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The European Discovery of America; Vol 1: The Northern Voyages A.D. 500-1600 (The European Discovery of America: The Northern Voyages ) Paperback – August 19, 1993
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In the first volume, The Nrthern Voyages--winner of the prestigious Bancroft Prize for History--Morison re-creates the lives and perilous times of those who claimed to have seen the shores of North America in the 600 years after the Norsemen first landed. He brings to his account a rare immediacy, making the drama and unpredictability of their voyages as significant in relation to the people of their era as the astronauts' journeys have been for our own times. Morison also offers a fascinating look at the imaginary lands reported by early travelers (such mythical places as Antilia and the Seven Cities, the glorious Kingdoms of Norumbega and Saguenay, and Hy-Brasil the Isle of the Blest) and examines as well the alleged discoverers of these lands. With warmth and wit he distinguishes fact from fiction, and imaginary explorers and their exploits from actual men and events.
In the second volume, Morison turns his attention to the navigators who negotiated the waters of the Caribbean and the treacherous coasts of South America, even following them as they ventured ashore to the dark inland of the southern continent. The Southern Voyages begins with the events leading up to Columbus's arrival in San Salvador in 1492 and concludes with the discovery of the southernmost bit of land, Cape Horn, by Dutch explorers in 1616. In between, Morison retraces the routes of all the great mariners, including a step-by-step account of Magellan's voyage that would take him around the world. Morison has enlivened his narrative with a wide range of source material from Italy, Spain, Portugal, and South America, in the process shedding new light on questions that have divided scholars througout history: Did Sir Francis Drake discover San Francisco Bay? Was Amerigo Vespucci a great explorer or a fraud--or a little of both? What role did the French have in the European discovery of Brazil?
Each volume brims with contemporary illustrations, maps (many of them specially drawn for this history) and photographs (often taken by Morison himself as he flew at low altitude along the coastal routes of explorers), which together identify virtually every allusion to land and sea made by the great European navigators in their ship logs and their later accounts.
With the 500th anniversary of the European arrival in America came much controversy over Columbus's true legacy. With its lively and engaging style, and with its unsurpassed understanding of the age, The European Discovery of America helps put the era of exploration in much-needed perspective. Anyone interested in the history of America, indeed, in the history of Western Civilization, will find these volumes absolutely essential.
- Print length736 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherOxford University Press
- Publication dateAugust 19, 1993
- Grade level7 - 9
- Dimensions6 x 1.75 x 8.75 inches
- ISBN-100195082710
- ISBN-13978-0195082715
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- Publisher : Oxford University Press (August 19, 1993)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 736 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0195082710
- ISBN-13 : 978-0195082715
- Grade level : 7 - 9
- Item Weight : 2.2 pounds
- Dimensions : 6 x 1.75 x 8.75 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #2,290,869 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #378 in Teen & Young Adult 20th Century United States History
- #62,777 in World History (Books)
- #85,014 in United States History (Books)
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A few years more would have been ver y welcome but I learnt a lot and enjoyed the experience.
Excelent and lengthy introduction to the subject
And yet, the topic is somewhat larger than the good admiral. His didactic intent is manifest on nearly every page. He makes decisions for us concerning the interpretation of the evidence. He does not want to trouble us with puzzlements over the many contradictions in the evidence. This approach is very useful in governing the navy, which needs clear-cut order and orders to reach a peak of efficiency.
Reality is not quite so simple as all that. The sources don't offer us any chain of command for the resolution of our problems, tant pis. While Morison's chart through the reefs of paradox is one way to look at these now distant events, it is not the only, nor, due to studies since then, necessarily the best current. I would not begin with Morison. The man I recommend for the first encounter is Richard Hakluyt, "Principle Voyages of the English Nation," who presents only documents. Morison and every other writer use him perforce. Then you may go on to Morison with much better understanding. Both authors seem indispensible to me.
The European Discovery of America: Volume 1: The Northern Voyages A.D. 500-1600 The European Discovery of America; Vol 1: The Northern Voyages A.D. 500-1600 (The European Discovery of America: The Northern Voyages )
Morison begins his account with the mythical St. Brendan, proceeds onward to the Vikings, examines the claims of other pre-Columbian "disoverers" of America, and then gets to Cabot, Cartier, and the 16th century explorers. He ends the book with a description of the attempt to found the first British colony in the United States at Roanoke Island, NC. Following each chapters he describes his sources and the work of other historians and discusses some of the more outrageous theories about pre-Columbian discoveries.
The book is enhanced by Morison's own experience as a sailor. He is able to refute some of the fantasies of other historians with his on-the-ground and sea experiences. One of the most interesting chapter in the book describes English ships and the life at sea of sailors in the 16th century. Good illustrations and maps enhance the text.
Morison doesn't have much interest and empathy for the Indians the early explorers encountered, nor the forces in Europe that caused the European explorers to trust their fortunes to hazardous journeys. He's a man who celebrates the romance of the sea -- and casts a baleful eye on those sailors and historians who fail to live up to his high standards of seamanship and scholarly endeavor. That this is the best book ever written on the discovery and early exploration of North America is almost without dispute. It's a shame that it has been allowed to go out of print.
Smallchief
The author is an admiral, and apparently a real sailor. I did not buy the book to learn sailing. The author does have a good style, and he flows well. But it is a little less history when he adds gracious comments with no support in the record.
I will not buy the 2nd vol. on the south and recommend that you do not buy this one.
Jim Shockley
P.S. The author did win a Pulitzer Prize, and I have not come close to that. I think part of the problem might be the generational difference.