Enrique of Malacca Enrique of Malacca was the first person to circumnavigate the globe linguistically—he traveled so far in one direction (west) that he came to a place where his own language was spoken. Enrique may have also circumnavigated the globe completely, a full circle of the earth beginning and ending in Malacca or somewhere in the Philippines. 

Enrique departed Malacca on the Malay Peninsula in 1512 or 1513, taken as a slave by Ferdinand Magellan after the 1511 Portuguese invasion of the area trade hub. They went first to Lisbon and later to Spain before departing on the Magellan-Elcano expedition that first circled the globe. Enrique was last seen by Magellan's fleet at Cebu (Philippines), some 2,600 kilometers from Malacca.

 1558 Carrack Pieter Bruegel the Elder

May 14, 2022

Video Find: Elcano-Magellan Circumnavigation (Henry of Malacca)



This is a fun but cheesy dramatization of Enrique of Malacca using a Frankenstein-like collection of clips from other films. See the list of films the clips were taken from below.

It's a commendable effort, but beware of inaccurate historical details in the English subtitles. For instance, Ferdinand Magellan was not "dishonorably discharged" after a Malacca campaign. First, that wasn't a thing in 16th century Portugal, and second, Magellan later served the Portuguese king in battle in Morocco, where he was seriously wounded. It was that and other humiliations that prompted Magellan to defect to Spain.


YouTube Introduction

Elcano-Magellan Circumnavigation (Henry of Malacca)

76,988 views Oct 20, 2020 In the height of the Spice race in 16th century between iberian power of Portugal and Castile (Spain), Holy Roman Emperor Charles V as king of Castile accepted Portuguese Ferdinand Magellan (Fernão de Magalhães) proposal to find western route to the spice islands of Molucca (Maluku, Indonesia).

Magellan was in charge of Castilian ('Spanish') 'Armada de Molucca' consisted of five ship with 270 crew hailed from castile, portugal, basque, venezia and asia. A malay called Henry (Enrique) of Malacca, was enslaved by Magellan during the conquest of Malay Sultanate of Malacca back in 1511 and acted as interpreter when the fleet reach its destination. After a journey of 3 years and 1 month started at September 1519 and ended in September 1522. The 18 survivors, led by Basque captain, Juan Sebastián Elcano, of Victoria ship became the first recorded people to circumnavigate the globe in a single expedition. Magellan himself never completed the journey as he was killed by Datu Lapu-Lapu off Mactan island on 27 April 1521.

Clips taken from :

Puteri Gunung Ledang (2004)
The Spice Trail, Nutmeg and Cloves (2011)
Terra X - Magellans Reise um die Erde (2020)
Imperium - Wettlauf nach Ostindien (2009)
Henry of Malacca - A Malay and Magellan (2016)
Lupang Hinirang - Philipine national anthem GMA 7 (2010)
Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007)
Carlos, Rey Emperador (2015)
Conquistadores: Adventvm (2017)
1492: Conquest of Paradise (1992)
Raja Haji Fisabilillah (2016)
Takhta 3 Ratu (2014)
Hikayat Merong Mahawangsa (2011)
Muhteşem Yüzyıl (2012)
El Dorado (1988)
Marco Polo (2016)
Black Sails (2014)
Freibeuter der Meere: Die Korsaren (2019)
Mankind: The Story of All of Us (2012)
Hernán (2019)
The Bounty (1984)
Assassin's Creed (2016)
Ho'omau (2015)
Rambo IV (2008)
ปืนใหญ่จอมสลัด (2008)
กบฎท้าวศรีสุดาจันทร์ (2005)
อุโมงค์ผาเมือง (2011)
راه آبی ابريشم -2011 (Maritime Silk Road)



See Also:


On March 28, 1521, Enrique of Malacca became the first person to complete a linguistic circumnavigation of the globe—he traveled so far in one direction that he reached a point where his language was spoken. Enrique’s journey began a decade earlier following the sack of Malacca, when he became a slave of Ferdinand Magellan. A teenager, he accompanied Magellan back to Portugal, then to Spain, and finally on the Armada de Molucca to locate a westward route to the Spice Islands.  Read more:

Enrique's Voyage Profile: Ferdinand Magellan


Was Enrique of Malacca Filipino?

Enrique of Malacca's origin is a subject of debate. Three places are considered possible: Malacca, then a major trade hub on the Malay Peninsula; Sumatra, the large island adjacent to Malacca; and the Visayan Islands in the (modern-day) Philippines. The evidence points to Malacca, though chronicler Antonio Pigafetta said Sumatra, and some scholars believe it's possibly Enrique was from the Visayan Islands in the modern-day Philippines? See the historical evidence in this post: Where was Enrique of Malacca from, Malacca or the Philippines?



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