Great travelers of our time. Great travelers: list, discoveries and interesting facts

Preface.

The 19th century was the century of exploration of the interiors of continents. The expeditions of the great Russian travelers Semenov Tien-Shansky, Przhevalsky and many others, who opened the mountainous and desert regions of Central Asia to the world, became especially famous. Based on the research results of these expeditions, multi-volume publications were published with detailed description different countries. Travelers' diaries were read in the houses of the intelligentsia and high society salons. In the 19th century, the Earth became an increasingly populated and studied planet.

Pyotr Semenov Tien-Shansky (1827-1914)

In the mid-19th century, little was known about the mountain range called Inner Asia. The “Heavenly Mountains” - Tien Shan - were mentioned only in scanty Chinese sources. 27-year-old Pyotr Semenov was already quite well known in scientific circles. He committed big Adventure By European Russia, was the secretary of the Department of Physical Geography of the Russian Geographical Society, and was involved in the translation into Russian of the work of the German geographer Karl Ritter “Geography of Asia”.
European explorers have long been making plans to travel to the Tien Shan. The great Alexander Humboldt also dreamed about this. Conversations with Humboldt finally strengthened Pyotr Semyonov’s decision to head to the “Heavenly Mountains”.

The expedition required careful preparation, and only at the end of August 1858 Semyonov and his companions reached Fort Verny (now Alma-Ata). It was already too late to go to the mountains, and so the travelers decided to make a hike to the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul. At one of the passes, a majestic panorama of the Central Tien Shan unfolded in front of them. Continuous chain mountain peaks seemed to grow out of the blue waters of the lake. None of the Europeans have yet seen it. Thanks to Semenov, the exact outlines of the lake were first plotted on geographical map. Winter and spring flew by quickly. Semyonov processed botanical and geological collections and prepared for a new journey. Returning to the eastern shore of Issyk-Kul, on June 21, 1857, with a large detachment of 48 Cossacks and 12 local residents, he set off on an unknown path through the Tien Shan.
This expedition, perhaps, turned out to be unique in all history. geographical discoveries. It lasted less three months, but its results are truly amazing. “Heavenly Mountains” have lost their aura of mystery.

Already on the fourth day of the hike, the travelers saw Khan Tengri. For a long time this peak was considered the highest point of the Tien Shan (6995 m). Only in 1943, topographers established that the peak, located 20 km from Khan Tengri, has a greater height (7439 m). It was called Pobeda Peak.
His contemporaries were shocked by the abundance of discoveries that resulted from the expedition.
Dry statistics speak for themselves. 23 mountain passes were surveyed, the heights of 50 peaks were determined; 300 rock samples, collections of insects and mollusks, 1000 plant specimens were collected (many of them were unknown to science). Vegetation zones are described in detail; This description made it possible to paint such a vivid botanical and geographical picture that subsequently it remained to add only individual touches and additions to it. In addition, two transverse geological sections of the Tien Shan were further obtained, which contributed to a more in-depth study of the geology of Central Asia.

And that's not all. It was possible to determine the height of the Tien Shan snow line, establish the existence of alpine-type glaciers and, finally, refute Humboldt's idea of Tien Shan volcanism.

Semyonov understood that everything he saw in the summer of 1857 was only the beginning of extensive research and that several more expeditions would be needed to comprehensively study the “Heavenly Mountains”.
He just didn’t know when he left Verny in mid-September of the same year that he was saying goodbye to them forever. Such was his further fate that he never had to admire the majestic Khan Tengri again.

Returning to St. Petersburg, Semyonov presented to the Geographical Society a plan for a new expedition to the Tien Shan, which he intended to undertake in 1860-1861. However, the vice-chairman of the society, F.P. Litke, told him that there were no funds to equip the expedition and “it would hardly be possible to obtain permission for it.” Quite unexpectedly for himself, Semenov in February 1859 was appointed head of the affairs of the Editorial Commissions for preparation for the peasant reform.
Below is a quick list of the actions that Semyonov carries out. He is actively involved in preparing for the publication of a map of European Russia and the Caucasus. Edits the fundamental “Geographical-Statistical Dictionary” and writes the most important articles for it. Develops a project for the All-Russian population census (it took place in 1897). Essentially he becomes the founder economic geography Russia. When he manages to find time, he makes short excursions to different parts of the country. Fascinated by entomology, he collected a collection of beetles: by the end of his life it numbered 700 thousand specimens and was the largest in the world.

For almost half a century, Semyonov headed the Russian Geographical Society. Under his leadership, it became a genuine “headquarters” of geographical research conducted by Russian travelers - Kropotkin, Potanin, Przhevalsky, Obruchev and others. Semyonov developed routes and expedition programs and achieved them material support. He was completing his life path world famous scientist. More than 60 academies and scientific institutions in Europe and Russia elected him as a member and honorary member. His name is immortalized in 11 geographical names in Asia, North America and Spitsbergen, and one of the peaks of the Mongolian Altai is named “Pyotr Petrovich”.

Accidental pneumonia brought Semenov Tian-Shansky to his grave on February 26, 1914 at the age of 87 years. Contemporaries recalled that his amazing creative energy, clarity of mind and phenomenal memory did not betray him until his very last days.
Of his many awards, he was most proud of the Karl Ritter Medal, which was awarded to him by the Berlin Geographical Society in 1900. It was made of silver. The only time the medal was minted from gold was when it was intended for Semyonov Tien-Shansky...

