A painting of a Spanish galleon.

The Manila galleons or Manila-Acapulco galleons (Spanish: Galeones de Manila-Acapulco) were Spanish trading ships that sailed once or twice per year across the Pacific Ocean between Manila in the Philippines and Acapulco, Mexico. The name changed reflecting the city that the ship was sailing from.^[1] Service was inaugurated in 1565 and continued into the early 19th century. The Mexican War of Independence put a permanent stop to the galleons. Though service was not inaugurated until almost 60 years after the death of Christopher Columbus, the Manila galleons constitute the fulfillment of Columbus' dream of sailing west to go east to bring the riches of the Indies to Spain and the rest of Europe. A Spanish Galleon. ... A Spanish Galleon. ... A Spanish galleon. ... For other uses, see Ship (disambiguation). ... For either of the songs named Sailing, see Sailing (song). ... For other meanings of the word, see Manila (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Acapulco (disambiguation). ... Combatants Mexico Spain Commanders Miguel Hidalgo José María Morelos Vicente Guerrero Spanish colonial authorities Strength  ?  ? Casualties  ?  ? Mexican War of Independence (1810-1821), was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and Spanish colonial authorities, which started on September 16, 1810. ... A Spanish galleon. ... Christopher Columbus (1451 – May 20, 1506) was a navigator, colonizer, and explorer and one of the first Europeans to explore the Americas after the Vikings. ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ...

Discovery of the route

The Manila-Acapulco galleon trade began when Andrés de Urdaneta, sailing in convoy under Miguel López de Legazpi, discovered a return route from Cebu City to Mexico in 1565. Attempting the return, the fleet split up, some heading south. Urdaneta reasoned that the trade winds of the Pacific might move in a gyre as the Atlantic winds did. If in the Atlantic, ships made a wide swing (the "volta") to the west to pick up winds that would bring them back from Madeira, then, he reasoned, by sailing far to the north before heading east, he would pick up trade winds to bring him back to the west coast of North America. Though he sailed to 38 degrees North before turning east, his hunch paid off, and he hit the coast near Cape Mendocino, California, then followed the coast south to Acapulco. Most of his crew died on the long initial voyage, for which they had not sufficiently provisioned. Fray Andres de Urdaneta was a Spanish sail-captain and explorer. ... Miguel López de Legazpi (1502 - August 20, 1572, Manila), also known as El Adelantado (The Governor) and El Viejo (The Elder), was a Spanish conquistador who established the first colony in the Philippine Islands in 1565. ... Nickname: Map of Cebu showing the location of Cebu City Coordinates: 10°17 N 123°54 E Country Region Province Cebu (capital) Districts 1st and 2nd districts of Cebu City Barangays 80 Incorporated (town) 1565 Incorporated (city) February 24, 1937 Government  - Mayor Tomas D.R. Osmeña (BO-PK/Lakas... A gyre is any manner of swirling vortex. ... For other uses, see Madeira (disambiguation). ... The west coast of North America consists of the modern American states of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and arguably Alaska and parts of the Yukon. ... Cape Mendocino in Humboldt County, California, USA, is the westernmost point on the coast of California. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ...

By the eighteenth century it was understood that a less northerly track was sufficient, but galleon navigators steered well clear of the forbidding and rugged fogbound California coast; "they generally made their landfall well down the coast, somewhere between Point Conception and Cape San Lucas. After all, these were preeminently merchant ships, and the business of exploration lay outside their field, though chance discoveries were welcomed". Point Conception extends into the Pacific Ocean in southwestern Santa Barbara County, California. ... Cabo is well known for its pristine beaches Lands End is at southern tip of Baja and its arch can be seen in a December sunset San Lucas Marina This view of Cabo San Lucas shows the rapid growth of the area (November 5, 2005). ...

The first motivation for exploration of Alta California was to scout out possible way-stations for the seaworn Manila galleons on the last leg of their journey. Early proposals came to little, but in the later eighteenth century several Manila galleons put in at Monterey. Alta California (Upper California) was formed in 1804 when the province of California, then a part of the Spanish colony of New Spain, was divided in two along the line separating the Franciscan missions in the north from the Dominican missions in the south. ... For other uses, see Monterey (disambiguation). ...

Spice trade

Trade served as the fundamental income-generating business for Spanish colonists living in the Philippine Islands. A total of 110 Manila galleons set sail in the 250 years of the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade (1565 to 1815). Until 1593, three or more ships would set sail annually from each port. The Manila trade was becoming so lucrative that the merchants of Seville petitioned Philip, complaining of their losses, and secured a law in 1593 that set a limit of only two ships to sail each year from either port, with one kept in reserve in Acapulco and one in Manila. An "armada", an armed escort was also allowed. For other uses, see Seville (disambiguation). ...

