Magellan-Elcano Circumnavigation of the Globe
Ferdinand Magellan departed Sanlúcar de Barrameda in September 1519 with five ships and 270 men on a Spanish expedition to reach the Spice Islands by sailing westward. Magellan found and navigated the strait bearing his name at the tip of South America, crossed the Pacific in ninety-eight days of extreme privation, and reached the Philippines, where he was killed in a skirmish at Mactan in April 1521. Juan Sebastián Elcano took command of the sole surviving vessel, the Victoria, and completed the first circumnavigation of the globe, arriving back at Sanlúcar in September 1522 with eighteen surviving crew. The voyage conclusively proved the sphericity of the Earth and vastly underestimated the Pacific's breadth.
- Year: 1519 CE
- Category: Political
