IAC Blue Set History Practice Test

Which explorer is credited with leading the first expedition to circumnavigate the globe, dying before completion?

James Cook Vasco da Gama Ferdinand Magellan Christopher Columbus

Correct Answer:

Ferdinand Magellan

Explanation:

Ferdinand Magellan is the explorer who led the first expedition to circumnavigate the globe, dying before completion. He set out from Spain in 1519 aimed at reaching the Spice Islands by sailing west. Magellan himself was killed in the Philippines in 1521, but the voyage continued under Juan Sebastián Elcano and returned to Spain in 1522, making it the first completed circumnavigation. This distinguishes him from others like James Cook, who conducted later Pacific voyages and survived to see them through, Vasco da Gama, who found a sea route to India by rounding Africa, and Christopher Columbus, who opened transatlantic routes but never circumnavigated the globe.

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