Nikolai Przhevalsky (1839-1888)

The blow of fate was unexpected and insidious: at the very beginning of another expedition to Central Asia, the explorer Nikolai Przhevalsky, languishing with thirst, drank water from a natural stream - and now he, a man of iron health, was dying in the arms of his comrades from typhoid fever on the shore of Lake Issyk -Kul.
He was at the zenith of his fame: 24 scientific institutions in Russia and Europe elected him as an honorary member, and geographical societies in many countries awarded him their highest awards. Presenting him with a gold medal, British geographers compared
his travels with those of the famous Marco Polo.
During his wandering life, he walked 35 thousand km, slightly “falling short” of the length of the equator.
And so he died...
Przhevalsky dreamed of traveling from an early age and persistently prepared for it. But the Crimean War broke out - he joined the army as a private. And then years of study at the Academy of the General Staff. However, a military career did not at all attract him. Przhevalsky’s stay at the Academy was marked only by the compilation of the “Military Statistical Review of the Amur Region.”
Nevertheless, this work allowed him to become a member of the Geographical Society.

At the beginning of 1867, Przhevalsky submitted to the Society a plan for a large and risky expedition to Central Asia. However, the young officer’s insolence seemed excessive, and the matter was limited to his business trip to the Ussuri region with permission to “conduct any scientific research.” But Przhevalsky greeted this decision with delight.
On this first trip, Przhevalsky made the most Full description Ussuri region and gained valuable expeditionary experience. Now they believed in him: there were no obstacles to travel to Mongolia and the country of the Tanguts - Northern Tibet, which he dreamed of.

Over the four years of the expedition (1870 - 1873), it was possible to make significant amendments to the geographical map.
In 1876, he again headed for Tibet. Przhevalsky was the first European to achieve mysterious lake Lop Nor, opens the previously unknown Altyndag ridge and determines the exact border of the Tibetan Plateau, establishing that it begins 300 km further north than previously thought. But this time he failed to penetrate into the depths of this country, almost unknown to Europeans.
And yet, three years later, the Russian explorer reached the treasured highlands. The absolute lack of exploration of this area attracted Przhevalsky, who sent him here in the early 1880s. your expedition. This was his most fruitful journey, crowned with many discoveries. True, Przhevalsky was never able to discover the source of the Yellow River (it was found only very recently), but the Russian expedition examined in detail the watershed between the Yellow River - Yellow River and the largest Blue River in China and Eurasia - the Yangtze. Previously unknown ridges were put on the map. Przhevalsky gave them names: Columbus Ridge, Moskovsky Ridge, Russian Ridge. He named one of the peaks of the latter the Kremlin. Subsequently, a ridge appeared in this mountain system, immortalizing the name of Przhevalsky himself.

Processing the results of this expedition took a long time and was completed only in March 1888.
During all his expeditions, Przhevalsky, being a professional geographer, made discoveries that could bring fame to any zoologist or botanist. He described a wild horse (Przewalski's horse), a wild camel and a Tibetan bear, several new species of birds, fish and reptiles, hundreds of plant species...
And again he was getting ready to go. Tibet beckoned him again. This time Przhevalsky firmly decided to visit Lhasa.
But all plans collapsed. He died in his tent, barely starting the journey. Before his death, he asked his companions to bury him “certainly on the shores of Issyk-Kul, in a marching expedition uniform...”.
On November 1, 1888, Nikolai Mikhailovich Przhevalsky passed away. Last request it was completed.
On the monument to Przhevalsky there is an inscription: “The first explorer of the nature of Central Asia.” And ten steps carved into the rock lead to this inscription. Ten - according to the number of expeditions undertaken by the remarkable traveler, including the last one, interrupted so tragically.

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One of important stages in the history of human development is the era of pioneers. Maps with the seas marked on them are refined, ships are improved, and leaders send their sailors to capture new lands.

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Feature of the era

The term “great geographical discoveries” conventionally unites historical events, starting from the mid-15th century and ending in the mid-17th. Europeans were actively exploring new lands.

The emergence of this era had its own prerequisites: the search for new trade routes and the development of navigation. Before the 15th century, the British already knew North America with Iceland. History included many famous travelers, among whom were Afanasy Nikitin, Rubrik and others.

Important! Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal began the great era of geographical discoveries; this event took place at the beginning of the 15th century.

First achievements

Geographical science of that time was in serious decline. Lone sailors tried to share their discoveries with the public, but this did not produce results, and there was more fiction in their stories than truth. Data about what and who discovered at sea or on the coastal strip was lost and forgotten; no one had updated the maps for a long time. The skippers were simply afraid to go out to sea, because not everyone had navigation skills.

Henry built a citadel near Cape Sagres, created a school of navigation and sent expeditions, collecting information about the winds at sea, distant peoples and shores. The period of great geographical discoveries began with his activities.

Among the discoveries of Portuguese travelers are:

Madeira Island,
West Coast of Africa,
Cape Verde,
Cape of Good Hope,
Azores,
Congo River.

Why was it necessary to find new lands?

The list of reasons for the advent of the era of navigation includes:

active development of crafts and trade;
the growth of European cities during the 15th and 16th centuries;
depletion of known precious metals mines;
the development of maritime navigation and the appearance of the compass;
interruption of economic ties between Southern Europe and China and India after .

Important points

Significant periods that have gone down in history, times when famous travelers made their trips and expeditions:

The Age of Discovery began in 1492, when America was discovered;

1500 - exploration of the mouth of the Amazon;
1513 - Vasco de Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean;
1519-1553 – conquest of South America;
1576-1629 – Russian campaigns in Siberia;
1603-1638 - exploration of Canada;
1642-1643 – visit to Tasmania and New Zealand;
1648 – exploration of Kamchatka.

