Magellan's Record of Achievements

Ferdinand Magellan was a formidable and tenacious captain of his ships. He was decisive in his move to overcome oppositions and mutiny in his ships, as had happened to him not long after his fleet of 5 ships sailed for the East Indies, otherwise known as the Spice Islands. Without determination and foresight, he could not have led the fleet to the Philippine islands where he died on Cebu Island.

Magellan’s expedition proved that the world was round and one in that it was connected by water which covered the majority of the surface. His journey was a practical approach to defy the medieval belief in Copernicus about the earth, breaking down all the ancient and medieval myths about the people and practices in the East. His was a scientific method to show by what could actually occur if someone had the daring to try out a belief. Western view on cosmology was changed since his journeys and the geography of the world was redefined. America was not part of India, but that it was an independent continent.

His courageous trip put Spain in the Age of Discovery to be equal counterpart as the Portuguese, ready for trade with the Far East via the water routes. Magellan’s crew reached Tibore the East Indies and his vessel, Victoria did return with a cargo of cloves, proving to King Charles I that what he believed in was actually true. Not only did he successfully discovered the Strait of Magellan (named by him as Cape of Eleven Thousand Virgins), but that he also named the large tranquil ocean Pacific for its calm waters.

Magellan had the foresight to bring along a reporter by the name of Antonio Pigafetta with him on his expedition. The diligent Pigafetta kept very detailed reports on the activities of each day, with the weather, the location of the ships, the strange and exotic animals and plants they saw. With notes and sketches, Pigafetta’s records proved to be invaluable in making the Western Europe step up to the understanding of the foreign lands beyond Europe. These records served also as guidelines for later explorers for further discoveries.