Part 1 – Childhood

Ferdinand Magellan was born in 1480 in Sabrosa, Portugal to Rui de Magalhaes and Alda de

Mesquita.Because his family had ties to the royal family, Magellan became a page to the Portuguese

queen after his parents' untimely deaths in 1490. This allowed him the opportunity to become

educated and learn about the various Portuguese exploration expeditions- possibly even those

conducted by Christopher Columbus. These filled him at an early age with enthusiasm for the great

voyages of discovery which were being made at that period.

Part 2 – Getting Ready

Magellan wanted to go the Spice Islands. He believed that the Spice Islands could be reached by

sailing west through the New World. He proposed this idea to Manuel I, the Portuguese king, but was

rejected. Looking for support Magellan moved on to share his plan with the Spanish king.On March 22,

1518, Charles I was persuaded by Magellan and granted him a large sum of money to find a route to

the Spice Islands by sailing west, thereby giving Spain control of the area, since it would in effect be

"west" of the dividing line through the Atlantic.

Part 3 – The Journey

Using these generous funds, Magellan set sail going west toward the Spice Islands in September

1519 with five ships (the Conception, the San Antonio, the Santiago, the Trinidad, and the Victoria)

and 270 men.Since Magellan was a Portuguese explorer in charge of a Spanish fleet, the early part of

the voyage to the west was riddled with problems. Several of the Spanish captains on the ships in the

expedition plotted to kill him but their plans were never realized and many of them were held prisoner

and/or executed. In addition, Magellan had to avoid Portuguese territory since he was sailing for

Spain.

Part 4 – The Discovery

After months of sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, the fleet anchored at what is today Rio de Janeiro

to restock its supplies on December 13, 1519. From there, they moved down the coast of South

America looking for a way into the Pacific. As they sailed farther south however, the weather got

worse so the crew anchored in Patagonia (southern South America) to wait out the winter. As the

weather began to ease in the spring, Magellan sent the Santiago on a mission to look for a way

through to the Pacific Ocean. In May, the ship was wrecked and the fleet did not move again until

August 1520. Then, after months of exploring the area, the remaining four ships found a strait in

October and sailed through it. This portion of the journey took 38 days, cost them the San Antonio

(because its crew decided to abandon the expedition) and a large amount of supplies. Nevertheless,

in the end of November, the remaining three ships exited what Magellan named the Strait of All Saints

and sailed into the Pacific Ocean.

Part 5– Interesting Facts

Though Magellan died before the voyage was completed, he is often credited with the first

circumnavigation of the earth as he initially led the voyage. He also discovered what is now called the

Strait of Magellan, named the Pacific Ocean, and South America's Tierra del Fuego.

MagellanicClouds in space were also named for him, as his crew was the first to view them while

sailing in the Southern Hemisphere. Most important to geography though, was Magellan’s realization

of the full extent of the earth- something that significantly aided in the development of later geographic

exploration and the resulting knowledge of the world today.