February 1, 1709 on the island of Mas a Tierra in the Pacific Ocean was a miracle. The sailors of the English ship "Duke" found a dirty, stinking savage goats in the skins, which is almost forgotten human speech, but he remembered something from the Bible, the jargon of sailors and obscene English. They were the Scotsman Alexander Selkirk, the real prototype of Robinson Crusoe, who had lived for almost five years on a desert island, being able to establish life and stay sane. As he found himself in the middle of the ocean Nowhere? It all started with the fact that Alexander was a terrible character. The nature of the Scot.
Alexander Selkirk was born in 1676 in a small village on the border of the plains and hills of the Scottish clans. We can say that he was unlucky from the start: his father, a shoemaker and tanner, hard drinking and often beat his sons. Those, in turn, themselves from an early age were not fools to drink and fight. Alexander fell far from the tree and raised real rowdy. According to one version, it is because of a fight with his brothers to death and trying to beat dad, the boy had to leave his father's house, and become a sailor.
His irrepressible character and readiness at any moment to get into a fight connected with a quick mind and skillful in sailor affairs. In general, this makes it an ideal candidate for the Pirates, and Alexander Selkirk quickly became buccaneers in the service of His Majesty. In the end, he arrived in the company of an adventurer, traveler and lover of hot fill Spaniards lead named William Dampier. Future Robinson performed well in the role of Buccaneer: fiercely fought during boarding, quickly worked his head, a beer mug, and moved his arms and career.
William Dampier, the organizer of the expedition
Dumper trust Alexander, therefore, made him chief assistant on one of their ships, "Cinque Ports", driven by Captain Stradling. The idea, as it turned out, was not meaningless, because after one of the battles against the Spaniards, Stradling decided to throw a damper to his adventurous ideas and organize their own maritime company with robbery and violence.
Typical of those years Buccaneer
Padded ship stopped at Juan Fernandez archipelago, to gain food and move on. Alexander Selkirk, who vehemently argued all the way to the captain, got involved in a new conflict: Stradling chose to immediately go further, and his assistant, persuaded that the ship will sink if it is not repaired. Incidentally, he was right, "Cinque Ports" really went to the bottom of the first strong wave, and only a small portion of the men survived, but only to get into the Spanish prisoner.
However, before the collapse of the captain preferred to leave the order to get him a sailor on the island of Mas a Tierra. Loud-mouthed Scot left the boat, gun, gunpowder, the Bible, bowler hat and a few clothes. The next time he sees living people only after 4 years and 4 months.
Island with anomalous contents Robinson
Desert Island Mas-a-Tierra, which turned out to Selkirk - a very peculiar piece of land. This is not just some sort of a rock sticking out of the sea, but a place with its own unique history. In 1574, it opened a Spanish explorer, son of a gun, and as we would say today, corrupt wheeler-dealer and Juan Fernandez. In fact, in his honor, and the archipelago got its name. Huang found a real gold mine here: rookery of seals, the fat which then cost big money.
Fernandez was necessary start-up capital and, therefore, he requested from the Spanish crown to colonize the island finances. He was given the money, the seeds for crops and tools, as well as about half a thousand slaves Indians. All this brought the captain here, and immediately gave up, and most of the money used for the development of the enterprise for the extraction of oil seals. But to build a solid trading empire did not work: in one of his trips Fernandez contracted malaria and died.
What then happened to the Indians - is unclear. No trace of their stay and has not been found, so there is a possibility that he was not brought anyone here, and all these recorded colonists - a "dead souls". Theoretically, Fernandez could and did throw them overboard as ballast on the road. In such cases stories too bothersome slaves already happened, not once.
But the main thing: the Spanish city slicker leave here without what Robinson's life quickly came to an end. On the island of goats and cats were brought (to catch rats, which also brought Europeans).
Now the island is literally carries the name "Robinson Island"
Furthermore, Selkirk was not the first thrown out there to fend for themselves. Prior to this, the island has tried to survive three Dutch volunteers, and later the Spaniards "forgot" a servant-Indian who managed to survive on a Mac-and-Terrae three years. In 1687, the pirate Captain Edward Davis landed here for a couple of years in the punishment of nine sailors who wanted to teach a lesson of addiction to gambling. In general, the history of this island has been filled with Robinson as no one in the world. Later, in the XIX century, of Mas-a-Tierra make a prison for political criminals, who will live here in the caves in almost primitive conditions. Moreover, two of them later become presidents of Chile. The island is definitely attracted interesting stories and for original personalities like a magnet.
How to live on a desert island and to comply with Scottish customs?
The first thing you want to do, Alexander Selkirk - it's suicide. But at some point he came to a reasonable conclusion: why shoot a musket in yourself, if you can shoot in native animals or Stradling (if this dog decides to return). The sailor knew that ships float there quite often, and colleagues, buccaneers periodically swim here in order to replenish water supplies. It seemed only need to hold out for a few weeks, to the British took it. What really had to wait for "Union Jack" on the horizon, we already know. Unfortunately for Robinson, the Spaniards were just starting to actively fight the privateers and almost drove them out of the region - to sail here has now been specifically and no one.
Selkirk could easily find traces of human stay here, and the goats with cats clearly said that once the island was inhabited by people. At first, he had to hard, and he did not stray far from the coast, feeding on mollusks, snail eggs and trying to hunt sea lions. Those proved to be too aggressive and numerous - if Alexander was on land owned by Aboriginal evil pinnipeds. He had to flee from their wrath and go inland. There he found that these places are full of nepuganye peri-domestic goats. For hundreds of years they strongly crushed and decayed, but the meat were good.