Conquest of South America

Spanish and Portuguese sailors

At the same time as the Portuguese, famous travelers in Spain began to undertake sea voyages. , having good knowledge of geography and navigation, suggested that the country's rulers reach India by another route, heading west across the Atlantic Ocean. The one who later discovered many new lands was given three caravels, on which brave sailors left the port on August 3, 1492.

By the beginning of October they arrived at the first island, which became known as San Salvador, and later they discovered Haiti and Cuba. It was Columbus's seminal voyage that put the Caribbean islands on the map. Then there were two more, pointing the way to Central and South America.

Christopher Columbus - a mysterious person

First he visited the island of Cuba, and only then discovered America. Columbus was surprised to meet a civilized people on the island who had a rich culture and grew cotton, tobacco and potatoes. The cities were decorated with large statues and large buildings.

Interesting! Everyone knows the name of Christopher Columbus. However, very little is known about his life and travels.

The birth of this legendary navigator is still debated. Several cities lay claim to being the birthplace of Columbus, but this cannot be determined for certain. He took part in voyages on ships in the Mediterranean Sea, and later went on large expeditions from his native Portugal.

Ferdinand Magellan

Magellan was also from Portugal. Born in 1480. Early on, he was left without parents and tried to survive on his own by working as a messenger. Since childhood, he was attracted by the sea, attracted by the thirst for travel and discovery.

At the age of 25, Ferdinand set sail for the first time. He quickly learned the maritime profession while staying off the coast of India, and soon became a captain. He wanted to return to his homeland, talking about profitable cooperation with the East, but he achieved results only with the coming to power of Charles the First.

Important! The era of great geographical discoveries began in the middle of the 15th century. Magellan forestalled its advance by circumnavigating the world.

In 1493, Magellan leads an expedition west of Spain. He has a goal: to prove that the islands there belong to his country. No one thought that the journey would become around the world, and the navigator would discover many new things along the way. The one who opened the way to the “South Sea” did not return home, but died in the Philippines. His team arrived home only in 1522.

Russian discoverers

Representatives of Russia and their discoveries joined the orderly ranks of famous European navigators. Several outstanding personalities worth knowing about made great contributions to the improvement of the world map.

Thaddeus Bellingshausen

Bellingshausen was the first who dared to lead an expedition to the uncharted shores of Antarctica, and around the world. This event took place in 1812. The navigator set out to prove or disprove the existence of a sixth continent, which was only talked about. The expedition crossed the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, and the Atlantic. Its participants made a great contribution to the development of geography. The expedition under the command of Captain 2nd Rank Bellingshausen lasted 751 days.

Interesting! Previously, attempts were made to reach Antarctica, but they all failed; only famous Russian travelers turned out to be luckier and more persistent.

The navigator Bellingshausen went down in history as the discoverer of many species of animals and more than 20 large islands. The captain was one of the few who managed to find his own path, follow it and not destroy obstacles.

Nikolai Przhevalsky

Among the Russian travelers was the one who discovered most of Central Asia. Nikolai Przhevalsky always dreamed of visiting unknown Asia. This continent attracted him. The navigator led each of the four expeditions that explored Central Asia. Curiosity led to the discovery and study of mountain systems such as the Kun Lun and the ridges of Northern Tibet. The sources of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, as well as Lob-nora and Kuhu-nora, were explored. Nikolai was the second explorer after Marco Polo to reach Lop Nor.

Przhevalsky, like other travelers of the era of great geographical discoveries, considered himself happy man, because fate gave him the opportunity to explore the mysterious countries of the Asian world. Many species of animals that he described during his travels are named after him.

The first Russian circumnavigation

Ivan Kruzenshtern and his colleague Yuri Lisyansky firmly inscribed their names in the history of great discoveries in geography. They led the first expedition around the globe, which lasted more than three years - from 1803 to 1806. During this period, sailors on two ships crossed the Atlantic, sailed through Cape Horn, after which they arrived in Kamchatka through the waters of the Pacific Ocean. There, researchers studied the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin Island. Their coastline was clarified, and data on all the waters visited by the expedition was also included on the map. Krusenstern compiled an atlas of the Pacific Ocean.

The expedition under the command of the admiral became the first to cross the equator. This event was celebrated in accordance with traditions.

Exploration of the Eurasian continent

Eurasia is a huge continent, but it is problematic to name the only person who discovered it.

One moment is surprising. If everything is clear with America and Antarctica, the illustrious names of the great navigators are reliably inscribed in the history of their existence, then the laurels of the man who discovered Europe never went to him, because he simply does not exist.

If we ignore the search for one navigator, we can list many names who contributed to the study of the surrounding world and took part in expeditions on the mainland and its coastal zone. Europeans are accustomed to consider themselves only explorers of Eurasia, but Asian navigators and their discoveries are no less in scale.

Historians know which of the Russian writers traveled around the world, except for the famous navigators. He was Ivan Goncharov, who took part in the expedition on a military sailing ship. His impressions of the trip resulted in a large collection of diaries describing distant countries.

The meaning of cartography

People could hardly move across the sea without good navigation. Previously, their main reference point was the starry sky at night and the sun during the day. Many maps during the period of great geographical discoveries were dependent on the sky. A map has been preserved since the 17th century, on which the scientist plotted all known coastal zones and continents, but Siberia and North America remained unknown, because no one knew how far they were and how far the continents themselves extended.

