Spanish ship retracing Magellan's voyage to arrive in the Philippines on March 16
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The ship's arrival will coincide with Ferdinand Magellan and his team's arrival in the Philippines 500 years ago.
The Spanish ship Juan Sebastian Elcano will dock in Philippine waters to recreate the first circumnavigation of the globe, which happened 500 years ago.
The training ship named Elcano is scheduled to arrive in Guiuan, Eastern Samar, on March 16 and will be in Suluan and Homonhon islands until March 18 before continuing its journey and staying in Cebu from March 20 to 22.
Elcano has been retracing the route of the historic ship since 2019 to commemorate the voyage's 500th anniversary.
“Owing to the pandemic, no physical contact will take place between the crew members and those on the land. It is expected to anchor near Manicani Island, also under the jurisdiction of Guiuan, on the same date at 4 p.m.” the National Quincentennial Committee wrote on Facebook.
“There, the Philippine Navy is expected to accord the said ship with naval honors. A fluvial parade organized by the Municipality of Guiuan will accompany both navies.”
Spanish Ambassador to Manila Jorge Moragas stressed the significance of the event not just for the Philippines and Spain but the entire world.
“The Juan Sebastián Elcano is doing the same world tour [as the expedition 500 years ago] and on March 16, it's going to visit the very same place in the Philippines. So this coincidence in time and space is something very important that we have to underline,” Moragas mentioned.
“The objective of the expedition was commercial and was to search [for] an alternative route to the Maluku [for spice] and in that context, they reached the Philippines,” the ambassador said, referring to the Elcano-Magellan expedition.
The fleet led by Elcano and Ferdinand Magellan departed Spain on September 20, 1519. They arrived in the Philippines on March 16, 1521, with Magellan befriending locals and introducing Christianity to locals.
A fierce battle between Magellan and his crew against the forces of native chieftain Lapu-Lapu ensued on April 27. Magellan died during the battle. Elcano took charge of the Spanish crew and retreated back to Spain.
The expedition today is regarded as “the greatest sea voyage in the Age of Discovery,” while some dubbed it as “the most important maritime voyage ever undertaken.”
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