Ferdinand Magellan – The First European to reach the Philippines

Ferdinand Magellan – The First European to reach the Philippines

Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to reach the Philippines, which was unknown to the western world before his landing. On 10 August 1519, Magellan with five ships under his command, left Seville. The Strait of Magellan cuts through the southern tip of South America connecting the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Magellan was the first European to enter the Pacific from the Strait of Magellan.

On 16 March 1521, Magellan reached the island of Homonhon in the Philippines. Magellan was able to communicate with the native peoples because his Malay interpreter, could understand their language. They traded gifts with Rajah Siaiu of Mazaua who guided them to Cebu on 7 April.

Rajah Humabon of Cebu was friendly towards Magellan, and the Spaniards; both he and his queen Juana were baptized as Christians. Afterward, Rajah Humabon and his ally Datu Zula convinced Magellan to kill their enemy, Rajah Lapu-Lapu, on Mactan. Magellan had wished to convert Lapu-Lapu to Christianity, a proposal to which Lapu-Lapu was dismissive. On the morning of 27 April 1521, Magellan sailed to Mactan with an army of men. During the resulting Battle of Mactan, Magellan was shot by a poisonous arrow and later surrounded and finished off with spears and other weapons.