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This post is written by Vicente Calibo de Jesus, Renaissance navigation historian, particularly on Mazaua historiography.

Conventional wisdom tells us the first Europeans to reach our archipelago were those in the Armada de Molucca under Fernao de Magalhaes (Ferdinand Magellan) in March 1521.

(Click the photos to view its large pop-in size.)

But this is now open to question as old materials are viewed in a new light. There is evidence the Portuguese, about eleven of them, came to our shores nine years before Magellan and his international crew of about 150 who were Genoese, Sevillian, Castilian, Flemish, British, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Sicilian, Greek, Aragonese, German, Irish, Azorean, Brazilian, Aragonese. Two non-Europeans were also part of the fleet. Jorge “Morisco,” a page to the Captain-General, was thought to be Indian; another, Henrich or Enrique, was either Sumatran or Malaccan.

“One document explicitly states the Portuguese reached Mindanao, while the other recounts an episode where Suluans told Magellan they had already seen men like them prior to the arrival of the Spanish armada.”

There are two documents attesting to the little known incident of 1512 when a boatload of Portuguese sailors and soldiers of fortune came to Mindanao, most probably in Sulu. These documents are written in the Portuguese language although one was written in Italian by a Genoese but what survives is the Portuguese translation. One document explicitly states the Portuguese reached Mindanao, while the other recounts an episode where Suluans told Magellan they had already seen men like them prior to the arrival of the Spanish armada.

The definitive document was written by Antonio Galvao, Portuguese governor of the Moluccas, 1536-1540, who is known to history as “the founder of historical geography.” He is as well famously called “apostle of the Moluccas” for his energetic missionary work including putting up a seminary school at Ternate to instruct would-be priests. The title of his work is as formidable as it is kilometric, Tratado dos descobrimentos, antigos, e modernos, feitos ate a era de 1555. Com os nomes particulars das pessos as que os fiserao: e em que tempos, e as suas alturas, e dos desvairado caminhos por onde a pimento, e especiaria veyo da India as nossas, partes, obra certo muy notavel, e copiosa. Lisbon, 1555. (The English translation usually abbreviates this to The Discoveries of the World, From Their First Original Unto the Year of Our Lord 1555) Richard Hakluyt’s English translation came out in 1601 and is published on the World Wide Web at this site.

The other account that has not been used even now to corroborate Galvao’s assertion is credited to “The Genoese Pilot” and is entitled “Navegacam e vyagem que fez Fernando de Magalhaes de Seuilha pera Maluco no anno de 1519 annos.” It was published in a book, Colleccao de noticias para a historia e geografia das nacoes ultramarinas, que vivem nos dominios Portuguezes, ou lhes sao visinhas. Lisboa, 1826. Pp. 151-176. Lord Stanley of Alderley came out with the English translation in his book The First Voyage Round the World by Magellan. London, 1874. Pp. 1-29. An internet version is found here.

Galvao relates the coming of nine or ten Portuguese under the command of Francisco Serrao, friend and comrade-in-arms of Fernao de Magalhaes while still under the employ of the king of Portugal. This episode is part of the first reconnoitering expedition by the Portuguese to the Spice Islands which was ordered by Afonso de Albuquerque, Viceroy of India. This happened almost right after the sacking of Malacca and its occupation by the Portuguese in August 1519. The squadron of three ships with Antonio d’Abreu as head who commanded Santa Catalina, with Francisco Serrao commanding another ship, Sabaia, and a third ship, a caravel, under Simao Afonso Bisagudo. This squadron reached the Moluccas, more specifically the islands of Ambon and Banda. A 17th century chronicler, Bartolome Juan de Argensola y Leonardo, without citing any source or authority, claimed the third ship was commanded by Magellan. This assertion is the basis for the notion Magellan had circumnavigated the globe. The argument is that when he reached Cebu he would have rounded the globe. Actually, if Magellan was in the d’Abreu expedition, it would not be in Cebu where Magellan would have achieved his fame as first circumnavigator, but in Mazaua island which is at longitude 125° E. Magellan at Mazaua would have overlapped Ambon by 3 degrees, Banda by 5 degrees if he had been with the d’Abreu squadron.

If!

In any case, the d’Abreu’s flotilla left Malacca sometime in November 1511. There were two Malay pilots and three Portuguese pilots including pilot-cartographer, Francisco Rodriguez. The squadron sailed along the coast of Sumatra to the northern coasts off Java, Bali, Lombok, the Lesser Sunda Islands, to Pulau-pulau Barat Daja, Pulau Gunungapi, Buru, Ambon, and reached Ceram. It proceeded to Banda but before reaching it, Serrao’s vessel, a Cambay ship taken at the siege of Goa, had to be abandoned. At Banda they bought a junk for Serrao. The ships left Banda fully loaded with mace, clove, and mace. As fate would have it, Serrao’s junk got separated during a storm and soon struck a reef and was wrecked somewhere in Lucapinho, according to Galvao, Lucipara Islands according to Dr. Donald D. Brand (”Geographical explorations of the Portuguese.” In: The Pacific Basin, A History of Its Geographical Explorations. Herman R. Friis (ed.). New York. 1967, Pp. 145-150.).