The most information-rich atlases were those of Gerard van Coelen. Captains and famous travelers crossing the Atlantic were grateful for the details of Iceland, Holland and Labrador being mapped.

Unusual information

Preserved in history Interesting Facts about travelers:

James Cook became the first person to visit all six continents.
Navigators and their discoveries changed the appearance of many lands, for example, James Cook brought sheep to the islands of Tahiti and New Zealand.
Che Guevara before his revolutionary activities was a fan of riding a motorcycle, he made a tour of 4 thousand kilometers, driving around South America.
Charles Darwin traveled on a ship where he wrote his greatest work on evolution. But they didn’t want to take the man on board, and it was the shape of the nose. It seemed to the captain that such a person would not be able to cope with a long load. Darwin had to be away from the team and buy his own uniform.

Age of Great Geographical Discoveries 15th - 17th centuries

Great Discoverers

Conclusion

Thanks to the heroism and determination of sailors, people received valuable information about the world. This was the impetus for many changes, contributed to the development of trade and industry, and strengthened relations with other nations. The most important thing is that it has been practically proven that it has a round shape.

Russian travelers and geographers made a great contribution to the knowledge of our planet. First of all, they explored the colossal territory of our Motherland, constituting a sixth of the entire landmass. Many lands in all parts of the world and islands of the world's oceans were mapped for the first time by the Russians. They were the first to visit Alaska, made heroic voyages in the Arctic on small boats, were the first to penetrate the Antarctic, collected information about the deserts of Iran and India, explored and described Mongolia, Tibet, Western China, mapped a significant part of Africa and South America. The names of many Russian explorers are depicted in geographical names on the world map.

The collection opens with a story about Afanasy Nikitin. The time to which the recording of his journey “Walking across the Three Seas” dates back to was significant for Russia - the unification of feudal principalities into a centralized Russian state. Nikitin's notes are interesting not only as the first reliable description of India in the 15th century compiled by a European, but also as a document that reflected important changes that took place in Rus'.

It is difficult to say to what time man's acquaintance with the polar countries dates back to. It is known that in the 12th - 15th centuries Novgorodians explored and developed the coast of the Kola Peninsula and the shores of White Sea. Pomors discovered a number of islands in the Arctic Ocean: New Earth, Kolguev, Medvezhiy, Spitsbergen. After Ermak's campaign in 1581-1584, Russian exploration of Siberia began. In 1586, the Tyumen fort was built on the Tura River, then the Tobolsk town was erected, which became the main support center of the first settlers. In 1601, having crossed Kamen (Ural), the Russians founded Mangazeya, a large trading city. In 1630, several detachments of Cossack explorers moved to Lena. Having gone down the Lena, they came out to the “Holy Sea” (Arctic Ocean).

In 1684, Fyodor Popov undertook a voyage from the mouth of the Kolyma to the east, and Semyon Dezhnev went with him (Fyodor Popov’s path was repeated only 200 years later by Nordenskiöld). At the beginning of the 19th century, industrialist Y. Sannikov discovered ancient crosses on Stolbovoy Island. And on Kotelny Island, an ancient winter hut was found - evidence that in the 22nd century, Russian sailors undertook ice voyages far into the depths of the ocean on their kochka boats.

A new page in the study of Russian sea routes was written as a result of the tireless work of a number of expeditions, equipped according to the plans of Peter 1. The 1st Kamchatka expedition (1725 - 1730) confirmed the hypothesis that Aznya and Acherika are separated by a strait, but since Bernng turned back before reaching lo Alaska, the existence of the strait was questioned. In 1732, it was decided to send a second, more significant expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Two ships were to go to America, and the other two were to go to Japan. At the same time, an expedition was sent to the Arctic Ocean to find out the possibility of sailing along the shores of Sibnri. This expedition went down in history as the Great Northern Expedition.

Russian navigators V. Pronchishchev, S. Chelyuskin, P. Lasinius, S. Muravyov, D. Ovtsyn, D. Sterlegov, F. Minin, Khariton and Dmitry Laptev quite accurately mapped the northern regions of Siberia and became convinced of the impossibility at that time of regular shipping in the eastern Arctic Ocean. The ships of the detachment of Bering and Chirikov - packet boats "St. Peter" and "St. Pavel" first approached the shores of Northwestern America and put them on the map; discovered the Aleutian and Commander Islands. The 2nd Kamchatka expedition finally confirmed the existence of a strait between America and Asia.

For two hundred years (before the expedition of the ships "Taimyr" and "Vaigach" in 1910-1915), hydrographic data compiled by the participants of the Great Northern Expedition remained the only guidance for navigation in those places.

The objects of the study were the islands of Novaya Zemlya, Vaygach, and Kolguev. In 1767, Novaya Zemlya was explored by F. Rozmyslov, and in 1821 - 1824 by F. Litke. The work begun by Rozmyslov and Litke was continued in 1832 by P. Pakhtusov and A. Tsivolko. In 1912, on the ship "St. Foka" Georgy Sedov went to the pole. He managed to go around the northern tip of Novaya Zemlya.

A worthy place in the development of the Arctic belongs to Admiral S. Makarov, his theory of conquering the Arctic Ocean with the help of icebreakers. “All the way to the Pole” was Makarov’s motto. In order to improve navigation and establish regular flights of Russian ships from the Baltic ports to the shores of the Pacific Ocean, circumnavigation I. Krusenstern and Y. Lisyansky. Huge amounts of time were spent along the way. research papers, a wealth of scientific material has been collected, and vast little-known areas of the Pacific Ocean have been studied in detail.

