admiral's ship was aground, and Loaiza and his crew left the ship. Elcano immediately sent a group of his best sailors to help the admiral. On the same day, the Anunciada deserted. The captain of the ship, de Vera, decided to independently get to the Moluccas past the Cape of Good Hope. The Anunciada has gone missing. A few days later, the San Gabriel also deserted. The remaining ships returned to the mouth of the Santa Cruz River, where the sailors began repairing the admiral's ship, which had been battered by storms. Under other conditions it would have had to be abandoned altogether, but now that the flotilla had lost three largest ship, this could no longer be afforded. Elcano, who, on his return to Spain, had criticized Magellan for staying at the mouth of this river for seven weeks, was now forced to spend five weeks here. At the end of March, the somehow patched up ships again headed for the Strait of Magellan. The expedition now consisted of only an admiral's ship, two caravels and a pinnace.


On April 5, the ships entered the Strait of Magellan. Between the islands of Santa Maria and Santa Magdalena, the admiral's ship suffered another misfortune. A boiler filled with boiling tar caught fire and a fire broke out on the ship.

Panic began, many sailors rushed to the boat, not paying attention to Loaiza, who showered them with curses. The fire was still extinguished. The flotilla moved on through the strait, along the banks of which at high mountain peaks, “so high that they seemed to stretch to the very sky,” lay eternal bluish snow. At night, Patagonian fires burned on both sides of the strait. Elcano was already familiar with these lights from his first voyage. On April 25, the ships weighed anchor from the San Jorge parking lot, where they replenished their supplies of water and firewood, and again set off on a difficult voyage.

And there, where the waves of both oceans meet with a deafening roar, a storm struck Loaisa's flotilla again. The ships anchored in the bay of San Juan de Portalina. On the shore of the bay rose mountains several thousand feet high. It was terribly cold, and “no clothing could warm us,” writes Urdaneta. Elcano was on the flagship the entire time: Loaiza, having no relevant experience, relied entirely on Elcano. The passage through the strait lasted forty-eight days - ten days more than Magellan. On May 31, a strong northeast wind blew. The whole sky was overcast. On the night of June 1–2, a storm broke out, the most terrible that had occurred so far, scattering all the ships. Although the weather later improved, they were never destined to meet. Elcano, with most of the crew of the Sancti Espiritus, was now on the admiral's ship, which numbered one hundred and twenty people. Two pumps did not have time to pump out the water; it was feared that the ship could sink at any minute. In general, the ocean was Great, but by no means Quiet.

4. The helmsman dies as an admiral

The ship was sailing alone; neither sail nor island were visible on the vast horizon. “Every day,” writes Urdaneta, “we waited for the end. Due to the fact that people from the wrecked ship moved to us, we are forced to reduce rations. We worked hard and ate little. We had to endure great hardships and some of us died.” Loaiza died on July 30. According to one of the expedition members, the cause of his death was loss of spirit; he was so worried about the loss of the remaining ships that he “became weaker and died.” Loayza did not forget to mention his chief helmsman in his will: “I ask that Elcano be returned the four barrels of white wine that I owe him. Let the crackers and other provisions lying on my ship Santa Maria de la Victoria be given to my nephew Alvaro de Loaiza, who should share them with Elcano.” They say that by this time only rats remained on the ship. Many on the ship suffered from scurvy. Wherever Elcano looked, everywhere he saw swollen pale faces and heard the groans of the sailors.

From the time they left the strait, thirty people died of scurvy. “They all died,” writes Urdaneta, “because their gums were swollen and they could not eat anything. I saw a man whose gums were so swollen that he tore off pieces of meat as thick as a finger.” The sailors had one hope - Elcano. They, in spite of everything, believed in his lucky star, although he was so ill that four days before Loaisa's death he himself made a will. A cannon salute was given to celebrate Elcano's assumption of the position of admiral, a position for which he had unsuccessfully sought two years previously. But Elcano's strength was running out. The day came when the admiral could no longer get out of bed. His relatives and his faithful Urdaneta gathered in the cabin. In the flickering light of the candle one could see how thin they had become and how much they had suffered. Urdaneta kneels and touches the body of her dying master with one hand. The priest watches him closely. Finally he raises his hand, and everyone present slowly kneels. Elcano's wanderings are over...

