FIRST VOYAGE AROUND THE WORLD BY ANTONIO PIGAFETTA

ANTONIO PIGAFETTA
 Known by the name Antonio Lombardo or Francisco Antonio Pigafetta.
 He studied astronomy, geography and cartography. He was also an Italian seafarer and
geographer.
 He traveled with Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan and his crew by order of the
King Charles I of Spain on their voyage around the world.
 The relevance of his own venture, fundamentally lies in the fact that he took part on first
circumnavigation between 1519 and 1522 and he was able to accomplish it after the
death of Ferdinand Magellan, leaving ta detailed description of the journey in the report
of the first trip around the world.
 After the death of Ferdinand Magellan, Antonio returned to Spain together with 18 crew
members that led by Juan Sebastian Elcano with the vessel, Victoria.
 The lost manuscript that was rescued later in 1797 and today is considered one of the
most important documentary evidence relating the geographical discoveries of the 16th
century.

SUMMARY OF FIRST VOYAGE

The captain general goes raged as they recovered their small boats which was stolen, he
with his forty armed men burned around forty to fifty houses as revenge to the island which they
named Guam or “Ladrones Island” which means “Island of Thieves”, they had killed many man
and women as they departed unto this island.

They describe the people here as living in their own will because they have no type of
governing system. They have a belief that there no other people in the world but themselves,
they go naked, they have no worship, tawny but are born white, tall as they are but well built,
and they were said to be creative, clever and thievish.
 As they sail away they reach the place called Zamal or Samar on Saturday of March 16,
1521 which is three hundred league or 900 hundred miles from the islands of Ladrones. The
Natives of Zuluan together with their chief convivially welcomed them, the Captain General sees
no danger to the natives and gave food, stuffs and other offerings upon them as also a warm
welcome for them. The Natives saw the Captain’s courtesy and as return they presented their
offerings also.

The friendly and companionable relationship between the natives and the visitors tightly
deepened, the Natives came back upon them as they promised together with their offerings, the
visitors saw the abundance in nature of the land describing the place as having signs of gold, vast
structure of white coral reef, vast of large trees and many islands in the district which they named
archipelago of San Lazaro which they discovered in the day of St. Lazarus.

The Sailors came to the island with its people whom already had a type of government
and a way of life. They describe the seigniors here as painted in tattoos, wearing gold accessories
throughout their bodies and a handkerchief wore in their heads. The chiefs wears cotton clothes
embroidered with silk and anoint themselves with coconut and beneseed oil as a protection
against sun and wind, they are said to be dark and fat painted with tattoos and has a very black
long hair that falls upon their waist, they use daggers, knives, spears ornamented with gold and
boats just like the visitors.

The Captain General befriended the King of an island together with its neighboring Rajahs,
they traded food stuffs, goods and different items together, they made a strong bond to each
other, while soon the Captain General successfully persuaded the Kings to convert to Christianity,
then after the Captain General ask them if they had enemies because if so he will go there with
his ships and will destroy them, the Kings said that they do and it was the introductory of
Cilapulapu.
 Magellan sent a young man whom he had brought up with the interpreter to the king of
this island Zubu (Cebu) . Where they having come to the town, numerous people and their king
with them, all alarmed by the artillery which had been fired. The interpreter reassured them,
saying that it was the fashion and custom to fire artillery when they arrived at ports, to show
signs of peace and friendship; and also, to do more honour to the king of the country, they had
fired all the artillery. Then the captain began to speak to the king through the interpreter to incite
him to the faith of Jesus Christ, and told him that if he wished to be a good Christian, as he had
said the day before, that he must burn all the idols of his country, and, instead of them, place a
cross, and that everyone should worship it every day on their knees, and their hands joined to
heaven: and he showed him how he ought every day to make the sign of the cross. To that the
king and all his people answered that they would obey the commands of the captain and do all
that he told them. At last, 8 days, all the inhabitants of this island were baptised, and some
belonging to the neighbouring islands. In one of these we burned a village because the
inhabitants would not obey either the king or us.

