This is a true story, I have written about Ferdinand de Magellan. It's how he went on his journey and was the first person to sail AROUND the world. I have written his expedition in a diary entry format, so its in first person. I hope you enjoy the journal your about to embark on, it is inspirational.
Ferdinand de Magellan
August 10, 1519
The journey of a lifetime, that is what I am going to undertake. This is my only chance to become something great, to have my name appear in the history books. I will lead the first expedition around the world, better yet, the circumnavigation of the Earth. Since spices could not be grown in cold and arid Europe, no effort was spared to discover the fastest sea route to the Spice Islands. I will be the first to cross the west, instead of the east that was controlled by King Manuel of Portugal.
After having proposed my expeditions to the Spice Islands, being repeatedly rejected by King Manuel of Portugal, I turned to Carlos 1, the young king of Spain; to finance this expensive trip. Under the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494, Portugal controlled the eastern routes to Asia that surrounded Africa. So instead of going down that route, I proposed to reach the Spice Islands by a western route, a restructuring journey that had never been achieved before. He was so hopeful that this in the future would produce a commercially useful trade route for Spain, Charles approved of this expedition and provided most of the financing.
I managed to organize a fleet consisting of five ships, they are called Trinidad, Santiago, Victoria, Concepción and San Antonio; I will come to Trinidad. These ships have supplies that could last two years of voyage. My crew is made up of about 270 men. Most of these men are Spanish, but around 40 are Portuguese. This was the day that I would be part of this dangerous, but adventurous expedition.
I can already smell the salty air of the oceans when we leave the dock. There seems to be some confusion in our departure time, but no. We will go out for the day rain or shine. We will begin sailing west across the Atlantic to South America. We will make landfall in due course and I look forward to seeing this new world and making a quick and safe journey. Using my trusted compass to navigate the oceans.
The sea sickness has now invaded my senses, here I am waving my lunch overboard. Unable to get rid of the discomfort and illnesses I feel, only time will tell when it will improve.
September 20, 1519
First we sail across the Atlantic and to the Canary Islands. We then sailed from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Spain, and crossed the South Sea to the south, to Brazil and the coast of South America.
A month later we had reached South America, however on the way there we battled rough storms against the mild and cold weather. Our five ships sailed south, hugging the coast in search of the legendary strait that would allow passage through South America.
But when we stopped at the port of San Julián, most of the crew mutinied on Easter day in 1520; because we thought we had enough food, it turns out not. So some of the sailors decided to riot and tried to steal three of the ships. I fought as hard as I could, using all of my energy to make sure most made it out of this mess alive, yet three leaders had been executed in the process. He had quickly settled the uprising by executing one of the captains and leaving other mutinous captains behind.
The mutiny against Victoria, Concepción and San Antonio; caused the death of Louis de Mendoza. Later execution of Quesada, marooning of Cartagena. Álvaro de Mezquita became the new captive of San Antonio, Duarte Barbosa de Victoria.
That was a sad day for some, as if the heavens above could feel the sadness, the rain had fallen in torrent, washing the spilled blood on the deck.
When this happened, he had already sent the Santiago to explore the route that was coming. However, a few days later I received the news that the ship had been wrecked due to a terrible and terrible storm that was on its route. Then I heard the joyous news that the ship's members were alive and were rescued and assigned among the remaining ships. Serrano became the new captain of the Concepción.
As for the memory of that disastrous event, I have been trying to put it behind me and not remember it. Then we deported to Puerto San Julián five months later, when the fierce seasonal storms stopped, we also continued our journey and sailed south.
As for the food problem we solved it, we have to eat the rats and the sawdust to survive this exceptionally long journey across the unforgiving seas.
