If we talk about the great travelers of our time, then we cannot ignore the unique talent of Fyodor Filippovich Konyukhov to conquer what, at first glance, is impossible to conquer. Today Konyukhov is the first of the best travelers on the planet to conquer the North and South Poles, highest peaks world, seas and oceans. He has more than forty expeditions to the most inaccessible places on our planet.
A descendant of northern Pomors from the Arkhangelsk province was born on the shore Sea of Azov in the fishing village of Chkalovo. His insatiable thirst for knowledge led to the fact that already at the age of 15, Fedor sailed across the Sea of Azov on a fishing rowing boat. This was the first step towards great achievements. Over the next twenty years, Konyukhov takes part in expeditions to the North and South Poles, conquers the highest peaks, makes four trips around the world, participates in a dog sled race, and crosses the Atlantic Ocean fifteen times. In 2002, the traveler made a solo voyage across the Atlantic in a rowing boat and set a record. More recently, on May 31, 2014, Konyukhov was greeted in Australia with several records at once. The famous Russian became the first to cross the Pacific Ocean from continent to continent. It cannot be said that Fyodor Filippovich is a person fixated only on travel. In addition to the nautical school, the great traveler has the Belarusian Art School in Bobruisk and the Modern Humanitarian University in Moscow. In 1983, Fyodor Konyukhov became the youngest member of the Union of Artists of the USSR. He is also the author of twelve books about his own experiences in overcoming the difficulties of travel. At the end of the legendary crossing of the Pacific Ocean, Konyukhov said that he was not going to stop there. He has new projects in his plans: a flight around the world on hot-air balloon, circumnavigation of the world in 80 days for the Jules Verne Cup on a keel yacht with a crew, diving in Mariana Trench.
Bear Grylls
Today, this young English traveler, TV presenter and writer is known to an audience of millions thanks to the highest-rated television program on the Discovery Channel. In October 2006, the program “Survive at Any Cost” began airing with his participation. The goal of the TV presenter is not only to entertain the viewer, but also to give valuable advice and recommendations that may be useful in unforeseen situations.
Bear was born in Great Britain into a family of hereditary diplomats and received an excellent education at the elite Ladgrove School and the University of London. Parents did not interfere with their son’s passion for sailing, rock climbing and martial arts. But the future traveler acquired the skills of endurance and the ability to survive in the army, where he mastered parachute jumping and mountaineering. These skills helped him subsequently achieve his cherished goal - conquering Everest. This event occurred at the very end of the last century, in 1998. Bear Grylls has simply irrepressible energy. The list of his travels is huge. From 2000 to 2007 he sailed around the British Isles in thirty days to raise funds for the British Royal Water Rescue Society; crossed the North Atlantic on an inflatable boat; flew over Angel Falls in a steam-powered airplane, had lunch in a balloon at an altitude of more than seven thousand meters; paraglided over the Himalayas... In 2008, the traveler led an expedition organized with the goal of climbing one of the most remote unconquered peaks in Antarctica. Almost all expeditions in which Grylls participates are charitable.
If you think that long journeys are the prerogative strong half humanity, then you are deeply mistaken. And this was proven by the young American Abby Sunderland, who at the age of 16 circumnavigated the world alone on a yacht. It’s interesting that Abby’s parents not only allowed her to undertake such a risky undertaking, but also helped her prepare for it. It should be noted that the girl’s father is a professional sailor.
On January 23, 2010, the yacht left the port of Marina Del Rey in California. Unfortunately, the first voyage was unsuccessful. The second attempt took place on February 6. Very soon Abby reported damage to the yacht's hull and engine failure. At this time she was between Australia and Africa, 2 thousand miles from the coast. After this, contact with the girl was interrupted, and nothing was known about her. The search operation was unsuccessful, and Abby was declared missing. However, a month later, a distress signal was received from the yacht from the southern Indian Ocean. After 11 hours of searching by Australian rescuers, a yacht was discovered in a severe storm area, in which, fortunately, Abby was safe and sound. A large supply of food and water helped her survive. The girl reported that all the time after the last communication session she had to overcome the storm, and she physically could not get in touch and send a radiogram. Abby's example inspires those with a brave spirit to test their limits and never stop there.
One of the most original travelers of our time spent thirteen years of his life on his unusual journey around the world. The non-standard situation was that Jason refused the achievements of civilization in the form of any technology. The former British cleaner went on his trip around the world with a bicycle, a boat and... rollerblades!
The expedition started from Greenwich in 1994. 27-year-old Lewis chose his friend Steve Smith as his partner. In February 1995, travelers reached the United States. After 111 days of sailing, the friends decided to cross the states separately. In 1996, Lewis, traveling on roller skates, was hit by a car. He spent nine months in the hospital. After recovery, Lewis goes to Hawaii, and from there sails on a pedal boat to Australia. In the Solomon Islands it hit the epicenter civil war, and off the coast of Australia he was attacked by an alligator. Upon arrival in Australia, Lewis interrupts his trip due to financial difficulties and for some time works in a funeral home and sells T-shirts. In 2005, he moved to Singapore, from there to China, from which he moved to India. Having crossed the country by bicycle, the Briton reached Africa by March 2007. The rest of Lewis's journey takes him through Europe. He cycled through Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, Germany and Belgium, then swam across the English Channel before returning to London in October 2007, completing his unique journey around the world. James Lewis proved to the whole world and to himself that there are no limits to human capabilities.
