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Ferdinand
Magellan
Leader of The Expedition to Sail Around The Globe
Task
Section: 1. Remember/ Research
Items
Country of Birth
Family Background
Education
Occupation
Childhood
Other facts considered important
Fact
Ferdinand Magellan was born on 1480 in
Sabrosa, Portugal.
His parents are Pedro Rui de Magalhaes and Alda
de Mesquita, who died when he was only 10
years old. His family had ties to the royal family,
so he became a page (person in uniform
employed to run errands) to the Portuguese
queen after theuntimely death of his parents in
1490.
He was very well educated, studying with some
of the best tutors in Portugal. Being a page or
royal messenger in the royal court gave him the
opportunity to be educated and learn about
navigating ships, the expeditions of Portuguese
exploration, and possibly those by Christopher
Columbus. As a well-educated man, it was easy
for him to sign on with many of the different
expeditions departing from Spain and Portugal at
that time.
He was a royal messenger for the Portuguese
queen, then after learning about navigation and
also about Portuguese exploration, Magellan
became a Portuguese explorer.
Being the son of the mayor, he lived a privileged
childhood. He spent his childhood being a page
to the Portuguese queen. At an early age, he has
shown interest in navigation and exploration.
Magellan was the explorer who led the
expedition to sail around the globe. He died
before his voyage was completed, but still, he
was often credited with the first
circumnavigation of the earth, for he initially led
the voyage. The most important to geography
was his realization for the full area of the earth,
for the development of the later geographic
exploration and the resulting knowledge of the
world today.
2. Comprehension
Our expedition began in August 10 in the year 1519. We started sailing across the Atlantic Ocean.
Our leader, Ferdinand Magellan have persuaded Charles I, and he was granted a large sum of money
to find a route to the Spice Islands by going west. So that was what we did, with 270 men and five
ships called the Conception, the San Antonio, the Santiago, the Trinidad, and the Victoria.
Our leader, Magellan, was a Portuguese explorer, but he is in charge of a Spanish fleet. This caused
our voyage to have problems. Several Spanish captains wanted to kill him, but they ended up getting
executed or being held as prisoner. In our voyage, Magellan would have to avoid the Portuguese
territory, for he was sailing for Spain.
After we have sailed across the Atlantic Ocean for months, on December 13 1519, we had to stop at
Rio de Janeiro, to restock some supplies. From there, we moved down the coast of South America,
to look for a way to the Pacific. But, as we sailed farther south, the weather got worse. So we had to
stop in Patagonia (southern South America) and wait out the winter.
As the weather began to get less intense in the spring, Magellan sent the Santiago on a mission to
find a way through to the Pacific Ocean. In May, the ship was wrecked and did not sail again until
August of 1520. Then, after exploring the area for months, in October we found a strait (a narrow
passage of water connecting two large areas of water) and sailed through it with the four remaining
ships. This portion of the journey took 38 days, and it cost us a large amount of supplies, and also
the San Antonio, because the crew decided to abandon the expedition. At the end of November, the
three ships that remained exited what Megellan named the Strait of All Saints, and we sailed to the
Pacific Ocean.
From here, Magellan had mistakenly thought that the journey to the Spice Islands would take only a
few days left, when instead it took us four months. At this time, all the crew, including myself have
suffered greatly. We starved for all our food supplies have ran out, and our water are no longer
good. Many of us developed a disease that got developed by lack of vitamin C, or can be known as
scurvy. We ended up having to eat rats because of not having food. It was really disgusting. Luckily,
we were all able to stop at a nearby island in January of 1521 to eat fish and seabirds, but our
supplies were not restocked until March, when we stopped in Guam.
On March 28, we landed in the Philippines, acted as a friend to the tribal king. After spending time
with the king, we were persuaded into helping the tribe to kill their enemy, Lapu-Lapu on Mactan
Island. On April 21, 1521, Magellan took part in the Battle of Mactan, and he was killed by LapuLapu’s army.
After the death of our leader, Sebastian del Cano burned the Conception so that it could not be used
against us by the locals, and he took over the two remaining ships, and only 117 of us crew members
left. We wanted to be certain that one ship would make it back to Spain, so the Trinidad sailed
heading east, and the Victoria continued to go west. The Trinidad was then seized by the Portuguese
on its journey, but on September 6, 1522, the Victoria returned to Spain, completing the first
circumnavigation of the earth, with only 18 surviving crew members including myself.
4. Analysis
Positive
-Magellan discovered an ocean and he named it
the Pacific Ocean.
-He discovered the Spice Island, Philippines.
-He discovered that the earth is round.
-He found a western trade route to Asia.
Negative
-Many people died in the journey because of
hunger.
-Around 200 men were killed, including himself.
-He spent a lot of money taking five ships with
him.
-He gave knowledge to the Philippines about the
religion Catholic.
-The international date line was discovered
during Magellan’s voyage.
-He made Philippines become famous to many
other countries.
5. Evaluation
Conversation :
Me: What did you often do as a child?
Magellan: At the age of 12, I was appointed as the queen’s messenger in the royal court.
Me: Are many young boys getting appointed as messengers?
Magellan: Yes, young boys are appointed as messengers as a source of education.
Me: When did you have your first expedition?
Magellan: My first expedition was in the year 1505, when I was 25 years old. I sailed with Fransisco
de Almedia, on an expedition to conquer Melaka.
Me: How did you survive on the ship when you had no food and your water started to get slimy?
Magellan: Because we had no food, we had to eat rats. Many of my crew members suffered from
scurvy.
Me: What have you discovered about the earth when you did the circumnavigation?
Magellan: I discovered that our earth is in fact round, and not flat.
Philippines, 28 May, 2012
To Ferdinand Magellan,
My name is Fiolisya, and I am a girl from Philippines who happen to be learning about your voyage. I
have learned from my lessons that you are the explorer who first made a circumnavigation around
the world.
Your voyage has affected some parts of our lives. You have discovered a route from the Philippines
that leads to European countries. You have given us knowledge about Christianity, and you have also
made us a well-known country to the rest of the world.
Thank you for your voyage that has given us more knowledge and helped us developed into a better
country.
Fiolisya
Bibliography :
Briney, Amanda. Ferdinand Magellan - Biography of Ferdinand Magellan. N.p., 16 Oct. 2008. Web.
24 May 2012. <http://geography.about.com/od/historyofgeography/a/magellan.htm>.
Magellan. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2012. <http://library.thinkquest.org/J002678F/magellan.htm>.
Fredrick, Hans. What Are The Four Effects of the Magellan Voyage?. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 May 2012.
<http://www.ehow.com/info_8240093_four-effects-magellan-voyage.html>.