«Un día se hallaron en agua tan blanca que por experiencia quisieron ver qué era, y probada hallaron ser agua dulce que causó en todos admiración y algún temor, sin ver tierra, de ver agua dulce.».
«One day they found themselves in water so white that from experience they wanted to see what it was, and when they tried it they found it to be fresh water that caused admiration and some fear in everyone, without seeing land, of seeing fresh water.».
— En el Río de la Plata, Relación de Ginés de Mafra
At the same time that the Conquest of Mexico was taking place, an expedition set sail on September 20, 1519 from Spain. This expedition financed by the Spanish Crown and led by the Portuguese of noble lineage Fernando de Magallanes, had as its main objective to continue the dream of Columbus. Find a route to the Spice Islands (present-day Molucca Islands) by searching for a passage between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, which was discovered in the midst of the Conquest of Mexico when the Conquistadors reached the other end of the New World. The Expedition consisted of five ships and 239 men in total. The ships were the Trinidad, the San Antonio, the Concepción, the Victoria and the Santiago, the first being: La Trinidad, the flagship. From the beginning, the expedition had clashes between Fernando de Magallanes and Juan de Cartagena, who acted as captain of the ship San Antonio and general overseer of the fleet. The tensions were such that when they were off the coast of Guinea, Magellan decided to arrest him on charges of insubordination. The expedition left the Old World at the height of Sierra Leone to later stop at the Rio de Enero, or Janeiro in Portuguese. There on December 20, the master of Victoria, Antón Salamon, is sentenced to death for the crime of sodomy. At the same time, a mestizo son of the pilot Juan Lopes Carvalho will join the expedition, the result of a relationship maintained on a previous trip here. Later the journey continued along the coast towards the South until they enter the mouth of the Río de la Plata. Juan Díaz de Solís had arrived at this place only 3 years before, with an expedition that also had the mission of finding a passage to the other side of America, but here the Indians murdered, dismembered, roasted and devoured Solís himself and others from his companions, returning to Spain the rest. However, they spent 22 days conscientiously exploring the Río de la Plata and even the Uruguay River, hoping to find the long-awaited passage.
From the Rio de la Plata, the territory was unknown to the Spaniards, an Incognita Land where no one had ever reached these shores before. The cold weather worsened until they were forced to anchor in a bay they called "Puerto de San Julián" to spend the winter. Supplies were running out fast as the days grew shorter and the men were cold from not having the proper clothing. Magellan decided to reduce food rations. But several captains and officers agreed to demand his return to Spain. Given such a climate of agitation and insubordination, Magellan ends up brutally assassinating Gaspar de Quesada, captain of the ship Concepción and Juan de Cartagena, and a friar, Pedro Sánchez Reina. The rest of the rebels, either he had no choice but to forgive them since he needed them to govern the ships. Magellan decided to remain in Puerto de San Julián for 147 days, where they ended up having multiple encounters with the indigenous people of the place, whom they referred to as giants, however over time they ended up losing the Santiago due to a strong storm causing it to run aground. The expedition suffered abundant hardships between an atrocious climate and equipment conditions, be it clothing or food, although in the Port of Santa Cruz, the fishing was abundant. Just three days after leaving Puerto Santa Cruz, on October 21, 1520, they discovered Cabo Vírgenes and began to enter, without even knowing it, the long-awaited passage to the other side of America. So they achieved their goal after much hardship. The crossing of the later called Strait of Magellan will take no less than 38 days, and finally, on November 28, 1520, they will end up in the Ocean that they called the Pacific. The crossing of the Pacific begins seeking to gain warmer latitudes, heading northwest, northeast and north. They come very close to the coast, although without stopping they continue their journey to the northwest to cross the Ocean. Not stopping to stock up here was, in the end, a big mistake. Fortunately, the weather is very propitious for them, with constant winds in their favor and no storms, which allows them to advance daily on the order of 70 leagues —385 km—. However, the ocean seems to have no end.