If you think that with the passing of the Age of Great Geographical Discovery, outstanding travelers also disappeared into oblivion, then you are mistaken! Our contemporaries also made the most amazing journeys. Among them are scientists who went in search of confirmation of their theories, explorers of the deep sea, and simply adventurers who risked going on a trip around the world alone or with like-minded people. Much has been written about their travels. documentaries, and thanks to them, we can see the whole world through their eyes, real, alive, full of dangers and adventures.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Captain Cousteau is a famous French explorer of the World Ocean, author of books and films, and inventor. The world's oceans have revealed many of their secrets and shown the previously inaccessible beauty of their depths to a huge number of scuba diving enthusiasts. We can say that Captain Cousteau is the father of modern diving, because it was he who created the main diving apparatus. While researching the underwater world of our planet, Cousteau created the famous floating laboratory "Callisto" and the first diving apparatus "Denise".Jacques Cousteau captivated millions of people by showing them on movie screens how beautiful undersea world, giving the opportunity to see what was previously inaccessible to man.
Thor Heyerdahl
The name of the most famous Norwegian of the 20th century is spelled "Thor" in his native language, just like the name of one of the main gods of Norse mythology, Thor. He made many trips on homemade watercraft to bring ancient civilizations into contact with each other. Heyerdahl proved his theory about residents visiting in practice South America islands of Polynesia, since the scientific world did not accept his ideas.Together with his team, he reached Raroia Atoll in 101 days, sailing 4,300 miles. This was one of his most famous voyages, the Kon-Tiki Expedition, on a homemade raft. The film he shot during his trip won an Oscar in 1951.
And in 1969, he set out on a new dangerous expedition on a papyrus boat to prove, to prove the possibility of crossing the Atlantic Ocean by African peoples. However, Thor Heyerdahl's first voyage on the boat "Ra" ended in failure; the boat sank just 600 miles short of the island of Barbados.
A year later, the stubborn Norwegian repeated his journey and sailed from Morocco to Barbados in 57 days. By the way, the doctor on this expedition was our compatriot Yuri Senkevich. Heyerdahl later visited the Maldives, Peru and Tenerife.
Yuri Senkevich
The popular TV presenter of the program "Travelers Club" Yuri Senkevich was on the list of the most famous travelers not only as the doctor of Thor Heyerdahl's expedition. His “track record” as a traveler is respectable:as a medical researcher, Senkevich was trained to participate in space flight,
participated in the 12th Antarctic expedition to the Vostok station in order to study human behavior in extreme conditions,
traveled on the papyrus boat "Ra", then on the "Ra-2" and in the Indian Ocean on the "Tigris".
Millions of Soviet television viewers were able to see the world, as they joked “through the eyes of Sienkiewicz.” By the way, the program “Cinema Travel Club” was included in the Guinness Book of Records.
Nikolay Drozdov
More than 40 years ago, Nikolai Nikolaevich Drozdov became the host of the popular TV show “In the Animal World.” An avid traveler, a “gallant know-it-all”, who spends hours talking about animals as the most wonderful and beautiful creatures in the world - be it an elephant, a bug, or even a poisonous snake. An amazing and wonderful person, the idol of millions of viewers in our country, listening to whose stories about interesting facts from the life of birds, reptiles, domestic and wild animals, about the beauty of our nature is an incomparable pleasure, because only a person in love with life can talk like that.An interesting fact about Nikolai Nikolaevich himself - his great-great-great-grandfather was Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow, and his maternal great-great-grandfather Ivan Romanovich von Dreiling was an orderly of Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov.
Nikolai Drozdov has traveled all over the world, all zoological and National parks, studying the habitats and habits of animals in natural conditions, climbed Elbrus, participated in a long expedition on the research vessel "Callisto" and in the first Soviet expedition to Everest, went to the North Pole twice, walked along the Northern Sea Route on an icebreaker " Yamal", sailed along the coast of Alaska and Canada on the Discovery.
Fedor Konyukhov
A single traveler who conquered what seemed impossible to conquer, who more than once overcame a path that was impossible to travel alone - the great contemporary Fyodor Konyukhov. The first among travelers who conquered the North and South Poles, seas, oceans and the highest peaks of the world, which is proven by more than 40 expeditions he made to the most inaccessible places on our planet. Among them are five trips around the world, a solo voyage across the Atlantic (which, by the way, he crossed more than once) on a rowing boat. Konyukhov was the first to cross the Pacific Ocean from continent to continent.But the life of our famous compatriot is not filled with travel alone - Fyodor Konyukhov became the youngest member of the Union of Artists of the USSR and the author of twelve books about travel. There were new plans ahead: a flight around the world in a hot air balloon and a circumnavigation in 80 days for the Jules Verne Cup, as well as a dive into the Mariana Trench. However, having been ordained a priest in 2010, Fyodor Konyukhov decided not to travel anymore, but... the ways of the Lord are mysterious and famous traveler again at the helm. This spring, he “broke” the Russian record and stayed in the air in a balloon for 19 hours and 10 minutes.