“Monday, August 6th. The valiant Senor Juan Sebastian de Elcano has died." This is how Urdaneta noted in his diary the death of the great navigator.

Four people lift the body of Juan Sebastian, wrapped in a shroud and tied to a board. At a sign from the new admiral, they throw him into the sea. There was a splash that drowned out the priest's prayers.


MONUMENT IN HONOR OF ELCANO IN GETARIA

Epilogue

Worn by worms, tormented by storms and storms, the lonely ship continued on its way. The team, according to Urdaneta, “was terribly exhausted and exhausted. Not a day went by without one of us dying.

Therefore, we decided that the best thing for us was to go to the Moluccas." Thus, they abandoned the bold plan of Elcano, who was going to fulfill Columbus’s dream - to reach east coast Asia, following the shortest route from the west. “I am sure that if Elcano had not died, we would not have reached the Ladron (Mariana) Islands so soon, because his always intention was to search for Chipansu (Japan),” writes Urdaneta. He clearly thought Elcano's plan was too risky. But the man who first circled the “earthly apple” did not know what fear was. But he also did not know that three years later Charles I would cede his “rights” to the Moluccas to Portugal for 350 thousand gold ducats. Of Loayza's entire expedition, only two ships survived: the San Gabriel, which reached Spain after a two-year voyage, and the Santiago, under the command of Guevara, which sailed along the Pacific coast. South America to Mexico. Although Guevara saw the coast of South America only once, his voyage proved that the coast does not protrude far to the west anywhere and that South America is shaped like a triangle. This was the most important geographical discovery Loaysa's expedition.

Getaria, in the homeland of Elcano, at the entrance to the church stands stone plate, the half-erased inscription on which reads: “... the illustrious captain Juan Sebastian del Cano, a native and resident of the noble and faithful city of Getaria, the first to circumnavigate the globe on the ship Victoria.” In memory of the hero, this slab was erected in 1661 by Don Pedro de Etave e Azi, Knight of the Order of Calatrava. Pray for the repose of the soul of the one who was the first to travel around the world.” And on the globe in the San Telmo Museum the place where Elcano died is indicated - 157º west longitude and 9º north latitude.

In history books, Juan Sebastian Elcano undeservedly found himself in the shadow of the glory of Ferdinand Magellan, but in his homeland he is remembered and revered. A training sailing ship in the Spanish Navy bears the name Elcano. In the wheelhouse of the ship you can see the coat of arms of Elcano, and the sailing ship itself has already completed a dozen expeditions around the world.

At the beginning of the 16th century, not all people were sure that the earth was round. That is, many believed in it, but there was no direct evidence. There were no doubts left after the first circumnavigation under the leadership of Ferdinand Magellan was crowned with success.

Magellan was Portuguese. By 1519, he had already thoroughly served the Portuguese crown: he traveled and fought a lot.

In those days, travelers often fought.

You come to new lands, and other people live there. These other people were sometimes hospitable and sometimes not. And they had reasons for this; the newcomers tried to seize their lands and enrich themselves at the expense of the natives.

So, Ferdinand Magellan returned to Portugal after many years of travel in India and the Indian Ocean. He is 32 years old, the king granted him a pension, but the pension is small. Magellan fought in Morocco for a couple more years and resigned. He asks the king to increase his pension, but is refused. Who knows, if the king had then given him an increase, Magellan would have lived in his Portugal and raised his children, and we would never have known his first or last name.

Meanwhile, Magellan came up with a plan for an expedition that was destined to glorify him. Magellan asks the Portuguese king to entrust him with naval service and send him on a voyage. The king refused. Magellan went to Spain and persuaded the Spanish king.

