May 16
Robinson Crusoe is one of the world's most popular adventure novels. Daniel Defoe based his classic tale of shipwreck and survival on a true story. The real Robinson Crusoe was a Scotsman named Alexander Selkirk.
He went to sea on the galleon Cinque Ports in 1703 under privateer William Dampier. After fears that their vessel had become unseaworthy (indeed it did sink shortly thereafter), Selkirk asked to be put ashore on one of the uninhabited Juan Fernández islands (now called Robinson Crusoe Island) about 400 miles off the west coast of Chile, South America.
Once ashore, Selkirk realized the enormity of what he had done. He thought others in the crew would join him, but none did. He changed his mind and tried to convince the captain to take him back. The captain refused and Selkirk found he had marooned himself on an uninhabited island. He was able to domesticate some goats and cats he found on the island and these were his only companions throughout his stay of almost 4 1/2 years (although Defoe extended that in the book to 28 years.)
He was finally rescued in February 1709 by a privateering expedition headed by Captain Woodes Rogers.
Selkirk returned to his home in Scotland, but never quite recovered from his stay on the island. Spending much of his time alone, he didn't feel comfortable living indoors and took up residence in a cave behind his father's house. Eventually he returned to sea and he died of fever off the coast of Africa at the age of 45.
