History of mankind and travel. Herodotus - the first great traveler and father modern history. Arab and European Travelers of the Middle Ages...

By Masterweb

26.06.2018 14:00

The exploration of our planet took place over several centuries, and many people distinguished themselves, whose names and merits are recorded in many historical books. All the great travelers sought to escape from the routine of existence and look at the world with different eyes. Thirst for new knowledge, curiosity, desire to expand known horizons - all these qualities were inherent in each of them.

About history and travelers

The history of mankind should be taken as a history of travel. It is impossible to understand what would be modern world if previous civilizations had not sent travelers to the frontiers of the then unknown world. The thirst for travel is inherent in the human DNA, because he has always sought to explore something and expand his own world.

The first people 100,000 years ago began to colonize the world, moving from Africa to Asia and Europe. In the era of 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 have possessed the impulse of force of the same nature, the never-ending fuel of explorers - curiosity. Just something that a person does not know or does not understand is enough to create an alluring and irresistible force that cannot be resisted. Further, the article presents the exploits of the great travelers and their discoveries, which had a huge impact on the process of the formation of mankind. 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 around the entire 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 ancient Greece, Plutarch, gave Herodotus the nickname "father of lies." In his books, Herodotus tells about distant countries and about 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' writing style is semi-artistic. Modern historians consider the work of Herodotus to be a paradigm of curiosity. The historical and geographical knowledge introduced by Herodotus had a great influence on the development of Greek culture. Geographic map, which Herodotus compiled, and which included the limits from the Danube to the Nile, and from Iberia to India, over the next 1000 years determined the horizons of the world known at that time. It should be noted that the scientist was very worried that the knowledge he had gained would not be lost by mankind over time, and therefore he outlined them 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 native city only 25 years later, with vast wealth and a harem of wives after having traveled most of the world. If you wonder what great travelers first explored the Muslim world, then you can safely call Ibn Battuta. He traveled to 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, was an ambassador to various sultans, and survived a number of disasters. Ibn Battuta always traveled with a large retinue, and in each 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 peak of its existence, which allowed the traveler to quickly and easily move through many territories.

Like Marco Polo, Battuta did not write his book ("Travel"), but dictated his stories to the Granadian erudite Ibn Khuzai. This work reflects Battuta's lust for enjoying life, which includes tales 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 very popular even 2 centuries before the invention of printing. Marco Polo traveled the world for 24 years. Upon returning to his homeland, he was imprisoned during the war between the trading powers of the Mediterranean: Genoa and Venice. In prison, he dictated stories about his travels to one of his neighbors in misfortune. As a result, in 1298 a book appeared, which was called "Description of the world, dictated by Marco."

Marco Polo, along with his father and uncle, who were famous merchants in jewelry and silk, set off at the age of 17 on a trip to the Far East. During his trip, the great geographical traveler visited such forgotten places as Hormuz Island, the Gobi Desert, the coasts of Vietnam and India. Marco knew 5 foreign languages, was the representative of the great Mongol Khan Kublai for 17 years.

Note that Marco Polo was not the first European to visit Asia, however, he was the first to draw up its detailed geographical description. 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 confess his lies, to which the great traveler replied that he had not said even half of what he had seen.

Christopher Columbus (1451 - 1506)

Talking about travelers great era discoveries, first of all, we should mention Christopher Columbus, who shifted the backbone of the human economy to the west and marked the beginning of a new era in history. Historians note that when Columbus sailed to the discovery of the New World, then most often in his records logbook the word "gold" occurs, not the word "earth".

Christopher Columbus, given the information provided by Marco Polo, believed he could achieve Far East full of gold and riches, sailing west. As a result, on August 2, 1492, he sails from Spain on three ships and heads west. The journey across the Atlantic Ocean lasted longer than 2 months, and on October 11, Rodrigo Triana saw land from the ship La Pinta. This day radically changed the lives of Europeans and Americans.

Like many great travelers of the era of great discoveries, 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 swim to India through the west.

Ferdinand Magellan and Juan Sebastian Elcano (XVI 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 through a narrow strait from Atlantic Ocean in the Pacific, which Magellan so named in honor of its calm waters.

In the 16th century, there was a serious race for dominance on 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 looked for ways to get to the spice islands (modern Indonesia) and to India through the west. Ferdinand Magellan became just the navigator who was supposed to find new way to the East through the West.

