Ferdinand Magellan

Hello! My name is Ferdinand Magellan. A long, long time ago, around the year 1480, I was a little boy in a place called Portugal. I loved the big, blue ocean. I would look at maps and dream about sailing on tall ships. I wanted to be an explorer and go on a giant adventure!

When I grew up, I had a big idea. I wanted to sail to the amazing Spice Islands, but in a brand new way! I wanted to go by sailing west. The King of Spain liked my plan. In the year 1519, he gave me five ships and a team of brave sailors. We packed our ships with yummy food and waved goodbye to our friends. Our big adventure was starting!

We sailed on the water for a very long time. It was so exciting! We saw new lands and fun animals we had never seen before. We even found a giant, calm ocean. I named it the Pacific Ocean, which means 'peaceful.' It was hard work, but we kept going and going. We were the very first people to sail all the way from one side of the world to the other. We were showing everyone that the world is round, just like a ball!

I did not finish the whole trip home, but my wonderful crew did. In the year 1522, one of my ships made it all the way back to Spain. They were the first to ever sail around the whole world! I lived to be about 41 years old. People remember me because my journey showed everyone how big and round our world is. It helped other explorers feel brave enough to go on their own adventures, too.