Bear Grylls
Fame came to the young English traveler thanks to the highest-rated television program on the Discovery Channel, “Survive at Any Cost,” which first aired in October 2006. The TV presenter and traveler does not just “entertain” viewers with beautiful views of the most amazing places on the planet, his goal is to convey to the audience life recommendations that can be useful in unforeseen situations.The list of his travels is impressive: he sailed around the British Isles in thirty days, crossed the North Atlantic in an inflatable boat, flew a steam-powered plane over Angel Falls, paraglided over the Himalayas, led an expedition to one of the most distant unclimbed peaks in Antarctica and arranged... a gala dinner in a balloon at an altitude of more than seven thousand meters! Most of Grylls' expeditions are for charity.
Abbey Sunderland
Not only men can boast of friendship with the wind of wanderings - Abby Sunderland, a young traveler who, at the age of 16, circumnavigated the world alone on a yacht, will give a head start to many men. The determination of Abby’s parents is surprising, because they not only allowed her to participate in such a dangerous enterprise, but also helped her prepare for it. Alas, the first start on January 23, 2010 was unsuccessful and Abby made a second attempt on February 6.The journey turned out to be more dangerous than expected: between Australia and Africa, 2 thousand miles from the coast, the hull of the yacht was damaged and the engine failed. After this message, communication was interrupted, the search for Abby's yacht was unsuccessful and she was declared missing. A month later, Australian rescuers in the area of a severe storm discovered the lost yacht and Abby alive and unharmed. Who will say after this that a woman has no place on a ship?
Jason Lewis
And finally, the most original of modern travelers, who spent 13 years traveling around the world! Why so long? The simple fact is that Jason refused any technology and all achievements of civilization. The former janitor and his friend Steve Smith went around the world by bike, boat and rollerblades!The expedition started from Greenwich in 1994; in February 1995, the travelers reached the shores of the United States and, after 111 days of sailing, decided to cross America separately on roller skates. Lewis had to interrupt his trip for 9 months after an accident. After recovery, Lewis goes to Hawaii, from where he sails on a pedal boat to Australia, where he had to spend some time earning money for further travel... by selling T-shirts.
In 2005, he reaches Singapore and then crosses China and India by bicycle. By March 2007, he reached Africa and also crossed the whole of Europe on a bicycle: Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, Germany and Belgium. After swimming across the English Channel, Jason Lewis returned to London in October 2007.
Would you like to travel around the world at least once? Almost everyone will answer this almost rhetorical question with affirmative agreement. Exist in our world happy people who do not set the goal of their whole lives to earn capital in a stuffy office, do not spend all day on the Internet, do not watch TV series season after season at night, but admire different parts of our planet, the diversity of its peoples and beauties.
If you think that with the passing of the Age of Great Geographical Discovery, outstanding travelers also disappeared into oblivion, then you are mistaken! Our contemporaries also made and are making the most amazing journeys. Among them are scientists who went in search of confirmation of their theories, explorers of the deep sea, and simply adventurers who risked going on a trip around the world alone or with like-minded people. Many documentaries have been created about their travels, and thanks to them, we can see the whole world through their eyes, real, alive, full of dangers and adventures.
1. Jim Shekdar
Born in England, he began traveling and getting acquainted with the culture of other countries since childhood, moving to India at the age of 7. The cheerful and desperate Englishman, inspired by the transatlantic passage on the boat of two more noble English gentlemen, Sir Charles Blyth and John Ridgway, decided to do this himself.
After several attempts, he finally accomplishes his plan with his friend Jason Jackson in 65 days, rowing the entire Atlantic Ocean. It becomes enough for Shekdar and he decides to conquer the Pacific Ocean, and alone, in a way that no one has done before.
Having loaded his boat with provisions for 8 months, he sails from Peru, and after numerous encounters with sharks, collisions with a tanker and a 9-month voyage on the remains of provisions, a courageous Jim with arthritis hip joint reaches the “opposite shore”, and a breaking wave on the island of the point of arrival covers his boat, and the traveler swims the last meters to land, which he has not seen for 270 days.
2. Palkiewicz Jacek
A stern and strong-willed Italian-Polish traveler, Italian journalist and writer, all his life he made the most desperate and extreme crossings, such as: on camels across the Gobi Desert and the Sahara, on deer - to the North Pole, on an Indian pie and a lifeboat - across the Atlantic Ocean .
This great man, with the rank of member of the Russian Geographical Society, in 1996 made the last major discovery of the twentieth century - he extended the Amazon River by 700 km, further exploring its sources, thus displacing the Nile from first place in terms of length.
Being an honorary member, an honorary citizen, a friend of peoples, tribes, peoples, ethnicities and communities in various parts of the Earth, Palkevich in 2010 received a golden cross for his services from the hands of the Pope himself.
3. Carlo Mauri
Another Italian and a man of iron will first tried his hand at mountaineering, making his first ascent at the age of 15. Then, having tasted the beauty of travel, he began to conquer Mont Blanc, the mountains of Tierra del Fuego and other inaccessible mountains in Chile.