In September 1519, 5 ships with total sailors in 237 people went to the West, led by Ferdinand Magellan. Three years later, only one ship returned with 18 sailors on board, led by Juan Sebastian Elcano. It was the first time that a man swam around everything the globe. The great traveler Ferdinand Magellan himself died in the Philippine Islands.

James Cook (1728-1779)

This British great traveler 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 blank spots on the maps of the Pacific. All of Cook's travels were undertaken by the UK to achieve a range of geographic and botanical objectives in Oceania, Australia and New Zealand.

Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882)

Few people know that in the story of the great travelers and their discoveries, the name of Charles Darwin, who, at the age of 22, went on a trip on the Beagle brigantine in 1831 to explore east coast South America. On this journey, Charles Darwin sailed around the world in 5 years, while collecting huge 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 the circumnavigation of the world, Charles Darwin published his work On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, the main thesis of which was that not the strongest living organisms survive, but the most adapted to environmental conditions. .

Exploring Africa

The great travelers who have distinguished themselves in the exploration of Africa are mainly the British. One of the famous explorers of the black continent is Dr. Livingston, who distinguished himself in research central regions Africa. Livingston owns the discovery of the 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 many trips to the African continent in the second half of the 19th century. Their most famous journey is the search for the source of the Nile.

Exploration of Antarctica

The exploration of the icy southern continent - Antarctica marked a new stage in the history of mankind. Briton Robert Scott and Norwegian Roald Amundsen distinguished themselves in the conquest of the South Pole. Scott was an explorer and officer in the Royal Navy of Britain, he led 2 expeditions to Antarctica, and on January 17, 1912, he, along with five members of his team, reached the South Pole, however, the Norwegian Amundsen was ahead of him by several weeks. The entire expedition of Robert Scott died, freezing 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 female traveler

The thirst for travel and new discoveries was characteristic not only of men, but also of women. So, the first woman traveler, about whom there is reliable evidence, was the Galician (northwestern part of Spain) Echeria in the 4th century AD. Her travels were connected with the holy lands and pilgrimages. So, it is known that within 3 years she visited Constantinople, Jerusalem, Sinai, Mesopotamia and Egypt. It is unknown if Echeria returned to her homeland.

Great Russian travelers who expanded the borders of Russia

Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of area. In many ways, this fame is due to Russian travelers and researchers. 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 South-East Asia. Let us also mention Nikolai Przhevalsky, who was one of the most famous explorers of Central Asia in the world.

Kievyan street, 16 0016 Armenia, Yerevan +374 11 233 255

Pyotr Beketov (1600 - after 1661) - Russian explorer of the 17th century, explorer of Siberia.

One of the most exemplary "Russian conquistadors", who honestly served his cause and did not get involved in any adventures, Beketov was the founder of several Russian cities.

Biography

Almost nothing is known about the early life of many prominent personalities of the 17th century; Pyotr Beketov is no exception in this sense. Information about him appears only in the 1620s, when he got a job as an archer in the civil service.

Some time later, in 1627, Beketov sent a petition to the tsar, in which he asked to be given the position of centurion in order to have at least some decent salary.

Vasily Poyarkov is one of the discoverers of Siberia. He made a huge contribution to the development of these lands.

In the 17th century Russian empire dreamed of annexing Siberia to their lands. It was a huge and rich territory, where many peoples lived.

Special expeditions were assembled to study and annex the Siberian lands. One of them was headed by Vasily Poyarkov.

Years of life

Accurate information about the years of life of Vasily Poyarkov has not been preserved. Only documentary sources have survived to this day, in which there is information about his activities. They date back to 1610-1667.

Vasily Ermolaevich Bugor was an Arctic navigator and one of the pioneers of Siberia.

He explored unexplored territories, helping the Yenisei governor A. Oshanin.

Years of life

The exact years of Bugor's life are unknown, but historians believe that he was born around 1600 and died in 1668.

Biography of Bugor

Bugor did not have a noble origin. He was a Cossack foreman, participated in the construction of prisons and the study of Siberia.

Mikhail Stadukhin is a explorer and polar navigator of the 17th century who explored North-Eastern Siberia, a man who was one of the first to visit the north of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, as well as the Kolyma, Gizhiga, Penzhina and Anadyr rivers.

