The world behind Magellan

Ma Jianhong (Juris Doctor)

The world before the end of the fifteenth century and the beginning of the sixteenth century was a world in which continents were isolated from each other, did not interfere with each other, and were relatively closed to each other. People in the "pre-occupied" land since ancient times, living and reproducing, affected by geographical knowledge, transportation and communication and other factors, almost every place people think that their habitat is the center of the universe, it is no exaggeration to say that it was an era of "geocentric theory" sitting in a well and watching the sky.

However, after the mid-fifteenth century, with the development of science and the advancement of navigation technology, it facilitated the adventurers to carry out sea voyages, wealth plunder, religious spread, etc., and the Portuguese seafaring expedition became a symbol of European expansion into the world. As early as 1420, when Prince Henry of Portugal was governor of Alvieja, he founded a navigation school, which required not only the grand goal of conquering the seas, rich imagination, and unparalleled courage, but also the techniques of navigation, mapping, refurbishing ships, and building naval weapons, which prompted people to increase their knowledge in the exploration of the unknown.

In 1487, Captain Bartolomeu Diaz reached the headland at the southwestern tip of Africa and changed the then "Cape of The Storm" to the "Cape of Good Hope". In 1492, the Italian navigator Christopher Columbus led a fleet of ships across the Atlantic Ocean to the west, arriving at what he considered "India." In 1498, another Portuguese fleet, led by Captain Vasco da Gama, bypassed the Cape of Good Hope and reached Calicut, India, finally opening up trade routes with the East.

However, compared to Magellan's circumnavigation of the world, these shipping lanes are really "short". In September 1519, the Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan was ordered by King Charles V of Spain to lead a fleet of five ships on their journey around the world. They traveled south from the east coast of South America, through the "Strait of Magellan" between the South American continent and the "Tierra del Fuego", into the endless Pacific Ocean, after experiencing severe weather, food shortages, lack of fresh water, crew rebellion, fierce winds and waves, they finally returned to Spain in September 1522, completing the first circumnavigation of the world in human history. Unfortunately, on April 27, 1521, Magellan's crew intervened in a dispute between the islanders in the Philippine Islands, in which Magellan was killed. Magellan's own unfinished voyage lasted 1,082 days, the total length of the route was 60,440 kilometers, and the more than 200 crew members at the time of departure were only 18 people left when they returned.

From the perspective of pure historical events, Magellan's circumnavigation of the globe was of limited significance to the people of the time, his voyage made people understand the vastness of the Pacific Ocean, but also made people realize that it was unrealistic to transport spices from the West to the Moluccas, but because of the discovery of gold in the Caribbean islands and the mainland, it made the seizure of gold the primary purpose of Spain's development and colonization of the Americas.

When we "broaden the horizon of history" and look back at the significance of an event in the process of human development, its value can gradually become prominent. This year marks the 500th anniversary of Magellan's death, and when Magellan "drew a circle" around the earth at sea through navigation, the entire human society began to gradually move towards integration and pluralism.

In general, the end of Magellan's circumnavigation of the globe was the beginning of Europe's expansion into the world, as eugene Rice and Anthony Grafton put it in the book "A History of Modern Europe– The Establishment of Early Modern Europe (1460-1559)", "the establishment of large political colonies, the implementation of economic infiltration, the transformation of the world into the economic hinterland of Europe, the promotion of Christian imperialism, and the supremacy of European culture over the whole world." "From now on, the world is no longer the same world it once was.

The most important motivation for the Portuguese and Spaniards to sail began with the lucrative profits of the spice trade with the East. As modern people, we are amazed at the obsessive search for spices by Westerners in the medieval seafaring trade. But in Europe at the time, "they had no rice, corn, potatoes, etc., only a small amount of cheese, butter, and almost no sugar." During the autumn slaughter season, there is some fresh meat. In other seasons, they are pickled and the prices are high. Because the meat is cured and stored, its quality will not be very good. People's food is mainly bread, porridge, and occasionally some pickles, as well as cabbage, radish, peas, lentils and onions, the art of cooking lies entirely in the use of condiments, and the key to condiments lies in spices. People need spices because they want to stimulate their taste buds and mask the bad taste of the food itself, so that there are more options on the menu. They used spices to make medicines, perfumes, and also for religious ceremonies. As a result, the demand for camphor, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom, and especially pepper and cloves has increased dramatically, all of which are scarce Asian ingredients in Europe. The reason why the author tirelessly transcribes these "trivial" materials is mainly because he has effectively solved the "confusion" for many years, and the "bulk commodities" that originally supported the medieval maritime trade were actually these condiments!

The world behind Magellan has gradually developed an interconnected and mutually beneficial trade, and the international conventions and norms required for trade have gradually formed and been recognized by more members of the "global village", which is particularly important in today's globalized world. While people share the fruits of civilization, they may also have to pay a corresponding price, the world war has occurred twice, and those diseases that once appeared only in a certain local area have spread to the whole world with the advent of the Age of Discovery; Magellan's death in a foreign land also indicates the inevitable clash of ideas and civilizations in the process of globalization. Moving out of closure and isolation to openness and integration is the general trend of development in the post-Magellan era.

Comics/Chen Bin