Enrique of Malacca

:"This article discusses the slave and interpreter of Ferdinand Magellan. See Henry the Black (disambiguation) for other uses"

Enrique of Malacca was a native of the Malay Archipelago. In the firsthand account of Antonio Pigafetta he was named "Henrich" and was enrolled in the official records as "Enrique". "Enrique de Malacca" is an appellation given by Magellan scholars and navigation historians. Malaysian literary works of the 20th century refer to him as "Panglima Awang". His name is mentioned only in Pigafetta and the muster roll, and nowhere else.

Captured, not bought

Enrique was Ferdinand Magellan's personal servant (slave) and interpreter. Magellan acquired him right after the sacking of Malacca by the Portuguese in 1511. He was, by Magellan's own testimony, captured rather than bought which is a notion based on hearsay evidence, the secondary testimony of Maximilianus Transylvanus, but more widely accepted by historians disregarding Magellan's eyewitness testimony. In his Will Magellan states, "And by this my present will and testament, I declare...my captured slave Enrique, mulatto, native of the city of Malacca..." (See Guillemard, page 321) He was baptized (in Portugal right after Magellan's arrival there in 1511?) assuming the name Henrique (Spanish Enrique),Bergreen, L. Over The Edge of The World] . His baptism is attested to by Magellan himself in his Will where he wrote Enrique "is a Christian." Eyewitness and contemporary accounts that mention or refer to Enrique--those of Antonio Pigafetta, Ginés de Mafra, The Genoese Pilot, Antonio de Herrera, Peter Martyr, João de Barros, Sebastian Elcano, The Genoese Pilot, Francisco Lopez de Gomara, and Bartolome de las Casas--attest to his being a slave but not one report negates Magellan's assertion Enrique was captured.

Language and role as interpreter

Enrique worked as a personal slave and interpreter, accompanying Magellan back to Europe, and onwards on Magellan's famous search for a westward passage to the Pacific Ocean. Ginés de Mafra explicitly states in his account Enrique was brought along in the expedition primarily because he "spoke Malay."

The place where he is supposed to have spoken and was understood by the natives was not Cebu. It was the island port of Mazaua. Best evidence--historiographical, archaeological, geomorphological, linguistic, geographical, navigational--point to 9° North as the correct latitude of Mazaua. The exact location of that latitude is inside present-day Butuan where Butuanon is the indigenous language and is also the root of a derivative language, Tausug. Butuanon is a member of the Bisaya language family to which Cebuano also belongs.

If we assume, going by the logic of those who claim Enrique came from the Philippines, Enrique would be Mazauan not Cebuano since he spoke Butuanon, the language of Mazaua. But it is clear from the Pigafetta account, Enrique spoke Malay, the trade lingua franca of Southeast Asia, and it was raia Siaiu who translated Malay into Butuanon.

In Maximilian Transylvanus' relation, "De Moluccis...", the inability of Enrique to speak Cebuano is unmistakably referred to: "Magellan had a slave... [who] was a perfect master of the Spanish language, and, with the assistance of one of the islanders of Subuth [Cebu] as interpreter, who knew the language of the Moluccas, our men managed all their communications." (See "Magellan's Voyage", edited by Lord Stanley of Alderley, page 200)

Pigafetta identifies the above interpreter as a "merchant from Ciama [presumably Siam or Thailand] , who had remained there [Cebu] to do trade in gold and slaves". Pigafetta further relates, "The interpreter [Enrique] told him [Siamese trader] that the captain [Magellan] , as captain of so great a king as his, would not pay tribute to any lord in the world, and that if he desired peace he should have peace, and if he desired war, war he should have. Then the aforesaid merchant replied to the king [Humabon of Cebu] in his own language, "Cata raia chita", which is to say, Have good care, O king, what you do, for these men are of those who have conquered Calicut, Malacca, and all India the Greater." (See page 75, Skelton English edition of the Nancy-Libri-Phillipps-Beinecke-Yale codex)

