Ferdinand Magellan Obstacles

Ferdinand Magellan was a Portuguese sea captain sailing for Spain who led the voyage around globe. However their goal was not to circumnavigate the Earth, but find a westward route to the Spice Islands, also known as the Moluccas. Along they had to overcome many obstacles in order to achieve this goal. Sadly, Magellan did not personally reach that goal, but his crew that was led by Juan Sebastian Elcano did. Magellan and his crew departed on August 10, 1519. With the horribly inaccurate maps and disgusting conditions aboard the ship, surprisingly everyone that was left from Magellan’s crew circumnavigated the globe on a ship named Victoria. However at the beginning of the journey they had five ships: Trinidad, San Antonio, Concepcion, Victoria and Santiago. By the end of the expedition Victoria was the one and only ship that made it back to the starting point. The entire trek around the Earth lasted roughly three long years. The boats that Magellan and his crew were on were caravels. They were difficult to sail and extremely uncomfortable; nothing like the luxury of modern ships. The horrible weather of the Atlantic made matters even worse. They …show more content…
After seven long months Magellan continued to try and find a passageway linking the Atlantic and the Pacific. Finally on October 21, 1520 they found an inlet where the water tasted salty and wondered if that was the right way. They went through what is now known as the Strait of Magellan. Magellan took a devastating blow when the San Antonio turned around and went back to Spain because the ship carried a large about the expedition’s provisions. It took them more than a month to make it through the 530-kilometer strait. Magellan finally discovered a passage that connected the Pacific and the Atlantic. He named the newly found ocean the “Pacific” because of the calm waters, but he did not the large expanse of the