Ferdinand Magellan (Magalhes Ferno de)

(ca. 1480-1521)
Born in the village in Portugal's Sabrosa. Coming from a poor provincial noble family, served pazhom at the royal court. In 1505 Magellan went to East Africa and during the eight years he served in the Navy. Participated in the ongoing clashes in the territory of India, was wounded in 1513 and withdrawn in Portugal.
He suggested the Portuguese King Manuel search project west towards Moluccas, but was rejected in the expedition. I went to Spain, acquired a favorable attitude of the young King Charles I (later Charles V - Holy Roman Emperor), who appointed him commander of the flotilla on its way to find a new sea route to India.

Changing its name to the Spanish Ferdinand Magellan, navigator, departed from the port of Sanlucar (in the estuary of the Guadalquivir) September 20, 1519, headed the flotilla of five vessels. Magellan did without nautical charts, and although he was able to determine the breadth of the sun, reliable devices, even for the approximate longitude of the establishment he had no. The team landed at the spot where now is the Rio de Janeiro, for the replenishment of food stocks and carefully inspected the coast of Brazil and Argentina. Then the ship hit the strip of continuous Antarctic storms, and the captains of three ships mutinied, but Magellan would retain command of the fleet.

By some miracle, the storm drove three of the four ships to the unobtrusive entrance to the strait which now bears the name of Magellan. Magellan carefully conducted trial on the narrow strait lined with rocks and went into open water, where the ebb west faced a strong east ocean counterflow. Ocean, which left the expedition, Magellan named the Pacific, as for all three months of navigation in its waters did not happen a single storm.

Traveling has become increasingly difficult. Almost all the team members suffered from scurvy and suffered from lack of water. Magellan conducted daily monitoring and mapping. At the end of 100 days sailing on the Pacific Ocean he noticed right on board the top of the mountain (on o.Guam). Shortly before Magellan reached the Philippine archipelago is not known.

Soon after Magellan was killed by natives on the island of Mactan April 27, 1521. The team continued its journey to the west, but returned to Spain, only two of the ship - had deserted earlier 'San Antonio' and 'Victoria'.