500 Years of the Journey Around the World

Source: El Mundo

The magnitude of the journey started exactly 500 years ago by the Portuguese Fernando de Magallanes and the Spanish Juan Sebastián Elcano is one of the greatest epics undertaken by man, says Mariano Cuesta Domingo, Professor Emeritus of American History at the Complutense University of Madrid . “He gave the dimension and the image of the hidden face of the Earth, in the same way that the Soviets photographed that of the Moon in 1959,” says this expert.

His expedition departed from Seville on August 10, 1519, descending the Guadalquivir River. The original objective of his company was the search for a new commercial route to reach the Moluccan Islands , overflowing with spices, but this economic reason ended up occupying a background in history, such as the hidden face of the trip, which ended up becoming The first trip around the world.

“Magallanes ended up finding the passage through the south with which to overcome the 14,000-kilometer obstacle that America posed to reach the great Pacific Ocean, which was difficult to navigate due to the lack of ships and ports,” says Cuesta. ” The discovery of that route was more important than the objective itself, ” adds the historian, who has participated this week in a summer course at the Menéndez Pelayo International University of Santander on this epic.

It was the circumstances that eventually determined the historical merit of the expedition. With Magellan killed in the confrontation against the inhabitants of the Philippine island of Mactan on April 27, 1521, a dwindling crew due to desertions and deaths, and some ships in a poor state, Elcano, already in command, decides to return by routes known to the Portuguese, to southern Africa. “The moment they return is when Elcano realizes the magnitude of the return to the world . It is what he feels most satisfied,” explains Professor Emeritus.

The prominent role of the Spanish sailor, also shaped by circumstances, is not entirely casual. ” He was not an ordinary guy, but someone very experienced . He joined the trip fallen out of favor because of his debts, but already on board, the succession of events makes his experience put him at the forefront for the return”, says Cuesta. Its decisive attitude allowed that the expedition financed by the Spanish crown could return to its port of origin, in Seville, in September of 1522.