In the middle of the Pacific they are quite unlucky because they only find two small islets where it is impossible for them to stop — the Puka-Puka atoll and the island which they called San Pablo, and of the Sharks respectively. The crossing becomes very painful due to the extreme lack of water and food. The crews die of diseases, especially scurvy due to the lack of fresh food, although if we look at the list of deceased we may be surprised to see that proportionately not so many died on this voyage. There were worse later. As Antonio Pigafetta says. Account of the first voyage around the world.
"The biscuit we ate was no longer bread but a powder full of worms that had devoured all its substance. In addition, it had an unbearable fetid odor because it was impregnated with rat urine. The water we drank was putrid and stinking. For not dying starving, we have been forced to eat the pieces of cowhide that covered the main mast so that the strings do not spoil against the wood... Very often, we were reduced to feeding on sawdust; and the rats, so disgusting to man, they had become such a sought-after food, that up to half a ducat was paid for each of them... And that was not all. Our greatest misfortune came when we were attacked by a kind of disease that inflated us the jaws until our teeth were hidden...."
Finally, on March 6, 1521, they find an island where this time they can land. This is what is now known as the island of Guam. The island turns out to be very populated, with islanders who come in canoes to the ships, and to the astonishment of the expeditionaries, they get on the ships and take everything they can, something that the Spanish could not avoid due to their physical condition. They called it Isla de Los Ladrones, and its discovery saved the lives of many people. They stayed there for 3 days where they would end up regaining strength but they left shortly after until they reached the island of Homonhon. They find a good port and decide to rest and recover. The Indians treat them in a friendly way, and although part of the crew is beginning to recover from their illnesses, for many it is too late.
On the next island that was called Mazaba. They met the local king, with whom they establish ties, and who offered to guide them to Cebu, where they learned that there is another king, a large population and they will be able to resupply. Magellan Christianized hundreds of Indians here, and ordered a large cross to be erected on the highest point of the island. All in the space of seven days before embarking on three days of navigation, after which the navy enters Cebu unloading artillery by way of salute. The islanders initially react with fear, but are soon convinced that it was a sign of friendship, and Magellan gains the trust of the local king, with whom he exchanges gifts. He ends up Christianizing thousands of indigenous people. However, King Lapu-Lapu of the neighboring town of Mactán challenges the expeditionaries, before which Magellan goes with few men there, in what turns out to be a great overconfidence, because when landing on the beach of Mactán they are surprised. by thousands of Indian warriors who were waiting for them. Numerical superiority makes the slow arquebuses ineffective, and the expeditionaries must fall back. Magellan dies bravely defending the retreat of his men, being struck in the forehead by a spear, and falls there along with 7 other companions. The defeat was such that the king of Cebu, instigated by other local kings and the slave Enrique de Magallanes of Malay origin who served as an interpreter, betrayed the expeditionaries by inviting them to a supposed atonement meal to strengthen ties after the death of Magellan before of his departure. Although suspicion was already present, Duarte Barbosa, Magellan's brother-in-law, pressured them to attend so as not to appear cowardly. The worst predictions come true, and while the king distracts the expeditionaries, hundreds of warriors enter the room and put all of them to the sword. The result is devastating: no less than 26 men who tried to defend themselves with cutlery such as knives and bird bones are killed.
The Asian natives use the wounded and handcuffed captain Juan Rodríguez Serrano to collect a ransom that is paid twice without his release. However, in a moment of pity due to the situation, the pilot João Lopes Carvalho, makes the hard and difficult decision to execute the prisoner with a crossbow shot that manages to hit his chest, ending his life but saving him from the torture that the treacherous Indians would inflict upon him. As a result of that act, the Portuguese stands as captain and it doesn't take long for them to set sail and march. As a result of the events. The crew has been drastically reduced, to 116 or 117 men, which are insufficient to govern the three remaining ships, so they decide to burn the Conception. From here, only Trinidad and Victoria remain. The new captain Lopes Carvalho showed that he did not know what to do and was motivated for the moment, going from island to island in the Joló sea area, apparently lost and not knowing where to go. They do not trust the Indians they find, and the situation of scarcity begins to be very worrying again. They end up finding the island of Palawan where they can finally stock up on abundant supplies. There they have news of the wealth of nearby Brunei, on the island of Borneo, where they go.
