Native name | Spanish: Galeón de Manila, Filipino: Galyon ng Maynila |
---|---|
English name | Manila galleon |
Duration | From 1565 to 1815 (250 years) |
Venue | Between Manila and Acapulco |
Location | New Spain (Spanish Empire) (current Mexico) |
Also known as | Nao de China or Galeón de Acapulco |
Motive | Trading maritime route from East Indies to the Americas |
Organised by | Spanish Crown |
The Manila galleon (Spanish: Galeón de Manila; Filipino: Galyon ng Maynila), originally known as La Nao de China,[1] and Galeón de Acapulco,[2] refers to the Spanish trading ships that linked the Spanish Crown's Viceroyalty of New Spain, based in Mexico City, with its Asian territories, collectively known as the Spanish East Indies, across the Pacific Ocean. The ships made one or two round-trip voyages per year between the ports of Acapulco and Manila from the late 16th to early 19th century. The name of the galleon changed to reflect from which city the ship sailed,[3] setting sail from Cavite, in Manila Bay, at the end of June or first week of July, starting the return journey (tornaviaje) from Acapulco in March–April of the next calendar year, and returning to Manila in June–July.[2]
The term "Manila galleon" can also refer to the trade route itself between Acapulco and Manila that was operational from 1565 to 1815.[2]
The galleons sailed the Pacific, bringing to the Americas cargoes of Chinese and other Asian luxury goods such as spices and porcelain in exchange for New World silver. Silver prices in Asia were substantially higher than in America, leading to an arbitrage opportunity for the Manila galleon. Most of the cargo value exchanged for silver consisted in luxurious goods from all Asia such as Indian ivory and precious stones, Chinese silk and porcelain, cloves from the Moluccas islands, cinnamon from Ceylon and ginger, lacquers, tibores, tapestries and perfumes from all Asia. In addition, Filipino slaves were also traded to Mexico from 1505 to the mid 1600s (trans-Pacific slave trade).[4] The route also fostered cultural exchanges that shaped the identities and the culture of the countries involved.[2]
The Manila galleons were known in New Spain as La Nao de China ("The China Ship") on their voyages from the Spanish East Indies because they carried mostly Chinese goods shipped from Manila.[5][6] The Manila Galleon route was an early instance of globalization, representing a trade route from Asia that crossed to the Americas, thereby connecting all the world's continents in global silver trade.[7]
The Spanish inaugurated the Manila galleon trade route in 1565 after the Augustinian friar and navigator Andrés de Urdaneta pioneered the tornaviaje or return route from the Philippines to Mexico. Urdaneta and Alonso de Arellano made the first successful round trips that year, by taking advantage of the Kuroshio Current. The trade using "Urdaneta's route" lasted until 1815, when the Mexican War of Independence broke out.
In 2015, the Philippines and Mexico began preparations for the nomination of the Manila–Acapulco Galleon Trade Route in the UNESCO World Heritage List with backing from Spain, which has also suggested the tri-national nomination of the archives on the Manila–Acapulco Galleons in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.
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