The Wreck of the Galleon San Francisco (1609): Anatomy of a Maritime Disaster in the Manila-Acapulco Trade Route

Abstract

The Manila galleon San Francisco sank off the coast of Japan in 1609 after almost two months of sailing through storms and hurricanes that damaged the ship to the point that it was carrying more than two metres of water in its hold. This article provides an account of the final journey of San Francisco according to primary and secondary sources. It also proposes a set of theoretical dimensions for the galleon based on its tonnage, contemporary vessels of similar tonnages, hull ratios provided in late sixteenth- and early seventeenth-century shipbuilding treatises and ordinances, and archaeological parallels. In addition, the authors estimate possible distances from the wreck of the galleon to the shore, using the distances provided in accounts of wreck and contemporary marine leagues, and the theoretical draft of the vessel.