Pierre-Olivier Malherbe
Encyclopedia
Pierre-Olivier Malherbe (1569–1616) was a French explorer from the city of Vitré
.
Pierre-Olivier Malherbe went on 27-year world tour, and returned to France in 1609. He has a claim to being the first French circumnavigator. He visited China, and in India had an encounter with Akbar.
Upon his return, Pierre-Olivier Malherbe met several time with the French king Henry IV
, to tell him about the gold
and silver
of the East Indies
. He explained about the routes to reach these places, and offered to lead an expedition for the king.
Pierre-Olivier Malherbe may have been the author of a Malay language
dictionary, which was added to François Martin de Vitré
's work La Description du premier voyage fait aux Indes orientales par les Français en l'an 1603 in 1609.
He is mentioned in the 1629 Traité de navigation et des voyages de découvertes et conquêtes, principalement des François by geographer Pierre Bergeron.
In Paris, he also met with the Dutch linguist Erpenius, who was preparing the first Latin-Arab Dictionnary.
Vitré
Vitré may refer to communes in France:* Vitré, Ille-et-Vilaine* Vitré, Deux-Sèvres...
.
Pierre-Olivier Malherbe went on 27-year world tour, and returned to France in 1609. He has a claim to being the first French circumnavigator. He visited China, and in India had an encounter with Akbar.
Upon his return, Pierre-Olivier Malherbe met several time with the French king Henry IV
Henry IV of France
Henry IV , Henri-Quatre, was King of France from 1589 to 1610 and King of Navarre from 1572 to 1610. He was the first monarch of the Bourbon branch of the Capetian dynasty in France....
, to tell him about the gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
of the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
. He explained about the routes to reach these places, and offered to lead an expedition for the king.
Pierre-Olivier Malherbe may have been the author of a Malay language
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
dictionary, which was added to François Martin de Vitré
François Martin de Vitré
François Martin de Vitré was a French sailor and adventurer from the city of Vitré who travelled to East Asia as far as Sumatra from 1601 to 1603. He was the first Frenchman to write an account of travels to the Far East. He was however preceded to the Far-East by several French traders, such as...
's work La Description du premier voyage fait aux Indes orientales par les Français en l'an 1603 in 1609.
He is mentioned in the 1629 Traité de navigation et des voyages de découvertes et conquêtes, principalement des François by geographer Pierre Bergeron.
In Paris, he also met with the Dutch linguist Erpenius, who was preparing the first Latin-Arab Dictionnary.