The Story of Geographical Discovery

Story of Geographical Discovery,
by Joseph Jacobs

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Title: The Story of Geographical Discovery How the World Became
Known
Author: Joseph Jacobs
Release Date: December 7, 2004 [EBook #14291]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK
GEOGRAPHICAL DISCOVERY ***

Produced by Robert J. Hall.

[Illustration: Arms granted to SEBASTIAN DEL CANO, Captain of
the Victoria, the first vessel that circumnavigated the Globe
[For a description, see pp. 129-30]]

The Story of Geographical Discovery
How the World Became Known
By Joseph Jacobs
With Twenty-four Maps, &c.

PREFACE
In attempting to get what is little less than a history of the world, from a
special point of view, into a couple of hundred duodecimo pages, I
have had to make three bites at my very big cherry. In the Appendix I
have given in chronological order, and for the first time on such a scale
in English, the chief voyages and explorations by which our knowledge
of the world has been increased, and the chief works in which that
knowledge has been recorded. In the body of the work I have then
attempted to connect together these facts in their more general aspects.
In particular I have grouped the great voyages of 1492-1521 round the
search for the Spice Islands as a central motive. It is possible that in
tracing the Portuguese and Spanish discoveries to the need of titillating
the parched palates of the mediævals, who lived on salt meat during
winter and salt fish during Lent, I may have unduly simplified the
problem. But there can be no doubt of the paramount importance
attached to the spices of the East in the earlier stages. The search for the
El Dorado came afterwards, and is still urging men north to the Yukon,
south to the Cape, and in a south-easterly direction to "Westralia."
Besides the general treatment in the text and the special details in the
Appendix, I have also attempted to tell the story once more in a series
of maps showing the gradual increase of men's knowledge of the globe.
It would have been impossible to have included all these in a book of
this size and price but for the complaisance of several publishing firms,
who have given permission for the reproduction on a reduced scale of
maps that have already been prepared for special purposes. I have

specially to thank Messrs. Macmillan for the two dealing with the
Portuguese discoveries, and derived from Mr. Payne's excellent little
work on European Colonies; Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin, & Co., of
Boston, for several illustrating the discovery of America, from Mr. J.
Fiske's "School History of the United States;" and Messrs. Phillips for
the arms of Del Cano, so clearly displaying the "spicy" motive of the
first circumnavigation of the globe.
I have besides to thank the officials of the Royal Geographical Society,
especially Mr. Scott Keltie and Dr. H. R. Mill, for the readiness with
which they have placed the magnificent resources of the library and
map-room of that national institution at my disposal, and the kindness
with which they have answered my queries and indicated new sources
of information.
J. J.

CONTENTS
CHAP. PREFACE LIST OF MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
INTRODUCTION I. THE WORLD AS KNOWN TO THE
ANCIENTS II. THE SPREAD OF CONQUEST IN THE ANCIENT
WORLD III. GEOGRAPHY IN THE DARK AGES IV. MEDIÆVAL
TRAVELS--MARCO POLO, IBN BATUTA V. ROADS AND
COMMERCE VI. TO THE INDIES EASTWARD--PORTUGUESE
ROUTE--PRINCE HENRY AND VASCO DA GAMA VII. TO THE
INDIES WESTWARD--SPANISH ROUTE--COLUMBUS AND
MAGELLAN VIII. TO THE INDIES NORTHWARD--ENGLISH,
FRENCH, DUTCH, AND RUSSIAN ROUTES IX. PARTITION OF
AMERICA X. AUSTRALIA AND THE SOUTH SEAS--TASMAN
AND COOK XI. EXPLORATION AND PARTITION OF
AFRICA--PARK, LIVINGSTON, AND STANLEY XII. THE
POLES--FRANKLIN, ROSS, NORDENSKIOLD, AND NANSEN
ANNALS OF DISCOVERY

LIST OF MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
COAT-OF-ARMS OF DEL CANO (from Guillemard, Magellan. By
kind permission of Messrs. Phillips).--It illustrates the importance
attributed to the Spice Islands as the main object of Magellan's voyage.
For the blazon, see pp. 129-30.
THE EARLIEST MAP OF THE WORLD (from the Rev. C. J. Ball's
Bible Illustrations, 1898).--This is probably of the eighth century B.C.,
and indicates the Babylonian view of the world surrounded by the
ocean, which is indicated by the parallel circles, and traversed by the
Euphrates, which is seen meandering through the middle, with Babylon,
the great city, crossing it at the top. Beyond the ocean are seven
successive projections of land, possibly indicating the Babylonian