First circumnavigation

The first ever circumnavigation of the world was accomplished on 8 September 1522, when the Spanish vessel Vittoria (aka Nao Victoria), under the command of the Spanish navigator Juan Sebastián de Elcano (aka Elkano in the original Basque), reached Seville, Spain. The ship had set out from Sanlúcar de Barrameda, Andalucía, Spain, on 20 September 1519, along with four other vessels as part of an expedition led by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. They discovered the Strait of Magellan off southern Chile, crossed the Pacific via the Philippines, and returned to Europe after sailing around the Cape of Good Hope. Vittoria was the only ship to survive the voyage, and of the 239 Europeans who set out, only 18 returned. A further 12 men, who were taken prisoner on the island of Santiago in the Cape Verde archipelago, completed the trip months later, so are also credited as having been part of the first circumnavigation. In fact, some argue that Cape Verde could be considered the end point of this round-the-world journey because, after departing Spain in 1519, the expedition called in at Cape Verde before setting off west across the Atlantic.

The 18 men that arrived in Spain aboard the Vittoria on 8 September 1522 were: Juan Sebastián de Elcano (Basque Country, Spain, navigator/captain); Francisco Albo (Greece, pilot); Miguel de Rodas (Greece, countermaster/master); Juan de Acurio (Basque Country, Spain, pilot); Martín de Judícibus (Italy, chief steward); Hernando de Bustamante (Spain, barber); Hans (surname unknown; Germany, gunner); Diego Gallego (Spain, leading seaman); Nicolás el Griego (Greece, leading seaman); Miguel Sánchez de Rodas (Greece, leading seaman); Francisco Rodrigues (Portugal, leading seaman); Juan Rodriguez (Spain, leading seaman); Antonio Hernández Colmenero (Spain, leading seaman); Juan de Arratia (Basque Country, Spain, ordinary seaman); Juan de Santandrés (Spain, ordinary seaman); Vasco Gomes Galego (Portugal, ordinary seaman); Juan de Zubileta (Basque Country, Spain, page); and Antonio Pigafetta Lombardo (Italy, supernumerary and chronicler of the voyage).

The 12 men to eventually complete the round-the-world trip, after being released from prison in Cape Verde in later months, were: Martín Mendez (Spain, notary/accountant); Pedro de Tolosa (Basque Country, Spain, seaman/steward); Ricarte de Normandía (France, carpenter); Roldán de Argote (Belgium, gunner); Felipe de Rodas (Greece, leading seaman); Gómez Hernández (Spain, leading seaman); Ocacio (Socacio) Alonso (Spain, leading seaman); Pedro de Chindurza (Basque Country, Spain, page); Vasquito Gallego (Spain, page); Juan Martin(ez) (Spain, supernumerary); Maestre Pedro (Spain, supernumerary); and Simón de Burgos (Portugal, supernumerary).

Ferdinand Magellan himself had been killed in a squabble in the Philippines in March 1521. Elkano became the captain of the voyage from that point onwards.