Which expedition is credited with the first circumnavigation of Earth?

The Magellan expedition is credited with the first circumnavigation of Earth.

Ferdinand Magellan’s fleet left Spain in 1519 with five ships, seeking a westward route to the Spice Islands. Magellan was killed in the Philippines in 1521, so he did not complete the voyage himself. Juan Sebastián Elcano took command of the surviving ship, Victoria, which returned to Spain in 1522.

Only Victoria completed the entire circuit, arriving with 18 surviving crew members. The voyage demonstrated on a practical level that the oceans formed a connected global system, although earlier navigators had already known that Earth was spherical.

The expedition is often called Magellan’s because he organized and led its first stages. However, Elcano’s role is essential: he commanded the final leg and became the first person widely credited with completing a circumnavigation. The journey also produced major geographic and ethnographic observations.