Which Portuguese explorer left for a voyage around the world in 1519 under the Spanish flag?

Which Portuguese explorer left for a voyage around the world in 1519 under the Spanish flag?

• A. Ferdinand Magellan
• B. Vasco da Gama
• C. Bartolomeu Dias
• D. Hernán Cortés

Answer: (A)

Ferdinand Magellan, though Portuguese by birth, proposed and led a Spanish-sponsored voyage that set out in 1519 to reach the Spice Islands by sailing west. This expedition is famous for proving that the world can be circumnavigated by sea. Magellan himself did not complete the journey, dying in the Philippines, but his crew carried on and returned to Spain under the command of Juan Sebastián Elcano, making the first global circumnavigation. The other figures were known for different achievements: Vasco da Gama opened a sea route to India by sailing around Africa; Bartolomeu Dias first rounded the southern tip of Africa; Hernán Cortés led the conquest of the Aztec Empire. None of them undertook a voyage around the world under the Spanish flag.

Ferdinand Magellan, though Portuguese by birth, proposed and led a Spanish-sponsored voyage that set out in 1519 to reach the Spice Islands by sailing west. This expedition is famous for proving that the world can be circumnavigated by sea. Magellan himself did not complete the journey, dying in the Philippines, but his crew carried on and returned to Spain under the command of Juan Sebastián Elcano, making the first global circumnavigation.

The other figures were known for different achievements: Vasco da Gama opened a sea route to India by sailing around Africa; Bartolomeu Dias first rounded the southern tip of Africa; Hernán Cortés led the conquest of the Aztec Empire. None of them undertook a voyage around the world under the Spanish flag.