Geographic discoveries M. Stadukhin became a huge contribution to the discovery, study of the Russian coast of the Arctic and the Pacific Ocean.

Years of life of Mikhail Stadukhin

Date of birth unknown, died 1666.

Biography of Mikhail Stadukhin

It is not known for certain what year Mikhail Stadukhin was born. Presumably, the Russian explorer was born into a family of Pomors in one of the villages on the Pinega River.

The development of Siberia in the 17th century is often presented as major event in the history of modern Russia.

It is referred to as the Russian analogue of the Great Geographical Discoveries European world and conquest of the New World.

In part, this is a fair comparison. In the context of the emergence of the all-Russian market and the rise of the economy, the development of new trade routes is an important stage in the development of the country.

S. I. Chelyuskin is a sea traveler, researcher, member of a long-term expedition, who made serious geographical discoveries that were ignored during his lifetime.

Origin

Chelyuskin's ancestors (according to the documents of the 17th century - the Chelyustkins) were at first quite successful people, occupied important positions, were well promoted, were rich

But under Peter the Great, Semyon Ivanovich's father fell into disgrace (he was among the rebellious Moscow archers) and until the end of his life his family vegetated in the wilderness, barely making ends meet.

Exact information about where and when S. I. Chelyuskin was born has not yet been found, approximately 1700.

Education

In 1714, the noble undergrowth Semyon Chelyuskin was admitted to a Moscow school, where boys were taught exact and navigational sciences. Here, the future researcher comprehended the wisdom of mathematics, geography, astronomy.

He was a smart and diligent student. In 1721, after graduating, he was recommended for a certificate for navigational activity.

Yu. F. Lisyansky - an outstanding Russian navigator, who, together with Kruzenshtern, made trip around the world.

Youth

Y. Lisyansky was born in the Little Russian city of Nizhyn in a simple family of a priest in 1773. Since childhood, he dreamed of the sea, so he entered the Naval Cadet Corps and successfully graduated from it. By appointment, he served on the frigate "Podrazhislav" as part of the squadron of Admiral S.K. Greig. He was a participant in the Gogland and several other naval battles in the war with the Swedes, served as a volunteer in the British fleet, participated in battles with the French on the shores North America, made voyages to the Antilles and India.

circumnavigation

Returning to his homeland, Lisyansky was appointed commander of the Neva sloop. This ship was sent on a round-the-world expedition under the leadership of I.F. Kruzenshtern, who commanded the second Nadezhda sloop. These two Russian ships left their homeland in the middle of summer 1803 from Kronstadt. In November 1804, Yu. F. Lisyansky and I. F. Kruzenshtern were the first in the history of the Russian fleet to cross the equator line. In February of the same year, both ships bypassed Cape Horn, entering the Pacific waters. Here the ships separated.

Khariton Prokofievich Laptev is one of the largest Russian polar explorers. The future conqueror of the Arctic was born in the village of Pekarevo, located near Pskov, in 1700. In 1715, young Laptev entered the St. Petersburg Naval Academy, which he successfully completed three years later and entered the fleet as a midshipman. In 1726 he was promoted to midshipman. In 1734, he took part in the war against Stanislav Leshchinsky, who had been proclaimed the Polish king a year earlier.

The Mitava frigate, on which Laptev served, is captured by the French in the course of hostilities, who resorted to deception for this. Upon returning to his homeland, Laptev, along with the rest of the Mitava officers, is sentenced to death for surrendering the ship without a fight, but the crew is found not guilty in time. After this misunderstanding, Khariton Prokofievich returns to the service. In 1737 he was promoted to lieutenant, and was appointed commander of a detachment in the Great Northern Expedition. The purpose of the campaign was to explore the Arctic coast between the Lena and the Yenisei, another great Russian polar explorer, Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev, a cousin of Khariton Prokofievich, also took part in it. In the early spring of 1738, members of the expedition arrived in Yakutsk.

Dmitry Yakovlevich Laptev is a famous Russian traveler who, together with his cousin Khariton Prokofievich Laptev, became famous for his polar expeditions.

Born in 1701 into a family of small landed nobles in the village of Bolotovo, Pskov province. In 1715, together with his cousin, he began studying at the Naval Academy in St. Petersburg. Upon graduation in 1718, Laptev was promoted to midshipman on one of the ships of the Kronstadt squadron.