Later, in the Karakoram mountains, he will overcome the peak of 7925 m. Then, after numerous injuries, broken feet, rupture of internal organs, Mauri still finds new strength in himself and participates in the expeditions of Thor Heyerdahl on his famous papyrus boats.
Further on there will be outstanding historical expeditions with poor health, at the limit of human capabilities: in the footsteps of Marco Polo, through the lands of Patagonia and the Amazon. Almost lying in a hospital bed, this man does not calm down and writes a book about his adventures, passing away, alas, too early - at 52 years old, in 1982.
4. Yuri Senkevich
A record-breaking TV presenter, with his program “The Travelers Club” he truly made history, enlightening the Soviet and Russian people about corners of the diverse and beautiful world that were inaccessible to them. After a number of outstanding and dangerous expeditions, including the Antarctic, he was invited by Thor Heyerdahl to join the team for the expedition on the papyrus boat “Ra-2”.
Later, together in Heyerdahl they will conquer and Indian Ocean on a reed boat, and then there will be ascents to Everest, polar expeditions. Unlike others, he was always in a hurry to share his discoveries with others, doing a colossal amount of work upon his return from travel to process the accumulated material into the format of a television program.
Until his death, in 2003, Senkevich worked and traveled, despite his age, and did a lot to ensure that there were more travelers in the world.
5. Thor Heyerdahl
The Norwegian record-breaking traveler was very afraid of water as a child until he was 22 years old, when, having fallen into the water, he was still able to swim out on his own. By eliminating main problem, Tour begins his career as a professional traveler in Polynesia, getting acquainted with the local life of the indigenous people.
There he is caught by the Second World War and Heyerdahl goes to the front as a volunteer. Having finished the war, Tur organized expeditions to conquer the Pacific Ocean and a grand journey to Easter Island, and even later, trips on the boats “Ra” and “Ra-2” that went down in history.
Subsequently, the tireless traveler explored various corners of the globe - Oceania, Iceland, the Arctic Ocean, forever inscribing his name in history as the name of the greatest traveler of all times.
6. Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Captain Cousteau is a famous French explorer of the World Ocean, author of books and films, and inventor. The world's oceans have revealed many of their secrets and shown the previously inaccessible beauty of their depths to a huge number of scuba diving enthusiasts. We can say that Captain Cousteau is the father of modern diving, because it was he who created the main diving apparatus. While researching the underwater world of our planet, Cousteau created the famous floating laboratory “Callisto” and the first diving apparatus “Denise”. Jacques Cousteau captivated millions of people by showing them on movie screens how beautiful the underwater world is, giving them the opportunity to see what was previously inaccessible to humans.
7. Nikolay Drozdov
More than 40 years ago, Nikolai Nikolaevich Drozdov became the host of the popular TV show “In the Animal World.” An avid traveler, a “gallant know-it-all,” who spends hours talking about animals as the most wonderful and beautiful creatures in the world - be it an elephant, a bug, or even a poisonous snake. An amazing and wonderful person, the idol of millions of viewers in our country, listening to his stories about interesting facts from the life of birds, reptiles, domestic and wild animals, about the beauty of our nature is an incomparable pleasure, because only a person in love with life can tell this way. An interesting fact about Nikolai Nikolaevich himself - his great-great-great-grandfather was Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow, and his maternal great-great-grandfather Ivan Romanovich von Dreiling was an orderly of Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov.
Nikolai Drozdov traveled all over the world, all zoological and national parks, studying the habitats and habits of animals in natural conditions, climbed Elbrus, participated in a long expedition on the research vessel “Callisto” and in the first Soviet expedition to Everest, went to Mount Everest twice The North Pole, walked along the Northern Sea Route on the icebreaker Yamal, sailed along the coasts of Alaska and Canada on the Discovery.
8. Fedor Konyukhov
A single traveler who conquered what seemed impossible to conquer, who more than once overcame a path that was impossible to travel alone - the great contemporary Fyodor Konyukhov. The first among travelers who conquered the North and South Poles, seas, oceans and the highest peaks of the world, which is proven by more than 40 expeditions he made to the most inaccessible places on our planet. Among them are five trips around the world, a solo voyage across the Atlantic (which, by the way, he crossed more than once) on a rowing boat. Konyukhov was the first to cross the Pacific Ocean from continent to continent. But the life of our famous compatriot is not filled with travel alone - Fyodor Konyukhov became the youngest member of the Union of Artists of the USSR and the author of twelve books about travel. There were new plans ahead: a flight around the world in a hot air balloon and a circumnavigation in 80 days for the Jules Verne Cup, as well as a dive into the Mariana Trench. However, having been ordained a priest in 2010, Fyodor Konyukhov decided not to travel anymore, but... the ways of the Lord are mysterious and the famous traveler is again at the helm. This spring, he “broke” the Russian record and stayed in the air in a balloon for 19 hours and 10 minutes.
9. Bear Grylls
Fame came to the young English traveler thanks to the highest-rated television program on the Discovery Channel, “Survive at Any Cost,” which first aired in October 2006. The TV presenter and traveler does not just “entertain” viewers with beautiful views of the most amazing places on the planet, his goal is to convey to the audience life recommendations that can be useful in unforeseen situations.
