Ida Laura Pfeiffer facts for kids

Ida Pfeiffer, a brave Austrian explorer.

Ida Laura Pfeiffer (born October 14, 1797 – died October 27, 1858) was an amazing Austrian traveler, explorer, and writer. She was one of the first women to travel professionally and explore many parts of the world. Her exciting travel journals became very popular and were translated into seven languages! Ida journeyed an incredible 32,000 kilometers (about 20,000 miles) by land and 240,000 kilometers (about 150,000 miles) by sea. She explored places like Southeast Asia, the Americas, the Middle East, and Africa. She even completed two trips around the world between 1846 and 1855. Even though she was a member of important geographical societies in Berlin and Paris, the Royal Geographical Society in London did not allow women to join until 1913.

Ida Pfeiffer: A World Explorer
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Ida Pfeiffer: A World Explorer

Early Life and Dreams of Adventure

Ida Laura Pfeiffer was born in Vienna, Austria, on October 14, 1797. Her father was a wealthy textile maker. She grew up with five brothers and a younger sister. As a child, Ida loved sports and outdoor activities, often preferring to wear boys' clothes. Her father encouraged her to learn the same things as her brothers. She once wrote, "I was not shy, but wild as a boy, and bolder and more forward than my elder brothers."

When she was just five years old, Ida took her first long trip to Palestine and Egypt. This journey sparked her lifelong love for travel. After her father passed away in 1806, her mother wanted Ida to have a more traditional upbringing. She insisted Ida wear dresses and take piano lessons. Later, when Napoleon Bonaparte's troops occupied Vienna, young Ida showed her strong spirit by turning her back as the generals rode past, protesting the foreign presence.

Ida's tutor, Franz Josef Trimmel, introduced her to stories of famous explorers. She especially loved Robinson Crusoe and the writings of Alexander von Humboldt, a famous explorer she would later meet.

In 1820, Ida married Dr. Mark Anton Pfeiffer. He was a lawyer in Lemberg (now Lviv, Ukraine). After their wedding, they moved to Lemberg. Dr. Pfeiffer soon lost his job because he exposed some unfair practices by government officials. This made it hard for him to find new work. To help her family, Ida moved between Lemberg and Vienna, giving drawing and music lessons and borrowing money from her brothers. She had two sons, Alfred and Oscar. In 1831, a small inheritance from her mother helped improve their financial situation, allowing her to continue her sons' education.

First Journeys: Europe and the Middle East

When Ida was 45 years old, her sons were grown and had jobs. This was her chance to finally follow her childhood dream of exploring the world! She later wrote about her strong desire to travel, saying she would stop and stare at every traveling carriage, even envying the driver, thinking he had completed a long journey.

In 1842, Ida began her first big adventure. She traveled along the Danube River to Istanbul, a famous city in Turkey. From there, she continued to Jerusalem, visiting many interesting places like Smyrna, Rhodes, Cyprus, and Beirut. She then sailed to Egypt, exploring Alexandria, Cairo, and the Red Sea. On this trip, she met other travelers, including artists and a botanist (someone who studies plants).

After returning home, she wrote a book about her journey called A Vienna woman's trip to the Holy Land. It was a huge success and helped her earn money for her next adventure.

In 1845, Ida set off again, this time to Scandinavia and Iceland. To prepare, she learned English and Danish. She also learned how to preserve natural specimens and take early photographs called daguerreotypes. She traveled from Vienna to Copenhagen, then sailed to Iceland. There, she rode horses to Reykjavík, explored volcanic areas, visited the beautiful Golden Falls, and even climbed Mount Hekla, a volcano. After Iceland, she visited Sweden and Norway. She published another book about this trip, which was also translated into English.

Around the World: First Grand Expedition

In 1846, Ida Pfeiffer began her first journey around the entire world! She visited many countries, including Brazil and Chile in South America, the island of Tahiti, China, India, Persia (modern-day Iran), Asia Minor, and Greece. She returned to Vienna in 1848, having completed an incredible global adventure. She wrote about this journey in her book, A Woman's Journey round the World.

Her trip started with a ship voyage from Hamburg to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She explored deep into the Brazilian forests. Then, she sailed to Chile and later to Tahiti. From there, she continued across the Pacific Ocean to Macao on the coast of China.

For the next few months, Ida explored temples and villages in Hong Kong, went on a hunting trip in Singapore, and visited cities like Colombo and Kandy in Sri Lanka. She learned about local traditions in Calcutta and visited the holy city of Benares in India. She traveled across India by bullock cart, seeing ancient forts and caves along the way.

In 1848, she left India for Baghdad, which was then part of the Ottoman Empire. She explored the ruins of ancient cities like Ctesiphon, Babylon, and Nineveh. She also visited homes in Tabriz, a city in modern-day Iran, and met local leaders. Her journey continued through Armenia and Georgia, before she crossed the Black Sea into the Russian Empire. Her book about this first world trip was published in 1850 and became very popular, reviewed in major newspapers and magazines worldwide.