In 1721 he received the rank of midshipman, and in 1724 he became a non-commissioned lieutenant. From 1727 to 1729 he commanded the frigate Saint James.

The biography of the great polar explorer Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov is unusual and tragic. He was born in 1877 in a small Azov village, today this village bears the name of the great polar explorer. George with early years learned hard work. His father, a simple Azov fisherman, went missing for several years. The boy had to work to feed his mother and eight brothers and sisters. He did not have time to learn to read and write, and until the age of 14 he could neither read nor write.

After his father returned home, in two years he graduated from the parochial school and ran away from home. What the boy did in that life and how he made his way to the desired goal is little known. But at the age of 21, Georgy Sedov received a diploma as a long-distance navigator. At the age of 24, after successfully passing the exam, he receives the rank of lieutenant.
His first hydrographic expedition was to the Arctic Ocean. northern ice have long been beckoning a young sailor. He dreamed of conquering the North Pole and proving that a Russian person could do it.

The Russo-Japanese War began, and the expedition to the North Pole had to be postponed. But the idea does not leave him. He writes articles in which he proves that the development of the Northern Sea Route is necessary for Russia. He worked on the Caspian Sea, in the Kolyma, explored the Krestovaya Bay in Novaya Zemlya.

travelers

in the paintings of artists N. Solomin and S. Yakovlev

Brilliant pages in the history of geographical discoveries were written by Russian travelers. They not only studied the vast expanses of the Motherland, but also made discoveries and researches far beyond its borders.

Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev (born around 1605 - died in 1672/3) - a famous explorer and navigator. Served in Tobolsk, Yeniseisk, Yakutsk; went on long and dangerous trips to the rivers Yana, Indigirka, Oymyakon. Departing in 1648 from the Nizhne-Kolyma prison, Dezhnev sailed from the Arctic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and practically proved the existence of a strait separating Asia from America.

Faddey Faddeevich Bellingshausen (1779-1862) - famous navigator, a prominent scientist. He participated in the expedition of Kruzenshtern and Lisyaneky, then commanded together with M.P. Lazarev in 1819-1821 the sloops Vostok and Mirny. This expedition to the South Pole made a great geographical discovery - it reached the shores of Antarctica, and also conducted extensive research in the equatorial and tropical zones of the Pacific Ocean and made adjustments to sea charts.

Pyotr Petrovich Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky (1827-1914) - a remarkable Russian geographer and traveler. The first Europeans penetrated the hard-to-reach areas of the Central Tien Shan and established that the Chu River does not flow into Issyk-Kul Lake, discovered the sources of the Naryn and Sarydzhaz rivers, the second highest Tien Shan peak - Khan Tengri, huge glaciers covering its slopes.

Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov (1863-1936) was a remarkable Russian traveler and explorer of Central Asia. Participating in the expeditions of N. M. Przhevalsky, M. V. Pevtsov and V. I. Roborovsky, he repeatedly crossed Mongolia and China. From 1899 to 1926 Kozlov led three expeditions to Central Asia. He studied the mountains of the Mongolian Altai, penetrated into the least explored areas of the Tibetan highlands; in the middle of the Mongolian deserts opened ancient city Khara-Khoto; excavated the Khentei-Noinulinsky mounds, enriching science with versatile information about the regions of Central Asia.

Nikolai Nikolaevich Miklukho-Maclay (1846 - 1888) - famous Russian traveler and scientist, anthropologist and ethnographer. He spent twelve years in New Guinea, Malacca, Australia and the Pacific Islands, studying the peoples inhabiting them. The creator of modern anthropology, Miklouho-Maclay was a passionate fighter against racial discrimination and colonial oppression.

Nikolai Mikhailovich Przhevalsky (1839-1888) - the great Russian traveler and geographer. Already after the first expedition to the Ussuri region (1867-1869) he became famous as a talented explorer of distant and little-known lands. He conducted four expeditions to Central Asia, during which he crossed vast expanses from the Sayan Mountains to Tibet and from the Tien Shan to the Khingan.

Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (1788-1851) - famous navigator, naval commander and research scientist. Together with F. Sh. Bellingshausen, he commanded a remarkable sea expedition that discovered Antarctica. Even before that, he went around the world on the ship "Suvorov", and after sailing to Antarctica he made the third trip around the world, commanding the frigate "Cruiser". The last seventeen years of his life he devoted to the education of Russian sailors and the construction of the Black Sea Fleet.