The list of his travels is impressive: he sailed around the British Isles in thirty days, crossed the North Atlantic in an inflatable boat, flew a steam-powered plane over Angel Falls, paraglided over the Himalayas, led an expedition to one of the most distant unclimbed peaks in Antarctica and arranged... a gala dinner in a balloon at an altitude of more than seven thousand meters! Most of Grylls' expeditions are for charity.
10. Abbey Sunderland
Not only men can boast of friendship with the wind of wanderings - Abby Sunderland, a young traveler who, at the age of 16, circumnavigated the world alone on a yacht, will give many men a head start. The determination of Abby’s parents is surprising, because they not only allowed her to participate in such a dangerous enterprise, but also helped her prepare for it. Alas, the first start on January 23, 2010 was unsuccessful and Abby made a second attempt on February 6. The journey turned out to be more dangerous than expected: between Australia and Africa, 2 thousand miles from the coast, the hull of the yacht was damaged and the engine failed. After this message, communication was interrupted, the search for Abby's yacht was unsuccessful and she was declared missing. A month later, Australian rescuers in the area of a severe storm discovered the lost yacht and Abby alive and unharmed. Who will say after this that a woman has no place on a ship?
11. Jason Lewis
And finally, the most original of modern travelers, who spent 13 years traveling around the world! Why so long? The simple fact is that Jason refused any technology or any achievements of civilization. The former janitor and his friend Steve Smith went around the world by bike, boat and rollerblades! The expedition started from Greenwich in 1994; in February 1995, the travelers reached the shores of the United States and, after 111 days of sailing, decided to cross America separately on roller skates. Lewis had to interrupt his trip for 9 months after an accident. After recovery, Lewis goes to Hawaii, from where he sails on a pedal boat to Australia, where he had to spend some time earning money for further travel... by selling T-shirts. In 2005, he reaches Singapore and then crosses China and India by bicycle. By March 2007, he reached Africa and also crossed the whole of Europe on a bicycle: Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, Germany and Belgium. After swimming across the English Channel, Jason Lewis returned to London in October 2007.
The exploration of our planet took place over several centuries, and many people distinguished themselves, whose names and merits are captured in many historical books. All great travelers sought to escape from routine existence and look at the world with different eyes. A thirst for new knowledge, curiosity, a desire to expand known horizons - all these qualities were inherent in each of them.
About history and travelers
The history of mankind should be perceived as the history of travel. It's impossible to understand what it would be like modern world, if previous civilizations had not sent travelers to the borders of a then unknown world. The thirst for travel is embedded in human DNA, because he has always strived to explore something and expand his own world.
The first people began colonizing the world 100,000 years ago, moving from Africa to Asia and Europe. In the Middle Ages and modern times, travelers went to unknown countries in search of gold, glory, new lands, or they simply ran away from their miserable existence and poverty. However, all great travelers possessed an impulse of power of the same nature, the endless fuel of explorers - curiosity. It only takes something that a person does not know or does not understand to create an alluring and irresistible force that cannot be resisted. Further in the article, the exploits of the great travelers and their discoveries, which had an impact on a huge impact on the process of human development. The following individuals are noted:
- Herodotus;
- Ibn Battuta;
- Marco Polo;
- Christopher Columbus;
- Ferdinand Magellan and Juan Sebastian Elcano;
- James Cook;
- Charles Darwin;
- explorers of Africa and Antarctica;
- famous Russian travelers.
Father of modern history - Herodotus
The famous Greek philosopher, Herodotus, lived in the 5th century BC. His first journey was exile, as Herodotus was accused of plotting against the tyrant of Halicarnassus, Lygdamis. During this exile, the great traveler travels throughout the Middle East. He describes all his discoveries and acquired knowledge in 9 books, thanks to which Herodotus received the nickname of the father of history. It is interesting to note that another famous historian of ancient Greece, Plutarch, gave Herodotus the nickname “father of lies.” In his books, Herodotus talks about distant countries and the cultures of many peoples, information about which the philosopher collected during his travels.
The stories of the great traveler are filled with political, philosophical and geographical reflections. They also contain sexual stories, myths and crime stories. Herodotus's style of presentation is semi-artistic. Modern historians consider the work of Herodotus to be a paradigm of curiosity. The historical and geographical knowledge brought by Herodotus had a great influence on the development of Greek culture. The geographical map that Herodotus drew up, which included the limits from the Danube to the Nile, and from Iberia to India, for the next 1000 years determined the horizons of the then known world. Let us note that the scientist was very concerned that the knowledge he had acquired would not be lost by humanity over time, and therefore he outlined it in detail in his 9 books.
Ibn Battuta (1302 - 1368)
Like every Muslim, twenty-year-old Battuta began his pilgrimage from the city of Tangier to Mecca on the back of a donkey. He could not even think that he would return to his hometown only 25 years later, with enormous wealth and a whole harem of wives after making the journey for the most part peace. If you ask yourself which great travelers first explored the Muslim world, then you can safely name Ibn Battuta. He visited all countries, from the kingdom of Granada in Spain to China, and from Caucasus Mountains to the city of Timbuktu, which is located in the Republic of Mali. This great traveler traveled 120,000 kilometers, met more than 40 sultans and emperors, served as ambassador to various sultans, and survived a number of disasters. Ibn Battuta always traveled with a large retinue, and in every new place he was treated as an important person.