Possible Cebuano Ethnicity

Carlos Quirino, the first to talk of Enrique being from Cebu arrived at his hunch based on a number of purely imagined, fictitious incident. In an article published in a magazine, the "Philippines Free Press" of December 28, 1991, Quirino states as fact the following incident: "He [Magellan] learned that there was a teen-age male to be bought at the slave market, one who, after he had conversations with him, said that he had come from an island farther east than Sabah on the same longitude as the Moluccas, but considerably north of it. The young slave, subsequently baptized with the name Enrique must have told Magellan how he had been captured by Muslim pirates and that Europeans were unknown in his area of the Pacific. He must have come from one of the islands then known as the Luzones about 12 days sail northeast of Borneo."

This fictitious incident stems from, first of all, the idea Enrique was bought which is belied by Magellan himself. In his Will the Portuguese navigator expressly states his slave was captured, not bought after knowing of the slave's homeland. Quirino conjures a conversation between the slave and his master which has no provenance in any record. Quirino makes it appear Enrique knew of the name, location and longitude of the Pacific Ocean which all sound contrived to fit present-day knowledge. In any case, such a conversation was conveniently conjured to become basis for the idea Magellan's choice of Enrique was because Enrique came from another island that by coincidence suspiciously seems to be somewhere in the Philippines and more specifically Cebu.

Quirino cites the Will of Magellan and concludes why Magellan said Enrique was from Malacca. "Magellan obviously wanted to keep secret the real birthplace of Enrique as east of Borneo." And why did Magellan lie? Quirino suggests Magellan, after knowing of the homeland of Enrique, had an idea. "The idea of claiming that region [what is now the Philippines] , composed of a group of islands, must have entered the mind of Magellan. So he returned to Portugal in 1512, taking with him Enrique to propose to his master, King Emanuel of Portugal, that he be allowed to lead a seafaring expedition to those islands and claim them as part of the Portuguese empire." Where Quirino got this idea, the Filipino historian gives us no inkling. As far as I know there is no record of what Magellan had in mind. But in any case this fact has not stopped Quirino from reading Magellan's mind 480 years after the supposed moment the explorer thought of it.

Malay, lingua franca in SEA, spoken by Mazaua king Siaiu

When Magellan's fleet reached "Mazaua" -- in the Philippines somewhere in latitude 9° North (by the Genoese Pilot) or 9° 20' N (by Francisco Albo) or 9° 40' N (by Pigafetta), Enrique was able to converse with "raia" Siaiu, the "king" of that island-port, who spoke, according to Pigafetta, many languages including Malay Language which was the trade "lingua franca" in the Southeast Asia region. This linguistic fact has been overlooked by historians, particularly Carlos Quirino, who erroneously assert Malay was not spoken in the Philippines. Pigafetta was quite explicit in this, and he wrote rather clearly it was "raia" Siaiu who was doing the translation, "And when they came near the captain's ship, the said slave spoke to that king, who understood him well. For, in that country, the kings know more languages than the common people do." Magellan had provided in his will (see Guillemard, page 321) that his Malay interpreter was to be freed upon his death, but the remaining Europeans were reluctant to let him go. According to the account of Maximilianus Transylvanus it was Juan Serrano who mistreated Enrique, thereby causing him to plot the massacre of Mactan; Pigafetta, who did not attend the banquet that served as the trap, blames Duarte Barbosa.

Massacre plot

There is no definitive evidence as to whether or not Enrique plotted with King Humabon to massacre the Spanish during the banquet of May 1, 1521. Barros, The Anonymous Portuguese, de Herrera--all say Enrique was innocent. On the other hand, Pigafetta, Transylvanus and Gomara all assert Enrique conspired with the Cebuanos. Elcano, in a notatized testimony sworn before Alcalde Leguizamo on Oct. 1522, relates the incident essentially as Pigafetta "et al" describe it.

