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List of contents
List of aAbreviations
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1 Terra Australis Incognita
2 Seventeenth-century Dutch Exploration
3 Tasman’s Voyages
4 From Tasman to Cook
5 Cook, the Endeavour and the East Coast
6 French Voyages to Terra Australis
7 English Voyages in the Age of Bligh and Vancouver
8 Flinders and the Investigator
9 Baudin’s Expedition
10 Phillip Parker King’s Australian Surveys
11 The Hydrographic Surveyors
Conclusion
Bibliography
About the author
Kenneth Morgan is Professor of History at Brunel University London, UK.
Summary
In this comprehensive study, Kenneth Morgan provides an authoritative account of European exploration and discovery in Australia. The book presents a detailed chronological overview of European interests in the Australian continent, from initial speculations about the ‘Great Southern Land’ to the major hydrographic expeditions of the 19th century. In particular, he analyses the early crossings of the Dutch in the 17th century, the exploits of English ‘buccaneer adventurer’ William Dampier, the famous voyages of James Cook and Matthew Flinders, and the little-known French annexation of Australia in 1772.
Introducing new findings and drawing on the latest in historiographical research, this book situates developments in navigation, nautical astronomy and cartography within the broader contexts of imperial, colonial, and maritime history.
Foreword
A comprehensive new study by leading historian Kenneth Morgan looking at the European exploration and discovery in Australia.
Additional text
Kenneth Morgan offers an accessible and well constructed compendium of the latest research on the history of European maritime exploration of Australia. Facts are laid bare, supported by documentary evidence in abundance; the individual contributions of nations are woven into a multilayered narrative; myths and controversies are thoughtfully broached; and innovative practice in cartography, anthropology and the natural sciences is systematically highlighted. Morgan skilfully plots the collective course pursued by European thinkers, adventurers and mariners over many centuries, from the concept of Terra Australis Incognita to the landmass that is Australia. A most worthy addition to the libraries of maritime historians, students and the general reader alike.