After Krusenstern and Lisyansky, V. Golovnin undertook a circumnavigation of the world on the sloop “Diana”; he studied Kamchatka and the adjacent islands in detail. The second circumnavigation of the world on the sloop "Kamchatka", which was made by V. Golovnin, enriched world science with major geographical discoveries.

In 1819, after long and careful preparation, the South Polar Expedition set off from Kronstadt, consisting of two sloops of war, “Vostok” and “Mirny”, with Lazarev and Bellshausen at the head. On January 29, 1821, ships saw a coast called the Land of Alexander I. This was Antarctica - the greatest discovery of the 19th century. The expedition, having spent 751 days sailing, covered more than 90 thousand kilometers and discovered 29 islands, as well as coral rocks.

A whole galaxy of geographers explored the mountain ranges and deserts of Central Asia. The name of the humanist scientist N. Miklouho-Maclay, a scientist, stands out somewhat especially among geographers. who set the goal not to penetrate into the depths of the ocean and not to pass through untrodden lands, but to penetrate into the depths of human society on earth.

The purpose of the proposed selection of postcards is to briefly acquaint the reader with the activities of Russian geographers and researchers and talk about the enormous contribution made by them to world geographical science, both in terms of the breadth of the problems posed and in the number and significance of discoveries.
P. Pavlinov

Afanasy Nikitin

“Until now, geographers did not know that the honor of one of the oldest described European journeys to India belongs to Russia of the Johannine century. While Vasco da Gama was only thinking about the possibility of finding a way from Africa to Hindustan, our Tverite was already traveling along the shores of Malobar.” This is what N. Karamzin said about the notes he found from the 15th century Russian merchant Afanasy Nikitin, “Walking across Three Seas.” Leaving Tver in the summer of l466, a caravan of merchant ships led by Afanasy Nikitin descended along the Volga and Caspian Sea to Baku. Further the path lay through Persia to India on the Malobar coast.
The Indians appreciated Nikitin's friendly disposition towards them. Responding to his trust, they willingly devoted him to the peculiarities of their life and customs. Over the course of three years, Afanasy Nikitin collected the most interesting information about the “Bakhmani state,” the largest power in India in the 15th century. “Walking across Three Seas” was highly appreciated by his contemporaries: in 1472, the traveler’s diary was included in the Chronicle of the Russian State.

Ivan Moskvitin

After the defeat of Khan Kuchum in 1598, “Siberian Land” ( Western Siberia) was included in the Russian state. And, naturally, there was a desire to explore areas rich in “soft junk” and “fish teeth”. A detachment of 31 Cossacks in 1639 under the command of Ivan Yuryevich Moskvitin, having learned from the local residents (Evens) that there was a Lama (Sea of Okhotsk) beyond the Dzhugdzhur mountain range, dragged boats through the mountains and, going down the Ulye River in boats, came to Sea of Okhotsk. At the mouth of the Ulya they set up several huts, fenced them off and dug a ditch. This was the first Russian settlement on the Pacific coast. The pioneers explored the harsh Sea of Okhotsk, moving away from the shores at times by 500 - 700 kilometers.
Information about the “new lands” was included in the Yakut “Paintings of rivers and names of people on which rivers and people live.” The Russian Cossacks modestly described their campaign: “Before Lama, the marchers fed on wood, bark, and roots, but on Lama, along the rivers you can get a lot of fish and you can be well-fed.”

Erofey Khabarov
Hike to the Amur

Erofey Khabarov

Fascinated by stories about the wealth of the Amur land, Khabarov turned to the Yakut governor with a request to send him at the head of a detachment of Cossacks to the Amur. The voivode invited Khabarov not only to collect yasak, but also to describe the life of the local peoples, draw up “drawings” (maps) of the area and describe the natural conditions. Initially traveling by boat along the rivers of the Lena basin, Khabarov wrote down: “In the rapids, gear was torn, slops were broken, people were hurt...”. Even more difficult was the pass over the snow-covered Stanovoy Range, when, having hoisted the boats onto sledges, they had to be dragged. Khabarov made a number of campaigns in the Amur region and the rich Daurian land in 1649 - 1651. In one of his reports, he writes: “And along the rivers there live many, many Tungus, and down along the glorious great Amur River live the Daurian people, arable and cattle-farming, and in that great Amur River there is calushka fish, and sturgeon, and all sorts of fish opposite the Volga. And in the cities and uluses there are great arable lands, the forests along that great river are dark, large, there are a lot of sables and all kinds of animals. And in the ground you can see gold and silver.”

Semyon Dezhnev
Opening of the strait between Asia and America

Semyon Dezhnev

The “Mangazeya passage” - the path from the mouth of the Northern Dvina, Mezen to the Gulf of Ob - is a bright page in the history of Russian sea travel. This is the way Ustyug resident Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev “went” to Siberia. In 1643, he led a detachment that set off on Kochs across the Kolyma and further to the east. According to Dezhnev’s report, three Kochas were approaching the “Big Stone Nose” (the most northeastern point of the Asian continent): Fedot Alekseeva (Popova), Semyon Dezhnev and Gerasim Ankidinov. “But that bow went out into the sea much further and a lot of good Chukhchi people live on it...” notes Dezhnev in his “reply”. Having lost Ankidinov's koch, Dezhnev and Popov turned their ships south and entered the strait separating Asia from America. Fog, which is common in these places, did not allow them to see Alaska.
Thanks to this expedition, an image of Northeast Asia appeared on the “Drawing of the Siberian Land” in 1667. The name of Dezhnev is crowned with the glory of the discovery of the strait between Asia and America, the Chukotka Peninsula, and the Anadyr Territory.

