![]() Cook's journals were published upon his return and he became something of a hero among the scientific community. Batavia was known for its outbreaks of malaria, and much of Cook's crew would succumb to the disease before they returned home in 1771. Unfortunately, he sailed for Batavia, the capital of the Dutch East Indies, to put in for repairs. He forced his men to eat such foods as citrus fruits and sauerkraut. His ship on this voyage, HM Bark Endeavour, gave the name to the Space Shuttle Endeavour.īy this point in the voyage Cook had lost no men to scurvy, a remarkable and unheard-of achievement in the 18th century. He then sailed through Torres Strait between Australia and New Guinea, again becoming only the second European to do so (the first being Luis Vaez de Torres, in 1604). However, Botany Bay was the site of one of the earliest European contacts with Australian Aborigines and the first European sightings of Australian flora and fauna (the name Botany Bay was chosen to reflect the diverse range of flora found there).Ĭook also discovered the Great Barrier Reef, when his ship ran aground June 11th 1770 Endeavour was seriously damaged and his voyage was delayed for two months while repairs were carried out. The site of Cook's first landing, at Kurnell on Botany Bay, was intended to be the site of the first British colony in Australia, but when Captain Arthur Phillip arrived with the First Fleet in 1788, he felt that Botany Bay was unsuitable, and sailed a short distance northwards to Port Jackson, for the establishment of Sydney. Next, he went on to Australia, where he discovered its east coast. Cook mapped its complete coastline, discovering Cook Strait which separates the North Island from the South Island. He also reached New Zealand, which until then had been visited by Europeans only once, by Abel Tasman in 1642. The Royal Society, and especially Alexander Dalrymple, insisted Terra Australis must exist, despite Cook's personal doubts. He then explored the South Pacific for the mythical continent of Terra Australis, with the help a Tahitian named Tupaia who had extensive knowledge of Pacific geography. Leaving in 1768, he arrived on Apin Tahiti where he built a small fort and observatory to observe the transit however, due to the lack of precise scientific instruments, there was no way to accurately measure it. In 1766 the Society hired him to travel to the Pacific Ocean to observe and record a transit of Venus across the Sun. Voyages of exploration First voyage (1768–71)Įndeavour replica in Cooktown, Queensland to find new routes between the Pacific and the Atlantic.to watch for good places for new military bases.to take over the land for the British King George III.to find the Southern continent ( terra australis incognita).Their names were Mary Cook, Margaret Cook, William Cook, Jane Cook and John Cook. Their names were Elizabeth Cook, Hugh Cook, George Cook, Nathaniel Cook and Joseph Cook. His surveying skills were put to good use in the 1760s mapping the jagged coast of Newfoundland, which brought him to the attention of the Royal Society.Ĭook's distinctive and huge achievements can be attributed to a combination of excellent seamanship, his superior surveying and cartographic skills (map-making), courage in exploring dangerous locations to confirm the facts (e.g dipping into the Antarctic circle repeatedly and exploring around the Great Barrier reef) and boldness both with the regard to the extent of his explorations and going beyond the instructions given by the Admiralty. He showed a talent for surveying and cartography and was responsible for mapping much of the entrance to the Saint Lawrence River. ![]() During the Seven Years' War he served in the Royal Navy.
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