Ferdinand+Magellan-EM

This is the route Magellan followed on his trip around the world.

Magellan wanted to explore the Molucca Islands. The Molucca Islands were also called the Spice Islands. He asked King Manuel of Portugal if he would support him with the money needed to take his trip, three times. Each time, Manuel said no. Then, Magellan went back to Manuel for the fourth time and instead of asking for the money, he asked if he could leave Portugal. Manuel said yes and was glad to be rid of him. Magellan sailed to Spain to ask King Charles 1 to support him.

March 22, 1518

The king of Spain has just decided to support me even though I am not from Spain! I am now in charge of a five ship fleet. I am very relieved and excited of all the riches I will find in the Molucca Islands! I will also soon be the first explorer to sail around the world.

Little did Magellan know that mutiny was planned from the start. The advisor that had convinced King Charles 1 to support Magellan had told all the sailors to steal Magellan's ships and return to Spain after they had sailed for a few days.

It took a whole year to fix up the old ships Magellan had bought and to gather all of the supplies needed. Finally, they took off on September 20, 1519.

September 20,1519

We are finally going to sail, the ships are ready and I have plenty of men. Sadly, I must leave my wife Beatrice and infant son Rodrigo here so they are safe.

After they had been at sea for a few days, the crew began the mutiny. They turned back towards Spain leaving Magellan and his ship on his own. But, in the end Magellan managed to get all of the ships back and put people who were loyal to him in charge.

At one time, Magellan landed on the island of Guam. There, he convinced all of the people to convert to Christianity. After that, he was confident he could do this again on another island.

1521

We have just arrived on an island called Cebu or the Phillipines ,some call it. I just converted the people of Guam to Christianity. I am positive I can do the same on this island.

April 27, 1521

I have converted all of the kings and their people to Christianity but one. I plan attack on them tonight so we can change their minds. Many of the sailors warn me that this an unwise decision. But it has been decided. Tonight, we attack.

Many of the sailors did warn Magellan. But he wouldn't listen. He was too greedy and wanted to have more Christians in the world. His mind could not be changed. That night he set out with 60 crew members. Little did they know that 1,000 warriors were waiting for them. At first Magellan's side was winning because they had armor except for on their legs. The Filipino people of Mactan soon realized this and started aiming for their legs. Magellan was shot in the leg and shouted retreat. The men retreated. Then Magellan was shot twice more, once in the body and once in the arm. That night on April 27,1521 Magellan died. The arrows had been poisonous and there was no way for him to survive.

After the battle only 110 of the original crew members remained. That was not enough to sail the three ships they still had. So, they abandoned the ship Conception and split up to sail the Victoria and the Trindad. Both ships made it safely to the Molucca Islands and the boats were filled with spices. The Trindad tried to return to Spain the way it had come. The ship was caught in horrible weather and they were forced to turn back to the Molucca Islands because half of the crew members had died. Once they arrived, they were imprisoned by the Portuguese. Then, the Victoria was the only ship left. As the Victoria continued on to Spain, they experienced many hardships. Such as malnutrition and starvation. Finally on September 6, 1522 they arrived in Sanlucar de Barrameda. Only 18 crew members remained. But they had made it. All because Magellan followed his dream.

Facts:

Magellan wanted to take this trip to become wealthy. Magellan did not only want to become wealthy, though. He was also influenced by Christopher Colubus, Vasco Nunez de Balboa, and Francisco Serrao. He hoped to find many riches. He wanted to be the first explorer to sail accross the Pacific. He was trying to find a quicker route to the Molucca Islands but his route wasn't any shorter. Magellan encountered the Filipino and the Guam people, and brought back many spices. Magellan truly proved that the world is round.

Interesting Information:

Magellan discovered the Strait of Magellan and he also discovered and named the Pacific Ocean. Magellan was also the man that named the Patagones. The Patagones are a group of people. Patagones means big feet. He called them this because they had very big feet and wore huge sandals. Now a days we call the Patagonians.

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