Vitus Bering and A.I. Chirikov
1st and 2nd Kamchatka expeditions

Vitus Bering and A.I. Chirikov

When Russian empire stretches from the Baltic to the Pacific Ocean, the time has come to accurately define its borders and the outlines of the sea shores. For this purpose, Peter I decided to send an expedition to the Pacific Ocean. It was necessary to clarify not only the issue of borders and scientific “curiosity”, but also to open sea routes for trade with “gold-rich” Japan, according to the concept of that time. Vitus Bering, a Dane who served in Russia for many years, was appointed head of the 1st Kamchatka expedition (1725-1730), and Alexey Ilyich Chirikov was appointed assistant.
Bering walked around the eastern coast of Kamchatka, the southern and eastern coasts of Chukotka, and discovered the St. Lawrence Islands. Having passed through the Chukchi Sea to a latitude of 6718" and seeing that "the land does not extend further to the north", Bering, despite the proposal of Alexei Ilyich Chirikov to continue further north, considered the question of the existence of a strait between Asia and America to be resolved positively and turned back. In St. Petersburg, the results of the expedition were considered unsatisfactory. Bering received instructions for a new voyage. The instructions determined the scope and tasks of the 2nd Kamchatka and the associated Great Northern Expedition (1733 - 1743), which were tasked with making a description of the entire northern and eastern coasts of Siberia, getting acquainted with shores of America and Japan and finally clarify the issue of the strait between Asia and America. The main objectives of the expedition were completed. The survey materials produced during the expeditions were used by cartographers for two centuries.

H. Laptev and S. Chelyuskin

In 1730, Bering, who returned from Kamchatka, began to equip an expanded expedition (2-Kamchatka): some ships were to be sent along the Pacific Ocean to Japan and the Americas, and others along the Arctic Ocean to describe and map the coast of the Arctic Ocean. The expedition in the North of Russia lasted 10 years (from 1733 to 1743) and in terms of its objectives, the size of the territories covered, and the results, it was rightly called the Great Sverpa Expedition. The expedition consisted of separate land and sea detachments that had bases at the mouths of large rivers in the North of Siberia. Its participants were Khariton and Dmitry Laptev, S. Chelyuskin, S. Malygin, V. Pronchishchev and many others. All of them showed unparalleled courage and perseverance in achieving their goal. As a result, it was collected huge material about the nature of the northern seas, thousands of kilometers of the coast of the Arctic Ocean were mapped, large territories of the Russian North, the life and way of life of the peoples inhabiting them were explored and described.

I.F.Kruzenshtern and Yu.F.Lisyansky
The first Russian trip around the world

I.F.Kruzenshtern and Yu.F.Lisyansky

TO early XIX century, there was a need to establish regular flights of Russian ships from the Baltic ports to Russian ports on the Pacific Ocean. In 1802, the Naval Ministry accepted the proposal of Lieutenant-Commander I. F. Krusenstern to organize the first Russian round-the-world expedition (1803 - 1806). The purpose of the expedition was: delivery of goods to Russian possessions in North America and Kamchatka, establishment of trade relations with Japan and China, research in the tropical part of the Pacific Ocean and near Russian possessions. Yu. F. Lisyansky was appointed Krusenstern's assistant. The expedition had two ships, Nadezhda and Neva. During the trip, the world map was updated, a number of islands were discovered, and numerous oceanographic studies were carried out. The descriptions of the life, customs, economy, and social structure of the inhabitants of Sakhalin and Kamchatka deserve special attention. Kruzenshtern compiled the “Atlas of the South Sea” - the most accurate for that time.

F.F. Bellingshausen and M.P. Lazarev
Discovery of Antarctica

F.F. Bellingshausen and M.P. Lazarev

In 1819, two military sloops set out from Kronstadt on a circumnavigation of the world: “Vostok” and “Mirny” under the command of Thaddeus Faddeevich Bellingshausen and Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev. The expedition had to solve an ancient riddle about the Southern Continent. Having overcome the enormous difficulties of sailing in ice conditions, the ships approached Antarctica. According to Lazarev’s companion on the expedition, midshipman Novosilsky, “the Russians were given the honor for the first time to lift the corner of the curtain hiding the distant, mysterious south, and to prove that behind the ice wall that encircles it, islands and lands are hidden.” On January 10, 1821, the sailors of the Mirny and Vostok simultaneously saw an island, which they called the Island of Peter I. Then a coast was discovered, called the Alexander I Coast.

F.P.Litke
Exploration of Novaya Zemlya

F.P.Litke

A major contribution to the study of Novaya Zemlya belongs to the navigator Admiral Fyodor Petrovich Litka, who, during expeditions in 1821 - 1824, for the first time since the Barents, examined and mapped the entire western coast of Novaya Zemlya, the Murmansk coast, and explored the eastern part of the Barents and White Seas. In 1826 - 1829, on the sloop "Senyavin" Litke, leading round the world expedition, explored and mapped the islands of the Caroline Archipelago, and surveyed Bonin Island. Fyodor Petrovich Litke was one of the founders of the Russian Geographical Society. A gold medal was established in his honor.

