Manila Galleon Trade Route

Timeline

1. 1565Pacific (Manila to Acapulco) · PacificIn 1565 Andrés de Urdaneta, using the prevailing winds and currents of the North Pacific, made the first successful eastward return voyage from the Philippines to Mexico, establishing the regular annual galleon route and opening direct sea links between Asia and the Americas.
2. 1580–1640Trans-Pacific route between Manila and Acapulco · MexicoBetween 1601 and 1610 the Manila galleons sailed regularly each year; Chinese merchants brought silk, porcelain, and cotton cloth via Manila to Mexico in exchange for large quantities of silver from the Potosí and Zacatecas mines; much of this silver then flowed into China, powerfully driving the expansion of the Ming's silver-based commodity economy and the spread of the Single Whip Reform.
3. c. 1760–1815Acapulco · GuerreroWith the rise of Latin American independence movements and the decline of Spanish sea power, the last Manila galleon arrived at Acapulco in 1815, formally closing the Pacific silk-and-silver route that had lasted over 250 years.