Which expedition was the first to complete a circumnavigation of Earth?

The Magellan expedition was the first expedition to complete a circumnavigation of Earth.

Ferdinand Magellan led the Spanish expedition that departed from Sanlúcar de Barrameda in 1519 with five ships. Magellan was killed in the Philippines in 1521, so he did not personally complete the voyage. Juan Sebastián Elcano assumed command of the remaining ship, Victoria, which returned to Spain in 1522.

The expedition crossed the Atlantic, passed through the strait now called the Strait of Magellan, and entered the Pacific Ocean. The journey demonstrated the enormous size of the Pacific and opened a westward route between Europe and the Spice Islands, although the voyage was extremely costly in ships and lives.

Only the Victoria completed the entire circuit, returning with 18 surviving crew members out of roughly crew members who had departed. The expedition is therefore often called Magellan’s circumnavigation, but Elcano deserves credit for leading the ship that finished it. The route also exposed a one-day calendar discrepancy caused by travelling westward around the globe.