“La mucha destemplanza de la tierra”: una aproximación al relato de Maximiliano de Transilvano sobre el descubrimiento del Estrecho de Magallanes

Abstract

One of the most outstanding adventures in the history of the discovery, conquest and colonization of the New World is the one initiated by Hernando de Magallanes and completed by Sebastián Elcano, consisting in the search for a new gateway to the Molucas or “Spice” islands. This paper aims to analyze a letter by Maximiliano Transilvano, Secretary of the Emperor Carlos V, written in Latin and finished a few days after the survivors’ return (5th October 1522) from their almost impossible voyage. Our analysis focuses on the episode of their landing at the Port of San Julián, in the Patagonic Argentinian coast, and on the way in which the letter introduces a hostile and intimidating geographic space, one generating violence and struggles.