Fifty-six days after departing the Canary Islands, Brazil was sighted. The armada had survived hurricanes, the equatorial doldrums, and simmering insurrection.
Francisco Albo started his logbook on this date: “Tuesday. 29th day of November, I began to take the altitude of the sun…” Why did he wait until now? The best explanation seems to be that he was then appointed as an acting pilot. He’s documented as becoming a pilot later upon exiting the Straits of Magellan into the Pacific Ocean. These appointments are evidence of Magellan’s high regard for Albo.
Albo’s logbook and Antonio Pigafetta’s book about the circumnavigation are the most complete source documents about the circumnavigation. Doubtlessly there were many valuable papers taken by the Portuguese when they captured the Trinidad in the Spice Islands. Unfortunately, these all appear to have been destroyed in the great Lisbon earthquake of 1755. Ironically, Albo’s logbook was also almost lost. It lay unnoticed in the Spanish archives until its rediscovery in 1788.
The armada now heads south along the Brazilian coast for some much needed rest at Rio de Janeiro. There the dispute with the clique of Spanish captains will begin to fester anew.
kennethdschultz 