On September 20, 1519, a Spanish naval expedition began under the leadership of Ferdinand Magellan. It was not a major goal to circumnavigate the world; the plan was to open a western route to India. In total, the expedition consisted of five ships, on which about three hundred people went to sea. Among them was Magellan's slave named Enrique. He was born in Sumatra and was destined to become the first person to circumnavigate the world.

Around the world led by Magellan

So, the flotilla led by Magellan set off to the west. They had to cross Atlantic Ocean, go around South America, open the Strait of Magellan and enter the Pacific Ocean. Everything was successful, but it was not easy for Magellan. Three of the five ships were commanded by Spanish nobles.

They didn't trust the Portuguese. This mistrust was not born out of nowhere; the Spaniards had long been competing with the Portuguese in developing new lands and making profits from it. Magellan had to fight the rebels for his supremacy. He won, but the Spanish captains never became his friends.

People of that time did not have an accurate idea of ​​the size of the Earth. Magellan assumed that the Pacific Ocean was much smaller in size than it actually turned out to be.

The sailors had to travel at least 17 thousand kilometers before they reached land. But they were lucky with the weather, they called this ocean “Quiet”, not a single storm along the way. On March 17, 1521, travelers landed on the island of Homonkhom. The Pacific Ocean is left behind.

Members of Magellan's expedition became the first Europeans to land on the Philippine Islands. They continued their journey among the islands, on one of which Enrique (a slave of Magellan, born in Sumatra) met people who spoke his native language. As they write in history textbooks: “the circle is closed,” man circled the globe for the first time.

On April 27, Ferdinand Magellan died in battles with the local population on the island of Mactan. He was 41 years old. The first trip around the world continued without him.
The sailors had to go around the Cape of Good Hope and along west coast Africa return home.

On September 6, 1522, the Victoria, the only surviving ship of the five that set sail, reached Spain. There were 18 survivors. Another 18 people returned home from Portuguese captivity a few months later. The rest died: many from scurvy, others during mutinies and battles with the natives.

Those who returned home were the first people to lose a day while circumnavigating the world. Their calendar was a whole day behind the calendar of their compatriots. Then Jules Verne described this phenomenon in his novel Around the World in 80 Days. And today this time difference is not a problem due to the introduction of local time, different from universal time.

The expedition led by Magellan was successful not only educationally, but also commercially. The value of the cargo from the ship "Victoria" paid for all the expenses of the voyage, and brought significant profits to those who gave money to carry out the enterprise. Magellan was not destined to meet a prosperous old age in his homeland, but judging by his actions, this was not what he dreamed of.

And the names of the 18 who returned to Spain after the First Voyage around the World can be found on Wikipedia: captain, sailors, pilots, cabin boy, gunner, cabin boy's mate.

This is interesting. History is made by people, people with destiny and biography.

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, there are almost no “blank spots” in the journey of Magellan’s flotilla, 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.

The Spanish captains, upon going to sea, 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 “coolest” 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 rather the mouth of a river, only a very large one.

The search for the strait continued, the expedition went south along the coast. March 31, 1520, reaching 49°S. the flotilla wintered in a bay called

San Julian

.

(Remember that winter in the southern hemisphere falls during our summer.) Mutiny in St. Julian's Bay

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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, 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. Espinosa 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!

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 group Mariana Islands

. 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. Last Stand

Fernando Magellan. That's how he died ", BGCOLOR, "#ffffff", FONTCOLOR, "#333333", BORDERCOLOR, "Silver", WIDTH, "100%", FADEIN, 100, FADEOUT, 100)"> great navigator

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

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Juan Sebastian Elcano , went home the already known route around Africa. Moreover, they decided to leave the Moluccas with vegetable gardens, as the partisans took abruptly 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."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.

Name: Ferdinand Magellan

State: Portugal, Spain

Field of activity: Navigator

Greatest Achievement: Made the world's first trip around the world.

