The great Russian travelers, whose list is quite long, pushed the development of maritime trade, and also raised the prestige of their country. The scientific community learned more and more information not only about geography, but also about the animal and plant world, and most importantly, about people who lived in other parts of the world and their customs. Let us follow in the footsteps of the great Russian travelers their geographical discoveries.
Fyodor Filippovich Konyukhov
The great Russian traveler Fyodor Konyukhov is not only a famous adventurer, but also an artist, an honored master of sports. He was born in 1951. From childhood, he could do something that would have been rather difficult for his peers - swimming in cold water. He could easily sleep in the hayloft. Fedor was in good physical shape and could run long distances - several tens of kilometers. At the age of 15, he managed to swim across the Sea of Azov using a row fishing boat. Fedor was significantly influenced by his grandfather, who wanted the young man to become a traveler, but the boy himself aspired to this. Great Russian travelers often began to prepare in advance for their campaigns and sea voyages.
Konyukhov's discoveries
Fedor Filippovich Konyukhov participated in 40 trips, repeated Bering's route on a yacht, and also sailed from Vladivostok to the Commander Islands, called on Sakhalin and Kamchatka. At the age of 58, he conquered Everest, as well as the 7 highest peaks in a team with other climbers. He visited both the North and South Poles, on his account 4 round-the-world voyages, he crossed the Atlantic 15 times. Fyodor Filippovich displayed his impressions with the help of drawing. Thus he painted 3,000 paintings. The great geographical discoveries of Russian travelers were often reflected in their own literature, and Fedor Konyukhov left 9 books behind him.
Afanasy Nikitin
The great Russian traveler Athanasius Nikitin (Nikitin is the patronymic of a merchant, since his father's name was Nikita) lived in the 15th century, and the year of his birth is unknown. He proved that even a person from a poor family can travel so far, the main thing is to set a goal. He was an experienced merchant who, before India, visited the Crimea, Constantinople, Lithuania and the Moldavian principality and brought overseas goods to his homeland.
He himself was from Tver. Russian merchants traveled to Asia to establish ties with local merchants. They themselves carried there, mostly furs. By the will of fate, Athanasius ended up in India, where he lived for three years. Upon returning to his homeland, he was robbed and killed near Smolensk. The great Russian travelers and their discoveries remain forever in history, because for the sake of progress, brave and courageous wanderers often died on dangerous and long expeditions.
Discoveries of Athanasius Nikitin
Afanasy Nikitin became the first Russian traveler to visit India and Persia, on the way back he visited Turkey and Somalia. During her wanderings, she took notes "Journey Beyond Three Seas", which later became a guide for studying the culture and customs of other countries. In particular, medieval India is well described in his notes. He crossed the Volga, the Arabian and Caspian Seas, the Black Sea. When the merchants near Astrakhan were robbed by the Tatars, he did not want to return home with everyone and fall into a debt hole, but continued his journey, heading to Derbent, then to Baku.
Nikolai Nikolaevich Miklukho-Maclay
Miklouho-Maclay comes from a noble family, but after the death of his father, he had to learn what it means to live in poverty. He had the nature of a rebel - at the age of 15 he was arrested for participating in a student demonstration. Because of this, he not only ended up under arrest in the Peter and Paul Fortress, where he stayed for three days, but was also expelled from the gymnasium with a further ban on admission - so the opportunity to get a higher education in Russia was lost for him, which he later did only in Germany.
A well-known naturalist, drew attention to an inquisitive 19-year-old boy and invited Miklouho-Maclay on an expedition, the purpose of which was to study marine fauna. Nikolai Nikolaevich died at the age of 42, while his diagnosis was "severe deterioration of the body." He, like many other great Russian travelers, sacrificed a significant part of his life in the name of new discoveries.
Discoveries of Miklouho-Maclay
In 1869, Miklukho-Maclay, with the support of the Russian Geographical Society, left for New Guinea. The shore where he landed is now called Maclay Coast. After spending more than a year on the expedition, he discovered new lands. The natives learned from a Russian traveler how pumpkin, corn, and beans are grown, and how to take care of fruit trees. He spent 3 years in Australia, visited Indonesia, the Philippines, the islands of Melanesia and Micronesia. He also convinced local residents not to interfere with anthropological research. For 17 years of his life, he studied the indigenous population of the Pacific Islands, Southeast Asia. Thanks to Miklukho-Maclay, the assumption that the Papuans are a different kind of person was refuted. As you can see, the great Russian travelers and their discoveries allowed the rest of the world not only to learn more about geographical research, but also about other people who lived in new territories.
