Circumnavigations #8: The Sometimes Forgotten Captain

It is common to say that Magellan was the first to circumnavigate the globe, but this really isn't true. Magellan lead the expedition. He organized the five ships and crews that left Spain in 1519, and for the most dangerous parts of the journey, meaning the areas that were unknown to Europeans, Magellan was the commander. Magellan had traveled to the Moluccas previously and so he brought a great deal of experience and vision to the expedition. You could even argue that given the fact that Magellan had visited the Western edge of the Pacific years prior, his reaching the Philippines in 1521 would mean that he had traveled around the world, albeit in different pieces. 

But in terms of undertaking a full, continuous voyage around the world, Magellan wasn't the first. After crossing the Pacific, passing through (rather violently) the Marianas, he made his way to the Philippines. He was killed there after his hubris compelled him to get involved in a conflict between tribes. After Magellan falls in battle, several of his subordinates emerge to take command to try to finish the voyage. The one who emerges as being most consequential is Juan Sebastian Elcano, who is often times the forgotten captain of the voyage today. 

By the time the expedition reaches the Philippines, the crew was at the edge of European imagination and knowledge of the globe. The Orient was well known to the Occident. I say well known, not in the sense that the information was accurate, but rather trade and other types of exchange had existed for more than a millennia, So in some ways, the remainder of the trip isn't as historic, it traveled routes Europeans, especially the Portuguese were increasingly familiar with. But the second half of the journey had its own difficulties. There were still severe morale problems and dozens of men refused to continue on the journey, wishing to stay in various ports in Africa and Asia and return later. There were still weather dangers, angry indigenous people and imperial conflicts. 

Elcano took command from the Moluccas onward and eventually captained the Victoria, the only remaining ship of the original five, back to Spain on September 6, 1522. As a reward for his leadership in completing the voyage he was given a lifetime pension as well as a coat of arms. The motto was used in the title of this conference in Valladolid “Primus Circumdedisti Me” or “You Were the First to Circumnavigate Me.” 

Elcano is an interesting historical figure, and both the way that he is commemorated and also forgotten can be instructive. Much of Magellan’s circumnavigation story goes largely unremembered or untold because of the way it conflicts with the great hero navigator mythology. Some of these things represent regional or ethnic tensions or divisions, such as Magellan not being “Spanish” yet being celebrated as a Spanish historical figure. For Elcano, he was from a Basque region of what is today Spain, and in another post, I may or may not delve into these sorts of differences and distinctions. 

Elcano’s presence himself on the voyage was due to a deal that he made in order to forgive a debt. During the voyage, he, like most everyone else on the trip, ran afoul of Magellan when he joined a mutiny and was punished. This is not to take anything away from Elcano, but simply show that the ways that Magellan’s conduct is often sanitized, trickles down to other figures, who also end up being paper-thin in their historical glory.

Listed below is a biography of Juan Sebastian Elcano.

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Biography of Juan Sebastian Elcano

by Christopher Minster

Updated May 14, 2017 

ThoughtCo

Juan Sebastián Elcano (1486-1526) was a Spanish (Basque) sailor, navigator, and explorer best remembered for leading the second half of the first round-the-world navigation, having taken over after the death of Ferdinand Magellan. Upon his return to Spain, the King presented him with a coat of arms that contained a globe and the phrase: “You Went Around Me First.”

Soldier and Merchant

In his early years, Elcano was an adventurer, fighting with the Spanish army in Algiers and Italy before settling down as captain/owner of a merchant ship.

 When he was forced to surrender his ship to Italian companies to which he owned money, he found he had broken Spanish law and had to ask the King for a pardon. Young King Charles V agreed, but on the condition that the skilled sailor and navigator serve with an expedition the King was funding: the search for a new route to the Spice Islands, led by Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan.

The Magellan Expedition

Elcano was given the position of ship’s master on board the Concepción, one of five ships making up the fleet. Magellan believed that the globe was smaller than it actually is and that a shortcut to the Spice Islands (now known as the Maluku Islands in present-day Indonesia) was possible by going through the New World. Spices such as cinnamon and cloves were immensely valuable in Europe at the time and a shorter route would be worth a fortune to whoever found it. The fleet set sail in September of 1519 and made its way to Brazil, avoiding Portuguese settlements due to hostilities between the Spanish and Portuguese.

