Voyages That Changed The World

Description:
Voyages that Changed the World tells, chronologically, the stories of the most momentous sea voyages in history and, in doing so, provides an intriguing look at the unveiling of our world. Each chapter describes the background to a remarkable voyage or series of voyages, the events and personalities of the journey, and the historical consequences. Liberally illustrated, the story behind each voyage is accompanied by maps of the routes, and illustrations and photographs of adventurers, explorers, seafarers and their vessels.

Table of Contents:
Introduction; The early navigators: The Phoenicians circumnavigate Africa and the Polynesians migrate across the Pacific, c 50,000BC - 1150AD; Saint Brendan's miraculous voyage: An Irish monk crosses the Atlantic in a tiny leather boat, c 530AD; The Icelandic sagas of Erik the Red and Leif Eriksson: Norsemen land on the American continent centuries before Columbus, 982-1000AD; Madoc ab Owen Gwynedd's voyage across the Atlantic: A Welsh prince lays his claim to America, c 1170; The epic journeys of the Ming Dynasty: Four great Chinese armadas navigate the world's oceans, 1415-1421; Henry the Navigator's colonization of Atlantic islands: Portuguese captains cross the equator and map the coast of Africa, 1394-1460; The journeys of Bartholomew Dias and Vasco da Gama: Two great Portuguese navigators travel east and discover the vital sea route to India, 1487-1497; America is discovered by Christopher Columbus: In his quest for the Indies, the famous explorer reaches the New World, 1492; John Cabot's search for the North West Passage: A Venetian sails from Bristol to Newfoundland on board the Matthew, 1496-1499; Ferdinand Magellan and the first circumnavigation of the world: The explorer sails around the southern tip of America, 1519-1522; The French claim to Canada is secured by Jacques Cartier: The first European to navigate the St Lawrence river, 1534-1541; Spanish treasure ships scour the Pacific: The Conquistadors exploit the riches of the New World, 1519-1600; Francis Drake and the voyage of the Golden Hind: The first Englishman to sail around the globe, 1577-1580; The quest for a route to the Orient: Explorers perish in their search for the North East and North West Passages, 1533-1631; The historic voyage of the Mayflower: The Pilgrim Fathers establish North America's first successful colony, 1620; Abel Tasman discovers Tasmania: The Dutch exploration of the South Pacific, 1642-1643; The original Robinson Crusoe and the buccaneers of England: The exploits of William Dampier, Woodes Rogers and Alexander Selkirk, 1680-1709; Roggeveen discovers Easter Island and Anson's fleet strikes gold: The search for new islands in the great south seas, 1721-1769; Louis-Antoine de Bougainville explores the Pacific's flora and fauna: The Frenchman enjoys an idyll on Tahiti and encounters the Great Barrier Reef, 1766-1769; Captain Cook's epic voyage on board the Endeavour: The charting of New Zealand and the east coast of Australia, 1768-1771; The transatlantic voyages of greed and despair: The slave trade and its abolition; John Harrison and the search for Longitude: The dedicated watchmaker wins the GBP20,000 prize, 1741-1773; The First Fleet arrives at Botany Bay: The creation of a penal colony in Australia, 1788; Charles Darwin and the voyage of the Beagle: The expedition that led to the Theory of Evolution, 1831; Isambard Kingdom Brunel and the race across the Atlantic: The first great steamships compete to reach New York; Scott, Amundsen and Shackleton travel to the ends of the Earth: the expeditions of the legendary polar explorers, 1840-1916; Voyages under the sea: Advances in submarine warfare and scientific discovery, 1776-1960s; Index; Acknowledgements

Author Biography:
Peter Aughton is the author of the hugely successful popular history titles Endeavour The Story of Captain Cook's First Great Epic Voyage, Resolution, Newton's Apple and The Transit of Venus. Formerly a computer engineer in the aerospace industry, where he worked on the world's first supersonic airliner, he went on to lecture at the University of the West of England for 25 years. He now lives in Leeds with his family.