Enrique after May 1, 1521

What came of Enrique? The Anonymous Portuguese states in his account that Enrique had died in Mactan. He was egregiously mistaken. The slave was very much alive on May 1, 1521 and attended the banquet. Was he killed there, a probability suggested by official records at the Casa de Contratacion which lists him as one of those massacred? Was he spared in the massacre, as would be logical and likely if he was a co-conspirator?

Carlos Quirino, father of the "Enrique de Cebu" brainstorm, had a clear idea of what happened to the slave after May 1. Here is Quirino's story of post-massacre Enrique: "He [Enrique] proved useful to Humabon for his knowledge of Spanish and Portuguese. He must have married, raised a family, and passed away in his seventies just before Legazpi arrived." Quirino got all these minutiae from out of thin air. Nothing is known of Enrique after the May 1. And everything that has been written of his activities after that day are in the realm of pure fiction.

Possibility as the first circumnavigator

The whole idea of Enrique having been the first to circumnavigate rests on Carlos Quirino's unsupported assertion--a blatant error--Magellan's slave spoke Cebuano, a notion contradicted by direct evidence, and that Malay was not spoken in the Philippines, a fallacy negated by linguistics experts. It is also a notion that rests on a complete misreading of Pigafetta.

The other notion that he went back to his "homeland"--either Malacca or Sumatra--rests on imagination without a shrift of evidence. Nothing is known beyond what Pigafetta wrote of Enrique on the day of the May 1, 1521 massacre.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

*ALBO, Francisco. 1522a. "Diario ó derrotero del viage de Magallanes desde el cabo de San Agustín en el Brasil, hasta el regreso a España de la nao Victoria". In: "Colección de los viages y descubrimientos que hicieron por mar los Españoles des fines de siglo XV, t. IV". Martín Fernández de Navarette (ed.). 1837. Buenos Aires 1945-46. Pp. 209-47. Abbreviated CVD in citation.
**—1522b. Log-Book of Francisco Alvo or Alvaro. In: "The First Voyage Round The World". Lord Stanley of Alderley (ed. and trans.). Ser. I, Vol. LII, London 1874. Pp. 211-236.

*AYAMONTE, Martín Lopez de. 1523. "A viagem de Fernão de Magalhães por uma Presencial". In: "Arquivo Histórico de Portugal, vol. I, fasc. 5, 6". Lisbon.

*BARROS, João. 1552-1563. "Decadas da Asia". Lisbon, 4 vols.

*BERGREEN, Laurence. 2003. "Over The Edge of The World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe". New York.

*BLAIR, Emma Helen and ROBERTSON, James Alexander. 1901-1907. "The Philippine Islands 1493-1898", 55 vols. Cleveland. Abbreviated BR in citations.

*BRAND, Donald D. 1967. “Geographical explorations by the Spaniards.” In: The Pacific Basin. "A History of Its Geographical Explorations". Herman R. Friis (ed.). New York. Pp. 109-144.

*BRITO, Antonio de. 1523. "Carta escrita de S. João de Ternate, em 6 de Maio de 1523, a D. Manuel I. In: Alguns documentos do Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo". Lisbon 1892: Pp. 464-478. Also in CVD, Pp. 305-11.

*COLECCIÓN "de documentos inéditos relativos al descubrimiento conquista y organización de las Antiguas posesiones Españolas de ultramar". t. II. Madrid 1886. Abbreviated CDIU in citation.

*FISHER, David Hackett. 1970. "Historians' Fallacies, Toward a Logic of Historical Thought." New York.

*GENOESE PILOT. 1519. "Navegaçam e vyagem que fez Fernando de Magalhães de Seuilha pera Maluco no anno de 1519 annos". In: "Collecção de noticias para a historia e geografia das nações ultramarinas, que vivem nos dominios Portuguezes, ou lhes sao visinhas". Lisboa 1826. Pp. 151-176.

