The Manila Galleon Trade Links Asia and the Americas
Spanish ships find a return route across the Pacific and start a trade that connects China, the Philippines, Mexico, and Spain into one network
Quick facts
- Route
- Manila, Philippines to Acapulco, Mexico
- Route discovered by
- Andres de Urdaneta, 1565
- Traded
- American silver for Chinese silk, porcelain, spices
- Trade duration
- 1565 to 1815
What happened
For decades after Magellan's crossing, Spanish navigators could sail from the Americas to Asia across the Pacific but struggled to find a workable return route against the prevailing winds. In 1565, Andres de Urdaneta charted a path north to catch different wind patterns, and his ship reached the California coast before following the shoreline south to Acapulco, arriving on 8 October 1565. This opened the Manila galleon trade: Spanish ships carried silver mined in the Americas across the Pacific to Manila in the Philippines, trading it for Chinese silk, porcelain, and spices, then returned with those goods to Acapulco. The trade ran annually until 1815.
Why it matters
The Manila galleon route was the first trade connection to link Asia, the Americas, and Europe into a single ongoing exchange, moving American silver into the Chinese economy and Asian goods into Spanish colonial and European markets. It made the Pacific a functioning trade route rather than just a barrier Magellan's crew had barely survived crossing.
How we know
The World History Encyclopedia's entry on the Manila Galleon describes the 1565 opening of the eastward return route and the silk-for-silver trade pattern that ran between Manila and Acapulco for 250 years.
Sources
- World History Encyclopedia. Manila Galleon · Reputable sourceworldhistory.org · The domain "worldhistory.org" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- EBSCO Research Starters. Manila Galleon · General sourceebsco.com · Cited as a "reference" source (no stronger domain match). · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
See something wrong? . Corrections with a source get fixed fastest.
Part of a timelineThe Age of Exploration27 events · How Portuguese and Spanish voyages connected the world's oceans between 1415 and 1600, and what that connection cost the people already living thereView all →