Ferdinand Magellan was born in 1480, on February 3, in Portugal. Magellan was an explorer and navigator. He organized the first trip around the world in Europe. Magellan's expedition became the first conclusive evidence that the Earth is round.

early years

Ferdinand Magellan was born in Porto (Portugal) in 1480. His parents belonged to a noble family and young Magellan entered the service of the royal family at an early age. He was only 12 years old when he became the royal page of Leonora of Aviz. Since childhood, Magellan studied cartography, astronomy and navigation by the stars.

Magellan entered service in the Portuguese navy in 1505. He swam in East Africa, then participated in the battles of Diu, during which Portugal won and defeated the Egyptian fleet. Fernand traveled to Malacca (Malaysia) twice and took part in the capture of the port by the Portuguese army.

He also took part in an expedition to the Moluccas, which at that time was called the Spice Islands. The spice trade in Europe during Magellan's time was very profitable and gave rise to great competition. The Moluccas became the main source of valuable spices such as cloves and nutmeg.

In 1513, Magellan was wounded in battle in North Africa, but the king took into account all his merits and helped him. In 1517 he went to Seville to enter the Spanish government service.

Research for Spain

Spain and Portugal in Magellan's time were major powers in great competition with each other. Both countries have recently claimed open regions North and South America and the East. In 1494, Portugal and Spain concluded the Treaty of Tordesillas, defining spheres of influence for each power. Portugal could count on all the territories from Brazil to the East Indies, and Spain on the western lands from Brazil to Cape Verde.

In essence, the treaty divided the globe into two halves between the two countries. The Spaniards had not yet explored their half of the Earth, but they assumed that they would be able to discover part of the Spice Islands there. Magellan proposed testing this assumption by sending an expedition to the west.

Other researchers had already paved the way for Magellan's grand expedition. One of them was (1451-1506), who sailed west from the European coast to Caribbean Islands. Columbus misjudged the distance between Europe and the East Indies. He discovered America and the Isthmus of Panama to the Pacific Ocean. After his voyage, many explorers became obsessed with finding a route through America to the east to give Spain access to the Spice Islands. One of these explorers was Magellan.

Ferdinand Magellan's trip around the world

King Charles V of Spain (1500-1558) accepted Magellan's offer and on September 20, 1519, he was assigned to lead a flotilla of five ships. The flotilla was supposed to head to the Atlantic.

His brother-in-law, Duarte Barbosa, also set sail with Magellan. Arriving in Brazil, the flotilla headed along the South American coast to San Julian Bay, in Patagonia.

The explorers stayed there from March to August 1520. During this time, there was an attempt on the ships to raise a mutiny against the captain, who was suppressed. Subsequently, however, the mutinous ship Santiago was completely destroyed, and its crew was taken on board by the remaining ships.

After leaving San Julian, the flotilla headed south. On October 21, 1520, she entered the strait, which now bears the name of Magellan. On November 28, only three ships entered the Pacific Ocean. This was followed by a long voyage north across the Pacific Ocean. On March 6, 1521, the flotilla anchored in Guam.

Magellan headed east to Cebu, Philippines, where he tried to get help from the local government. Involuntarily, he was drawn into hostilities and killed in battle on April 27, 1521. Barbosa was also killed soon after. The remaining crew was forced to destroy the Concepción (ship) and the great voyage around the world was completed. Magellan's ship Victoria was led by former rebel Juan Sebastian del Cano. He crossed the Indian Ocean and from the Cape Good hope finally returned to Seville on September 8, 1522. Meanwhile, Trinidad (the ship) attempted to return home via the Pacific Ocean. In the Moluccas, the crew was captured by the Portuguese and sent to prison. Only four of them were later able to return to Spain.

Magellan's Legacy

Economically, Magellan's project was a failure for Spain. As a result of the division of the world, Portugal received a part of the world that was more advantageous in terms of resources. Spain miscalculated and did not gain access to the Moluccas. Magellan lost his flotilla, his people and his own life. Despite this, his voyage became the most important historical event, because it was the first proof that the Earth is a ball. Magellan's voyage is considered one of the most important explorations in human history.

 

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