Today in history – March 16, 1521: Magellan sights the coast of Samar

Magellan

Today in 1521, Explorer Ferdinand Magellan left the islands of Canoyas and sailed westward looking for the Moluccas. He sighted an island with lofty mountains and soon learned it was Zamal, which is present day Samar Island in the Philippines.

On March 17th the explorer and his crew landed on an uninhabited island south of Samar known as Humunu, which today is known as Homonhon in Eastern Samar. The visit lasted a total of eight days and later he sailed on to Leyte.

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Magellan had no idea that soon he would die in the hands of one of the most notorious fighters of all the Philippines, Lapu-Lapu

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