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Ivan Fedorovich Kruzenshtern (1770-1846) - a remarkable navigator and research scientist. Commanded the first Russian round the world expedition from 1803 to 1806. The expedition refined the map of the Pacific Ocean, collected information about the nature and inhabitants of Sakhalin, the Pacific Islands and Kamchatka. Kruzenshtern published a description of his journey and compiled a two-volume atlas of the Pacific Ocean.

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Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov (1877-1914) - a brave navigator, explorer of the Arctic. In 1912 he proposed a trip to the North Pole. Having reached the ship "St. fok” of Franz Josef Land, Sedov made a bold attempt to reach the North Pole by dog ​​sled, but died on the way to his cherished goal.

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Gennady Ivanovich Nevelskoy (1813-1876) - an outstanding researcher of the Far East. He spent about six years in the Amur region, studying its nature. In 1849, Nevelskoy while sailing along Sea of ​​Okhotsk proved that Sakhalin is an island separated from the mainland by the navigable Tatar Strait.

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Vladimir Afanasyevich Obruchev (1863-1956) - a remarkable traveler, the greatest Soviet geologist and geographer. After research in Central Asia(1886) and numerous expeditions to Eastern Siberia, in 1892, the scientist went to Mongolia and China for two years, having covered more than thirteen and a half thousand kilometers during this time. Obruchev headed major geological research in Siberia.

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Afanasy Nikitin (died 1472) - the first Russian traveler to India and Persia. From 1466 to 1472 he wandered in foreign lands. All this time he kept travel notes, which he called "Journey beyond the three seas." In them, he told about his voyage along the Volga and the Caspian Sea to Persia and from there across the Arabian Sea to distant India, described Indian cities and villages, the nature of the country, the customs and customs of its people, reported interesting information from the history of India.

world travelers

Find out for yourself what discoveries are made by them.

Amundsen
Vasco da Gama
Vespucci
Hudson
Humboldt
Dampier
Drake
Durville
Cabot
Columbus
Cook
La Perouse
livingston
Magellan
Mercator
Nansen
Piri
Pissarro
Polo
Stanley
tasman
Enrique

Humanity owes these brave men not only interesting information, but also scientific discoveries.

And in the times that we call "prehistoric", there were people who could not sit still, who aspired there, beyond the horizon. They went into complete obscurity, not having at their disposal worthy Vehicle and ways of protection, thinking not about themselves, but about the great goal that they set and eventually achieved.

Hanno - 505 BC

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Carthaginian (resident of the state of Carthage, located on the territory of modern Tunisia - approx. ed.) Gannon considered the very first of all known travelers. The Carthaginian Senate equipped 60 galleys, each of which had 50 rowers. This fleet was to make a risky expedition - to reach the western coast of Africa and colonize the land. Hanno was at the head of the expedition. In total, thirty thousand people went on a trip - today they would be called settlers: their mission was to develop new lands.

Sailing across the Atlantic Ocean was then incredibly dangerous. Nevertheless, Gannon and his companions, having overcome all the obstacles on the way, reached the shores West Africa. On one of the islands (apparently belonging to the group canary islands) travelers discovered many gorillas and mistook them for " wild people". Hoping to establish contact, the Carthaginians captured three "savages", but soon, due to the aggressiveness of the gorillas, they had to be killed.

On other islands, the Carthaginians entered into friendly and commercial alliances with local residents. Having reached the South Horn, the travelers realized that they risked being left without supplies - they were running out. Then Gannon decided to return home. In Carthage, in the temple of Moloch, in memory of this journey, a large marble slab was placed on which a description of the great journey was carved.

Herodotus (484 - 425 BC)

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Ancient Greek scientist - historian and geographer, Herodotus He became famous as the "father of history", as well as one of the first travelers. He made the first more or less exact description real world for their contemporaries - based on their own observations and on the stories of other people.

To obtain the information necessary to write his most famous work - "History" - Herodotus traveled all the countries available at that time. He traveled to Greece and Egypt, Persia and Babylonia, Asia Minor and Southern Italy, on islands mediterranean sea and in the Crimea.