Nikolai Mikhailovich Przhevalsky
Przhevalsky was favored by the emperor's family, at the end of the first trip he had the honor to meet Alexander II, who transferred his collections to the Russian Academy of Sciences. His son Nikolai really liked the works of Nikolai Mikhailovich, and he wanted to be his student, he also contributed to the publication of stories about the 4th expedition, granting 25 thousand rubles. The Tsarevich always looked forward to letters from the traveler and was glad even for a short news about the expedition.
As you can see, even during his lifetime, Przhevalsky became a fairly well-known person, and his works and deeds received great publicity. However, as sometimes happens when great Russian travelers and their discoveries become famous, many details from his life, as well as the circumstances of his death, are still shrouded in mystery. Nikolai Mikhailovich had no descendants, because having understood in advance what fate awaited him, he would not allow himself to condemn his beloved to constant expectations and loneliness.
Discoveries of Przewalski
Thanks to Przhevalsky's expeditions, Russian scientific prestige received a new impetus. During 4 expeditions, the traveler traveled about 30 thousand kilometers, he visited Central and Western Asia, the territory of the Tibetan Plateau and the southern part of the Takla Makan desert. He discovered many ridges (Moscow, Zagadochny, etc.), described the largest rivers in Asia.
Many have heard of (subspecies but few people know about the richest zoological collection of mammals, birds, amphibians and fish, a large number of records about plants and a herbarium collection. In addition to the animal and plant world, as well as new geographical discoveries, the great Russian traveler Przhevalsky was interested in the unknown for Europeans by peoples - Dungans, northern Tibetans, Tanguts, Magins, Lobnors. He created the work "How to Travel in Central Asia", which could serve as an excellent guide for researchers and the military. Great Russian travelers, making discoveries, always gave knowledge for the development of science and successful organization of new expeditions.
Ivan Fyodorovich Kruzenshtern
The Russian navigator was born in 1770. He happened to become the head of the first round-the-world expedition from Russia, he is also one of the founders of Russian oceanology, an admiral, a corresponding member and an honorary member of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg. The great Russian traveler Krusenstern also took an active part when the Russian Geographical Society was created. In 1811 he happened to teach at the Naval Cadet Corps. Subsequently, after becoming director, he organized the highest officer class. This academy then became a naval academy.
In 1812, he allocated 1/3 of his fortune for the people's militia (the Patriotic War began). Until that time, three volumes of the books "Traveling around the world" were published, which were translated into seven European languages. In 1813, Ivan Fedorovich was included in the English, Danish, German and French scientific communities and academies. However, after 2 years, he goes on indefinite leave due to a developing eye disease, which complicated the situation and a difficult relationship with the Minister of the Navy. Many famous sailors and travelers turned to Ivan Fedorovich for advice and support.
Krusenstern's discoveries
For 3 years he was the head of the Russian expedition around the world on the ships "Neva" and "Nadezhda". During the voyage, the mouths of the Amur River were to be explored. For the first time in history, the Russian fleet crossed the equator. Thanks to this journey and Ivan Fedorovich, the eastern, northern and northwestern shores of the Sakhalin Island appeared for the first time on the map. Also due to his work, the Atlas of the South Sea was published, supplemented by hydrographic notes. Thanks to the expedition, non-existent islands were erased from the maps, the exact position of other geographic points was determined. Russian science learned about the trade wind countercurrents in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, water temperatures were measured (depths up to 400 m), its specific gravity, color and transparency were determined. Finally, the reason why the sea shone became clear. Also, data appeared on atmospheric pressure, ebb and flow in many areas of the World Ocean, which were used by other great Russian travelers in their expeditions.
Semyon Ivanovich Dezhnev
The great traveler was born in 1605. A sailor, explorer and merchant, he was also a Cossack chieftain. He was originally from Veliky Ustyug, and then moved to Siberia. Semyon Ivanovich was known for his diplomatic talent, courage and ability to organize and lead people. Geographical points (cape, bay, island, village, peninsula), premium, icebreaker, passage, streets, etc. bear his name.
Dezhnev's discoveries
Semyon Ivanovich 80 years before Bering passed the strait (called the Bering Strait) between Alaska and Chukotka (completely, while Bering passed only part of it). He and his team opened a sea route around the northeastern part of Asia, reached Kamchatka. Nobody had known before that about the part of the world where America almost converged with Asia. Dezhnev passed the Arctic Ocean, bypassing the northern coast of Asia. He mapped the strait between the American and Asian coasts, and after the ship was shipwrecked, his detachment, having only skis and sleds, traveled 10 weeks before (while losing 13 out of 25 people). There is an assumption that the first settlers in Alaska were part of the Dezhnev team, which separated from the expedition.
Thus, following in the footsteps of the great Russian travelers, one can see how the scientific community of Russia developed and rose, knowledge about the outside world was enriched, which gave a huge impetus to the development of other industries.