This week marks the 40th anniversary of a legendary Putney sailor’s greatest achievement - when he became the first man to sail single-handedly and non-stop around the world.

Sailing around, or circumnavigating, the globe has traditionally been viewed as the ultimate test of endurance and defined an era of human achievement when Europe’s ships ruled the world’s oceans in the mid to late 20th Century.

Intrepid explorers such Ferdinand Magellan (1512), Francis Drake (1580), Captain James Cook (1771) and more recently Ellen MacArthur (2005) all made their names by circumnavigating the globe.

But it was Sir Robin Knox-Johnson’s attempt during the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race in 1968 that captured Britain and the world’s imagination, particularly after he disappeared from radio contact for several months towards the end of the race.

Sir Robin was born in Putney, on March 17 1939, but later moved to Merseyside and grew up on The Wirral.

Once he left school, he served in the Merchant and Royal Navy for over a decade.

The Golden Globe Race started at Falmouth on June 14, 1968, and was a non-stop, single-handed, round-the-world yacht competition - the first of its kind.

Despite extreme solitude, Knox-Johnson was completely at home at sea, a skill lacking from some of his less-experienced opponents.

To such an extent that on Christmas Day 1968, his festive celebrations involved treating himself to a generous dose of whisky, a rousing solo carol service and a long toast to the Queen at 3pm.

Later that day he even managed to pick up some American radio stations and heard for the first time about the Apollo 8 astronauts, who had just made the first orbit of the Moon.

In January, however, concerns began to grow for the Putney man as he had not been heard of since Christmas when he was near New Zealand.

But, unbeknown to his family, the 28-year-old seaman had rounded Cape Horn, the southernmost tip of South America, on January 17, 1969, 20 days before his closest competitor, Bernard Moitessier, who eventually abandoned the race.

Concern turned to alarm in March, but, on April 6 he managed to make contact with a British tanker using his signal lamp, which reported the news of his position, 1,200 nautical miles (1,400 miles) from home.

This created a sensation in Britain, with Knox-Johnston now clearly set to win the Golden Globe trophy and the £5,000 prize for the fastest time.

On April 22, Knox-Johnston completed his voyage where it had started, in Falmouth, 313 days after he departed the previous year.

Sir Robin was knighted at Buckingham Palace in 1995.