Vasco Da Gama (1460 or 1469 – 1524), the Portuguese explorer, was the first man to sail from Europe around Africa to India. In 1497 he opened the shipping route around the Cape of Good Hope which would become the main spice trade route for centuries. This time was known as the Age of Discovery. On July 8th 1497 Vasco Da Gama’s fleet of four ships sailed forth from Lisbon. They were the Sao Gabriel, the Sao Rafael, the Berrio… (more…)
Captain James Cook (1728-1779) was British explorer, navigator and cartographer in the late 18th Century. His explorations of the Pacific Ocean added previously unknown detail to European maps and led to the establishment of Australia as an English colony. Cook undertook three major voyages in his lifetime. Each voyage returned with scientific discoveries of lands, plants, animals and indigenous peoples previously unknown to European society. The three great Pacific voyages Cook’s first voyage, from 1768 to 1771, was commissioned by… (more…)
Charles Darwin (1809-1882) was a young graduate when he joined the voyage of the HMS Beagle under Captain Robert FitzRoy. For five years from 27 December 1831 to 2 October 1836 he collected fossils and rock samples. The fossils of extinct animals he found lead to his theory of evolution by natural selection. The primary aim of the expedition was a hydrographical survey of the coasts of the southern part of South America. Although he was a paying passenger on… (more…)
Roald Amundsen (1872-1928) of Norway was born into a family of ship owners and captains. He was fascinated with polar exploration from an early age and, as a youth, would sleep with his windows open in the Norwegian winter to condition himself. At 21 Amundsen quit university for a life at sea. Captain Robert Falcon Scott (1868-1912) of the English Royal Navy was inspired by his colleague, Markahm’s, idea for an expedition to the South Pole. He applied to lead… (more…)