Antonio Pigafetta was an Italian scholar First Voyage by
and explorer. He joined the expedition to
the Spice Islands led by explorer
Ferdinand Magellan under the flag of the
emperor Charles V and after Magellan's
death in the Philippine Islands, the
subsequent voyage around the world.
During the expedition, he served as
Magellan's assistant and kept an
accurate journal, which later assisted
him in translating the Cebuano
language. It is the first recorded
document concerning the language.
Pigafetta was one of the 18 men who
made the complete trip, returning to
Spain in 1522, under the command of
Juan Sebastián Elcano, out of the
approximately 240 who set out three
years earlier. These men completed the
first circumnavigation of the world.
Others mutinied and returned in the first
year. Pigafetta's surviving journal is the
source for much of what is known about
Magellan and Elcano's voyage.
At least one warship of the Italian Navy,
a destroyer of the Navigatori class, was
A GOLDEN named after him in 1931.
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PIGAFETTA
Magellan
20 SEPTEMBER 1519: THE FLEET SETS SAIL
Magellan’s fleet of five ships with a crew of 270
leave Sanlúcar de Barrameda in south-west Spain.
Supported by the Habsburg emperor Charles V, the
voyage is funded by German banking money. The
crew is drawn from across Europe and even Africa,
and equipped for a voyage of two years.
26 September 1519: A supply crisis
The fleet reaches the Canary Islands, but is already
dogged with problems. Magellan realises he has
been swindled out of supplies before departure. He
also has to outrun Portuguese ships trying to arrest
him as a traitor in the pay of Spain.
December 1519: Tensions rise
The fleet successfully crosses the Atlantic and
arrives in Rio de Janeiro Bay. Tensions are already
running high between the Portuguese commander
and the Spanish nobles on the voyage, who
continue to question his authority. Sailing down the
coast of Patagonia they meet ‘giants’, one of whom
is taken onboard.
October 1520: Mutineers strike
After a gruelling journey south, putting down a
mutiny and wrecking a ship, Magellan discovers
‘Magellan’s Strait’, a route through the southern tip
of South America to the Pacific. Navigating his way
takes over a month through unknown waters in
terrible conditions with the loss of another ship.
November 1520: Into the Pacific
Magellan finally emerges into open sea. He names
it ‘Mare Pacificum’, or ‘peaceful sea’. He is the first
European to sail across the Pacific, though having
underestimated its size by almost half, the next leg
of the voyage is anything but peaceful. Many of the
crew die from scurvy.
 March 1521: Land at last
After more than three months sailing out of sight of
land, the ravaged crew land in Guam, Micronesia.
Attempting to trade with locals, Magellan and his
crew accuse them of theft, naming the islands
Learning
In Conclusion,
‘Ladrones’: the ‘Islands of Thieves’.
27 April 1521: Magellan is slain
Insights
Magellan becomes embroiled in conflicts between Ferdinand Magellan
rival chieftains and attempts to assert his authority
by attacking the ruler of Mactan in the Philippine experienced both
archipelago. Magellan and many of the crew are killed
on the beach. His body is never recovered. victory and failure.
November 1521: A new commander
Our nation had various changes as a result
The Spanish captain Juan Sebastián Elcano takes of Magellan's voyage in terms of a wide Although passing
command and finally reaches Tidor in the Moluccas range of areas, including religion, culture, our
Islands. Exploiting local hostility towards the way of life, and many others. Magellan's away, he left a lasting
Portuguese, he loads the two remaining ships with a
large consignment of spices whose profit recoups
voyage opens the door for other legacy and touched
nearly twice the voyage’s initial investment. explorations and expeditions to East Asia,
December 1521: Elcano heads home which would ultimately conquer our nation many people's lives.
Elcano makes the decision to send one ship back via for 333 years. His research offers a potential
the Pacific, but it is caught by patrolling Portuguese
for Christianity to spread to the nation we
He accomplished
vessels. The crew are arrested, and the ship lost at
sea. Elcano’s remaining ship heads back to Spain via completely love. Since then, we have numerous things,
the Indian Ocean and Cape of Good Hope. gained a reputation as Asia's birthplace of
6 September 1522: The odyssey ends Christianity. The Magellan Mission showed including exploring the
Elcano arrives back in Sanlúcar, nearly three years
that humans are capable of adventure,
after the fleet’s departure. Only 18 of the original crew
exploration, and discovery. Magellan
Philippines, going
of 270 survive, including the Venetian chronicler
Antonio Pigafetta, whose book remains the key demonstrated that only those who are not across the world, and
eyewitness account of the voyage. News of the afraid of the unknown can find great things
voyage spreads throughout Europe and causes a
in life. His attempt to find a path to the spending three years
diplomatic conflict over the Moluccas between Spain
and Portugal. Spice Island (East Side) while sailing on the in perilous oceans.
west led him to become the first person to
round the globe, however he did not Furthermore, the
complete his expedition. Despite his inability
to reach the Moluccas, he is best known for
reason Magellan is a
his audacity, persistence, and strong moral well-known explorer is
principles, which inspired the expedition's
inception and carried it through its most not a secret.
trying moments. He was one of the few
men who could endure what needed to be
done in order to accomplish his goals.