Mutiny

As the fleet made its way south along the coast of South America looking for a passage west, Magellan decided to call a halt in the sheltered bay of San Julián, as he feared continuing in bad weather. Left idle, the men began to talk of mutinying and heading back to Spain. Elcano was a willing participant and had by then assumed command of the ship San Antonio.

At one point, Magellan ordered his flagship to fire on the San Antonio. In the end, Magellan put down the mutiny and had many of the leaders killed or marooned. Elcano and others were pardoned, but not until after a period of forced labor on the mainland.

To the Pacific

Around this time, Magellan lost two ships: the San Antonio returned to Spain (without permission) and the Santiago sank, although all of the sailors were rescued. By this time, Elcano was captain of the Concepción, a decision of Magellan’s that probably had much to do with the fact that the other experienced ships captains were executed or marooned after the mutiny or had gone back to Spain with the San Antonio. In October-November of 1520, the fleet explored the islands and waterways at the southern tip of South America, eventually finding a passage through that to this day is known as the Strait of Magellan.

Across the Pacific

According to Magellan’s calculations, the Spice Islands should only be a few days’ sail away. He was badly mistaken: his ships took four months to cross the South Pacific. Conditions were miserable on board and several men died before the fleet reached Guam and the Marianas Islands and were able to resupply.

Continuing westward, they reached the present-day Philippines in early 1521. Magellan found he could communicate with the natives through one of his men, who spoke Malay: they had reached the eastern edge of the world known to Europe.

Death of Magellan

In the Philippines, Magellan befriended the King of Zzubu, who was eventually baptized with the name of “Don Carlos.” Unfortunately, Don Carlos convinced Magellan to attack a rival chieftain for him, and Magellan was one of several Europeans killed in the ensuing battle. Magellan was succeeded by Duarte Barbosa and Juan Serrao, but both were treacherously killed by “Don Carlos” within a few days. Elcano was now second in command of the Victoria, under Juan Carvalho. Low on men, they decided to scuttle the Concepción and head back to Spain in the two remaining ships: the Trinidad and the Victoria.

Return to Spain

Heading across the Indian Ocean, the two ships made a stop in Borneo before finding themselves at the Spice Islands, their original goal. Packed with valuable spices, the ships set out again. About this time, Elcano replaced Carvalho as captain of the Victoria. The Trinidad soon had to return to the Spice Islands, however, as it was leaking badly and eventually sank. Many of the Trinidad’s sailors were captured by the Portuguese, although a handful managed to find their way to India and from there back to Spain. The Victoria sailed on cautiously, as they had gotten word that a Portuguese fleet was looking for them.

Reception in Spain

Miraculously evading the Portuguese, Elcano sailed the Victoria back into Spain on September 6, 1522. The ship was crewed by only 22 men: 18 European survivors of the voyage and four Asians they had picked up en route. The rest had died, deserted or, in some cases, had been left behind as unworthy of sharing in the spoils of the rich cargo of spices. The King of Spain received Elcano and granted him a coat of arms bearing a globe and the Latin phrase Primus circumdedisti me, or “You Went Around Me First.”

Death of Elcano and Legacy

In 1525, Elcano was picked to be chief navigator for a new expedition led by Spanish nobleman García Jofre de Loaísa, who intended to retrace Magellan’s route and establish a permanent colony in the Spice Islands. The expedition was a fiasco: of seven ships, only one made it to the Spice Islands, and most of the leaders, including Elcano, perished of malnutrition during the arduous Pacific crossing.

Because of his elevation to noble status upon his return from the Magellan expedition, Elcano’s descendants continued to hold the title of Marquis for some time after his death. As for Elcano himself, he has unfortunately been mostly forgotten by history, as Magellan still gets all the credit for the first circumnavigation of the globe. Elcano, although well-known to historians of the Age of Discovery, is little more than a trivia question to most, although there is a statue of him in his hometown of Getaria, Spain and the Spanish navy once named a ship after him.

Source: Thomas, Hugh. Rivers of Gold: The Rise of the Spanish Empire, from Columbus to Magellan. New York: Random House, 2005.