G.I.Nevelskoy

In the report of Admiral G. I. Nevelsky on the results of the voyage in 1848-1849 on the Baikal transport, it is written: “... we discovered
1) that Sakhalin is an island separated from the mainland by a strait 4 miles wide and having a minimum depth of 5 fathoms;
2) that the entrance to the Amur is from the north from the Sea of Okhotsk and from the south from Tatar Strait, as well as communication through the Amur Estuary of the Seas of Japan and Okhotsk is available for sea vessels;
3) that on the southwestern coast of the Sea of Okhotsk there is an extensive roadstead, closed from all winds, which I called the Gulf of St. Nicholas...”
Many saw Nevelskbgo’s action as a daring violation of instructions. After all, Nicholas 1 himself ordered: “The question of the Amur, as a useless river, should be left.” A special committee threatened to demote Nevelsky to sailor status. But still, he managed to prove the need to create the Amur Expedition (1850 - 1855), which explored the vast expanses of the Amur region and the island of Sakhalin. In 1854, Primorsky Krai was annexed to Russia.

P.P. Semenov Tian-Shansky

The travels of the great Russian explorer Pyotr Petrovich Semenov-Tyan-Shansky marked the beginning of a new period in the study of Central and Central Asia. The results of the scientist’s research showed that the Tien Shan mountains are not of volcanic origin. During the expedition, he collected a large mineralogical collection, a herbarium, a collection of insects and mollusks, and valuable ethnographic material. The artist P. Kosharov, who made a huge number of sketches of the places through which the expedition passed, provided great assistance to the geographer in his research.
The famous Soviet geographer Yu. Shakalsky wrote: “For us, old workers of the Society, the names Pyotr Petrovich and the Geographical Society are inseparable.” For more than 40 years, Semenov-Tyan-Shansky headed the Russian Geographical Society and was the direct organizer and ideological leader of the expeditions of N. Przhevalsky, G. Potanin, P. Kozlov and many others.

N.M. Przhevalsky

“In the history of science there are scientists whose ideas and works constitute an entire era. Such scientists include Nikolai Mikhailovich Przhevalsky,” wrote Doctor of Geographical Sciences E. Murzaev about the traveler. The routes of the expeditions of the great Russian traveler (from 1867 to 1888) covered the vast expanses of Central Asia. Przhevalsky was the first to describe in detail the deserts of the Gobi, Ordos, Dzungaria and Kashgaria, and was the first to suggest that the Gobi Desert is a huge bowl with a predominance of rocky and clay soils. He refuted the theory of the famous geographer and traveler Humboldt about the grid direction of the central ridges of the Tibetan Plateau, proving their predominantly latitudinal direction. He was the first to describe the ridges of the Kuen Lun system, discovered the system of Nanshan ridges, and discovered a number of ridges of Humboldt, Columbus, Przewalski and others.
During his expeditions, the scientist collected remarkable collections of flora and fauna of Central Asia. His herbariums, which included unique plants, numbered 15 - 16 thousand plants. Przhevalsky collected a huge collection of animals. He discovered and described a wild camel and a wild horse, which received the name of Przhevalsky.

N.N. Miklouho-Maclay

Academician L. Berg said excellently about N. Miklouho-Maclay: “While other geographers were discovering new, hitherto unknown lands, Miklouho-Maclay sought first of all to discover Man among the “primitive” peoples he studied, that is, peoples not touched by European culture " It is hardly possible to more accurately characterize the goal to which the life of the outstanding Russian traveler was dedicated.
In 1871, the Russian corvette Vityaz landed the scientist on the shore of New Guinea (now the Maclay Coast), where he lived among the Papuans for 15 months. “The Man from the Moon,” as the natives called him, with courage and trust, throwing away his weapons, sought the favor and love of the Papuans. MiklouhoMaclay became their faithful friend, with whom they parted with tears.
The traveler brought home diaries, sketches, and collections that contained valuable ethnographic material. The diaries of Nikolai Nikolaevich Miklouho-Maclay were published only after the October Revolution.

S.O. Makarov

Among the famous Russian naval commanders, the name of Stepan Osipovich Makarov stands out - admiral, talented scientist, tireless polar explorer. 33-year-old Makarov, commanding the steamship Taman, on his own initiative began studying the currents in the Bosphorus Strait. He made more than 5 thousand observations with a device he invented - a fluctometer - and proved the presence of two opposite currents: the upper one, from the Black Sea, and the lower one, from the Mediterranean Sea. Sailing on the corvette Vityaz, Makarov continued hydrological observations along all sailing routes: he measured the temperature and density of water at various depths, and studied currents in different layers. The scientist systematized the research of expeditions in the Pacific Ocean in the two-volume work “Vityaz” and “The Pacific Ocean” (1894), which was awarded a prize from the Academy of Sciences and a gold medal from the Russian Geographical Society. Stepan Osipovich Makarov also came up with the idea of creating the world's first powerful icebreaker, the Ermak.

P.K. Kozlov

The outstanding explorer spent fifteen years on expeditions through the deserts and cities of Central Asia. On horseback, on foot and on camels, he made his way to the most remote and inaccessible areas. The length of his travels is over 40 thousand km. Pyotr Kuzmich Kozlov owns one of the most outstanding archaeological discoveries of the twentieth century: the find dead city Khara-Khoto in the sands of Mongolia and burial mounds of the ancient Huns in the Mongolian Altai; he explored and described the largest river in Asia - the Mekong; in 1905, the first European met and talked with the Dalai Lama, who was then in Mongolia. Kozlov left an unforgettable impression upon the discovery of Khara-Khoto. The excavations made the Russian geographer famous throughout the world. Manuscripts, books, paintings, household and religious objects of the 11th - 12th centuries AD were discovered here. During the expeditions, the scientist collected valuable materials about the geology, climate, flora and fauna of Tibet and about little-known or completely unknown Eastern Tibetan tribes.

