Magellan's Westward Voyage: First Global Circumnavigation
Magellan's fleet pushed through a treacherous 373-mile channel at Cape Virgenes, driving three surviving ships into the vast, calm waters he named the Pacific Ocean. This desperate navigation completed the first circumnavigation of the globe, proving the world's oceans connected and shattering European assumptions about the size of Asia. Although Magellan died in the Philippines before the journey ended, his expedition returned with concrete proof that a westward route to the Spice Islands existed.
November 28, 1520
506 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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