John Hemming (explorer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Hemming
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Andean explorers Hugh Thompson, John Hemming, Vince Lee, and John Beauclerk in 2010
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John Henry Hemming
5 January 1935 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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Susan (Sukie) Babington Smith
(m. 1979) |
John Henry Hemming (born January 5, 1935) is a famous historian, explorer, and expert. He knows a lot about the Incas and the native people of the Amazon basin. He has explored many parts of the world and written important books about history.
Contents
Early Life and Education
John Hemming was born in Vancouver, Canada, on January 5, 1935. His father, Henry Harold Hemming, had fought in World War I. He was worried about another big war starting. So, he sent John's mother, Alice Hemming, to Canada. She was a journalist.
John and his sister Louisa came back to London when John was just two months old. He went to school in the United Kingdom at Eton College. Later, he studied in Canada at McGill University. He also earned a special degree called a doctorate from Oxford University. He became an honorary fellow at Magdalen College there.
Adventures and Discoveries
Exploring the Iriri River
In 1961, John Hemming went on an expedition to the Iriri River in central Brazil. He was with two friends from Oxford, Richard Mason and Kit Lambert. They were exploring unknown parts of the country. The Brazilian mapping agency, IBGE, helped them. They even let the team name new places they found.
However, after four months, something sad happened. A group of native people, who had never met outsiders before, found their trail. They attacked the group, and Richard Mason was killed. He was the last Englishman to be killed by a totally unknown tribe. His body was taken out of the jungle and buried in Brazil. This tribe was later contacted in 1973 and is called the Panará people. John Hemming visited them in 1998.
Writing About the Incas
John Hemming's first book, The Conquest of the Incas, came out in 1970. It is still very popular today. He spent a whole year in 1960 traveling all over Peru. He learned a lot about the Incas. His book won important awards.
Because of his work, Peru gave him two of its highest awards. These were El Sol del Peru ('The Sun of Peru') and the Grand Cross of the Orden al Merito Publico (Order of Merit). He also wrote another book called Monuments of the Incas. This book is about the amazing buildings the Incas made in Peru. He inspired and became friends with Vince Lee, another explorer of the Andes mountains.
Studying Brazilian Native Peoples
His trip to the Iriri River made John Hemming very interested in the native people of Brazil. He went on many trips and visited 45 different tribes across Brazil. He was even there when Brazilian teams first met four of these tribes face-to-face.
Over 26 years, he wrote a three-book series about the native people and exploration of the Brazilian Amazonia.
- Red Gold (1978) covers the years 1500 to 1760.
- Amazon Frontier (1985) covers 1760 to 1910.
- Die If You Must (2004) describes their lives in the 20th century.
These three books together are over 2,100 pages long!
Leading the Royal Geographical Society
In 1975, John Hemming became the director of the Royal Geographical Society. This is a very important group for explorers and geographers. He held this job until 1996. He led a huge research project in Brazil called the Maracá Rainforest Project (1987–88). About 200 scientists worked on it. It was the biggest research project in the Amazon organized by a European country. They worked with Brazilian researchers.
For his work on the Maracá project, John Hemming received the RGS's Founder's Medal. He also got the Brazilian Ordem do Cruzeiro do Sul (Order of the Southern Cross) and other medals.
More Books About the Amazon
In 2008, his book Tree of Rivers: The Story of the Amazon was published. It tells the story of the Amazon River. Another writer, Hugh Thomson, said it was the best single book on the topic. John Hemming also wrote Naturalists in Paradise. Wallace, Bates and Spruce in the Amazon in 2015.
Personal Life
In 1979, John Hemming married Susan (Sukie) Babington Smith. She worked for The National Trust for many years. She also became a director at the British Museum. They have two children, Beatrice and Henry Hemming. Henry is also a writer.
Awards and Recognition
In 1994, the British government made John Hemming a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG). This is a special honor. In 2018, he received the President's Medal from the British Academy. This award was for his work on the history of Brazil and Peru, and for helping to protect endangered native groups.