Friday, the 26th of April, Zula, who was one of the principal men or chiefs of the island of
Matan, sent to the captain a son of his with two goats to make a present of them, and to say that
if he did not do all that he had promised, the cause of that was another chief named Silapulapu,
who would not in any way obey the King of Spain, and had prevented him from doing so: but that
if the magellan would send him the following night one boat full of men to give him assistance,
he would fight and subdue his rival. On the receipt of this message, the captain decided to go
himself with three boats. We entreated him much not to go to this enterprise in person. We set
out from Zubu at midnight, we were sixty men armed with corslets and helmets; there were with
us the Christian king, the prince, and some of the chief men, and many others divided among
twenty or thirty balangai. We arrived at Matan three hours before daylight. The captain before
attacking wished to attempt gentle means, and sent on shore the Moorish merchant to tell those
islanders who were of the party of Cilapulapu, that if they would recognise the Christian king as
their sovereign, and obey the King of Spain, and pay us the tribute which had been asked, the
captain would become their friend, otherwise we should prove how our lances wounded.
 We however waited for daylight; We were forty-nine in number, the other eleven
remained in charge of the boats. When we reached land we found the islanders fifteen hundred
in number, He then, in order to disperse this multitude and to terrify them, he sent some of our
men to set fire to their houses, Magellan had his right leg pierced by a poisoned arrow, on which
account he gave orders to retreat by degrees; but almost all our men took to precipitate flight,
so that there remained hardly six or eight of us with him. Thus we fought for more than an hour,
until an Indian succeeded in thrusting a cane lance into the Magellan’s face. Whilst the Indians
were thus overpowering him, several times he turned round towards us to see if we were all in
safety, as though his obstinate fight had no other object than to give an opportunity for the
retreat of his men. We who fought to extremity, and who were covered with wounds, seeing that
he was dead, proceeded to the boats which were on the point of going away. This fatal battle
was fought on the 27th of April of 1521, on a Saturday; a day which the captain had chosen
himself, because he had a special devotion to it. There perished with him eight of our men, and
four of the Indians, who had become Christians; we had also many wounded, amongst whom I
must reckon myself. The enemy lost only fifteen men.
When the death of the captain was known, those who were in the city to trade, had all
the merchandise at once transported to the ships. We then elected in the place of the captain,
Duarte Barbosa, a Portuguese, and a relation of the captain's, and Juan Serrano a Spaniard. Our
interpreter, who was a slave of the captain-general, and was named Henry, having been slightly
wounded in the battle, would not go ashore any more for the things which we required, but
remained all day idle, and wrapped up in his mat . Duarte Barbosa, the commander of the flag
ship, found fault with him, and told him that though his master was dead, he had not become
free on that account, but that when we returned to Spain he would return him to Doña Beatrice,
the widow of the captain-general; at the same time he threatened to have him flogged, if he did
not go on shore quickly, and do what was wanted for the service of the ships. The slave rose up,
and did as though he did not care much for these affronts and threats; and having gone on shore,
he informed the Christian king that we were thinking of going away soon, but that if he would
follow his advice, he might become master of all our goods and of the ships themselves. The King
of Zubu listened favourably to him, and they arranged to betray us. After that the slave returned
on board, and showed more intelligence and attention than he had done before.
Wednesday morning, the 1st of May, We asked him what had become of his companions
and the interpreter, and he said that all had been slain except the interpreter. He then entreated
us to ransom him with some merchandise; but Juan Carvalho, although he was his gossip, joined
with some others, refused to do it, and they would not allow any boat to go ashore, so that they
might remain masters of the ships. Serrano continued his entreaties and lamentations, saying,
that if we departed and abandoned him there, he would soon be killed; and after that he saw his
lamentations were useless, he added that be prayed God to ask for an account of his life at the
day of Judgment from Juan Carvalho, his gossip.