From the sponsorship of early explorers by rival European powers to the creation of a new world empire in the Americas, Historical Atlas of Exploration chronicles what is still seen as the biggest land grab in history. Developed in association with the National Maritime Museum, the book is an exciting, comprehensive guide to the Great Age of Exploration, when humankind's new-found ambition and quest for knowledge created an age of adventure and discovery across uncharted territories. Organized chronologically and working within an atlas format, the book covers: biographies of the famous navigators of the day, the voyages they undertook, and the ships they sailed; full-color maps that chart the gradual discovery of new lands; and a continuous timeline of dates and events. Among the explorers and topics covered are: Africa in the 15th century and the landings of Gonalo Cabral and Bartolomeo Dias; navigation in the 16th century, Christopher Columbus, the Pinzn Brothers, and Pnfilo de Narvez; Vasco de Gama, Pedro Cabral, and sea routes to the Indies; and John Cabot, Ponce de Len, Giovanni da Verrazzano, and the exploration of North America.
With over 50 history books in print, Angus is a widely recognised and much-published historian. While he specialises in military and naval history he has also written numerous more general history books, designed to make the subject more accessible to a wider audience. Uniquely he has been able to draw on his expertise as a senior museum curator who has worked on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as on his academic training as a historian and as a maritime archaeologist.
His latest book is a full-length biography: Blackbeard: America's Most Notorious Pirate, which is published by Wiley & Sons. of New York (June 2006)
Angus is also just finished writing a history of the Allied landings at Salerno in September 1943 for the British publisher Pen & Sword, and he is currently working on a new project, with the working title of Supership: The Quest for the Renaissance Battleship.
Angus lives in Edinburgh, in Scotland.
