Sailors questions

The first person to complete a single handed circumnavigation was a retired Master Mariner, originally from Canada, but subsequently a citizen of the USA, Joshua Slocum. He sailed in 1895 on a route that took him across the Atlantic, down South America and through the Magellan passage, and then on to Australia, South Africa and home. He had rebuilt his 35 foot sloop Spray by himself before he sailed and proved a good and safe seaboat and brought him safely home in 1898.

Sir William Robert Patrick "Robin" Knox-Johnston is an English sailor. In 1969 he became the first person to perform a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the globe and was the second winner of the Jules Verne Trophy, together with Sir Peter Blake. For this, they were awarded with the ISAF Yachtsman of the Year award. In 2007 he became, at 67, the oldest yachtsman to complete a round the world solo voyage in the Velux 5 Oceans Race.

John Cabot (Italian: Giovanni Caboto, Venetian: Zuan Chabotto) was a Venetian navigator and explorer whose 1497 discovery of the coast of North America under the commission of Henry VII of England was the first European exploration of the mainland of North America.

Captain Matthew Flinders RN was an English navigator and cartographer, who was the leader of the first circumnavigation of Australia and identified it as a continent. Flinders made three voyages to the southern ocean between 1791 and 1810. In the second voyage, George Bass and Flinders confirmed that Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) was an island. In the third voyage, Flinders circumnavigated the mainland of what was to be called Australia, accompanied by Aboriginal man Bungaree.

During his trip to India da Gama met hostility in the Arab-controlled territories of East Africa. Eventually the expedition resorted to piracy, looting unarmed Arab merchant ships. During the second expedition, Gama's fleet set about capturing any Arab vessel he came across in Indian waters, most notoriously the Miri, a pilgrim ship from Mecca, whose passengers (including women and children) he had locked and buried to death - despite their offers to pay ransom and begs for mercy.

In 1577, half a century after Magellan's expedition, Francis Drake set sail from Plymouth with five ships and 164 men. During his expedition, he captured several Portuguese and Spanish Ships (including treasury ship with 36 kg of gold) and sacked Valparaiso. After his return, the Queen's half-share of the cargo surpassed the rest of the crown's income for that entire year.

During his youth, it was not expected that William, being the third son, would become a king. He served in the Royal Navy in the Caribbean. He inherited the throne at the age of 64, after his two elder brothers died without leaving legitimate successors

Magellan's expedition of 1519–1522 became the first expedition to circumnavigate the Earth. But Magellan himself did not complete the entire voyage, being killed during the Battle of Mactan in the Philippines.

Columbus was born in the Republic of Genoa. His name in Italian is Cristoforo Colombo, his father's name was Domenico, and his brothers were named Bartolomeo, Giovanni Pellegrino and Giacomo.

Nelson was wounded several times in combat, losing one arm and the sight in one eye. During the Battle of Copenhagen, he refused to retreat, raising the telescope to his blind eye, and saying 'I really do not see the signal.