Later Selkirk managed to domesticate some of them, and appeared at his disposal milk and skins. Of these, he was able to sew clothing - years of life with daddy-tanner has not been in vain. In addition, here we managed to find wild turnips, cabbage and peppers (most likely also imported other Robinson). In any case, domesticated goat was missing and he had to hunt wild. However, stocks of finished powder and Selkirk chasing animals around the island on foot with a homemade knife in his hand. This he did, imprisoning metal hoop a barrel that washed ashore. The weapon was lousy, but not frightened goat, never known predators, easily given into the hand.
Scottish nature showed itself even on a desert island with minimal opportunities for civilized life. It is unknown whether Alexander Selkirk haggis offal of goats, cooked (probably yes), but that's what he did for the Scottish, it's housing. In 2008, archaeologists have been able to find traces of the two huts that are built next to each other Selkirk.
This was done in the tradition of the shepherds of Highland: there decided to put close to not one but two shacks: for living, and for cooking and storing food. Obviously, it was a necessity, where due to the strong wind the structure can instantly burn down (the shepherd remained at least a roof over his head, even in this case).
Even managed to domesticate wild cats - without all the supplies Selkirk would be devoured greedy and angry with the human rat. So over the years it is more or less established the life and made life here bearable. But loneliness tormented him and not to lose his mind completely, pirate every day read aloud psalms of his goats and cats. Not that even such a shock could make it a religious man, but a friend is not in sight.
All these days, Alexander led his calendar marking the days lived. Four years later, it turns out that he was confused and said yourself a few extra months of life on the island - probably, sometimes, having forgotten, pointed out the same day twice. When all the entertainment is limited reading of the Bible, tiskanem wild cats and hunting goats, to make such a mistake - simple.
Alexander Selkirk finds salvation and Daniel Defoe - the best story of his life.
Double-ships sailed past the island and double it was damned Spaniards. Even in such a situation, Robinson chose not to communicate with them and hid from the eyes of potential seafarers. Considering how many of them he had sent to feed the sea creatures, waiting for something other than the execution of the cost. Finally, in 1709, after four and a half years of ordeals and hardships, he saw the British flag, and heard a familiar voice. Perhaps no one in the history of the Scot was not happy arrival of the English so much.
It turned out that it's not just ordinary seamen, and the team that same adventurer William dumper, which once was part of himself Selkirk. Some of the pirates might even know this man, covered with mud and goat skins, his old friend, who remembered by exuberant nature and Mountain accent. During the years of loneliness Robinson almost lost speech skills. Saying he could with difficulty, but his language and dialect sailor once again urged rescuers that in front of them veteran British marque, and not any native.
"Savage" washed, shaved, made his hero and Captain Woods Rogers, in charge of the expedition, immediately announced to celebrate Selkirk governor "colonized" them for the four years of the island. Further, his life was full of interesting events, but they were not nearly as bright impressions with this gloomy hell, in which he almost lost his mind with boredom, monotony and bleating goats.
Saving Private Selkirk
Alexander Selkirk arrived in Britain and for a while became a star almost a national scale: about him in newspapers, they are interested in an idle crowd, and even higher light. He received a lot of money in those days - 800 pounds - and could afford to live comfortably. The same Captain Woodes Rogers, who saved Selkirk, paid him a considerable place in his best-selling book of the time "World Tour: Adventures of an English corsair."
Alexander often told his story in the pubs, but believed him, of course, not all so short-tempered Robinson had to use his fists, to prove the truth of his words. For a while, he cohabited with a certain lady of questionable moral character, and later married, but on the other - a fun widowed innkeeper named Francis Candice.
It can be said that bitter experience has taught him anything, and he once again became a sailor. The former joined the pirate hunters on the corsairs, although in a professional sense there was little difference - to sail and take on board the ship of the Spaniards and the French. But it can be said in another way: it protivela land and drinking companions in the pub seemed not much more interesting than the goats, which he read psalms on the island of Mas a Tierra. In one of these expeditions along West Africa Alexander Selkirk and died of yellow fever, and his body was buried in the waters around Guinea. Restless and rebellious, he will not want to be too stable and boring land, sea, and pick it up forever.
Business on the hunt for the pirates is not much different from the piracy.
Most likely, before in 1719 to write his "Robinson Crusoe" by Daniel Defoe saw Alexander Selkirk, and listened to his story. In the end, the novel was too many details that match the life on the island. To avoid accusations of plagiarism, Defoe sent his hero to the Caribbean, and changed his name. Besides, he combined the two stories of lost on the island of Mas a Tierra: Selkirk history and especially the Indians who lived there long before him. The "Robinson Crusoe" Indian servant, forgotten by the Spaniards, turned into a Friday, so that may be a stretch to say that he had a real prototype.
Incidentally, in the continuation of the adventures of Robinson Crusoe Defoe described his wanderings through Siberia, China and Southeast Asia. For example, in the book the hero spends eight months in Tobolsk, simultaneously studying the habits and life of Tatars and Cossacks, who the Briton seem no less exotic than the tribes of cannibals. It is not difficult to guess that these stories do not have any relation to Alexander Selkirk, and Daniel Defoe, once inspired by the history of the Scottish sailor just suffered.