Harry Kelsey Livres

The narrative delves into California's significant historical and archaeological site, tracing its evolution from the pre-European era through the Spanish arrival and mission establishment, to its eventual secularization and restoration. This revised edition includes over 70 historic photos, maps, and drawings, many of which have never been published before, enriching the exploration of the Mission and its community's journey through time.

The book chronicles Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo's 1542 expedition along the west coast of the United States, marking a significant moment in European exploration. Tasked with finding the Spice Islands and a mythical river, Cabrillo ventured into uncharted waters. Although he did not achieve his objectives, his journey led to the first European encounters with the diverse peoples and landscapes of California, spanning from San Diego and the Channel Islands to Point Reyes and Point Arena.

Prior histories of the first Spanish mariners to circumnavigate the globe in the sixteenth century have focused on Ferdinand Magellan and the other illustrious leaders of these daring expeditions. Harry Kelsey's masterfully researched study is the first to concentrate on the hitherto anonymous sailors, slaves, adventurers, and soldiers who manned the ships. The author contends that these initial trans global voyages occurred by chance, beginning with the launch of Magellan's armada in 1519, when the crews dispatched by the king of Spain to claim the Spice Islands in the western Pacific were forced to seek a longer way home, resulting in bitter confrontations with rival Portuguese. Kelsey's enthralling history, based on more than thirty years of research in European and American archives, offers fascinating stories of treachery, greed, murder, desertion, sickness, and starvation but also of courage, dogged persistence, leadership, and loyalty.