MAGELLAN’S VOYAGE

AROUND THE WORLD

(THE ACCOUNT OF ANTONIO PIGAFETTA)
BACKGROUND OF THE AUTHOR
• ANTONIO LAMBARD/FRANCISCO
• BORN AROUND 1490 IN THE TOWN
OF VICENZA,VENICE
• CHRONICLER
• AN ITALIAN SCHOLAR AND
EXPLORER FROM THE REPUBLIC
OF VENICE
‘ANTONIO PIGAFETTA’ • HE SERVED AS MAGELLAN'S
ASSISTANT
• SEAFERER
• He joined the delegation of Monsignor Francesco
Chieregati when the latter assigned as Papal Nuncio to
Spain in 1519
• It was during the time when Pigafetta became acquainted
with the lucrative spice trade and heard news of the voyage to
be undertaken by Ferdinand Magellan
• After getting the approval of the Spanish sovereign he left
Barcelona and went to Seville
• He presented his credentials to Magellan and to the Casa de
la Contratacion, the office in charge of voyages to the world
• He was admitted as one of the sobresalientes (supernumeraries),
or men coming from prominent families who will join the trip of love
of adventure and for the advancement of military service
• Pigafetta survived the challenges and catastrophes (calamities)
that the expedition encountered along the way, including being
wounded in the Battle of Mactan
• He was among the 18 survivors who returned to Spain on Sept
6,1522 aboard the Victoria with Juan Sebastian Elcano
• From the Seville, Pigafetta reported to his Majesty King Carlos V
and gave him handwritten account of what happened to them during
the journey before returning to his native Italy
• Very little known as to what happened to him during the latter part of his
life except no one accounts that he joined the Knights of St. John of
Jerusalem in its battle against the Turks. He died in sometime 1534.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE DOCUMENT

SPANISH-PORTUGUESE WAR

• Portugal was ruled by the

House of Braganza,
particularly by Prince John as
regent in his crazy mother's
stead.
• Spain and France were allies,
and Napoleon was trying to
get hegemony of the
European continent. The
English were powerful
contenders though.
The 5 Ships

• On August 10, 1519, Magellan set sail with 270 men

and 5 ships: the Trinidad, the San Antonio, the
Victoria, the Concepcion, and the Santiago.

• From Spain, the fleet sailed to Brazil and the headed

to south.

• He also sent the Santiago ahead to scout, but it was

shipwrecked.

• Magellan set sail again on October 21, 1520.

• During that time, the captain of the San Antonio
turned his ship around and sailed back to Spain.

• The Concepcion was burned because there were

not enough men left to operate it.

• The Trinidad was attacked by a Portuguese ship

and left shipwrecked.
 SPICES

SPICE ISLAND
• Asian products,spices became the most
expensive and in-demand commodity among
europeans because of their numerous uses
such as food preservation, flavor
enhancement,and even medicines.

• Spice islands were also reason for the first

circumnavigation of the world. The portuguese
explorer ferdinand magellan wanted to find the
first western route to the spice islands for the
glory of spain.
• Highly valued for flavoring and preserving food
as well as masking the taste of meat gone
bad, spices like cinnamon, clove, nutmeg
and especially black pepper, were extremely
valuable. Since spices could not be cultivated
in cold arid europe.

• Clove was the most valuable spice in europe

during magellan’s day.
THE DOCUMENT

The document narrates the

events happened on the First
Voyage Around the World led
by a Spanish captain-general
named Ferdinand Magellan.
This is according to the point-of-
view of Antonio Pigafetta, the
first chronicler who
accompanied Magellan in his
circumnavigation of the world.
Ladrones Islands
Ladrones Islands
(presently known as the
Marianas Islands)
March 18, 1521

• Nine men came and showed joy

and eagerness in seeing them.
• Magellan realized that the men
were reasonable and welcomed
them with food, drinks and gifts
• Pigafetta characterized the
people as "very familiar and
friendly", they willingly showed
them different islands and the
names of these islands.
March 25, 1521