G.Ya.Sedov
Path to the North Pole

G.Ya.Sedov

On February 2, 1914, the already seriously ill famous polar explorer Georgy Yakovlevich Sedov left his last winter in Tikhaya Bay on Hooker Island. For almost a year and a half, Sedov’s expedition, which left Arkhangelsk on the ship “St. Foka" in August 1912, sought to break through the ice to the North Pole. But the attempt ended in failure. On February 20, 1914, before reaching Rudolf Island, Sedov died and was buried on Cape Auk of this island.
However, according to Nansen, the materials obtained by the brave researcher on Novaya Zemlya alone completely paid for the entire expedition, so great is their scientific value.

Who: Semyon Dezhnev, Cossack chieftain, merchant, fur trader.

When: 1648

What I discovered: The first to pass through the Bering Strait, which separates Eurasia from North America. Thus, I found out that Eurasia and North America are two different continents, and that they do not meet.

Who: Thaddeus Bellingshausen, Russian admiral, navigator.

When: 1820.

What I discovered: Antarctica together with Mikhail Lazarev on the frigates Vostok and Mirny. Commanded the Vostok. Before the expedition of Lazarev and Bellingshausen, nothing was known about the existence of this continent.

Also, the expedition of Bellingshausen and Lazarev finally dispelled the myth about the existence of the mythical “Southern Continent”, which was mistakenly marked on all medieval maps of Europe. Navigators, including the famous Captain James Cook, searched for this “Southern Continent” in the Indian Ocean for more than three hundred and fifty years without any success, and of course, found nothing.

Who: Kamchaty Ivan, Cossack and sable hunter.

When: 1650s.

What I discovered: peninsula of Kamchatka, named after him.

Who: Semyon Chelyuskin, polar explorer, officer of the Russian fleet

When: 1742

What I discovered: the northernmost cape of Eurasia, named Cape Chelyuskin in his honor.

Who: Ermak Timofeevich, Cossack chieftain in the service of the Russian Tsar. Ermak's last name is unknown. Possibly Tokmak.

When: 1581-1585

What I discovered: conquered and explored Siberia for the Russian state. To do this, he entered into a successful armed struggle with the Tatar khans in Siberia.

Who: Ivan Krusenstern, officer Russian fleet, admiral

When: 1803-1806.

What I discovered: He was the first Russian navigator to travel around the world together with Yuri Lisyansky on the sloops “Nadezhda” and “Neva”. Commanded "Nadezhda"

Who: Yuri Lisyansky, Russian navy officer, captain

When: 1803-1806.

What I discovered: He was the first Russian navigator to circumnavigate the world together with Ivan Kruzenshtern on the sloops “Nadezhda” and “Neva”. Commanded the Neva.

Who: Petr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky

When: 1856-57

What I discovered: He was the first European to explore the Tien Shan Mountains. He also later studied a number of areas in Central Asia. For his exploration of the mountain system and services to science, he received from the authorities of the Russian Empire the honorary surname Tien-Shansky, which he had the right to pass on by inheritance.

Who: Vitus Bering

When: 1727-29

What I discovered: He was the second (after Semyon Dezhnev) and the first of the scientific researchers to reach North America, passing through the Bering Strait, thereby confirming its existence. Confirmed that North America and Eurasia are two different continents.

Who: Khabarov Erofey, Cossack, fur trader

When: 1649-53

What I discovered: mastered part of Siberia and the Far East for the Russians, studied the lands near the Amur River.

Who: Mikhail Lazarev, Russian naval officer.

When: 1820

What I discovered: Antarctica together with Thaddeus Bellingshausen on the frigates Vostok and Mirny. Commanded the Mirny. Before the expedition of Lazarev and Bellingshausen, nothing was known about the existence of this continent. Also, the Russian expedition finally dispelled the myth about the existence of the mythical “Southern Continent”, which was marked on medieval European maps, and which sailors unsuccessfully searched for for four hundred years in a row.

Russian travelers made a huge contribution to the history of geographical discoveries and exploration of the globe. Many are named after them geographical features Earth. These are Cape Dezhnev, Cape Chelyuskin, the sea, the sea, the Kruzenshtern Strait, Lisyansky Island, the Przhevalsky Ridge, the Bellingshausen Sea, the Miklouho-Maclay coast, the Obruchev volcano, the Semenov glacier and many others. Scientific research Russian discoverers, compiled by them accurate detailed maps had great importance for the development of geography around the world.

Dezhnev's expedition left the mouth of the Siberian Kolyma River to the east on June 20, 1648. She was faced with the task of discovering new lands, studying the hydrographic network of the Far Northeast and the coast of the Arctic Ocean. Sailing around, in September the expedition rounded Cape Bolshoi Kamenny Nos (now named after Dezhnev). The results exceeded all expectations: Semyon Dezhnev not only completed new projects, but also delivered maps and drawings of new territories to his homeland. Subsequently, one of the bays of the Bering Sea, a mountain range and a village on the Amur River were named after him.

In 1697-1699, Russian pioneer Vladimir Atlasov (c. 1661/64 - 1711) discovered new lands. At the same time, the first Russian settlement was founded there.

In 1711 and 1713 Kuril Islands visited by Ivan Kozyrevsky (born around 1680 - year of death unknown).