F.H.H. Guillemard wrote this was Schildpad Islands at latitude 5 deg. 30′ South, longitude 127 deg. 40′ East, about 140 miles west southwest of the Banda islands. (Francis Henry Hill Guillemard. The Life of Ferdinand Magellan and the First Circumnavigation of the Globe: 1480-1521. New York, 1890). Lucipara then was notorious as the haunt of “pirates and wreckers.” Serrao is quoted by a contemporary Portuguese historian as saying that “if they met not their death from thirst and hunger, they might expect it from these corsairs.” Serrao’s string of bad luck made a turnaround this time. Pirates in a ship, seeing the wreck, landed to hunt down the survivors. Serrao and his men, having seen the pirate ship well in advance, hid among the bushes and while the pirates were on the prowl they stealthily took possession of the pirates’ ship. The pirates, knowing of certain death if left in the island, begged for mercy, which was granted on condition they repair Serrao’s junk.

Galvao contends the party of Serrao, made up of nine or ten companions, were brought by the pirates to Mindanao. The Portuguese soldier-administrator does not cite his source but it’s safe to assume he had full access to official Portuguese records kept at Ternate adverting to this incident.

If Galvao is all we have attesting to Serrao’s unexpected sojourn to Mindanao, this episode would remain an unsupported hearsay. But there is a little known and easily overlooked incident in Magellan’s arrival to the archipelago which throws light into Serrao’s brief excursion to the archipelago. Only “The Genoese Pilot” out of the nine firsthand accounts of Magellan’s voyage mentions this casual incident.

On Monday, March 18, 1521 while Magellan and his men were rested at Homonhon, nine men from a neighboring island named Suluan which is east of Homonhon, came to see the foreigners. The natives were Suluans who, according to David P. Barrows (A History of the Philippines. Indianapolis, 1905), originally came from Sulu. Wrote “The Genoese Pilot”: “[The Suluans] brought them [Magellan and crew] fowls and cocoa nuts, and told them that they had already seen there other men like them.” If true, the “men like them” could be none other than the Portuguese. And this would nullify the whole intent of Magellan’s voyage for it would affirm the claim of the Portuguese to the Spice Islands based on first discovery even of lands prior to the Moluccas.

This information was dismissed outright by Magellan who told the Suluans the men like them were “Lequios or Mogores” or Chinese. This was patently false since the Suluans had had well established trading relations with the Chinese as far back as the tenth or ninth century.

Who were these men like them? Who else but Francisco Serrano and his nine or ten crewmates. Now we know Galvao had solid basis for his assertion. Now we know where the pirates brought them–Sulu which is some 889 miles from Lucipara Islands. If “The Genoese Pilot” had correctly recounted the remarks of the Suluans, it would appear they actually had seen the Portuguese at Sulu. This is not unbelievable. Only nine years separated the two incidents.

Galvao’s meticulousness with facts may be deduced from this extraordinary claim: He is the only Portuguese historian in all of the 16th century who had referred to our islands as “Archipeligo de sao Lazaro,” the name given by Magellan. (This is found on Page 142 of the digital version of Hakluyt’s translation on the internet.) It reflects well on his precision, investigative acumen, and fidelity to facts.

Other Sources:

Barros, Joao de. 1552-1563. Decadas da Asia. Lisbon, 4-vols. Blair, Emma Helen and Robertson, James Alexander. 1901-1907. The Philippine Islands 1493-1898, 55 vols. Cleveland. Castanheda, Fernao Lopes de. 1551-1561. Historia do descobrimento e conquista da India pelos portugueses. Coimbra, 8 vols. Correa, Gaspar. 1856-1866. Lendas de India. Lisbon: Lima Felner, 8 vols. Denucé, Jean. 1911. La Question des Moluques et la Première Circumnavigation du Globe. Brussels. Gois, Damiao de. 1566-1567. Chronica do felicissimo Rei Dom Emanuel. Lisbon, 4 vols. Joyner, Tim. 1992. Magellan. Camden, ME. Leonardo y Argensola, Bartolome Juan de. 1609. Conquista de las islas Molucas al Rey Felipe II. Madrid.

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CebuAsia welcomes Renaisance navigation historian, Vicente C. de Jesus

Humabon not Sikatuna signed first Peace Treaty

Screenshots of the book covers provided by the author himself, Vicente de Jesus.

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Vicente Calibo de Jesús has specialized in Renaissance navigation history particularly on Mazaua historiography. He is the only Asian who joined the Hakluyt Society and The Society for the History of Discoveries. He is also the only Asian member of the Discovery Exploration e-list forum whose members are largely from the above two societies.

He moderates a webpage, MagellansPortMazaua@yahoogroups.com, devoted to an earnest search for solution to the Mazaua puzzle. The site has the most comprehensive resource on the issue that can be found on the Net or in print. (Anyone interested to join can just subscribe.) On October 13, 2000 he brought before the attention of the world’s leading experts on navigation, exploration, cartographic, geographic history the problem of Mazaua at an international gathering held at the U.S. Library of Congress.

He has written several articles at Wikipedia among these on Ginés de Mafra, Carlo Amoretti, Jacques N. Bellin, Ruy Lopez de Villalobos, Gatighan, Ceilon/Seilani which have been published on at least 90-110 sites on the web. De Jesus was national coordinator of the media-education campaign behind the Philippine government’s food production efforts in the 70s and 80s for which he received one of the highest decorations of the Republic, the Presidential Golden Plow Award. He took up A.B. Pol. Sci. at the University of the Philippines. He is from Butuan City.

His debut post:

Humabon not Sikatuna signed first Peace Treaty

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