Modern historians note that in the first half of the 14th century, when Ibn Battuta made his travels, the Islamic world was at the apogee of its existence, which allowed the traveler to quickly and easily move across many territories.
Just like Marco Polo, Battuta did not write his book ("Travels"), but dictated his stories to the Granadan polymath Ibn Khuzai. This work reflects Battuta's thirst for pleasure in life, which includes stories of sex and blood.
Marco Polo (1254 - 1324)
Marco Polo is one of the important names of great travelers. The book of the Venetian merchant Marco Polo, which tells in detail about his travels, became extremely popular 2 centuries before the invention of printing. Marco Polo traveled the world for 24 years. Upon his return to his homeland, he was imprisoned during the war between the Mediterranean trading powers of Genoa and Venice. In prison, he dictated stories of his travels to one of his unfortunate neighbors. As a result, in 1298 a book appeared called “Description of the World, Dictated by Marco.”
Marco Polo, together with his father and uncle, who were famous merchants of jewelry and silks, set off at the age of 17 on a journey to the Far East. During his trip the great geographical traveler visited such forgotten places as the island of Hormuz, the Gobi Desert, the coasts of Vietnam and India. Marco knew 5 foreign languages, was a representative of the great Mongol Khan Khubilai for 17 years.
Note that Marco Polo was not the first European to visit Asia, however, he was the first to compile a detailed geographical description of it. His book is a mixture of truth and fiction, which is why many historians question most of its facts. On his deathbed, one priest asked Marco Polo, who was 70 years old, to admit his lies, to which the great traveler replied that he had not told half of what he saw.
Christopher Columbus (1451 - 1506)
Speaking about the travelers of the great age of discovery, first of all we should mention Christopher Columbus, who shifted the human economy to the west and marked the beginning of a new era in history. Historians note that when Columbus sailed to discover the New World, the word “gold” rather than the word “land” was most often found in his logbook entries.
Christopher Columbus, with information provided by Marco Polo, believed he could reach Far East, full of gold and riches, sailing west. As a result, on August 2, 1492, he sailed from Spain on three ships and headed west. The journey across the Atlantic Ocean lasted longer than 2 months, and on October 11, Rodrigo Triana from the ship La Pinta saw land. This day radically changed the lives of Europeans and Americans.
Like many great travelers of the Age of Discovery, Columbus died in 1506 in poverty in the city of Valladolid. Columbus did not know that he had discovered a new continent, but thought that he managed to sail to India through the west.
Ferdinand Magellan and Juan Sebastian Elcano (16th century)
One of the amazing routes of the great travelers of the era of the Great Geographical Discoveries is the route of Ferdinand Magellan, when he was able to get from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean through a narrow strait, which Magellan named after its calm waters.
In the 16th century, there was a serious race for dominance of the seas and oceans between Portugal and Spain; historians compare this race with the race for space exploration between the USA and the USSR. Since Portugal dominated the African coast, Spain sought ways to reach the Spice Islands (modern Indonesia) and India via the west. Ferdinand Magellan became just the navigator who had to find new way to the East through the West.
In September 1519, 5 ships with a total of 237 sailors set sail for the West, led by Ferdinand Magellan. Three years later, only one ship returned with 18 sailors on board, led by Juan Sebastian Elcano. This was the first time a man sailed around the entire globe. The great traveler Ferdinand Magellan himself died in the Philippine Islands.
James Cook (1728-1779)
This British great explorer is considered the most famous explorer of the Pacific Ocean. He left his parents' farm and became a great captain in the Royal Navy. He made three great voyages from 1768 to 1779, which filled in many of the blank spots on maps of the Pacific. All of Cook's voyages were conducted by Britain to achieve a range of geographical and botanical objectives in Oceania, Australia and New Zealand.
Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882)
Few people know that the story of great travelers and their discoveries must include the name of Charles Darwin, who at the age of 22 set off on a voyage on the brigantine Beagle in 1831 to explore the east coast of South America. On this journey, Charles Darwin sailed around the world in 5 years, collecting a wealth of information about the flora and fauna of our planet, which turned out to be key to Darwin's theory of the evolution of living organisms.
After this long journey, the scientist locked himself in his house in Kent in order to carefully study the collected material and draw the right conclusions. In 1859, that is, 23 years after his trip around the world, Charles Darwin published his work “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,” the main thesis of which was that it is not the strongest living organisms that survive, but the most adapted to environmental conditions. .
Exploring Africa
The great travelers who distinguished themselves in the exploration of Africa are mainly British. One of the famous explorers of the black continent is Dr. Livingstone, who distinguished himself in his studies of the central regions of Africa. Livingstone is credited with the discovery of Victoria Falls. This man is a national hero of Great Britain.
Other famous Britons who distinguished themselves in the exploration of Africa are John Speke and Richard Francis Burton, who made numerous trips to the African continent in the second half of the 19th century. Their most famous journey is the search for the sources of the Nile.