• They saw 2
ballanghai/balangay (a
long boat full of people in
Mazzava/Mazzaua

• Magellan and the king of

balangay exchanged gifts
and expressed their
desire to become
brothers.
Magellan presided a
Mass by the shore
(March 31, 1521)
First Mass held in the Philippines

Magellan planted a giant

cross in our land, became
the famed Magellan's
Cross which is still
preserved at present day.
First Mass
(April 14, 1521)

• The king of Cebu was

baptized as a Christian
• People wished to become
Christians through their free
will and not because they
were forced/intimidated
The Battle of Mactan
(April 27, 1521)
Magellan’s death
Relevance and Contribution

• Pigafetta’s chronicle contributed immensely to European

historiography as it preserved and popularized the
achievements of the Magellan-Elcano expedition

• If Pigafetta did not survive the journey, we would have very

little knowledge of Magellan’s numerous contribution in the
field of Geography, navigation, history, and other related areas
1. credit must be given to Magellan expedition for proving
that the earth is not flat but an oblate sphere.
2. Magellan and his men completed the first
circumnavigation of the world.
3. They confirmed that the Portuguese route is not the
only way to the Spice Islands. They proved the theory
that one can go to the east by sailing west.
4. They brought to the attention of the Europeans that on the
other side of the American continent exists a large body
of water which they named Pacific Ocean ( (Mar
Pacifico)
5. The account of Pigafetta also enriched Philippine
historiography because it contains important details about the
conditions of the Visayan Islands in the 16th century. Some of
the prominent leaders during that time, their economic
activities, social and cultural practices, and religious beliefs
were identified.
6. Became source of historical information about the
beginning of Christianity in the Philippines.
7. The account of the First Mass in the Philippines, the
conversion of Raha Humabon and his wife, and the
story of the Sto. Nino

8. Pigafetta has numerous accounts about the reaction of

the Filipinos when they met the Spaniards.
9. Some Filipinos were easily befriended by the Spaniards
while other refused to interact and trade with them
10. Lapu-lapu is the most prominent Filipino character in
Pigafetta’s narrative, he was the first Filipino who led the
resistance movement against Spanish rule and successfully
thwarted the first attempt of the Spaniards to take control of
the Philippines.
• Pigafetta was not the only one who wrote about the
expedition
• The year after the ship Victoria arrived in Spain,
Maximilianus Transylvanus’ de Mollucis Insulis ( The
Moluccas Islands) came off the press.
• Its subject matter is the same as that of Pigafetta’s book
but it is not an eyewitness account because the author is
not part of the expedition.
• he based his narrative on the interviews that he conducted
with the survivors of the Victoria
• His prominent interviewees were Juan Sebastian Elcano,
Francisco Albo, and Hernando de Bustamante.
• Compared to Pigafetta’s work, his account is far much
shorter and contains less details
• Another survivor who maintained a journal of the voyage was
Francisco Albo (Victoria’s pilot)
• His work is the shortest and it focused mainly on the location of the
expedition on certain dates
• Finally, the last contemporaneous source of information about
Magellan is the Italian-born historian of Spain, Peter Martyr d’
Anghiera.
• From 1511 to 1530, he wrote accounts of Spanish explorations of
the New World which he divided into decades
About the Book

• Pigafetta kept a detailed journal of what happened to them

from the time they left Seville in 1519, until they returned to
Spain three years after
• When he returned to Italy, many of his associates asked
him to write a formal account of Magellan expedition and
have it published
• He followed their advice and, after doing it, he presented his
draft to Pope Clement VII,
LEARNING EXPERIENCES
• This expedition of Magellan becomes a huge
contribution in our beliefs that our world is round.

• Magellan is a good leader and captain but he is cruel.

• This expedition becomes an eye opener to Filipinos

upon the possibility of colonization of the Spaniards.

• Throughout a very tiring and exhausting expedition,

Spaniards came home and accomplished their mission.
• This expedition leads to discovery of the Philippines,

• Right before they capture our country, our country

already had it’s own government and hierarchy also,
culture and identity.

• Cloves are the spices they took from the spice island
named Maluku, but now it is called Malacca – located at
India.