Famous Sailors
Sarah Richards
Updated on May 22, 2026
Birthdate: November 30, 1476
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Getaria, Spain
Died: August 4, 1526
Though Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan had started the first circumnavigation of the world, it was Basque explorer Juan Sebastián Elcano who completed it after Magellan’s death, manning the two ships left, despite issues such as scurvy and starvation. Elcano eventually died on a failed expedition to the Molucca Islands.