*GOMARA, Francisco Lopez de, "Histoire generale des Indes occidentales et terres neuves qui jusques a present ont este descouvertes" Paris: 1587)

*GUILLEMARD, Francis Henry Hill. 1890. "The Life of Ferdinand Magellan and the First Circumnavigation of the Globe: 1480-1521". New York.

*HERRERA, Antonio de. 1601. "Historia general de los hechos de los Castellanos en las islas y tierrafirme del mar oceano", t. VI. Angel Gonzalez Palencia (ed.). Madrid 1947.

*DE JESUS, Vicente Calibo. 2004. "Mazaua, Magellan's Lost Harbor", at [http://www.xeniaeditrice.it/mazaua.pdf]

*JOYNER, Tim. 1992. "Magellan". Camden, ME.

*LACH, Donald F. 1965. "Asia in the making of Europe". 3 vols. Chicago.

*LAGÔA, Visconde de. 1938. "Fernão de Magalhãis (A Sua Vida e a Sua Viagem)". Lisboa.

*MAFRA, Ginés de. 1543. "Libro que trata del descubrimiento y principio del Estrecho que se llama de Magallanes". Antonio Blazquez y Delgado Aguilera (eds.) Madrid 1920. Pp. 179-212.

*MANCHESTER, William. 1993. "A World Lit Only By Fire, The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance." Boston.

*MARTIRE, Pietro d'Anghiera (Peter Martyr), 1530. "De Orbe Ambito", Chapter 7. In: "De Orbe Novo". Alcala.

*MAXIMILIAN Transylvanus. 1523. "De Moluccis insulis". In: The First Voyage...Filipiniana Book Guild. Manila 1969: Pp. 103-130.

*MEDINA, José Toribio. 1890. "El descubrimiento de Océano Pacifico: Vasco Nuñez Balboa, Hernando de Magallanes y sus compañeros". Chile, 1920.

*MORISON, Samuel Eliot. 1974. "The European Discovery of America: The Southern Voyages 1492-1616". New York.

*PARR, Charles McKew. 1953. "So Noble a Captain: The Life and Times of Ferdinand Magellan". New York.

*PIGAFETTA, Antonio. 1524. Various editions and translations:
**—1524a. "Magellan’s Voyage", Vol. II. Facsimile edition of Nancy-Libri-Phillipps-Beinecke-Yale codex. New Haven 1969.
**—1524b. "Primo viaggio intorno al globo terracqueo, ossia ragguaglio della navigazione...fatta dal cavaliere Antonio Pigafetta...ora publicato per la prima volta, tratto da un codice MS. Della biblioteca Ambrosiana di Milano e corredato di note da Carlo Amoretti". Milan 1800.
**—1524c. "Il primo viaggio intorno al globo di Antonio Pigafetta". In: "Raccolta di Documenti e Studi Publicati dalla". Commissione Colombiana. Andrea da Mosto (ed. and tr.). Rome 1894.
**—1524d. "Le premier tour du monde de Magellan". Léonce Peillard (ed. and transcription of Ms. fr. 5650). France 1991.
**—1524e. "Magellan’s Voyage", 3 vols. James Alexander Robertson (ed. and tr. of Ambrosian). Cleveland 1906.
**—1524f. "Magellan’s Voyage: A Narrative Account of the First Circumnavigation". R.A. Skelton (ed. and tr. of Yale ms.). New Haven 1969.
**—1524g. * of Ms. fr. 5650 and Ambrosian ms.). London 1874.
**—1523h. "The Voyage of Magellan: The Journal of Antonio Pigafetta". Paula Spurlin Paige (tr. of Colínes edition). New Jersey 1969.
**—1524i. "Il Primo Viaggio Intorno Al Mondo Con Il Trattato della Sfera". Facsimile edition of Ambrosian ms. Vicenza 1994.
**—1524j. "The First Voyage Around the World (1519-1522)". Theodore J. Cachey Jr. (ed. Based on Robertson’s tr.) New York 1995.
**—1524k. "Pigafetta: Relation du premier voyage autour du monde...Edition du texte fraçais d’après les manuscripts de Paris et de Cheltenhan". Jean Denucé (text transcribed from Ms. 5650, collating Mss. Ambrosiana, Nancy-Yale and 24224 in notes.) Anvers 1923.
*QUIRINO, Carlos. 1980-1995. "The First Man Around the World Was a Filipino." In: "Philippines Free Press", December 28, 1991. --"Pigafetta: The First Italian in the Philippines." In: "Italians in the Philippines", Manila: 1980. -- "Enrique." In: "Who's Who in the Philippines". Manila: Pp. 80-81. All three articles at [http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/MagellansPortMazaua/files/Enrique%20de%20Malacca%20/]
*RAMUSIO, Gian Battista. 1550. "La Detta navigatione per messer Antonio Pigafetta Vicentino". In: "Delle navigationi e viaggi…"Venice: Pp. 380-98.