Herodotus began to travel at about 20 years old, and his goal was precisely science - he sought to collect as much information as possible about ongoing events, about the peoples who inhabited different lands. His first journey resulted in a major study of those peoples who at that time were not yet known to the Greeks. Herodotus wrote in his writings about the Greco-Persian wars, about the manners and customs of the Persians.

He was the first to describe Scythia and the peoples inhabiting this country, gave Full description the river Istr (Danube), which flows through the whole of Europe, and Borisfen (Dnieper). In the writings of Herodotus, much attention is paid to Scythian myths - for example, about Hercules. He also writes about the Amazons - female warriors.

Later, Herodotus visited Northeast Africa, in Cyrene, and was the first in history to describe these territories. Herodotus collected very interesting information about Egypt, and modern scholars for the most part confirm the correctness of his descriptions.

Pytheas (340 BC)

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Tragedy Pythea lies in the fact that his stories about distant countries aroused distrust and ridicule among his contemporaries. But his courage deserves respect - he dared to embark on a dangerous voyage across the Atlantic on a single ship. The expedition of Pytheas was heading to the North - they hoped to find in uncharted lands tin and amber. Such an order was given to Pytheas by his fellow merchants from the city of Massilia (Marseille). Pytheas did an excellent job with the assignment, while making several important geographical discoveries.

For example, moving north, he noticed that the farther to the northern latitudes, the longer the day becomes. Thus, a relationship was established between the length of day and night and geographical latitude. In addition, he was the first to guess that the ebbs and flows are associated with the attraction of the moon. Pytheas discovered that the North Star cannot serve as an accurate guide to the north. He was able to make all these and other discoveries thanks to his travels.

Eudoxus (IIcentury BC)

Greek scientist and geographer Eudoxus He began his travels by visiting Egypt and India.

Having hired a large ship and two launches, Eudoxus sailed through the waters of the Atlantic. It is not known how far he made his way. Scholars are wary of putting too much trust in his evidence because there is no credible evidence. However, it is known for sure that by order of the pharaoh Ptolemy Eudoxus visited India, sailing there accompanied by an Indian guide. This was followed by a second trip to India - Eudoxus was sent there by the queen Cleopatra, to bring Indian incense.

Deciding to go around Africa, the brave traveler almost carried out a dizzying plan, but died at the very end of the journey.

Strabo (64/63 BC - 23/24 AD)

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Ancient Greek traveler and geographer Strabo was known for his comprehensive education. He left behind an amazing work - "Geography" in 17 volumes, which contained the most detailed and diverse information about many countries and peoples. The chapters on the Trans-Caspian lands, on Asian Scythia, and on the Caucasus are relevant and interesting even today.

Strabo traveled a lot. Repeatedly visited Egypt and compiled detailed description Alexandria, described the Egyptian pyramids, talked a lot about the wonders of the world.

Strabo lived a long life and died in Rome. His "Geography" is the most important and interesting monument ancient Greek science.

If you think that with the departure of the Age of Discovery, outstanding travelers have sunk into oblivion, then you are mistaken! Our contemporaries also made the most amazing journeys. Among them are scientists who went in search of evidence for their theories, researchers sea ​​depths, and just adventurers who ventured to travel 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, inventor. The oceans revealed many of its secrets, showed the beauty of its depths still inaccessible to people for a huge number of diving enthusiasts. We can say that Captain Cousteau is the father of modern diving, because it was he who created the main apparatus for diving. Being engaged in research of the underwater world of our planet, Cousteau created the famous floating laboratory "Callisto" and the first apparatus for diving "Denise".

Jacques-Yves Cousteau captivated millions of people by showing them on movie screens how beautiful undersea world, giving the opportunity to see what was still inaccessible to man.

Thor Heyerdahl

The name of the most famous Norwegian of the 20th century is written in his native language as "Thor", just like the name of one of the main gods of Norse mythology, Thor. He made many trips on makeshift watercrafts of contacts between ancient civilizations. Heyerdahl proved in practice his theory that the inhabitants of South America visited the islands of Polynesia, since the scientific world did not perceive his ideas.

Together with his team, in 101 days, having sailed 4300 miles, he reached the atoll of Raroia. It was one of his most famous voyages, the Kon-Tiki Expedition, on a makeshift raft. The film he shot during his trip won an Oscar in 1951.