Brunei was a large population, and with a degree of civilization far superior to that of the places they have visited so far. At first they are well treated there, but Raja Siripada retains Elcano, Espinosa, and other men who had come to see him as ambassadors. Those of the naos, after fifteen days fearing for the fate of their companions, attack a fleet that arrives at the port. Elcano and Espinosa are released, but the rajah still holds the others. Espinosa kills a local captain and sends his head as a threat to the rajah to return the rest to them. After two days of waiting, they end up setting sail, leaving behind two men, and Carvalho's son that they had picked up in Brazil, that his father had sent ashore with the purpose of selling certain merchandise but was left behind because he was not on board. at that time.
Faced with the new situation, which aroused everyone's displeasure. Lopes Carvalho was the target of numerous criticisms as the crossing was so chaotic that one of the ships ran aground. On an unidentifiable island between Borneo and Palawan, they locate a suitable port, where they spend a month repairing the ship. In such circumstances, a mutiny occurs against Lopes who ends up being assassinated at the hands of Gonzalo Gómez de Espinosa, who since leaving Cebu had already served as captain of the Victoria. For his part, Juan Sebastián Elcano is named captain of the Victoria ship. With the current situation, it is decided to follow the original plan: they will search for the Moluccas without delay, and they will return to Spain loaded with spices. Through a fight with a ship that was heading to Brunei, they get food in exchange for hostages from the ship. Finally, on November 8, 1521, they managed to see the volcanic peaks of those islands, the Spice Islands. Upon arrival in Tidore: an important regional political and economic center, the Spanish are very well received by the local Sultan, Al-Mansur of Tidore, who is obviously immediately called Almazor to facilitate pronunciation. The Sultan is a Muslim, because the Arabs and Islam had arrived there long before to trade in spices. The Portuguese, who by the way had not heard from them for months, had allied themselves with the enemy of Tidore, so the king asks them in every possible way to stay to protect him from them. He not only offers vassalage to King Ferdinand of Spain, but is even willing to rename Tidore Castile. However, a friendly Portuguese arrives, Pedro Alfonso de Lorosa. He informs them that Francisco Serrano, a friend of Magellan who had sent him letters revealing where these islands were, had already died, but also that Diego Lópes Sequeira, 4th Governor of Portuguese India, was leading an army of six ships to hunt them down. The reason for this was that although Portugal had located the Moluccas 10 years ago and had established a warehouse on the neighboring island of Ternate, it had not yet been able to take possession of them.
To avoid being trapped by the Portuguese, on November 25 they begin to load the clove ships, and on December 8 they leave for the South, with hundreds of canoes surrounding them in their farewell. However, just as she set sail, the Trinidad had major problems: she had a split keel and a hole in her hull. This forced the ship to be unloaded, beached dry, and despite the fact that the king brought carpenters to help, the repair of the Trinidad was going to require months that the Spanish lacked in their schedule. Due to this, faced with the risk that the Portuguese army, against which they would have no option to fight due to their numerical inferiority, would arrive at any moment and by joint decision between all of them. They arranged for the Victoria to set sail now to return to Spain heading west, while the Trinidad, once it was repaired, would return across the Pacific to the Darién, in Panama, the only place on the American Pacific coast in Spanish possession at that time. That decision turned out to return by the most dangerous path, due to the fact of trying to go around the world for the first time. The illusion of achieving this feat was key in choosing the way back, a path that was not going to allow them to touch land as far as Spain. Elcano decided to head south to avoid the prevailing contrary monsoons, and to play the very risky card that in that direction the effect of the monsoon would end up disappearing and he would find winds that would direct him to the Cape of Good Hope. For greater safety, the clove load of the Victoria was reduced from about 700 to about 600 quintals —about 27 tons— and, finally, on December 21, 1521, they set sail with 47 crew members and thirteen indigenous people, with new sails, in which wore a large Cross of Santiago and the inscription This is the Figure of Our Buenaventura. The moving farewell between both crews is told by Pigafetta, "our men accompanied us in their boat as far as they could, and we parted, at last, crying".
