Martín Fernández de Navarrete (1755–1844) was a renowned Spanish naval officer and historian whose work is a cornerstone of the study of Spain's maritime past. His multi-volume Colección de los viages y descubrimientos... serves as a critical compilation of original, often previously unpublished, documents detailing Spanish sea expeditions from the late 15th century onward. This volume, Volume V, focuses intensely on the voyages to the Moluccas, also known as the Spice Islands, led by García Jofre de Loaísa (1525-1526) and Álvaro de Saavedra (1527-1528). These expeditions occurred in the immediate aftermath of the first circumnavigation, as Spain and Portugal fiercely disputed control over the lucrative spice trade, a geopolitical conflict rooted in the Treaty of Tordesillas's division of the world. By publishing firsthand accounts, logs, and official correspondence from these voyages, Navarrete's work offers unparalleled insight into the strategic aims of the Spanish Crown to establish a lasting presence in the East Indies, assert its claim to the Moluccas, and navigate the extraordinary geographical and human challenges of early 16th-century trans-Pacific exploration. The collection is considered a crucial primary source for documenting the foundational era of the Spanish global empire.
Colección de los viages y descubrimientos que hicieron por mar los españoles desde fines del siglo XV: Tomo V. Expediciones al Maluco. — Viages de Loaisa y de Saavedra