Category Voyages

            The main purpose of Captain James Cook’s first voyage was to observe the transit of Venus across the Sun. It was at the behest of the Royal Society.

            Captain Cook set on this expedition from England on 26th August 1768. Those on board included the astronomer Charles Green and botanist Joseph Banks.

            The expedition rounded Cape Horn, and arrived at Tahiti on 13th April 1769, where Charles Green observed the transit of Venus across the Sun.

            Captain Cook then reached the south-eastern coast of Australia. Thus, he became the first recorded European to explore the coastline of Australia.

            He made his first recorded direct observation of indigenous Australians. The fleet made its first landfall at Kurnell Peninsula. Cook called the land ‘Stingray Bay’, which was later, renamed the Botany Bay. However, on the return journey, Cook’s ship ran aground on a shoal of the Great Barrier Reef, and became badly damaged.

               James Cook or Captain Cook was a British navigator, who mapped much of the South Pacific. He made three voyages to the Pacific Ocean, during which he became the first recorded European to explore the eastern coastline of Australia and the Hawaiian Islands.

               James Cook was born on 7th November 1728 in Marton, United Kingdom. His father was a Scottish farmer. Cook did his schooling in the village school. Young Cook used to help his father with farm work. During his teenage days, Cook began to get lured to the sea. At the age of 17, Cook moved to the coast, settled in Whitby, and found work with a coal merchant. He worked in the North Sea coal trade for John Whitby, and he proved himself to be an exceptional sailor. In 1755, Cook enlisted in the Royal Navy. He served in North America where he learnt to survey and chart coastal waters.

               He was a very fine seaman, and an excellent commander. In 1768, the British admiralty sent out an expedition, choosing Cook as the commander.

               The expedition was to witness a rare event, visible only in the southern hemisphere -the transit of Venus across the Sun.

               After leaving New Zealand, Abel Tasman sailed towards the north.

               He made a landfall on the southernmost island of the Tonga group, named Tongatapu. He received a cordial welcome from the islanders, and enjoyed their good hospitality. The amiable natives stocked his ships with food and fresh water.

               Later, as he sailed further, Tasman discovered the Fiji Islands. Nearing Fiji, he had to encounter one of the greatest dangers of the Pacific islands. He had to get his ships off a coral reef, with sharp rocks, to make a landing.

               He charted the eastern tip of Vanua Levu and Cikobia before making his way back into the open sea. During the difficult return journey to his starting point at Batavia, he still made a few discoveries. He located two more islands, which he named New Britain and New Ireland. He had mapped everything in detail.

               Tasman’s voyage was absolutely remarkable. He had started and ended his voyage in Batavia, which was a tremendous advantage for him, compared to other European explorers. 

          Tasman was the first European explorer to sight New Zealand. This finding led to the discovery of an alternative route to Chile, South America, and Cape Horn.

          Tasman called New Zealand ‘Staten Landt’, meaning land of the State General. He was convinced that it stretched all the way to Cape Horn, and that it joined up with another land discovered earlier by his countrymen.

          While on his voyage, Abel Tasman sighted a landmass, which he thought as the great continent in the south. He made a landfall there.

          Unfortunately, the local population called ‘Maori’ came out to the shore with weapons raised to defend their territory. In the skirmish, four of Tasman’s men were killed. Hence, Tasman named the land ‘Murderers Bay’.

          Tasman left the place without exploring the land further and it was also one of the reasons why Tasman did not discover that New Zealand consisted of two islands. 

            Abel Janszoon Tasman was born at Lutjegast, near Groningen, in the Netherlands. He was the first known European explorer to reach the islands of Van Diemen’s Land, which is now known as Tasmania, and New Zealand. He was also the first to sight the Fiji Islands.

            In 1642, the Governor General of Batavia, Anthony Van Diemen, decided to send out an expedition to explore the South Seas. The main purpose of the voyage was to explore unknown lands, and to claim new discoveries. The second aim was to find a faster passage to reach Europe from Batavia by sailing. Abel Tasman was ordered to command the expedition.

            He set out on a voyage with two ships, and 110 men. At first he sailed through already explored routes. Then he voyaged into unknown waters. For many months, there was no sign of land.

            Finally, he came across a land which he called Van Dieman’s Land after the governor general of Batavia. This was later named as Tasmania.

            He stayed there for only 10 days but in that time, he managed to chart a fragment of the coastline.

                The Portuguese, Spanish and the English were the dominant navigational powers. During the 17th century the Dutch overthrew everyone else, and became the mightiest seafarers. They flourished in the spice trade. They even started a trading company called Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, abbreviated to VOC.

               They realized that the route around the Cape of Good Hope was more suitable to reach the Far East. They had a base on the island of Jakarta, which they called Batavia. By the 1620s the Dutch were well established in Indonesia.

               Later, there had been sightings of a land to the south. Many Dutch seafarers tried to locate the land. Willem Jansz, a Dutchman became the first European to discover Australia, but he remained unaware of his achievement.

               Later, Dirk Hartog made landfall on an island off the coast of Shark Bay, Western Australia. The island was later named the Dirk Hartog Island after him. But the Dutch made no claim to the land, and they made no attempt to colonize it unlike the other European explorers.