# Magellan reaches the strait (21 October 1520)

URL: https://allhistories.com/chile/timeline/1520-magellan-reaches-the-strait
Location: Strait of Magellan, Magallanes
Themes: Exploration

The Spanish fleet of Ferdinand Magellan sights Cape Vírgenes at 52°S and finds a deep saltwater passage leading west. Over the following weeks the ships explore its channels, which Magellan calls the All Saints' Channel after the date they sail through on 1 November. It becomes known as the Strait of Magellan.

## Why it matters
This is the first European arrival in what is now Chile and opened the strait as a route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

Ruler at the Time: [Huayna Capac](https://allhistories.com/chile/rulers/huayna-capac)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Magellan expedition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magellan_expedition)
- [Wikipedia — Cape Virgenes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Virgenes)
- [Wikipedia — Strait of Magellan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Magellan)
- [Wikipedia — Inca & Conquest (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inca_Empire)