Manila Galleon

Timeline

1. 1565–1660Manila · PhilippinesAfter Urdaneta opened the Manila–Acapulco route in 1565, Spain dispatched one or two large galleons each year across the Pacific. The ships loaded Chinese silk, porcelain, and Southeast Asian spices at Manila, sailed east via Guam and currents north of Hawaii, reached Acapulco in New Spain, and returned with American silver to purchase Asian goods.
2. 1661–1668Acapulco · New SpainIn the 1660s Manila galleon trade continued to prosper, but Dutch and English privateers grew increasingly active in the eastern Pacific. Around 1668 Spain strengthened escorts and route secrecy, and the galleons' hulls were enlarged to carry more silver and cargo per voyage. Each year the fleet departed Acapulco in spring and summer, the voyage often exceeding four months.
3. 1669–1670Philippine archipelago · Philippine archipelagoBy 1670 the Manila galleon had developed into a super-sized, warship-like merchant vessel of over a thousand tons displacement, armed with heavy cannon to fend off pirates. The route indirectly linked the economies of Asia, the Americas, and Europe, with silver flowing in large quantities into China's southeastern coast—a key link in the 17th-century global trade network.