Now almost every corner of the Earth has been investigated. There is no longer any place where no man’s foot has stepped. Even the Arctic ice yielded under his onslaught.
But it was not always so. For our ancestors, our planet was an unknown and mysterious world, and new countries, outlandish customs and tribes were hidden behind the horizon.
The most famous travelers, whose names forever remained in our memory, made a great contribution to the study of the Earth. it was they who made world discoveries that turned people around about our planet.
10. Francis Drake
In honor of him was named the strait located between Antarctica and Tierra del Fuego. California has Drake Bay.
From the age of 12, Francis, the son of an ordinary farmer, became a young man on the ship of his distant relative. From the age of 18 he was already a captain.
In 1567, his ship took part in the expedition. These ships were attacked by the Spaniards, most of whom they sunk. Only 2 ships survived, one of which belonged Francis Drake. The British demanded to compensate them for all the losses, but the Spaniards refused.
Then the young captain vowed that he himself would take everything from the king of Spain. In 1577 he was sent to the coast of America. According to the official version, he was supposed to discover new lands, but in fact the goal was more prosaic - gold. Due to the storm, Drake discovered the strait that received his name.
9. Athanasius Nikitin
The famous Russian traveler became famous for being one of the first Europeans who could get to India. He visited there before the Portuguese travelers.
Athanasius Nikitin born in the family of an ordinary peasant. He became a merchant, but was remembered by his descendants as a man who not only reached India and Persia, but also described it in his book. “Walking Over Three Seas”. Prior to this, Russian literature wrote only about pilgrimage, and this was a description of a commercial trip, where he talked about the culture and economy of these countries, about their political structure.
8. Roald Amundsen
Norwegian traveler, famous for his polar expeditions. He was the first person to reach the South Pole, as well as the very first traveler to visit both poles of the planet.
The expedition, which was organized in 1926, is the first to state that they reached the North Pole. He was the owner of many state and public awards.
Roald Amundsen at the insistence of her mother, he entered the medical faculty, but as soon as she died, left him with relief. The fateful in his life was the acquaintance with Rear Admiral John Franklin’s fate, a description of his deprivations. He began to prepare for this feat from the age of 16, living a Spartan life: diet, sleeping outdoors and in winter, physical exercise, constant skiing, etc.
His first trip was sailing on the Morgenen Hypericum, where he wanted to prepare for the navigational title. An interesting life ahead of the young polar explorer, full of adventures and discoveries.
Most of his life was spent on expeditions, he never married, he had no children. Killed a famous traveler at the age of 55, during the search for the expedition of Umberto Nobile.
7. Amerigo Vespucci
Florentine traveler, after whom America got its name. He was an ordinary financier, helped to supply Christopher Columbus 2 and 3 expedition.
In 1499, at the age of 45, he decides to go on a long journey. Amerigo Vespucci believed that navigation is a profitable business, so he was ready to conquer the world at his own expense.
Vespucci became one of the discoverers of the territory where Brazil was later located. The former financier was the first to think that the shores of Brazil are not islands, but new lands, which he called the New World. In 1507, a map appeared in France with the contours of a new mainland, which was called "Land of Amerigo", and later became known as America.
6. David Livingston
He was not a researcher, but a Scottish missionary. But, fulfilling his difficult mission, at the same time he studied Africa and told the whole world about it.
David Livingston Born into a poor family, and already at the age of 10 he began working at a weaving factory. But this did not prevent the boy from studying independently, he studied mathematics, Latin and Greek, entered the university and became a doctor.
In 1840, Livingston became a missionary and for the next 15 years he traveled constantly to Central and South Africa, became an ardent fighter against the slave trade, and built up a reputation for himself as a convinced Christian.
His life was difficult, but interesting, full of adventure, the Africans called him "The Great Lion."
David was the first European to cross the Kalahari desert, after which he discovered and explored Lake Ngami. He also discovered Lake Dilolo.
Livingston and his companions were the first to find the waterfall, which the traveler named after Queen Victoria. Now, near this waterfall is a monument to the great explorer. He spent most of his life in Africa.
5. Fernand Magellan
He was a navigator with the title "Adelantado", which meant "leader of the conquistadors (conquerors)" who explored and conquered lands outside of Spanish possessions.
Fernan Magellan made the first trip around the world. He became the first European who was able to sail across the sea from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, while opening the strait named after him. Magellan belonged to a noble family.
In 1498, the Portuguese opened the road to India. They began to equip ships to conquer the east. At one of them was Magellan, who, along with everyone, participated in the battles. Soon he had a travel plan, which later glorified him.
He asks the king to send him on a voyage, but he refuses. Then the traveler decides to move to Spain, where he was able to create his own expedition of 5 ships. The journey was difficult, but as a result they found a strait, moving along which they could go into the ocean after 38 days.
The expedition first reached the Philippine Islands, which Magellan called the archipelago of St. Lazarus. The brave seafarer died early, at the age of 40, participating in a military expedition against the Mactan Lapu-Lapu tribe, whose leader did not want to submit to Spain. He did not live to see the end of the world's first circumnavigation.
4. Nikolay Miklouho-Maclay
Nikolay Miklukho-Maclay He was not only a traveler, but also a biologist, anthropologist, devoted his life to the study of the population of Australia, Oceania and Asia. He was an ardent opponent of the slave trade, he was against the theory popular at that time that the black races were a transitional species from monkey to human.
He is our compatriot, born in the Novgorod province, studied at St. Petersburg University. In 1870 he went to New Guinea, where he lived among the Papuans, studying their life and customs, and later continued his observations in neighboring regions.
3. Vasco da Gama
The famous Portuguese navigator, who was the first to sail from Europe to India. Born in the family of a knight, in his youth joined the Order of Santiago, from a young age he participated in naval battles.
In those years, the search for the sea route to India was the task of the century, because it would be of great benefit. AND Vasco da Gama was able to do this, after which he became a representative of the nobility, and over time he was awarded the title of “Admiral of the Indian Ocean”.
2. James Cook
The famous seafarer was born in the family of a poor Scottish laborer, after 5 years of school, he worked on a farm.
At 18, he was hired by a young man on his first ship. So begins his career as a sailor who made James cook famous.
He was at the head of 3 expeditions exploring the oceans. He paid much attention to cartography; he used maps compiled by him until the second half of the 19th century. I learned to deal with such a common disease in those days as scurvy.
He was known for his friendly relations with the indigenous people of the territories he studied, but died at the age of 50, who was killed by the natives of Hawaii.
1. Christopher Columbus
A lot has been said about the life of this famous navigator. He was the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean and visited the Caribbean, Sargasso Sea. He was a pioneer in Central and South America.
Coming from their poor Genoese family, he received a good education. Dreaming of getting to India by short sea route, Christopher Columbus makes a lot of efforts to implement its projects, but all of them are unsuccessful.
Queen Isabella helped to realize his dream, who agreed to lay her jewelry for the sake of a great idea.
4 expeditions were organized. Columbus died in his 55th year of life, the great significance of his discoveries was recognized much later, and during his life the monopoly on the discovery of new lands was canceled, moreover, he was arrested and sent to Spain in shackles.