*SCAMMEL, G.V. 1981. "The World Encompassed. The first European maritime empires c. 800-1650". Los Angeles.

*THE ANONYMOUS PORTUGUESE, 1522. "Narratione di un Portoghese Compagno di Odoardo Barbosa, qual fu supra la nave Vittoria del Anno MDXIX". In: "Delle Navigatione et viaggi..." Venice, 1554. Also, in: —1522. "The Narrative of the Anonymous Portuguese". In: "The First Voyage Round the World by Magellan. Lord Stanley of Alderley (ed. & tr.). London 1874.

*THOMAS, Hugh. 2004. "Rivers of Gold: The Rise of the Spanish Empire, from Columbus to Magellan". New York.

*TORODASH, Martin. 1971. “Magellan Historiography.” In: "Hispanic American Historical Review, LI, Pp. 313-335".

*ZWEIG, Stefan. 1938. "Conqueror of the Seas: The Story of Magellan". New York.

Note: Enrique means Brave. It actually means "ruler of the household", according to [http://www.zelo.com/firstnames/findresults.asp?name=Enrique&x=23&y=13]

See also

*Henry (Enrique) interpreter of Magellan
*Battle of Mactan
*De Moluccis Insulis
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/13255] has the complete translation of Maximilianus Transylvanus in English by Henry Stevens which was published in his book "Johann Schöner" and republished in "The Philippine Islands, 1493-1803", editors Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson.

Other sources and external links

* [http://webtext.library.yale.edu/beinflat/pre1600.MS351.htm Yale notes on Pigaffetta]
* [http://members.tripod.com/philipppines/mazauatime.htm Notes on Pigafetta, Mazua, Ginés de Mafra another seaman of Magellan]
* [http://firstcircumnavigator.tripod.com/enrique1.htm Enrique]
* [http://firstcircumnavigator.tripod.com/Mazaua.htm Translations of Pigafetta ]
* [http://firstcircumnavigator.tripod.com/ First circumnavigator]
* [http://www.histal.umontreal.ca/pdfs/La%20vuelta%20al%20mundo%20en%20ochenta%20lenguas.pdf Spanish PDV Enrique de Malacca]
* [http://www.lakbay.net/bahandi/pueblo.html Magellan may have known about the Philippines from a previous trip to the Moluccas]
* [http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Field/4260/fil_cwrd.html Malayan words recorded by Antonio Pigafetta in Cebu in 1521]
* [http://cebu-online.com/cai/sugbo/01_enrique.html Sugbo Sa Karaang Panahon, Cebu-Online.com] , retrieved on: 13 June 2007
* [http://www.sabrizain.org/malaya/port3.htm Radio Sejarah. Melayu: Enrike of Melaka - Was the First Man to Sail Around the World A Malay?] , retrieved on 13 June 2007
* [http://maritimeasia.ws/site/whatsnew.html Maritime Asia, What's New on Maritime Asia, MartimeAsia.ws] , retrieved on: 13 June 2007