Jun 28, 2015 on january 1, 2002, gavin menzies, a british author and retired submarine lieutenantcommander, published his controversial book titled. This is where gavin menzies book 1421, the year the. In 2002 gavin menzies published a book that advanced a bold, new historical theory. Every bookshop in britain is presenting a book called 1434 by gavin menzies as a major history title. His new book, 1431, out about a month ago or so is a little more stupid. He describes the imperative to form trade networks to obtain the raw materials for bronze, another welldiscussed archaeological fact. Like the olympic spectacular, menzies book celebrates chinese history. He is best known as the commander of one of the detached squadrons of zheng hes fleet during the seventh voyage of this fleet to the indian ocean 1431 1433. May 21, 2016 gavin menzies is a spectacularly imaginative and prolific writer of psuedohistory with a long record of spinning historical fantasy out of a few factoids, a colorful writing style, and a great deal of imagination. The brilliance of the renaissance laid the foundation of the modern world. Menzies noticed that they kept encountering the year 1421 and, concluding that it must have been an extraordinary year in world history, decided to write a book about everything that happened in the world in 1421. Well, hes on my mind again after a recent trip to the library, where i stumbled across his latest book, the lost empire of atlantis. Nprs bob edwards talks to gavin menzies, author of. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the.
For more than five hundred years, the historians and scholars have always deemed that during the period from 1405 to 1432, the emperors of china ming dynasty sent zheng he, who was also called as sanbao eunuch or ma sanbao to lead his fleet to voyage in. His first book claimed that the chinese discovered america. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. As it happens, even i have a limit for how much illinformed speculation im willing to carefully parse in one sitting. The fact is, however, that christopher columbus may not have actually discovered the north american continent. On 381421, the largest fleet the world had ever seen set sail from china. Some of you might remember the name gavin menzies from my bad history post. The year china discovered the world has sold 1 million copies in over 100 countries in 20 different languages. Liu gangs original article on the 1418 map, 17th january 2006. The year a magnificent chinese fleet sailed to italy and ignited the renaissance p. Join facebook to connect with peter gavin and others you may know. This stone marker and a similar one erected in 1432 at a port in the province of fujian that was also involved in the zheng he expeditions is one of the many arguments against gavin menzies assertions in 1421. Gavin menzies and the chinese discovery of america.
Reading like a reallife indiana jones story the lost empire of atlantis takes us on an epic journey around the world to finally uncover the truth beh. The year china discovered america gavin menzies, author. There is a childrens rhyme about the discovery of america that begins in 1492, columbus sailed the ocean blue. The year china discovered america, gavin menzies presents evidence that china not only discovered north and south america before columbus was born, but also rounded the cape of good hope, explored the north and south poles, discovered australia, and circumnavigated the world, visiting every continent except europe. It goes without saying that gavin menzies book has been quite controversial and disputed by many. I was unaware menzies had chosen to tackle that particular subject and my first reaction was oh thank god. Rowan gavin paton menzies 14 august 1937 12 april 2020 was a british author and retired submarine lieutenantcommander who has written books promoting claims that the chinese sailed to america before columbus. Wikipedia has an article dedicated to the 1421 hypothesis, which lists some detailed criticism, specially about the chinese discovering austrialia an extensive site called the 1421 myth exposed an article by geoff wade describing 1421 as a fairytale and fiction salon has an article describing the book as an. The year a magnificent chinese fleet sailed to italy. Columbus discovered america in 1492, any elementary school student will tell you. To nobodys surprise, the carbon date, obtained from a waikato university laboratory. Gavin menzies is either ignorant or thinks his readers are. Join facebook to connect with gavin menzies and others you may know. I find his theories interesting, if not very compelling.
The author of 1434 2008 and 1421 2003 argues that the destruction of atlantis was not fiction but a tale of an actual volcano and consequent tsunami that devastated the heart of the vast minoan empire on crete and santorini then called thera employing the research of many scholars, the selfconfidence of a rock star, the zeal of a true believer and a travel budget sufficient to make. Item from gavin menzies, 1421, the year china discovered the world. Gavin menzies has been a youth and development worker for the city of edinburgh council for over ten years, working in a wide variety of areas including holiday clubs, developing youth centre and school based programmes as well as delivering sports and activities to charities and after school clubs. The year china discovered america paperback june 3, 2008. Gavin menzies is a spectacularly imaginative and prolific writer of psuedohistory with a long record of spinning historical fantasy out of a few factoids, a colorful writing style, and a great deal of imagination. Gavin menzies explores the history of china and the ambitious voyages of discovery lead by jeng he. The author of 1434 2008 and 1421 2003 argues that the destruction of atlantis was not fiction but a tale of an actual volcano and consequent tsunami that devastated the heart of the vast minoan empire on crete and santorini then called thera. Contentsshow early career according to the history of ming, in. The year china discovered the world has sold 1 million copies in.