Antarctica exploration
The exploration of the icy southern continent - Antarctica marked new stage in the history of mankind. The British Robert Scott and the Norwegian Roald Amundsen distinguished themselves in conquering the South Pole. Scott was an explorer and officer in the British Royal Navy, he led 2 expeditions to Antarctica, and on January 17, 1912, he and five members of his crew reached the south pole, however, the Norwegian Amundsen was several weeks ahead of him. Robert Scott's entire expedition died by freezing to death in the icy desert of Antarctica. Amundsen, in turn, having visited the South Pole on December 14, 1911, was able to return to his homeland alive.
First woman traveler
The thirst for travel and new discoveries was characteristic not only of men, but also of women. Thus, the first female traveler about whom there is reliable evidence was the Galician (northwestern part of Spain) Ejeria in the 4th century AD. Her travels were associated with holy lands and pilgrimages. Thus, it is known that within 3 years she visited Constantinople, Jerusalem, Sinai, Mesopotamia and Egypt. It is unknown whether Ejeria returned to her homeland.
Great Russian travelers who expanded the borders of Russia
Russia is the largest country in the world by area. Much of this fame owes to Russian travelers and explorers. The great travelers in the table below are given.
Russian travelers - explorers of the planet
Among them, Ivan Kruzenshtern should be noted, who was the first Russian to travel around the globe. We also mention Nikolai Miklouho-Maclay, who was a famous navigator and explorer of Oceania and Southeast Asia. Let us also note Nikolai Przhevalsky, who was one of the most famous explorers of Central Asia in the world.
Russian navigators, along with European ones, are the most famous pioneers who discovered new continents, sections of mountain ranges and vast water areas.
They became discoverers of significant geographical objects, took the first steps in the development of hard-to-reach territories, and traveled around the world. So who are they, the conquerors of the seas, and what exactly did the world learn about thanks to them?
Afanasy Nikitin - the very first Russian traveler
Afanasy Nikitin is rightfully considered the first Russian traveler who managed to visit India and Persia (1468-1474, according to other sources 1466-1472). On the way back he visited Somalia, Turkey, and Muscat. Based on his travels, Afanasy compiled the notes “Walking across the Three Seas,” which became popular and unique historical and literary aids. These notes became the first book in Russian history not written in the format of a story about a pilgrimage, but describing the political, economic and cultural features of the territories.
Afanasy Nikitin
He was able to prove that even being a member of a poor peasant family, you can become a famous explorer and traveler. Streets and embankments in several places are named after him. Russian cities, motor ship, passenger train and aircraft.
Semyon Dezhnev, who founded the Anadyr fortress
Cossack ataman Semyon Dezhnev was an Arctic navigator who became the discoverer of a number of geographical objects. Wherever Semyon Ivanovich served, everywhere he sought to study new and previously unknown things. He was even able to cross the East Siberian Sea on a homemade kocha, going from Indigirka to Alazeya.
In 1643, as part of a detachment of explorers, Semyon Ivanovich discovered Kolyma, where he and his associates founded the city of Srednekolymsk. A year later, Semyon Dezhnev continued his expedition, walked along the Bering Strait (which did not yet have this name) and discovered the easternmost point of the continent, later called Cape Dezhnev. An island, a peninsula, a bay, and a village also bear his name.
Semyon Dezhnev
In 1648, Dezhnev hit the road again. His ship was wrecked in the waters located in the southern part of the Anadyr River. Having arrived on skis, the sailors went up the river and stayed there for the winter. Subsequently this place appeared on geographical maps and received the name Anadyrsky fort. As a result of the expedition, the traveler was able to do detailed descriptions, make a map of those places.
Vitus Jonassen Bering, who organized expeditions to Kamchatka
Two Kamchatka expeditions inscribed the names of Vitus Bering and his associate Alexei Chirikov into the history of marine discoveries. During the first voyage, the navigators conducted research and were able to supplement the geographical atlas with objects located in Northeast Asia and on the Pacific coast of Kamchatka.
The discovery of the Kamchatka and Ozerny peninsulas, the Kamchatka, Krest, Karaginsky bays, Provedeniya Bay, and St. Lawrence Island is also the merit of Bering and Chirikov. At the same time, another strait was found and described, which later became known as the Bering Strait.
Vitus Bering
The second expedition was undertaken by them to find a way to North America and study the Pacific Islands. On this journey, Bering and Chirikov founded the Peter and Paul fort. It took its name from the combined names of their ships (“St. Peter” and “St. Paul”) and subsequently became the city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky.
On the approach to the shores of America, the ships of like-minded people lost sight of each other, due to heavy fog. "St. Peter", controlled by Bering, sailed to the west coast of America, but was caught in a severe storm on the way back - the ship was thrown onto an island. The last minutes of Vitus Bering’s life passed on it, and the island subsequently began to bear his name. Chirikov also reached America on his ship, but completed his voyage safely, having discovered several islands of the Aleutian ridge on the way back.