With such limitations, it was essential to build the largest possible galleons, which were the largest ships built anywhere up to that time. In the 16th century, they averaged from 1,700 to 2,000 tons, were built of Philippine hardwoods and might carry a thousand passengers. The "Concepción", wrecked in 1638, was 43 to 49 m (140-160 feet) long and displacing some 2,000 tons. Most of the ships were built in the Philippines and only eight in Mexico. The Manila-Acapulco galleon trade ended when Mexico gained independence from Spain in 1821, after which the Spanish crown took direct control of the Philippines. (This became manageable in the mid-1800s upon the invention of steam power ships and the opening of the Suez Canal, which reduced the travel time from Spain to the Philippines to 40 days.) For other uses, see Suez (disambiguation). ...

The galleons carried spices, porcelain, ivory, lacquerware, processed silk cloth gathered from both the Spice Islands and Asia-Pacific, to be sold in European markets. The cargoes were transported by land across Mexico to the port of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico, where they were loaded onto the Spanish treasure fleet bound for Spain. This route avoided the long and dangerous trip across the Indian Ocean and around the Cape of Good Hope, a route that was barred by the Dutch once they were in control of the Cape Colony. The Spanish knew that the American continent was much narrower across the Panamanian isthmus than across Mexico. They tried to establish a regular land crossing there, but the thick jungle and malaria made it impractical. For other uses, see Spice (disambiguation). ... “Fine China” redirects here. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In a general sense, lacquer is a paint or varnish that produces a hard, durable finish that can be polished to a very high gloss, and gives the illusion of depth. ... Spice Islands most commonly refers to the Maluku Islands (formerly the Moluccas), which lie on the equator, between Sulawesi (Celebes) and New Guinea in what is now Indonesia. ... Map showing general definition of Asia-Pacific The term Asia-Pacific generally applies to littoral East Asia, Southeast Asia and Australasia near the Pacific Ocean, plus the states in the ocean itself (Oceania). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Veracruz is the name of a city and a state in Mexico. ... Gulf of Mexico in 3D perspective. ... A treasure fleet is being loaded with riches. ... For other uses, see Cape of Good Hope (disambiguation). ... Anthem: God Save the Queen Cape Colony Capital Cape Town Language(s) English and Dutch1 Religion Dutch Reformed Church, Anglican Government Constitutional monarchy Last Monarch King George VI Last Prime Minister  - 1908 – 1910 John X. Merriman Last Governor  - 1901 - 1910 Walter Hely-Hutchinson Historical era 19th century  - Dutch East India... Map of Panama Panama is a country located in Central America, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Pacific Ocean, between Colombia and Costa Rica. ... Malaria is a vector-borne infectious disease caused by protozoan parasites. ...

It took four months to sail across the Pacific Ocean from Manila to Acapulco, and the galleon was the main link between the Philippines and the viceregal capital at Mexico City and thence to Spain itself. Many of the Spaniards in the Philippines were actually of Mexican descent. In fact the Hispanic culture of the Philippines is closer to Mexican culture than any other. Even when Mexico finally gained its independence, the two nations still continued to trade, except for a brief lull during the Spanish-American War. The Manila galleon sailed the Pacific for nearly three centuries, bringing to Spain their cargoes of luxury goods, economic benefits, and cultural exchange. Mexico City (in Spanish: Ciudad de México, México, D.F. or simply México) is the capital city of Mexico. ... Combatants United States Republic of Cuba Philippine Republic Spain Commanders Nelson A. Miles William R. Shafter George Dewey Máximo Gómez Emilio Aguinaldo Patricio Montojo Pascual Cervera Arsenio Linares Ramón Blanco Casualties 3,289 U.S. dead (432 from combat); considerably higher although undetermined Cuban and Filipino casualties...

The wrecks of the Manila galleons are legends second only to the wrecks of treasure ships in the Caribbean. In 1568, Miguel López de Legazpi's own ship, the San Pablo (300 tons), was the first Manila galleon to be wrecked en route to Mexico.

References

Specific

1. ^ Williams, Glyn. 1999. The Prize of All the Oceans. Viking, New York. ISBN 0-670-89197-5, p. 4

General

• William Lytle Schurz, "the Manila Galleon and California" from Southwestern Historical Quarterly, vol 21.2
• Schurz, William Lytle, The Manila Galleon

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Galleon

• Álvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz (Designer of the Manila galleons)
• Battle of Puerto de Cavite
• History of the west coast of North America
• Filipinos of Mexican descent
• Mexicans of Filipino descent
• New Spain

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... Alvaro de Bazán, 1st Marquis of Santa Cruz (12 December 1526-1588) was a Spanish admiral born at Granada. ... A Spanish galleon. ... Battle of Puerto de Cavite was a fought as an extension of the Eighty Years War between Spanish and the Dutch in the orient. ... The west coast of North America consists of the modern American states of California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and arguably Alaska and parts of the Yukon. ... Filipinos of Mexican descent are a multilingual Filipino ethnic group composed of Philippine citizens with Mexican ancestry. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... map of New Spain in red, with territories claimed but not controlled in orange. ...

External links

• Steve Singer, "The Manila Galleons"
• Findings from the wreck of Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion in the Marianas, 1638
• Metropolitan Museum: Manila Galleon: illus. Spanish American arts influenced by the wares of China
• Manila Galleons along the Californian coasts