The year china discovered the world that a contingent of the sixth expedition continued south along africas east coast, sailed. Gavin menzies has lectured at melbourne university and is invited to. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Trump cited menzies 1421 book as one of the books he had read that indicated that he understood the chinese. Ce chinese naval expeditions, commissioned by the ming emperor zhu di and commanded by.
Recently, stimulated by the publication of the book 1421. A couple of years ago, i read gavin menzies book 1421. Gavin menzies royal navy submarine commanding officer, retired was born in 1937 in china, where he spent the first two years of his life. As a junior officer he sailed the world in the wake of columbus, dias, cabral and vasco da gama. The precolumbian discovery of the american continent by muslim seafarers fuat sezgin the question of a possible precolumbian discovery of the americas has been pondered by many scholars throughout the second half of the 20th century. It was set up in 2002 and for 18 years served as a focal point for ongoing research into precolumbian exploration of the world.
Gavin menzies 19372020 was the bestselling author of 1421. The year that america was discovered essay example. The new york times bestselling author of 1421 offers another stunning reappraisal of history, presenting compelling new evidence that traces the roots of the european renaissance to chinese exploration in the fifteenth century. How accurate is gavin menzies book who discovered america.
The fleet was the largest that the world had ever seen and dwarfed any of europes future exploration fleets. Read 1421 the year china discovered the world free essay and over 89,000 other research documents. In his book, menzies claims the chinese reached america 70 years before the iberian explorer christopher columbus. When china discovered the world examines the theories outlined by gavin menzies in his book 1421. The year china discovered the world extremely interesting as it challenged traditional thought. The year china discovered america publishers weekly. By march 2006, the results of the c 14 dating had been obtained and a press conference was held by messrs menzies, liu and thompson at a beijing book shop.
Now, in a controversial sequel, gavin menzies says they also sparked the. The book 1421, the year china discovered america is a fairytale and. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Historians have rejected menzies theories and assertions and have categorised his work as pseudohistory he was best known for his controversial book 1421. Then he states how amazing it is that the minoans traveled to africa a full 4,000 years before vasco da gama and the age of discovery. March 21, 1901 april 28, 1972 was a san francisco astrologer and sexologist and a grandson of u. His knowledge of seafaring and navigation sparked his interest in the epic voyages of. Whenever something we have been taught all our lives as being true is challenged, it is always met with some.
Rowan gavin paton menzies 14 august 1937 12 april 2020 was a british author and retired. Arthur he has been described as an ivy league dropout, an irish republican army activist, an experimentalfilm actor, a commune leader, a gold prospector, a teacher at san quentin, and a bisexual sexologistastrologer. On january 1, 2002, gavin menzies, a british author and retired submarine lieutenantcommander, published his controversial book titled. He brings the reader aboard the remarkable chinese fleet as it sails from china to cairo and florence, and then back across the world. But an amateur historian says chinese beat him to it in 1421.
Nov 25, 2003 gavin menzies would have us believe that he is a multitalented naval commander who has taught himself all about early maps, ancient voyages and numerous other esoteric studies. Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. The book focuses on the proposition of a new theory suggesting that chinese mercenaries were able to travel as far as the americas in the 1400s, thus discovering america before columbus. The year a magnificent chinese fleet sailed to italy and ignited the renaissance. Every college world history textbook discusses the early 15th c. Gavin menziess phone number, email, address spokeo. In 1434, gavin menzies combines this longoverdue historical reexamination with the excitement of an investigative adventure. In his book, menzies claims the chinese reached america 70. On the 8th of march, 1421, the largest fleet the world had ever seen sailed from its base in china. He is best known as the commander of one of the detached squadrons of zheng he s fleet during the seventh voyage of this fleet to the indian ocean 1431 1433. The year china discovered the world, which has become a bestseller in the united kingdom. The author sailed on three of the ming expeditions, and his book is a. Home gavin menziesgavin menzies who discovered america.
Aug 18, 2011 liu gangs original article on the 1418 map, 17th january 2006. Find gavin menziess phone number, address, and email on spokeo, the leading online directory for contact information. Gavin menzies had the idea to write his first book after he and his wife marcella visited the forbidden city for their twentyfifth wedding anniversary. He joined the royal navy in 1953 and served in submarines from 1959 to 1970. Gavin menzies, a former british royal navy officer, argues in the bestseller 1421. Jan 08, 2003 columbus discovered america in 1492, any elementary school student will tell you. The year china discovered america, that squadrons from zheng hes fleets, between 1421 and 1423, did indeed get. The first book was great, this one has way more informatiion and is one of several that gavin has out on the voyages. Textbooks tell us that it came about as a result of a rediscovery of the ideas and ideals. The year china discovered the world bantam new edition by menzies, gavin isbn. The year china discovered america and was surprised about the influence that chinese mapping and navigational technology had on european exploration.
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