Khariton and Dmitry Laptev and their “name” sea
Cousins Khariton and Dmitry Laptev were like-minded people and assistants to Vitus Bering. It was he who appointed Dmitry as commander of the ship “Irkutsk”, and his double boat “Yakutsk” was led by Khariton. They took part in the Great Northern Expedition, the purpose of which was to study, accurately describe and map the Russian shores of the ocean, from the Yugorsky Shar to Kamchatka.
Each of the brothers made a significant contribution to the development of new territories. Dmitry became the first navigator to take photographs of the coast from the mouth of the Lena to the mouth of the Kolyma. He compiled detailed maps of these places, using mathematical calculations and astronomical data as a basis.
Khariton and Dmitry Laptev
Khariton Laptev and his associates conducted research on the northernmost section of the Siberian coast. It was he who determined the dimensions and outlines of the huge Taimyr Peninsula - he carried out surveys of its eastern coast, and was able to identify the exact coordinates of the coastal islands. The expedition took place in difficult conditions - a large number of ice, snowstorms, scurvy, ice captivity - Khariton Laptev’s team had to endure a lot. But they continued the work they had started. On this expedition, Laptev's assistant Chelyuskin discovered a cape, which was later named in his honor.
Noting the great contribution of the Laptevs to the development of new territories, members of the Russian Geographical Society decided to name one of the largest seas in the Arctic after them. Also, the strait between the mainland and Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island is named in honor of Dmitry, and Khariton is named after West Coast Taimyr Islands.
Krusenstern and Lisyansky - organizers of the first Russian circumnavigation
Ivan Kruzenshtern and Yuri Lisyansky are the first Russian navigators to circumnavigate the world. Their expedition lasted three years (began in 1803 and ended in 1806). They and their teams set off on two ships, which were named “Nadezhda” and “Neva”. The travelers passed through the Atlantic Ocean and entered the waters of the Pacific Ocean. The sailors used them to reach the Kuril Islands, Kamchatka and Sakhalin.
Ivan Krusenstern
This trip allowed me to collect important information. Based on data obtained by seafarers, a detailed map Pacific Ocean. Another important result of the first Russian round-the-world expedition was the data obtained about the flora and fauna of the Kuril Islands and Kamchatka, local residents, their customs and cultural traditions.
During their journey, the sailors crossed the equator and, according to maritime traditions, could not leave this event without a well-known ritual - a sailor dressed as Neptune greeted Krusenstern and asked why his ship had arrived where the Russian flag had never been. To which I received the answer that they are here solely for the glory and development of domestic science.
Vasily Golovnin - the first navigator who was rescued from Japanese captivity
Russian navigator Vasily Golovnin led two expeditions around the world. In 1806, he, being in the rank of lieutenant, received a new appointment and became commander of the sloop "Diana". Interestingly, this is the only case in the history of the Russian fleet when a lieutenant was entrusted with the control of a ship.
The leadership set the goal of the round-the-world expedition to study the North Pacific Ocean, with special attention to that part of it that is located within the borders of the native country. Diana's path was not easy. The sloop passed the island of Tristan da Cunha, passed the Cape of Hope and entered a port owned by the British. Here the ship was detained by the authorities. The British informed Golovnin about the outbreak of war between the two countries. The Russian ship was not declared captured, but the crew was not allowed to leave the bay. Having spent more than a year in this situation, in mid-May 1809 the Diana, led by Golovnin, tried to escape, which the sailors successfully succeeded in doing - the ship arrived in Kamchatka.
Vasily Golovin
Golovnin received his next important task in 1811 - he was supposed to compile descriptions of the Shantar and Kuril Islands, the shores of the Tatar Strait. During his journey, he was accused of not adhering to the principles of sakoku and was captured by the Japanese for more than 2 years. It was possible to rescue the team from captivity only thanks to good relationship one of the Russian naval officers and an influential Japanese merchant who was able to convince his government of the harmless intentions of the Russians. It is worth noting that before this, no one in history had ever returned from Japanese captivity.
In 1817-1819, Vasily Mikhailovich made another trip around the world on the Kamchatka ship, specially built for this purpose.
Thaddeus Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev - discoverers of Antarctica
Captain of the second rank Thaddeus Bellingshausen was determined to find the truth in the question of the existence of the sixth continent. In 1819, he went out to the open sea, carefully preparing two sloops - Mirny and Vostok. The latter was commanded by his like-minded friend Mikhail Lazarev. The first round-the-world Antarctic expedition set itself other tasks. In addition to finding irrefutable facts confirming or refuting the existence of Antarctica, the travelers planned to explore the waters of three oceans - the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian.
Thaddeus Bellingshausen
The results of this expedition exceeded all expectations. During the 751 days that it lasted, Bellingshausen and Lazarev were able to make several significant geographical discoveries. Of course, the most important of them is the existence of Antarctica, this historical event occurred on January 28, 1820. Also, during the trip, about two dozen islands were found and mapped, sketches of Antarctic views, and images of representatives of the Antarctic fauna were created.
Mikhail Lazarev
Interestingly, attempts to discover Antarctica were made more than once, but none of them were successful. European navigators believed that either it did not exist, or it was located in places that were simply impossible to reach by sea. But the Russian travelers had enough perseverance and determination, so the names of Bellingshausen and Lazarev were included in the lists of the greatest navigators of the world.
