Leaving Gatigan unscathed, the fleet continued on to Cebu. In his log, Francisco Albo traced their course as they threaded their way through the enchanted island realms: “We left Limasawa and went north toward the island of Seilani, after which we ran along the said island to the northwest as far as 10 degrees. There we saw three rocky islands, and turned our course west for about 10 leagues where we came upon two islets. We stayed there that night and in the morning went toward the south southwest for about 12 leagues, as far as 10 and one-third degrees. At that point we entered a channel between two islands, one of which is called Mactan and the other Cebu. Cebu, as well as the islands of Limasawa and Suluan, extend north by east and south by west. Between Cebu and Seilani we spied a very lofty land lying to the north, which is called Baibai. It is said to contain considerable gold and to be well stocked with food, and so great an extent of land that its limits are unknown.”
Albo warned that the route, for all its lovely scenery, concealed hazards. “From Limasawa, Seilani, and Cebu, from the course followed to the south, look out for the many shoals, which are very bad. On that account a canoe which was guiding us along that course refused to go ahead. From the beginning of the channel of Cebu and Mactan, we turned west by a middle channel and reached the city of Cebu.”
As a succession of warm, humid days and passionate nights in the Philippines passed, discontent among the crew subsided. For once, there was no talk of mutiny. All the crew members were aware of the armada’s achievements. They had conquered an immense ocean and dispelled a thousand years of accumulated misconceptions about the world. They had sailed all the way from the West to the East, demonstrating that the earth was a globe. And they were beginning to savor the available women, exotic food, and tantalizing hints of the Spice Islands of which they had dreamed for so long. Yet a shadow hung over Magellan. Even if the rest of the expedition went flawlessly, and he did not lose another ship or sailor in his quest for spices, there would be hell to pay when he returned to Spain for marooning Cartagena and the priest. He could never return home with honor, and so he pressed on, a fugitive from society and a captive to the winds of fate.
Chapter X The Final Battle
Are those her ribs through which the Sun
Did peer, as through a grate?
And is that Woman all her crew?
Is that a DEATH? and are there two?
Is DEATH that woman’s mate?
As the Armada de Molucca approached the sandy, palm-shaded shores of Cebu, the crew members could see that the island was home to the most prosperous people they had encountered so far on the voyage. They watched village after village emerge as if by magic from the obscurity of the jungle; the inhabitants looked placid and well fed and not particularly startled by the strange ships. Their huts, rising on stilts in groups of five or six, resembled homesteads or even small estates. Overhead, tall palm trees blotted out the sky and cast wide swaths of shade. In front, extending from the water’s edge, fishing lines crisscrossed the shallow water, and, a little farther from land, speedy proas, some powered by brightly colored sails, others by paddle, traveled out to greet the arriving fleet. No longer did the men of the armada have to contend with nomadic giants or wandering tribes living at the end of the world. Here was civilization, or at least a semblance thereof. “At noon on Sunday, April 7,” Pigafetta recorded, “we entered the port of Cebu, passing by many villages, where we saw many houses built upon logs. On approaching the city, the Captain General ordered the ships to unfurl their banners. The sails were lowered and arranged as if for battle, and all the artillery was fired, an action which caused a great deal of fear to those people.”
Once the ships dropped anchor, Magellan dispatched his illegitimate son, Cristóvão Rebêlo, “as ambassador to the King of Cebu,” along with the slave Enrique to serve as an interpreter. Arriving on land, Rebêlo and Enrique “found a vast crowd of people together with the king, all of whom had been frightened by the mortars.” To reassure the distraught inhabitants, Enrique explained that it was the fleet’s custom to discharge their weapons “when entering such places, as a sign of peace and friendship.” His words had their intended effect, and soon the local chieftain was asking what he could do for them.
Enrique stepped forward again and announced that his captain owed allegiance to the “greatest king and prince in the world, and that he was going to discover the Moluccas.” His captain had decided to pass this way “because of the good report which he had of him from the king of Limasawa and to buy food.” Impressed, the king welcomed the visitors, but he advised, “It was their custom for all ships that entered their ports to pay tribute.” Only four days before, a junk from Siam “laden with gold and slaves” had called on the island and paid its tribute. To back up his story, the king produced an Arab merchant from Siam who had remained behind. The merchant explained that it was necessary to pay tribute to the local rulers in exchange for safe passage, and he urged Magellan to follow his example.
Magellan scorned the Arabs’ live-and-let-live approach to the islanders and refused to pay anyone. He saw the local populace as prey, as helpers, and as heathen, not as equals, and he intended to claim their territory for Spain and their souls for the Church. Negotiations between Magellan and the king of Cebu broke down when Magellan—through Enrique—insisted that his king was the greatest in all the world, and the Armada de Molucca would never pay tribute to a lesser ruler. He ended by declaring, “If the king wished peace he would have peace, but if war instead, [then he would have] war.”
At this point, the merchant from Siam uttered a few words that Pigafetta took to mean, “Have good care, O king, what you do, for these men are of those who have conquered Calicut, Malacca, and all India the Greater. If you give them good reception and treat them well, it will be well for you, but if you treat them ill, so much the worse it will be for you.” Enrique seconded the merchant’s advice; if the king refused to yield, the Captain General “would send so many men that they would destroy him.”
The king shrewdly replied that he would confer with his chieftains and return the next day. As a sign of his peaceful intentions, he offered the landing party “refreshments of many dishes, all made from meat and contained in porcelain platters, besides many jars of wine” and sent them happily stumbling back to their waiting ships, where they told Magellan (and the ever-present Pigafetta) the details of the exchange. Despite his belligerent words, Magellan possessed one diplomatic asset, the king of Limasawa, who had come along on this leg of the journey, and was pleased to “speak to the king of the great courtesy of our Captain General.”
The local king’s soothing words had the desired effect, and on Monday morning, the armada’s notary, accompanied by Enrique, held a formal meeting with the king of Cebu—“Rajah,” or King Humabon, in Pigafetta’s transcription. This time, Humabon offered to pay tribute to the most powerful king in the world, rather than demanding it for himself. The impasse was broken. Magellan acknowledged Humabon’s generous offer and announced he would “trade with him and no others.” Prompted by the king of Limasawa, the Cebuan ruler offered to become blood brothers with Magellan; the Captain General had only to send “a drop of his blood from his right arm, and he would do the same as a sign of the most sincere friendship.” Almost despite himself, Magellan had found a home in Cebu.
The next day, Tuesday, Magellan had more good news: The Limasawan king announced that Humabon was preparing a great feast to send to the ships “and that after dinner he would send two of his nephews with other notable men to make peace with him.” After gratefully receiving the food, Magellan decided to make another show of force and trotted out an armor-clad seaman, whose demonstration of European-style combat predictably alarmed the Cebuan emissary, “who seemed more intelligent than the others.” Once again, Magellan turned the situation to his advantage: “The Captain General told him not to be frightened, for our arms were soft toward our friends and harsh toward our enemies; and as handkerchiefs wipe off sweat so did our arms overthrow and destroy all our adversaries and the enemies of our faith.” The lesson had its intended effect.