Unfortunately the Trinity did not achieve its objective. It found contrary winds that prevented it from advancing towards the East, being forced to divert its route far to the North, but then it suffered a terrible storm, lasting five days, which almost sank the ship and left it very battered. In addition, the deaths caused by the cold and the lack of food were already affecting the crew, so they had no choice but to turn around to return to the Moluccas in a very painful way but, this time, with supporting winds. very favorable. However, during the seven months that the journey will last, the Portuguese will have returned to the Moluccas, and there they will intercept the Trinidad and capture the only 17 survivors. It was a very hard journey, which was followed by more than four years of captivity and forced labor for the fewer and fewer expeditionaries who suffered at the hands of the men under the command of Diego Lópes Sequeira who continued in Banda, Malacca and Cochín. Almost all of them died. One of them managed to return to Spain through his means aboard a Portuguese ship: the sailor Juan Rodríguez "El Sordo" who managed to return deaf as a result of Portuguese abuse. The Nao Victoria, on the other hand, travels for several days to various islands of the Moluccas archipelago, where they collect samples of the spices that are given in each one to take them to the King, without delaying time and gaining South. With the help of Moluccan pilots, they reach the island of Mallúa where they need to make repairs to the Victoria and stay for fifteen days. Elcano shows extraordinary audacity by how they approach the return. The fundamental objective when leaving Timor is to reach Spain by sailing west, avoiding the Portuguese routes to avoid detection and capture. For this reason, they will not make stopovers and will travel far from the coast.
Even knowing that it is an almost suicidal mission, in which he is going to face an unknown ocean until then in the southern latitudes that he intends to cross, he will have to double the dreaded Cape of Good Hope, famous for being one of those that currents and winds are always impossible for navigation, and then he must go up the Atlantic, always away from the coast. But the illusion not only to return, but to know that they are the first to go around the world and thus enter History will lead these men to reach their goal, although not without unforeseen events and, of course, without extreme suffering and the near certain death. The Indian Ocean initially received them with light winds, typical of the equatorial latitudes where they are found. They head towards the Southwest, seeking from the first moment that South which distances them from the possibility of encountering Portuguese expeditions, and they do not pass far from Australia. They were close to discovering it. As South wins, the sea becomes increasingly hostile. The winds and currents are not going to be favorable almost at any time in the Indian Ocean. After a month and a half of crossing they see an island in the distance, to which they go, they surround it, but they do not find bottom in it and they have to continue their journey without stopping. They have a hard time moving forward. They come down to the 40th parallel, where strong winds and contrary currents await them, forcing them to subside for days and returning them to the East. That maritime region was known as the Roaring Forty. They came to spend 8 days subsided in two different episodes of strong storms, with great cold and rough seas. After the last one, Elcano decided to abandon this parallel and move to the 36th. Many other days, the wind forced them to close haul against it, sailing in a zig-zag. They thought they advanced more than they did. Thus, on May 4 they believe that they have already passed the Cape of Good Hope, far to the south of it as they intended, and for this reason they set course for the Northwest, convinced that they are in the Atlantic. However, with great disappointment they find the coast 3 days later. They conclude immediately to be at the height of the Infante River due to its use in Portuguese charts since the Spanish had never reached that region.
