German explorer and naturalist

Alexander Humboldt pursued a lifetime of exploration and discovery, and was best known for his expeditions to Central and South America. A master of observation and analysis, Humboldt was also a prolific writer and recorder of his observed scientific data.

Humboldt was born in Berlin, the son of a Prussian army officer and a Huguenot (French Protestant) mother. He experienced poor health as a child and was unimpressive as a student. He was raised under his mother's strict Calvinistic beliefs and remained unmarried throughout his life.

Perhaps his most notable accomplishment was his five-year expedition to South and Central America made from 1799 to 1804. Spain had been preoccupied with the pursuit of wealth and conquest in its American colonies, and it was rare for a learned individual like Humboldt to gain permission to visit these areas. Once there, his...