When Ferdinand Magellan and his Spanish troops arrived in the Philippines in 1521, other chieftains submitted to him — but Lapulapu fought back. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan is best known for leading the expedition that became the first to circumnavigate the globe. In the spring of 1521, he was killed in a battle in the Philippines against the Filipino chief Lapulapu. Unlike other chiefs who Magellan and his crew had encountered, Lapulapu refused to submit to Magellan and his Spanish troops. Indeed, though Humabon had sent his warriors to help Magellan, Magellan told them to stay on the ship.