Because Africa was considered under Portuguese control, Elcano's idea of getting away from the coast is firm even though most of them are already sick, they decide to continue without having landed. However, they begin to suffer the storms typical of the dreaded Cape of Good Hope. The wind became so strong that it snapped the foremast mast and yard. The sea was so infernal that many think that they will not manage to double the Cape. They even consider throwing the nail load, but decide against it. They seek glory, and they don't want to return without their precious cargo. It's all or nothing. When they manage to enter the Atlantic Ocean, it brings them very favorable winds that allow them to replace the ratchet stick and they advance at great speed pushed by the Benguela current. In fact, between May 25 and 26 they cover a whopping 100 nautical miles —about 560 km—, being the day with the greatest distance traveled in their entire trip around the world. However, the extreme harshness of the voyage and the lack of food (they only had food with rice boiled in sea water) began to cause fatal consequences for the crew. As of May 12, the trickle of dead is so incessant that Elcano is forced to make a decision contrary to his intentions: go to the coast to get supplies. The landing occurs near Guinea, but they are very unlucky, because they will find nothing but mangroves, forests of trees resistant to salt water that grow in the shallows at the mouths of the large rivers in this area, which prevents them from approaching land. sign. They spend days touring the African coasts in search of a place to stop, without success while the deaths continue. Faced with such a situation, Elcano puts the survivors to a vote on what to do, whether to continue the trip to Spain knowing that they may die in the attempt, or to land on the Cape Verde Islands, which are very close, but where the Portuguese are those who fear so much.
They decide to go there, but with the deception, telling them that they are returning from America and the failure of the ratchet has forced them to ask for help. On July 9, La Victoria anchors in the Cape Verde Islands, and part of the crew goes to the coast aboard their vessel to bring provisions. The Portuguese serve the expeditionaries in good faith and provide them with food and water in abundance to meet their needs. There they discover thanks to the Portuguese that by having circled the world to the west they had lost a day. However, three days after remaining in Cape Verde, the vessel that had approached the port again did not return. The island authorities had discovered the truth and were holding the 13 men who were on it. The Spanish had tried to buy some slaves to relieve them in the work of bailing out water with the pumps, something that had been exhausting them for days due to the poor condition of the Victoria's hull and that they could not repair. And to make the payment they made the mistake of using clove. In the Victoria they waited all night for the return of their companions sailing near the island, and fearing what was happening. In the morning of the following day they approached the port, where a Portuguese ship came and warned them that their companions had been arrested, and that the authorities were asking them to hand over the ship. Elcano immediately set sail, thus embarking on the flight, even though there are too few to steer the ship, although they have to manage. To mislead the Portuguese, they headed south before heading towards the archipelago of the Azores Islands, which posed no danger despite also being Portuguese, since it was the normal route for Spanish ships to return from America. After a scare of a week, where they could hardly advance and a titanic tension and fatigue due to the work of the bilge pumps that must work night and day. At last the wind picks up and they sail towards Cabo de San Vicente to reach the port of Sanlúcar de Barrameda on September 6, 1522.
For the inhabitants of Sanlúcar de Barrameda, on September 6, 1522, they saw a leaning ship arrive, partially dismounted, and from which 18 emaciated men "skinny as ever were men" who claimed to be the survivors of Magellan's fleet, and who return from having traveled around the world loaded with spices. Of the thirteen Indians who had embarked at Tidore nine months ago, only three remained. The city is ready to serve them. With several boats they help them to enter the Guadalquivir they did not lack for anything, drinking wine, bread, meat and vegetables recovering. Elcano and his family, proud of his achievement, eagerly continue to Seville, from where they left three years ago. Still in Sanlúcar, Elcano proudly writes a letter to King Fernando to announce his return, in which he briefly describes what happened, and highlights the one he considers most important among all his achievements: being the first ship to have given around the world They would enter the port of Seville melting the gunpowder they had left into salvos. The adventurous heroes soon asked for candles to fulfill a promise made to the Virgin during a storm that almost killed them when they traveled to Timor. Thus, they disembark one by one in procession, barefoot and with candles in hand, to the church of Nuestra Señora de la Victoria, in Triana, to give thanks to the Virgin. Along with their return they bring a precious shipment of 27 tons of cloves, an incredible fortune for the time. King Fernando would not take long to arrive in Seville and in the Real Alcázar of Seville: one of the oldest royal palaces in Europe, King Fernando would say the phrase "Non terrae plus ultra" ('There is no land beyond'), to encourage seafarers to defy and forget the ancient superstitions of Greek mythology, while favoring further colonial expansion into the lands of the New World. These doctrines would favor future colonial conflicts.