And in 1969, he went on a new dangerous expedition on a papyrus boat to prove, to prove the possibility of crossing the Atlantic Ocean by African peoples. However, the first journey of Thor Heyerdahl on the boat "Ra" ended in failure, the boat sank, not reaching just 600 miles from 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, our compatriot Yuri Senkevich was the doctor on this expedition. Heyerdahl later traveled to the Maldives, Peru and Tenerife.

Yuri Senkevich

The popular TV presenter of the "Club of Travelers" program, Yuri Senkevich, was included in the list of the most famous travelers not only as the doctor of the Thor Heyerdahl expedition. His "track record" of the traveler is respected:

as a doctor-researcher Senkevich was trained to participate in a space flight,
participated in the 12th Antarctic expedition to the station "Vostok" in order to study human behavior in extreme conditions,
traveled on the papyrus boat "Ra", then on the "Ra-2" and in Indian Ocean on the Tigris.

Millions of Soviet TV viewers were able to see the world, as they joked then "through the eyes of Senkevich." By the way, the program "Cinema Travel Club" was listed 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 of 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.

Interesting fact about Nikolai Nikolaevich himself - his great-great-great-grandfather was Metropolitan Filaret of Moscow, and his maternal great-great-grandfather Ivan Romanovich von Dreiling was an orderly of Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov.

Nikolai Drozdov traveled the whole 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, twice went to the North Pole, passed along the Northern Sea Route on an icebreaker " Yamal", sailed along the coasts of Alaska and Canada on the "Discoverer".

Fedor Konyukhov

A lone traveler who conquered what seemed impossible to conquer, more than once overcame a path that could not be walked alone - the great contemporary Fyodor Konyukhov. The first among travelers who conquered the North and South Poles, the seas, oceans and highest peaks world, which is proved by more than 40 expeditions made by him to the most inaccessible places on our planet. Among them are five round-the-world trips, a solo voyage across the Atlantic (which, by the way, he crossed more than once) on a rowboat. Konyukhov was the first to cross Pacific Ocean from continent to continent.

But the life of our famous compatriot is not filled with travel alone - Fedor Konyukhov became the youngest member of the Union of Artists of the USSR and the author of twelve travel books. There were new plans ahead: a flight around the world on hot-air balloon and circumnavigation 80 days for the Jules Verne Cup, as well as immersion in Mariana Trench. However, having taken the priesthood in 2010, Fedor Konyukhov decided not to travel anymore, but ... the ways of the Lord are inscrutable and famous traveler again at the helm. In the spring of this year, he "beat" the Russian record and stayed in the air on a balloon for 19 hours and 10 minutes.

Bear Grylls

Fame came to the young English traveler thanks to the highest-rated television show on the Discovery channel, Survive at Any Cost, which first aired in October 2006. TV presenter and traveler not just "entertains" the audience great views most amazing places planet, its goal is to bring to the audience life recommendations that may come in handy in unforeseen situations.

The list of his travels is respectable: he sailed around british isles in thirty days, crossed in an inflatable boat North Atlantic, flew over the Angel Falls in a steam-powered plane, flew over the Himalayas on a paraglider, led an expedition to one of the farthest unclimbed peaks in Antarctica, and had a… gala dinner in a balloon at an altitude of more than seven thousand meters! Most of Grylls' expeditions are for charitable purposes.

Abby Sunderland

Not only men can boast of friendship with the wind of wandering - Abby Sunderland, a young traveler who at the age of 16 alone made a trip around the world on a yacht, will give odds 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 to 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 yacht's hull 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 whole month later, Australian rescuers in the zone of the most severe storm found the lost yacht and Abby alive and unharmed. Who then will say that a woman has no place on a ship?

Jason Lewis

And, finally, the most original of modern travelers, who spent 13 years on a round-the-world trip! Why so long? It's just that Jason has abandoned all technology and all the achievements of civilization. The former janitor, along with his friend Steve Smith, went around the world on a bicycle, 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 the journey for 9 months after an accident. After recovering, Lewis goes to Hawaii, from where he sails on a pedal boat to Australia, where he had to spend some time earning money for his further trip ... selling T-shirts.

In 2005, he reaches Singapore, then crosses China and India on a bicycle. By March 2007, he reached Africa and also crossed all of Europe on a bicycle: Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, Germany and Belgium. Having crossed the English Channel, in October 2007, Jason Lewis returned to London.