The Rise and Fall and Rise of Magellan (Part 1): The Rise

Have you ever attended a project meeting where, immediately after leaving, you did not know the project's explicit objective, and the manager was as clueless as everybody? During the project's early phase, you discovered the manager was filling the gap as you went along, and the teams were doing aimless tasks. You uncovered that the project's first milestone succeeded because of a random event. Moreover, you suspected that the manager suffers from oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) after he describes the most turbulent, chaotic, and disorderly situation, calm and peaceful. The manager got into another man's quarrel that had nothing to do with the project, got killed, and almost everybody. Hence, you felt that this project would not end well. That roughly sums up Magellan's expedition, which claimed the first documented European circumnavigation of the world, though it was not their objective. They barely succeeded in finding an alternate route to the spice island Moluccas. 

Imagine boiling the leather top covering of sails because of starvation, and others are hungrily looking with enthusiasm. More than 500 years ago, it was the situation of Ferdinand Magellan and his crew crossing the Pacific Ocean—hardly a picture of success. Many places, streets, and landmarks were named after this Portuguese explorer in the Philippines. He masterminded the first European expedition to circumnavigate the world. However, Spain sponsored a Portuguese-led expedition to discover an alternate route across the Atlantic in search of the East Indies. With five ships and about 260 men, Ferdinand Magellan, a minor Portuguese noble, left Spain to find a passage through South America to reach Southeast Asia. By chance, they spotted a strait to exit the Atlantic and sail towards the Pacific during the storm. 

Almost unattainable and perilous voyage for any man, Magellan's expedition launched the opening salvo in the rise of the Western civilization's hegemony on global trade and globalization that shape today's present world. At the same time, the voyage presented essential scientific knowledge of the earth's circumference and a new understanding of time zones. Two Iberian superpowers, Spain and Portugal, during the 1500s signed the Treaty of Tordesillas, which divided the world in two, with Africa, Asia, and the East Indies allocated to Portugal to colonize and develop while America was under Spanish control. However, Spain wanted to access the luxury goods available in Asia and the Spice Islands by westward route. For Spain, the new western sailing route was essential to maintaining its future as a superpower. 

At a critical moment, a Portuguese adventurer and explorer, Ferdinand Magellan, arrived in Spain, claiming in his resume an unimpeachable expertise in mapmaking and sailing and bursting-on-seam experiences in sailing the Indian Ocean after learning that the Spanish explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa confirmed that Asia and the Americas were two continents separated by ocean, Magellan guess, that sailing around the Americas the Spice Island was easily accessible like a walk in the park.  

After several failed attempts to convince King Manuel I of Portugal that he was not pulling his leg on funding the expedition to the Moluccas through a route westward, Magellan tried his luck with the new teenage King of Spain, Charles 1. Stoking the greed of the King's advisers and confirming that in the court of King Manuel, the lights were on, but nobody was there, Magellan proposed his expedition would propel Spain to have access to the richness of the East again.

 At this point, Magellan demonstrated his outstanding strengths, depicting his resilience, conviction, and vision. Without any doubt, Magellan challenged the popular maritime routes his compatriots popularized, believing that sailing westward was an alternate route to the East Indies. It was an innovative idea, almost radical, during the 1500s. At the same time, his ability to inspire and rally supporters, including the Spanish monarchy, to support his expedition depicted his skills to communicate a powerful vision and align this with the strategic interest of King Charles I, successfully securing vital resources and support.

Like an international team, the Spanish-funded expedition, the enlisted officers, and crew on this voyage were diverse groups of African descent, French, Greeks, and Germans. Also, part of the entourage were the close friends and family of Magellan, Europeans, and Spaniards with qualified sailing experiences, some of them to pay off their debt. Of course, the vast amount of money the expedition required and to ease some members of the Charles I court that the expedition did not smell like a rat, the court assigned a Spanish accountant and overseer, Juan de Cartagena, as second in command, and the documenter was the Venetian Antonio Pigafetta.

Magellan's keenness for detail and thorough planning in his preparation for the voyage was a hallmark of an excellent project manager. The fleet was called Armada de Molucca, which showcased the meticulous organization of securing enough provision and men to prepare for the long and uncertain journey. Magellan was not a somnambulist. He has a talent in logistic management, equipping five ships, gathering the appropriate provisions, and recruiting crews with pertinent skills, proving his expertise in human resource management. Moreover, Magellan understands risk management principles by anticipating various contingencies, suggesting his strategic insight and ability to expect possible challenges.

Magellan, the expedition's leader, was on the largest ship, Trinidad, while the other Portuguese, Serrao, was the head of Santiago. The other three ships were under the skeptical Spaniards, who kept cooking something to undermine the expedition. In contrast, Magellan, who did not trust the Spaniards, kept the route under lock and key, making most of the crew wary. A high level of suspicion and distrust kept men's morale low. While they were in Brazil holed up for winter, many crew suffering from scurvy planned a mutiny. Making the situation worse, Magellan reduced the rations and ordered aimless tasks. The crew suspected that Magellan had finally lost his marbles. Then, Juan de Cartagena blew a fuse and led the mutiny. As everybody was freezing to death and starving, the mutineers rolled their dice and managed to take over three ships. However, Magellan got the best of them. He ordered the execution of the captains of Victoria and Concepcion. Their bodies, as examples, were drawn, quartered, and exhibited. At the same time, a priest and  Cartagena were exiled to an uninhabited island off the coast.   

Seemingly, the entire expedition was a ticking bomb. The Santiago was sent to some southerly exploration, ran aground, and wrecked in a powerful storm. Fortunately, all crews survived, but losing Santiago exerted more pressure on a demoralized and starving crew. The expedition entered the Straight of Magellan, a demarcation parting Tierra del Fuego from South America. Another ship, the San Antonio, was separated and returned to Spain during the passage.

During the initial phase of the voyage and preparation, Magellan displayed exceptional decisiveness and resilience, managing conflict and maintaining authority. Resolute in facing skepticism and resistance from his crew and competing interests, Magellan decisively handled the mutiny at Port Saint Julian, asserting his authority and maintaining order. The incident underlined his skill in handling crisis management.

Successful in keeping faith in himself, Magellan applied his seamanship, survived fierce storms, and negotiated glacier-fed fjords, channels, bays, and the rebellion of another ship, San Antonio, that held most of their provisions. He reached the Pacific Ocean. For 38 days, Magellan overcoming these upheavals was a remarkable testament to his adeptness as a navigator and strategist. Thus, when they finally reached the calm ocean after these explosive events, Magellan, without second thoughts, called it the Pacific. Experts believed that Magellan benefited from El Nino, which blows mild winds across the Pacific, unlike the experience of Sir Francis Drake, who could have damned Magellan when his ship was tossed, hurled, and thrown by very strong westerlies that lobbed him far south and east into a body of water between  Cape Horn, and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica named after him, the Drake Passage.