Biography:
Fernand Magellan fulfilled the dream of Christopher Columbus and became the first to go on a round-the-world voyage. The navigator made a geographical discovery: he became the discoverer of new territories and straits, and also proved that the Earth is spherical.
It often happens that the place and time of birth of great people is unknown. The exact biography of Ferdinand Magellan did not reach his contemporaries, so the life of the navigator can only be judged by the guesses of scientists.
According to historians, Ferdinand was born at the end of the 15th century, in 1480. But scientists disagree about the date of birth: some believe that this event occurred on October 17, while others are sure that the future navigator was born on November 20. Magellan’s hometown is considered to be either the village of Sabrosa, which is located in Portugal, or the city of Port, located in the same country. Little is known about Fernand’s parents: they belonged to a poor but noble class. His father, Ruy (Rodrigo) de Magalhães, served as an alcalde, and what the traveler’s mother, Alda de Mosquita (Mishkita), did remains unknown.
In addition to Fernand, there were four more children in the family. When the future navigator was 12 years old, he was a servant at the court of Leonora of Aviz, the wife of the Portuguese king João II the Perfect. Instead of court ceremonies and fencing, the unsociable servant was interested in the exact sciences: the page often secluded himself in a room and studied astronomy, cosmography and navigation.
The future navigator served as a court page until he was 24 years old.
Expeditions:
In 1498, the Portuguese discovered the sea route to India, so when Ferdinand Magellan turned 25, the future traveler left the royal court and volunteered to serve in the navy, and then to conquer the East under the leadership of Francisco de Almeida.
After serving the navy for 5 years, Magellan attempted to return to his native country, but due to circumstances, he remained in India. For his bravery and courage, Ferdinand received the rank of officer and honor among the military.
In 1512, Magellan returned to Portugal to the city of Lisbon. Despite the courage shown during the conquest of the East, the navigator was met without honors in his homeland.
During the suppression of the rebellion in Morocco, Magellan was wounded in the leg, which made the Portuguese navigator lame for life, so the former officer was forced to retire.
Around the World Voyage:
In his free time, the traveler studied the secret archives of the King of Portugal, where Ferdinand found an old map of a certain Martin Bayhem. The navigator discovered a strait connecting the Atlantic Ocean with the unexplored South Sea. The map of the German geographer inspired Ferdinand to undertake a sea voyage.
During a personal meeting with the ruler, Magellan asked for permission to conduct a sea expedition, but was refused because he acted arbitrarily in suppressing the Moroccan unrest, which angered the fifth king of Portugal, Manuel I. Another reason for the refusal was that the king sent ships to India around Africa, so he did not see the benefit in Magellan’s offer.
Ferdinand Magellan’s Route:
But Manuel makes it clear to Ferdinand that he will not express dissatisfaction if the traveler leaves the Portuguese service. Insulted by the sharp refusal and the anger of the King of Portugal, Ferdinand goes to the sunny country of Spain, where he buys a house and continues to work on the idea of ​​a sea voyage around the world.
In the 15th century, in European countries, oriental seasonings and spices were valued like gold. In Europe, spices were not produced, and the Arabs sold them on the market at a high price. The rich in those days were even jokingly called bags of pepper.
Therefore, the purpose of sea expeditions was to discover the shortest route to the Indian spice islands. In Spain, Ferdinand appealed to the “Chamber of Contracts” with the idea of ​​a sea voyage, but did not receive support from the department. A certain Juan de Aranda privately promised to help Magellan for 20% of the profits if the sea expedition to conquer the spice islands was successful. But Ferdinand, with the help of his friend, the astronomer Rui Falera, concluded a more favorable agreement, which was officially certified by a notary for one eighth of the profits.
According to a document drawn up by the Pope in 1493: the territories that were discovered to the east belonged to Portugal, and to the west they became the property of Spain. The king of the sunny country, Charles, approved the sea voyage of Ferdinand Magellan on March 22, 1518. The ruler hoped to prove that the rich islands where black pepper and nutmeg grow were located closer to the west, and therefore passed to Spain, although at that time they were subordinated to the Portuguese crown, following the Treaty of Tordesillas.
The sailors received one twentieth share of all the wealth obtained during the expedition.
Ships with food supplies that would be enough for a two-year stay on the ship were prepared for the voyage.
Five ships took part in the voyage:
- “Trinidad” (Magellan’s flagship),
- “San Antonio”,
- “Conception”,
- “Victoria”,
- “Santiago”.
The great navigator commanded “Trinidad”, and “Santiago” was managed by João Serrão. On the three other ships, the leaders were representatives of the Spanish nobility, and, despite the scale of the voyages, the sailors had strikes with each other. The Spaniards were unhappy that a Portuguese was in charge of the round-the-world expedition, the essence of which was to reach Asia by sailing west, so they refused to obey. In addition, Ferdinand did not disclose the plan of action, which aroused the suspicions of the commanders of other ships. The King of Spain ordered Magellan to be obeyed impeccably, but the Spaniards made a secret agreement among themselves that they would remove the Portuguese captain if necessary.
Magellan’s companion, the astronomer Ruy Faleira, was unable to take part in the expedition, as he began to suffer from fits of madness.
Ferdinand Magellan’s round-the-world voyage began on September 20, 1519, 256 sailors set off from the port of San Lucaras towards the Canary Islands.
The ships moved along the east coast of South America for a long time in search of the South Sea. Magellan’s team became the first to discover the Tierra del Fuego archipelago, located in the southern part of the continent and quite beautiful, judging by modern photos. The Portuguese believed that the group of islands was part of the “Unknown Southern Land”. The islands seemed empty, but as the travelers sailed past, lights lit up in the night. Ferdinand believed that these were volcanic eruptions, for which he gave the archipelago a name associated with fire. But in fact, it was the Indians who lit fires.
Strait of Magellan:
The ships passed between Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego (the Strait is now called the Strait of Magellan), then the travelers found themselves in the Pacific Ocean.
From the round-the-world voyage that Ferdinand made, he proved that the Earth is spherical; after 1081 days of sailing in 1522, only one ship, the Victoria, returned with 18 sailors on board, commanded by Elcano.
Personal life:
In appearance, Ferdinand Magellan did not resemble a descendant of nobles, as he resembled more a peasant: he had an ordinary appearance, a strong build and short stature. The traveler believed that the main thing in a person is not his appearance, but his actions.
In the south of Spain, Ferdinand Magellan meets Diego Barbosa and marries his daughter, the beautiful Beatrice. The lovers have a son, who dies of illness. Fernand’s wife tried to give birth to a second child, but she could not bear the birth and died. Therefore, the great traveler had no descendants.
Death:
Although significant food supplies were prepared before the expedition, after several months of sailing, the food and water ran out. Due to the lack of food, the sailors had to chew the lining of the sails to at least slightly satisfy their hunger. The travelers lost 21 sailors who died of exhaustion and scurvy. The sailors, who had not seen land for a long time, reached the Philippine province. Magellan’s team could have stocked up on food and continued on their round-the-world voyage, but Fernand got into a quarrel with the leader of the island of Mactan, Lapu-Lupu. The Portuguese wanted to show the natives the power of Spain and organize a military expedition against Mactan. But, to the surprise of the Europeans, they lost due to the insufficient preparation and dexterity of the natives.
During the battle, Ferdinand Magellan was killed, this happened on April 27, 1521.