Second Global Adventure: Science and Discovery

To fund her next big trip, Ida sold some of the natural specimens she had collected to a museum in Vienna. She also received a grant from the government because she had proven how good she was at finding rare specimens from far-off places.

In 1851, she traveled to Berlin, Germany, where she met her childhood hero, the famous explorer Alexander von Humboldt. She also met German geographer Carl Ritter. Both men supported her work, and she became the first woman to receive an honorary membership in the Geographical Society of Berlin. She then went to London, meeting other important scientists and geographers.

On May 27, 1851, Ida set sail for Cape Town, South Africa. She collected many specimens there and sent them back to the Natural History Museum, Vienna. She wanted to explore deeper into Africa, but it was too expensive.

So, she continued across the Indian Ocean to the Malay Archipelago (a group of islands in Southeast Asia). She spent time in Singapore, collecting new species of insects, fish, and other marine life. She spent 18 months exploring the Sunda Islands, visiting the Dayaks of Borneo and the Bataks in Sumatra. She was one of the first explorers to write about their traditions. Along the way, she met local leaders and scientists, collecting many valuable specimens, including unique fish.

In 1853, she sailed across the Pacific Ocean to North America. She arrived on the West Coast of the United States during the California Gold Rush and visited several cities like Sacramento and San Jose. She then traveled south through Central America and visited Ecuador.

In 1854, she took a steamer to New Orleans and then toured the Great Lakes Region of the United States. In her journal, she wrote about visiting American circuses, theaters, and girls' schools. She also met famous American writer Washington Irving and important scientists like Louis Agassiz.

Ida returned to Vienna in July 1855 and finished her book, My second trip around the world, which was published in 1856. This book was also very well received and translated into many languages.

Exploring Madagascar

In 1857, Ida Pfeiffer began her final journey, aiming to explore the island of Madagascar. While there, she became involved in a local political situation, which led to her being asked to leave the country in July 1857.

During her journey from the capital city of Antananarivo to the coast, she became very ill, likely with malaria. She never fully recovered from this illness. She suffered from fevers on the island of Mauritius and then traveled to London and Hamburg, but her health continued to worsen.

Ida Laura Pfeiffer passed away in Vienna on October 27, 1858, at her brother's home. A book describing her last voyage, Trip to Madagascar, was published after her death in 1861. It also included a biography written by her son, Oscar Pfeiffer.

Her Contributions to Natural History

Throughout her travels, Ida Pfeiffer was not just an explorer; she was also a dedicated naturalist. She collected many different kinds of plants, insects, mollusks (like snails), marine life, and mineral specimens. Many of these valuable collections were sold to important museums, such as the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin and the British Museum.

Some of the species she collected were even named after her, showing her important contributions to science. These include:

A type of Orb-weaver spider (Poltys idae)
An insect called Lonchodes pfeifferae
A freshwater prawn (Palaemon idae)
Snails (Vaginula idae and Pupina superba)

The Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna bought 721 specimens from her collection from Madagascar and Mauritius. These included many different mammals, birds, reptiles, crustaceans, mollusks, spiders, and insects.

Inspiring Others: Her Influence

Ida Pfeiffer's adventures and writings inspired many people during her time and continue to do so today.

The famous American writer Henry David Thoreau mentioned her in his well-known book, Walden.
Alfred Wallace, another great naturalist and explorer, often wrote about Pfeiffer in his letters. Wallace even visited many of the same places that Ida had explored before him, especially in the Malay Archipelago.

Lasting Recognition and Legacy

Ida Pfeiffer's detailed and inspiring travel books brought her great fame in Europe and the United States.

The Austrian government recognized her achievements by giving her 1,500 guldens to support her travels.
She often received free passage on Dutch and American ships.
Famous explorers like Alexander von Humboldt and Carl Ritter wrote letters of recommendation for her.
The King of Prussia awarded her a gold medal for science and art, which was a remarkable honor for a woman who had largely taught herself and started her professional travels later in life.

How She is Remembered Today

Ida Pfeiffer's legacy continues to be honored in many ways:

In 1867, an Austrian scientist named a species of frog from Madagascar, Boophis idae, in her honor.
In 1892, her remains were moved to a special place of honor in the Vienna Central Cemetery, making her the first woman to be recognized in this way.
In 2000, a street in Munich, Germany, was renamed Ida-Pfeiffer-Straße.
In 2018, the University of Vienna created an "Ida Pfeiffer Professorship" in their Faculty of Earth Sciences, Geography, and Astronomy.
Many books and studies have been written about her life and incredible journeys, including a picture book for children called Ida and the World Beyond Mount Kaiserzipf.